i miss africa

tonight, before heading to bed, i decided to do a little lurking on a few fave blogs. i came across one randomly called whatever. boy was i in for a bittersweet treat. megan, the auth just came back from africa. as i started reading and looking at pictures, i was totally overwhelmed with feelings and emotions and memories. going and to swaziland and then coming home was one the hardest emotional things i have had to do. i felt things i have never felt before and it was a new, different type of sadness and grief and rejoicing. its like i almost didn't know how to feel and sort through everything i had just seen and witnessed. although there was heartbreak and sadness in swazi, there is also triumph and joy. i sit here tonight feeling all of this.


i am glad for the reminder of what i learned, of what i love and why i went to africa. of the people i served, and of the people who served me - who made me a better person without even knowing it. just being them made me better. i hope i can be like them. and i now know...its time to go back.

that's all folks!!!! {at least for now}

well i have to put myself on hold from the blog. i discovered some health issues this weekend and really need to focus on myself and getting better right. i need to take a break from the everyday life things and fill my time with other things. probably doesn't make sense but i have to get well!!!

burgess may still post but seeing as she is a wife, mother, employed and going to school, the posts may be few and far between. if anyone is interested in carrying on the blog in my absence, let me know and i will get you hooked it.

love ya guys and send some prayers my way if you can!!!!

i've been served!!!!

last week was rough for me. i was feeling blue...i missed swaziland and how i felt while i was there, i felt down about myself and what makes me unhappy, i felt like i wasn't living up to what god wanted me to do....and then i found out my unlce had cancer {but don't worry...things are looking good for him}. life was hitting me hard and it was all i could do to make it through that day. but one morning i got to work and went to my desk and this was waiting for me:

the wonderfully thoughtful, generous, peaceful kind co-worker {i consider her a friend} had left this for me. simple and loving...it was just what i needed. i had been served and it felt good.

i have been pondering service since i got back from africa. i have had a few discussions with my bishop as well as my mom and some good friends. i have come to realize that god usually meets our needs through the kindness of someone else. it is amazing to me that he trusts us enough to do his work. he wants each of us to be cared for and looked after, and that't why we serve. he needs us to do his will.

its easy to think we are not doing enough of that our service is small...but i am starting to realize that any act of service is never small. when love is involved the outcome is grand...regardless of the outcome. do you catch my drift?

i heard some good lessons on saturday night at a women's conference i attended. one of my favorite things i heard was a quote from sister kimball:

"never surpress a generous thought."

i hope i can remember to live my life by this. that through my actions and as i serve, the meets of others will be met and i can be a tool for the lord's work.

woot woot!!!!

i am sure you guys know but glenn is the BEST!!!! here is his video for get off this bus. i am in love with it. i think it can apply to anyone. so crank up the volume, put on your dancin' shoes and let your heart smile!!!

For my Phoenix Peeps...

If you need pictures done, Lloyd Zeffler is where you need to go. Not only is he a fantastic photographer that makes everyone feel like a rock start, he's also super cool and giving away one photo shoot a month for "donation only." That's right, you can pay whatever you want to and it goes straight to our Africa fund benefiting Heart for Africa!!! AWESOME!! Go HERE for more details.

even more about beanies!!!

you can also read more about the heart for africa and prana partnership here and here. rock on prana!!!! i am just so excited about these beanies i could pee my pants!!!

And, speaking of beanies.....

Don't you need a cute new beanie for the fall? Athleta (a sister company of Gap and Old Navy) now has these cute hats for sale.....
And they're all made by Swazi women who are able to support their families by making them. Check out the listing HERE. What a great Christmas present for someone you love AND the women who make them!

The kids need YOU!!

Here is a great opportunity to put your talents to good use for someone else (specifically the cute kids in Africa!): If you can knit or crochet, join the beanie machine!!! Lot's of people think it's hot all year round in Africa, but they do have winter there -- so help keep a child warm and please help if you can!

