Land of the Free

Long story short...I am now in America. The last few weeks have been crazy. I had prepared to go to South Africa to wait for my work visa to be ready. Just before leaving, many issues came up (crack in my car radiator only to find out the replacement I needed could not be located anywhere in Zimbabwe, etc). Friends helped me to quickly change gears and a few days later I was on my way to cross the border into Mozambique to spend some time with missionaries Rod and Ellie Hein instead.

Unfortunately, I was not permitted entrance into Mozambique. Since my last extension was expiring in a few days, I was asked to bring proof that I was leaving the country by that date and going back to my home country. So within 24 hours, I found myself in possession of a plane ticket back to America, and a group of very confused children continually wandering around on my veranda. The children from Fairfield kept knocking on my door while I (quickly) packed asking why I was going all the way back to America. Chenai kept saying, "Sister Janine, I thought we were going to spend Christmas together. Why don't you want to spend Christmas together?" Some grown up situations are difficult to explain, but I think I managed to get the point across.

I will have people checking at the immigration office in Harare to let me know as soon as the work visa is processed and then head back on yet another two-day flight. For the meantime, did you guys know it is only a few days until Christmas? It was hard for me to remember in all the summer heat of Zimbabwe, but as soon as I walked outside the airport in West Virginia, the frigid air helped jog my memory! Whatever the reasons or circumstances that led up to this point, I am very grateful to be suddenly tossed back to this side of the ocean if it means spending Christmas with my family and friends. We don't always know the reasons why life happens as it does, but we will keep on trusting that God does.

Hope you and yours have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I'll keep you posted. Until then, never cease to remember the children of Zimbabwe in your prayers...

Yellow Sunhats

Good news! I am still in Zimbabwe for a few more weeks and we are all very happy. I was given an extension until the end of November, at which time, I will be driving (yes, driving for about 20 hours!) to Tugela Ferry in South Africa. I have a friend who works there and has recommended an orphanage where I will be volunteering until my visa is ready in Zimbabwe.
This past month, we have accepted a few more children into the nutrition program. We currently have 30 babies and children coming each Monday to collect eggs, peanut butter and bananas. Although we have had 9 children pass away who have been apart of the nutrition program, we have also graduated 58 from the program over the last two years because of improved health!
Many of our children remain permanently on the nutrition program because of long-term illnesses. One boy, named Tanaka, has been my good buddy for many years. He has just turned 10. When I arrived back in September, I found him wearing a hooded sweatshirt with the hood pulled down very low to cover part of his face. When I lifted the hood to greet him, I found that both eyes were nearly sealed shut from infection.

Over the last two months, we have tried several different medicines along with pumping him full of Flintstone vitamins each morning as he stops by to collect his tablets. We also managed to replace the sweatshirt with a bright yellow sunhat so his eyes are still protected from the sun (a very HOT November sun!)
The condition never seemed to improve much until last week when we were able to take him to a special eye clinic in town. The nurse tested his eyesight and I was surprised to realize that he could not see the very top letter on the chart. When the nurse held up three fingers a few feet away and asked him to tell her how many were raised, Tanaka boldly replied, “one!” He was very proud of himself.
The last week has been a regiment of washing the eyes, apply ointments, and vain attempts to put in eye drops while Tanaka tried to escape. By Friday I didn’t see much improvement, but sent the medicine home to his grandmother anyway so she could continue for the weekend.
Monday morning, bright and early, Tanaka came with his sunhat still pulled far down to cover his eyes. When I lifted the hat to inspect the damage, I was amazed to see two eyes wide open and shining brightly back at me!
Tanaka drank his pills, chewed his Flintstone, and happily skipped out my door and down the dust road to school. I have never seen him skip before. It suits him…

Fasting

Well, there have been some new developments over the last month. I went to immigration to turn in my papers for a work permit to stay in Zimbabwe. Last time, I was given permission to stay in the country while they processed the papers, but this time I am being asked to wait outside Zimbabwe after submitting the necessary papers to apply for a work permit. I am allowed to return once the permit is ready, which can take 6 weeks to 6 months.
A few friends in South Africa are trying to organize somewhere I can stay and volunteer working with orphans and vulnerable children while awaiting news about my permit in Zimbabwe. I will be in Zimbabwe until November 8, and will let you know when I find out where I will be while I wait.

