As my time here comes to an end, many emotions spread through my body and soul. Question such as “What is going to happen to the nine children I taught for a year?” Luckily, this one is answered for me. The third Young Adult Service Corps member is headed to Grahamstown, South Africa. A young man, Matt Kellen has answered the call that I received over a year ago. I am so thankful that the Episcopal Church continues to see the need of a positive role model in Grahamstown and the need for a positive male role model in the Xhosa community. I have had contact with Mr. Kellen and know that he will fill the role that I am passing on to him, in his own way. I wish him the best and Godspeed in his new role.

As for me, I am heartbroken and saddened to leave the children that have been in my life. I am especially saddened by leaving Asanda Krantz with no family of his own. I know that through the love of Rev. Suzanne Peterson and his other godparents, he will feel the love that I gave him while I was serving and I know that he will continue to feel my love through those individuals.
I am thankful for all the support of the Episcopal Church and  to those whom supported me: my family, friends, and strangers. I felt their prayers with me and know that I could not have had the strength for my mission on my own.

My faith has grown this past year. My time with the Lord and his servants has shown me the importance of Grace, love, forgiveness, and new beginnings with him. I will never forget the individuals that I came in contact with this year, nor the lessons I learned. I have been blessed this year in more ways than I can explain. Thank you for this opportunity to share my faith and love with those I encountered. They taught me much.

5/3/07 -

This past Sunday, I held the first annual Easter egg hunt for the children of the after-school program. It was hosted by the monastery and was a great pleasure for me to see all the children faces as they rummage through the gardens on their quest for chocolate cover marshmallows. They also dyed some eggs and enjoyed decorating them with various stickers and drawings. I never thought that I could do it without the aide of PEP egg dye, but somehow I managed. It was great to see the smaller children teaching the bigger ones how to dye the eggs and how to use the wax form a crayon to decorate them.

My work at the hospital is still going well. I am currently a surrogate mother to three babies all under the age of 3 months. Each newborn is an abandon case, and in one case his mother is too sick with AIDS to care for him. This little one has just come down with pneumonia, which is not hard when one stays in the hospital for too long with a depressed immune system. He has a face on an angel, but always looks scared and too aware of his situation. I have extended my hospital visits and now found myself in the children ward everyday to hold and give my love to them. The crisis of HIV/AIDS in the country, in my eyes, is increasing daily. There are ARV clinics throughout the town, but the numbers of those inflicted with this disease continues to rise. The number of children within the last three months, that have come in HIV positive makes my heart cry with despair, anger and questions. I know what makes me most upset is that I know what will happen to the majority of these children; I know the likelihood of their survival to see their teens. I have seen the complications that come with this disease and the poverty that surrounds it.

At the end of the day, I pray. I pray that I am wrong about the outcomes. I pray my optimism will prevail and that there will be a cure for this disease soon. I know that God plan will prevail, and that is where my hope lies.