And you don't even have to register and all that jazz, just get the beanies to Britta or Burgess and we'll get them where they need to be!CLICK TO ENLARGE

charity begins at home

love this thought from cb2...charity really does begin at home! and i love their their houses tote that they have right now. plus...a percentage of the sales will go to creativity explored: a nonprofit visual arts center where artists with developmental disabilities create, exhibit, and sell art. wow!!!

little did i know...

that the glamour magazine i got in the mail would provide such useful information!!! there was an entire page on ways to help out and ford was one of them. i have always been a dodge girl but i must give mad props to ford for what they are doing to help support breast cancer awareness. 100% of the net proceeds from the items they sell go to the susan g. komen for the cure. i think that's AMAZING!!!! especially in these tough times. that henry ford knew what's up. the following was on their website. i love it.

the other thing i love is when you test drive a ford vehicle now till the end of the year, ford will donate $20 to the susan g. komen affiliate in your town. can you say "WOOT WOOT!!!". so people....lets go test drive a ford and earn susan some money!!!! check out the store here.

helping hands serve africa

stories like this always make me smile! click here for the entire article.

anyone interest in joining me?

got this email today and am pretty excited about! not sure i can do it but i sure am going to try...read on for more details:

Sanibonani Team Running for Shelter in Swaziland!

We have a reason to run/walk/wheel in the Carlsbad Marathon this year...actually, 2,000 of them! Interested? Read on!

Who: You! Everyone is invited to join us as our feet meet the street for their heartbeats in the Carlsbad Marathon in California
What: The Carlsbad Marathon/ Heart for Africa is an Official Charity. You can run or walk 13.1- Half Marathon or 26.2 Full Marathon
Where: Along the beautiful coastline of Carlsbad, California
When: January 24, 2010
Why: There are 200,000 orphans in Swaziland today who are struggling to survive having lost their parents due to HIV/AIDS and there are 8,000 new orphans each month. We are running to raise funds for Celebrate Litsemba, a special event that will provide food, water, shoes, blankets, medical care and conclude with an amazing concert for 15,000 orphans!
When and how do I register? Register today, don't delay! Go to Heart for Africa's Official Marathon Page http://www.active.com/donate/heartforafrica2010 click on the tab that says: "Register for this event" and follow the instructions.
Need more information on the marathon? go http://www.carlsbadmarathon.com/site5.aspx or http://www.carlsbadmarathon.com/FAQ_s.htm
How do I train? You may have a program that you already train with, but if not....go to: http://www.runnersworld.com/. Scroll down to "Smart Coach" and develop your training programIf you have never designed a training program like this, you can input 15 minutes for your mile time:) Runners world has been training runners for over 40 years! I will also be sending a weekly team email out with great information and encouragement too! If you are local, we train on our own during the week and meet up on Saturday mornings for our long walks or runs! More information to follow once you officially register.
Where do I stay? We have several host homes available, you are welcome to stay with us!Also available to our team is a group rate from The West Inn and Suites a boutique hotel here in Carlsbad.OR, you can stay at the Official hotel of the marathon listed on the main marathon page.Please let us know once you register if you would like to stay at a host home, thank you!

Love is a movement, let's join together on January 24, 2010 and move out for the beloved children and people of Swaziland.

Register today, you will not want to miss this amazing event!

now available....LITSEMBA CHARMS!!!

that's right folks...these little lovelies are available for your purchasing pleasure. and at a whopping $5 each they are totally affordable. but guess what....when you buy more than two, they are only $4 each! the silver charm is just under 1 and 1/2 inches wide. it is stamped on one side and has decorative paper on the back side (each back may vary and are not all the same). its an adorable, simple reminder to all of us to always have hope and celebrate each day!

oh and did i mention that ALL of the proceeds go to support heart for africa? yay!!!!

simply email me at swazilandsweethearts@gmail.com with your name, shipping info, contact info and how many charms you want. i will send you an invoice and upon payment i will ship your charms.

want to win a charm? just simply leave a comment describing how you served someone recently or how someone has served you. then on september 15, i will randomly pick a name and you will get a free charm!!!

