Does 28 Mean Death Or Life For You?

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”-James 1:27

This Saturday I turn 28 years old. I know I say this every year, but I just can’t believe it. I used to think that was old and now I realize that I still feel like I am 21. In America there is nothing really abnormal about turning 28. You get the occasional jokes about how old you’re getting because you are only 2 years away from turning 30, but other than that there is nothing all that special about it. Well, in Swaziland it is a different story. Here in Swaziland, the average life span is 28.1. This basically means that if you make it to the age of 28 you are one of the lucky ones. Many will never see this age. To them 28 is like 100 years old to us. It is a hope, not a certainty.

A little over a week ago we were able to visit an area here in Swaziland called Nsoko. This is an area where you can find some of the poorest people in the country. Many children can go days without food and if they are able to get food it is only through the local care points where they will find it. Many are dying of AIDS and don’t know what a real family unit looks like. Many of the young girls will sell their bodies just to be able to eat for a meal. The people here, as in most of Swaziland, are desperate and will do desperate things to survive. I think of the wonderful childhood that I experienced and how none of these kids will ever have that or anything close. It absolutely breaks me heart. I want more for them and I don’t even know them.

The population of Swaziland has decreased dramatically in the past year. This means that more people have to be dying than being born. If you come here, the fact that more people are dying than being born is almost unbelievable because there are children everywhere you look. I have never seen so many children. So, just imagine how many people must be dying. A local Pastor told us that he has to find other people who can conduct funerals for him because there are just too many people dying and he can’t do all the funerals himself. AIDS is killing this country and they don’t even know it. When the younger generation is told this horrifying fact, they think it is a joke. They can’t understand how sex is killing them. A large cause of the disbelief is because the King of this monarchy continues to marry wife after wife. He is their example and it is only time before his lifestyle will kill him as well. It is a social and cultural problem that must be stopped otherwise the whole country will be gone in our lifetime.

The hand I hold in this picture is the hand of a child suffering from AIDS. Last Friday we went to build a fence and garden for a lovely woman named Make (Mother) Peggy. She is a single woman who takes in children that have been abandoned or orphaned by their parents and are knocking on death’s doorstep. She has 10 children who live with her currently. Make Peggy is a retired teacher so she barely brings in any money herself. With the money she does have she provides clothes, food and shelter for these orphans. I was sitting with her helping create profiles for each child in hope that people will choose a child to support. As I was listening to each child’s story, all I kept hearing was how each child has was abandoned and left for dead by their parents or that their parents were dead (most likely from AIDS or other health issues). Then one story really struck me. This beautiful little boy walked in the room looking a little shy and confused at who the white people were. Make Peggy called him over, told us his name and said that he had AIDS. Im not sure what happened, but I just started crying. I had to hold the tears back because I didn’t want him to feel bad. I think the reality of it just finally hit me. We know the stats. We know that many children we see here have lost their innocence to rape, have AIDS or have seen their family members die already in their lifetime, but I guess hearing his story just finally made it real to me. His parents are both dead and he has most likely had AIDS since he was born. He never had a chance, and the odds of him living to be my age is slim to none. Every time I look at him my heart breaks. It just doesn’t seem fair. He did nothing to deserve it in yet it is most likely what will take his life.

Where do we find the hope in these stories? Honestly, it is hard to many times. But, I feel like there can be hope. My team wants to see change here in Swaziland. They are not ok to sit back and watch this country waste away. The guys on our team have been handed over the rights to a boys high school here in Manzini where they can teach about God and pretty much do whatever they want to. God has opened to doors wide open for them. The opportunity is amazing and the possibilities are endless. Change starts with this generation. Not just to teach them purity, but to teach them self-respect and what it means to truly have Christ change their lives from the inside out. I can’t wait to see how God is going to use this team to change lives and even a country.

In the meantime, we will love them. We will love the children who have no parents, who have become numb to the sting of death and we will be Christ’s touch to them. We will hold the hand of the AIDS stricken orphan whose only prayer is to be healthy again. We will show them that they are worth it and they have not been forgotten. All I know is that I will never take for granted the little things ever again. I pray that God uses us in big ways over the next 3 months and that I never take for granted each year that I get older because for most here in Swaziland it is their last.

For His Glory,

Caroline 🙂

Ps. 56:3