Monday we were supposed to go to Adziwa, but we found out it was a holiday. The staff would not be there so we had to make another plan. Instead of another day of down time we made plans to go out with Isaac and show Lauren a little more of Lilongwe. I would have been happy to organize my mess of things and just relax. This being Lauren’s first time in Malawi made that seem silly though. We called Isaac to come pick us up at 11:30 and asked Lauren what she wanted to see. First on her list was to go see the playground I had built 5 years ago.
The orphanage where the playground is is about 40 min from here near the airport. I spent several years volunteering there and staying there when I first started traveling to Malawi. I had not been back in about 4 years. I was excited to see the playground, but nervous to go back. Difficult to explain, but that’s how I felt. We arrived and walked down to where the children’s houses were. Things looked the same, but there were also some changes. A new guest house down in the village for volunteers has been built and looked great. There the playground was sitting right in the middle of it all. Still looking great and still with children on it playing. Slowly faces started to appear that I recognized. These kids have grown so much since I’ve seen them last. Many of them didn’t at first remember me, but after some talking I could see that they did. Lauren climbed up on the playground and asked me to take her picture. We jumped on the swings together and had a laugh while Isaac took some photos. Some of the kids I had been close with came around and we had hugs and caught up. My favorite house mother came walking out with an angry look on her face. I started explaining why I had come and I introduced Lauren. She hugged Lauren, but refused to hug me. She said she was angry that I had forgotten them all and hadn’t been back in so long. I told her that I had been working hard in another community here in Malawi for the past 4 years. I told her that I knew she and all the children had a great deal of support from other volunteers and I needed to move on to communities that were not as lucky. She seemed to accept this and soon was willing to forgive me. She said that God has taught her to forgive so she couldn’t stay mad at me for long. Some of my interactions with the kids were great, but there were some who had been so young when I knew them they just didn’t remember me or trust me. All of the kids looked great. Happy, healthy and much different than they did 9 years ago when I took my first trip to Malawi and met them all. Since hanging around didn’t feel right I went and said goodbyes and promised to be back to visit soon.
I’m not sure how Lauren felt about all of it, but hopefully at least seeing the playground made her happy. The experiences I had in the years I volunteered there helped to shape the way my life is now. Without those experiences I would have never started With Change In Mind. That place had a profound affect on me and although I don’t need to be there every year it still holds a special place in my heart and always will.
Lauren had read the blog I wrote about the refugee camp here in Malawi and said she also wanted to see that. We drove up into the mountains about another 30 min and had a walk around. I was glad this was something she wanted to see. When I was there a few weeks ago it had been an eye opening experience. I’m glad that I get to share some of Malawi with Lauren. It was fun to hang out with Isaac and for him and Lauren to get to know each other better. Lauren has listened to me talk about him for many years so it was important to me that they spent time together.
We got back in the car and drove back home. Along the way we stopped for Lauren to get a good look at “Malawian sausage” (mice on a stick) being sold a long the road and a quick stop to look at dogs that were also being sold. Two men had two puppies that they were selling and Lauren just had to stop to see them. She wanted badly to buy one and bring it back to the village. The village already has quite a few dogs so I told her no. She then wanted to buy the puppy for Isaac. He told us that one of his dogs had been hit by a car and he had been looking for one. Lauren offered to buy one for him just so she could hold it on the drive back. We were unable to agree on a price with the men selling so we just opted to drive on. Shortly after we got back on the road we found a cricket in the car. It kept jumping on Isaac and myself so finally we had to pull over. Of course once we pulled the car over we couldn’t find the darn thing! We all had a laugh and home we went.
We were dropped off at the lodge so Lauren could use he wifi for a bit and I could meet with Tovia. I had asked her a few weeks ago to come up with a wish list for Adziwa and I needed a copy of it. Lauren finished up on her phone so I called Tovia and said we would meet her along the road instead of at the lodge. We found her and I was able to get a copy of the list. I told Tovia I would see her Tuesday and we could wrap things up and go through donations together.
Since it was a holiday the village was open and there were people playing volleyball. Lauren and I went to watch for a while, but then wanted showers. We both got cleaned up and then hung around with Jess until dinner. The three of us ate a wonderful meal and then all went off to bed. A busy day and an early night. This would be Lauren and I’s last night in the village. It will be strange to sleep someplace else, but I’m ready to begin closing this years chapter and heading for home to begin work for next summer 🙂
I usually say I’ll take a month off from “Malawi” when I get home, but this year it won’t be an option. So much happening and I’m excited to dive in.