* shipping is only $1...no matter how many charms you order
* chain not included

* love the look of the charm but want it to say something different? just let me know and i can customize it

can you help?

Greetings from the Heart for Africa team,

We are excited to be writing you with an update on Project Canaan and have attached a document for your review. As you know the land was dedicated on June 21st, 2009 and building has begun. The Farm Managers building is nearing completion and will be ready for October 1st when Kaleli Mulli moves to Swaziland from Kenya. We have two bore holes dug providing a sustained 90L of water per minute for the smaller of the two and several times that on a third. A coffer dam is being expanded to hold 16 million gallons of water for irrigation (estimates range from 34 - 60 million liters).

What happens next is critical. We need to get the first crop in the ground in October before the rains come or we will miss an entire growing season, and that would set us back enormously. Without a crops growing we can't begin to make concrete plans for children to move on to the land. Food production must come first.

Wayne and Kaleli have worked diligently to get proper and reasonable costs together for this next stage. For us to prepare for and plant 30 acres we need 30 donors to give $5,000 each. That means one acre = $5,000. We have sold 2 acres already and we are so thankful for a donor who has offered to buy an acre for every acre that is donated, so we really only need to sell 13 acres more!!

As you have been on the land and seen the need with your own eyes we wanted to offer you the first opportunity to be a part of the FIRST HARVEST. We know that this may be a difficult financial time for some, but we are asking you to prayerfully consider giving a portion of your tithe or your gift to the Lord by funding one acre (or more) on Canaan. This email can be passed on to family members who may be interested in supporting this endeavor, but we will not send it out to our general donor base on Wednesday, September 9th. We are praying that all 30 acres will be funded before then.

We would need the funds at Heart for Africa by September 30th in order to move forward.
If you want to participate in this please email janine@heartforafrica.org no later than midnight on Tuesday so that we know how many acres are still available, if any, to release on Wednesday.
We are on our knees asking for His provision for His children.
In His service,

Ian and Janine Maxwell
Heart for Africa
678-566-1589
www.twitter.com/janinemaxwellwww.twitter.com/heartforafrica

howdy!!! good news…i arrived safely home from swaziland, africa and feel like my life is mostly back to normal. i have so much to tell you all and don't know where to begin so I will get started with this: THANK YOU!!!! there is no way i could have done this without all of the support and help from each of you. this experience has changed my life and i feel so blessed to have been able to go. saying thank you can never adequately describe how grateful i am.... but since I don't know what else to say.... thanks!!!

arriving in africa was surreal... my life long dream was coming true!! and i was so excited. we arrived to swazIland after a couple nights and HOURS of traveling. i remember instantly feeling loved and welcomed in their country. the swazi people were/are so friendly and loving and i felt it! I will never forget how kind they are. everyone waves at each other and friends holding hands is a common occurrence. it made me want to be nicer to strangers and people I see each day.

we arrived in swaziland on saturday and sunday we had the opportunity to go to church in one of the communities. it was a wonderful experience. the people in swaziland have such faith and dedication to god. they love him with everything and devote their lives to him! they sang and preached and danced and prayed... i even danced in the aisles and praised god with them! it was different than the quiet, reverent meetings that I am used to but I felt the spirit of the lord and had fun. it was great.

After church we went and saw the land where project caanan will be built. it's going to be incredible. i am not going to say anything else about it but if you want to learn more click here! canaan means the land of milk and honey and trust me…amazing things are in store!!!

monday was the first day at the school/orphanage. my heart was overwhelmed when we drove up the steep mountain and saw the kids in school and playing. i was exciting and overwhelmed and humbled and grateful.... It was a palette of emotions and it was wonderful. i knew god must dwell there because of the spirit i felt. we were able to tour the property and homes and i was so grateful that god had provided a way for all of these wonderful things to happen. you could truly see the hand of god in their lives. after our tour we got to work!!! the first day at the school i was able to garden with the kids in the sixth grade. i was also able to paint some of the medical clinic. but over the next couple of days i was also able to paint, paint, paint, play with the babies, sort through TONS of donated items, help out in preschool and paint some more!!!! each day was filled with blessings and each day brought feelings of love, peace and a desire to do good. it was awesome.