We know that God's purposes are so much better than what we can imagine for ourselves. I am reminded of a very important lesson God taught me during the time I was back in the US. When we fast from food, each time we feel hunger pains, it acts as a reminder to turn our attention toward God. It brings us into a closer relationship with Him. When we break the fast and eat food again, we remember to be grateful for it. In the same way, being separated from friends or relatives (either through death or by distance) we are in a way fasting from those we love. When we feel grief pains or miss the person, that too can be a reminder to turn toward God. He will fill any hole that is present in our lives. When we are brought back together with those we love (on earth or in heaven) we will be all the more grateful to be with the person again after fasting from them. God will be with us while we wait.

Please pray that I would be able to fast from my children and friends in Zimbabwe with patience and grace until God chooses in His great wisdom and perfect timing to bring us back together. Pray that I would know the right place to go in the interim. Thank you!

Chicken Dinner

Hello from Zimbabwe! I arrived safely on Thursday evening and
traveled to Fairfield Children’s Home on Friday afternoon. Saturday
we all attended a wedding for the one of the workers at Fairfield.
This was also the day that Nyarai moved in with me to House 11A.
Nyarai is the oldest child at the children’s homes and is preparing
for her high school exams in October, which will determine whether she
is able to go on to the final two years before college.

Having Nyarai in the house has made me realize it is time to grow up
and learn to cook:) When I was alone, I just ate whatever happened to
be in the cabinet. I remember when I was young, my mom would often
cook chicken for dinner. She always gave my brother and me the
biggest, nicest pieces and gave Dad the next biggest. She was left
with the smallest piece of chicken. I asked her once why she did that
and she said, “That’s what mom’s do.” I remember thinking that day
that I never wanted to be a mom if it meant I had to take the leftover
chicken! For some reason, that stuck with me.

On the day Nyarai moved in, she brought with her one laundry basket of
clothes, one box of school books, the stuffed frog I gave her a few
years back, and a plaque with a poem on it given to her by our
assistant administrator. She works hard at school, helps around the
house without me even asking, and stays up late into the night
studying for her exams. We went to town to buy groceries the other
day and among our purchases, we picked out a package of chicken. When
we cook it together, I can think of nothing that would make me happier
than to give Nyarai the biggest, nicest piece of chicken!

I Corinthians 13: 11 “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I
thought like a child, I reasoned like a child: but when I became I
man, I put childish ways behind me…”

I miss you all and hope you are doing well. Pray for us in Zimbabwe.
The HOPE program is continuing to assist children, but some are very
ill. Please pray for their health and for strength for the workers.
Thank you, as always, for your wonderful support!

Wenyu Munashe,
Janine

Dare to Love Completely!

Good news...Dare to Love Completely: A Memoir from Zimbabwe is now available! You can click the link on the right hand side of the blog to order from Amazon at any time. It is also available on the Barnes & Noble website. You can go to any bookstore and place an order by giving them the title and author.

Thanks to everyone who helped make this book possible. I hope you will enjoy it and be blessed by it.
Wenyu Munashe,
Janine

One-Way Ticket

Hi everyone! I was approved by the CornerStone board last week to return to Zimbabwe full time. I leave September 2, hopefully in time to see the HOPE children off to school for their third term.

Dare to Love Completely, A Memoir from Zimbabwe is currently "at press" and should be available by mid-August! This is the story of how God worked in the lives of the children and families in Zimbabwe during my first years there. I will send out a link to purchase directly from the publisher as soon as it is ready. You will also be able to order it from any bookstore and it should be on Amazon.com by September. Proceeds from the sale of the books will go to Project HOPE, so please spread the word to your family, friends and church community.

