Heading
After a hearty breakfast at The Leslie it was time to pack our suitcases and get ready for dreaded travel day(s) back home. It’s funny how neatly the suitcases were packed on the incoming trip compared to the packing chaos on the way back. Smelly clothes, stinky shoes, artifacts from the wood market (we think might have been made in Malawi) and left over protein bars that aren’t the same shape or texture after spending a week or two in the Malawi heat. We left our fearless leader Marco in the airport in Blantyre. Marc is travelling home via Johannesburg, and Frankfurt. This was a training trip for Marc and Susan as they are planning to lead future teams without a person from HFL. Great start Marc and Susan! Also a thank you Rueben from HFL for guiding us through some complicated logistics. Thank you Rueben for the friendships we built.
The return trip was a 1 hour south to Biera in Mozambique to pick up more passengers, a 2 hour layover in Abbis Abba in Ethopia, a fuel stop in Rome, Italy, and a final leg to Toronto, Canada. In Addis Ababa we said goodbye to Rueben, and got in the extremely long queue for security. 2 screenings and 4 passport checks later we finally made it to the gate.
The 16 hour flight home gives you some time to reflect.
Here are some takeaways:
We travelled many miles through the Malawian countryside, among the poorest people in the world. The people of Malawi are kind, and will give you a genuine smile and a happy wave. You don’t need to be well off to be kind. We truly experienced that Malawi is the “warm heart of Africa”
Travelling with a team that was mostly strangers on day one, became a group of life long friends. We had some challenging experiences with long travel days, early mornings and hot sleeping conditions without power. We fought through it together!
We saw the work that Timotheus is doing with our own eyes, the children come from terrible homes, poor conditions, abuse, and broken families. They now have a place that is safe, they are loved, they have food to eat, and most importantly they hear the word of God. We pray that God will use thse means to work in the hearts of these children.