i also was so touched with the story of the medical clinic. charmain told us that someone asked her what the kids and the school needed most. at the risk of sounding selfish, she told them that they needed a real medical clinic with real doctors who could treat the kids as well as the community. charmain had been treating people the best she could with no medical degree but they just needed more. within two weeks of her simple request, she received all of the funds needed for the clinic. i'm convinced god works in mysterious ways...and sometimes he works in obvious and generous ways. WOW!!!!

another awesome part if the trip was a program called litsemba. litsemba is the sis-swati word for hope. the program was called “celebrate litsemba” and they had kids from three different orphanages prepare dances and singing and talents. it was awesome!!! the kids are so happy and so confident in what they were doing and the talented gifts they have been given. they did a wonderful job and i wad touched. this was the first year of the celebration, but they are getting ready for next july when they are doing a huge celebration. they will have 15,000…yes FIFTEEN THOUSAND orphans there to celebrate litsemba. it’s amazing and overwhelming all at once!!!! I am grateful I was able to see it.

while we were there they were finishing up a playground. it wad beautiful!!! charmain (her and her husband run el shaddai) told us that they had received the donation for the playground. it was a ladies wish that when she passed away, some of her money would be used for a playground for the kids. and her wish was coming true. not only were they getting a huge playground, but they were also getting one for the toddlers. it was smaller and fenced in and perfect for the little kiddos. i was exited for them!!!! people are good.

i can never forget the kids. they are precious and wonderful. tt was so great to feel their instant love. the moment you get there, they wanted to be with you and hold your hand and hug you and talk to you. they just wanted you to love them and they made it so easy to!!! they were happy and laughing and smiling. and even though they wore rags and had bare feet and weren't perfectly kept and clean, they were beautiful and perfect. and they were happy. most of those kids had experienced more trials and heartaches in their short life than i will ever experience. yet they smiled and laughed as if they didn’t have a care in the world. in fact, all the swazi people were loving and peaceful and hopeful. seeing how they lived their lives has forever been imprinted on my heart. i came home with a commitment and desire to have gratitude for my circumstances and to also strive for the peace that god can give us in our times of despair and sorrow. i realized that because of the faith of the swazi people, god gave them peace in their hearts and hope in their minds. i have a greater understanding of what it means to rely on god. i thought i was one tough cookie and could handle any trials god placed before me, but i had no idea what it really means to have strength!!! i am blessed.

since coming back from africa, my desire to serve has grown immensely and i feel as if my commitment to do good needs to be renewed and strengthened. I can’t get the swazi people off my mind and i feel like i should be doing any and all that i can for them. but my desire to serve doesn’t just dwell with the swazi people. I feel like i need to be committed not only to the needs of the people in africa but also to the needs of my community, my neighborhood, my friends and my family. so for this reason I am starting the swaziland sweethearts organization. the "SSO" is like a community; a gathering place for good. it is a place to come to learn about service, to be inspired and to know how you can help. there are so many ways to serve and not only do i want to get excited about serving, but I hope this site will help you to have desire to serve as well as inspire you to love others. so with all of your help, i know we can do good and make a difference!!! we can have success through serving and our world will be better because of it. so keep checking back for opportunities and information.

africa has changed my life.

i will never be the same.

i will forever be a better person.

xo . britta

my life has changed

i left my heart in africa along with many things...

hoping joy and love and faith are what it surely brings.

i went to change a life or two but had mine changed instead.

i didn't know their love could fill the spaces in my head.

but now my thoughts are turned to christ and all he'd have me do.

to let god's precious children know his love is strong and true.

and through the service i can give they'll feel his spirit strong.

and if they will just follow him he'll never steer them wrong.

'cause there are those who've never known the deepest love from god.

and all the blessings they can have if they hold the iron rod.

so i'll do my part from here on out to spread the savior's love,

and help the unbelievers know that there's a mighty god above.

and through my works and what i do they'll know he's all around.

they will know the peace he gives and feel his love abound.