In the book, you will meet a little girl named Nyarai. I met Nyarai during my first trip in 1998 when she was just about to turn 6. She has been like a little sister to me ever since, and it is hard to believe she will be turning 17 this year. The administrator at Fairfield Children's Homes, where I will be living again, has given permission for Nyarai to come and stay with me once I move back. I am so excited that she will be a real part of my family now! She is still in high school and working very hard in hopes of becoming a nurse someday.

Until September, I will be visiting with family and friends and speaking at churches on the weekends. Hope everyone is having a wonderful summer!

Joy and Sorrow

This month, congratulations and condolences are in order for the HOPE families. I was pleased to find out we have our first HOPE graduate! Samuel Dzahana passed Form 6 (12th grade) with all A’s and B’s. He is eligible to attend a university in Zimbabwe. We want to help our children advance as far as they are able to in school. If you or your church/group would be interested in assisting with Samuel’s fees for university, please contact me.

On a sad note, two of the children on our feeding program passed away this month, Tuweje and Christopher. Please be in prayer for both of their families.

The school children have all started back for second term. Although we had to reduce the number of children when fees were increased at the beginning of the year, we have been able to increase again to 66 children in our education program thanks to 17 new sponsors!

I am hoping to move back to Zimbabwe the first of September. This will depend on approval from the CornerStone board when they meet in July. I have also been working for the last two years on a book called Dare to Love Completely about my journey with the men, women, and children of Zimbabwe. It is currently being edited and should be available around September. I will let you know when I have more details! Hope everyone is having a wonderful month!

Home is Where They Love You

Happy Easter everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful Easter weekend.
I felt very fortunate to be at home with my family, including two cute baby cousins to keep us all entertained. I never want to take family gatherings for granted, because each time there is a different group. Over the years we have had new people come, and others who can’t come anymore because they moved away, passed away or drifted away. Soon I will be the one who isn’t there for some of those gatherings as I prepare to move back to Zimbabwe. One thing never seems to change. Love and laugher are always present at our table. It is home to me.
I had the chance to travel to a few groups and churches throughout March and meet some wonderful people who have joined in supporting the HOPE project. At one stop, I was able to stay with a friend I hadn’t seen in a long time. As we were making fajitas in her kitchen, I noticed a sign above her stove that read, “Home is Where They Love You.”
It made me start thinking about where my real home is…certainly my family back in West Virginia loves me, so that must be my home. Then I remembered the faces of my children in Zimbabwe. Their love is so easily seen in the smiles and hugs and laughter. But, just like my family group is always changing and reshaping itself, my community in Zimbabwe changes too. New children come to the orphanage, some pass away, and others have to move away. Through these changes, it is still home to me because there is so much love present.
Home is not so much about bricks and mortar, but about the relationships we have. How can we feel safe in these relationships if they are always changing and reshaping? There is one place we can call home that is forever constant. God never changes. He was with us when no one had yet thought of us on earth, He is with us today and every day no matter what city, state, or continent we wake up in, and He is the one Who will walk with us from this life into the next. Some of you reading this may be very fortunate to have many places you could call home, many places where you are loved. There may be times for each of us when we don’t feel there is any place we can really go and feel at home. But we can be assured that God will always be our constant and consistent home. "Home is where they love you" (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) and every morning we are willing to wake up and look to Him, there is a resounding "Welcome home!"

“Lord, You have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.” Psalm 90:1

Wanted: New Sponsors!

Hey Everyone!
I have a list of over 400 great kids who are in need of a sponsor to help with their education. They have been identified by their local school teachers, pastors, and doctors in Zimbabwe as those most in need of assistance. Currently a little over 100 of these children are receiving scholarships from the HOPE fund, but I am hopeful that we will be able to place all of the children in school.
If you, a friend, your Sunday School, or other organization would be able to consistently provide $30 a month to sponsor 1 child (or more) please email me. You will be given the name and information about your child. A picture and yearly update letter from your child will follow as soon as I am back in Zimbabwe. Your monthly donation will provide school fees, 2 new uniforms a year, 1 pair of school shoes, and other supplies needed. If there are funds remaining for your child, we will provide a school sweater for the cold months (June and July), soap to wash their uniforms and other needs. I also promise to provide your child with a hug free of charge!
Below are just a few of the children in need of a sponsor...thanks and hope that you enjoy the Spring weather!

Where are They Now?

Lynn and I arrived safely back in the United States yesterday after a wonderful month with our children and friends. For those of you who have followed Project HOPE from the beginning, I thought you might enjoy an update on a few specific children you may remember.

Back in 2004 eight sponsors were located to help place two young children in boarding school after the death of their father (see Benji and Chipo, 2004). It is hard to believe that Chipo will be turning 13 next month. She is in her final year of primary school and will take her exams at the end of the year to see if she qualifies to go on to secondary school (junior high). Chipo has many friends and her smile can light up a room. Benji turned 16 last October and is in his second year of secondary school. He has grown into a polite and hardworking young man that we can all be proud of. They are both very thankful for those who have prayed for them and contributed to their schooling.

In 2005 while visiting children in the villages, Mai Chimbo and I found a very malnourished little girl named Faith. She was so weak she had to be carried out to meet us. Some of you may remember the miracle of her recovery and how we found her only one week later running around and playing with her friends after she received some healthy food from the nutrition program. Faith came to visit this January with her brother and uncle who she now stays with. She is now part of the HOPE education program and collects school fees and supplies each term. Faith has grown into a healthy 12-year-old who likes helping to care for her twin cousins that live nearby.

In August of 2006, Baby Janine was born, the daughter of one of my friends here. I was the first one to visit her in the hospital and had the privilege of carrying her up the mountain to her rural home when she was ready to leave the hospital. We traveled back to see Baby Janine last week, although she is no longer a baby:) She loves dancing and singing and it was evident that she is well-liked from the many people shouting to her as we walked back to the main road at the end of the day. She will start preschool next year and I am amazed how quickly time passes.


Project HOPE continues to assist children with nutrition and educational needs. Each Monday morning, children who are malnourished or HIV positive gather to receive food and soap. Each term, more than 100 children come to the office to receive school fees. They are all working hard in school and are very grateful to be receiving an education-an opportunity that many children are not given in Zimbabwe.


All the children are growing up so quickly, and I truly miss not being able to see them every day. Although we had a great time visiting everyone, the trip also served to remind me of where I have been called to work and what I have been called to do. I love working with the children of Zimbabwe and hope that it will be possible to return on a more permanent basis sometime this year.

Thank you to everyone who helped to make this trip a success. Even with increased school fees this term, we had enough to keep all the children in school. Your continued prayers and support are greatly appreciated.

Waiting for the Rain

Hello from beautiful Zimbabwe! Irikunaya...it is raining, storming in fact, and I love it. I have been waiting for the rain:) Lynn and I arrived safely in the capital city of Harare last Friday and began our journey to Fairfield Children's Homes the next morning. Everything is so green with beautiful flowering trees everywhere. The feel of the soft, warm breeze and the smell of rain in the air that I remember so well were a perfect way to begin our trip, but the best was yet to come.
As we turned onto the mission road, McDonald, one of the children from Fairfield was walking toward us on the dirt path. We stopped the car and as soon as he saw me he came running and jumped into my arms so forcefully I was literally knocked to the ground!
We continued on to the children's homes. Mai Mari Jeni was the first one to see us. She dropped her hoe into the garden and came running with arms open wide...followed by every mother and child at Fairfield...one after another after another. That must be what a welcome into heaven feels like...waves of love washing over you again and again and again. We sang and danced and I could see that all of our children here have grown big. Many of them are now young men and women and I am so proud of them.
We are managing this week with no electricity and no water in the homes. The children collect rain water in buckets for us each day when it rains. We are very fortunate that cholera has not arrived yet, but in other areas people are suffering.
The inflation finally hit an all time high of multiple billions to one US dollar last month, so everyone is using foreign currency now. People trying to get a ride to work or purchase food for their families have to use US money, but very few people have access to it, so they are forced to go without. How long can a country exist on someone else's money? Things here are extremely expensive now.
Please continue in prayer for Zimbabwe and the children. We are very happy here and God is continuing to bless each of us in the middle of the difficulties.