Newsletter – August 2020
The ice snapped and crunched deeply this morning as we walked on the morning frost. The orange dawn unfolded before us like a painting. The morning air was clean and crisp. The dawn was pregnant with promise and hope, with stories yet to be written.
It’s a jarring juxtaposition that the orange dawns also bring much trepidation, as I retrieve my early morning messages from a continent so far away. African friends bring me daily stories of battlefield losses and victories slaying the COVID monster. Today as I read these messages over a hot steaming African red bush tea, I pondered how thick the ice was for the people near the purple-headed mountains. Were the Zulu people we love seeing the same promise and hope in their orange dawns?
Deep into winter, COVID remains an ever-present scourge. Masks and social distancing have become the new way of life. The situation in Victoria is deeply troubling and NSW is sitting on the precipice. In many regards, however, our lives are carrying on. We are fortunate to have provisions and safety nets around us; our leaders implore us to have free and accessible COVID testing at the slightest hint of any symptom.
At the same time Australia reached its 8000th Covid Case, South Africa reached 8000 cases per day
My mind is circling today on Phum, a poised and articulate young Zulu mother in rural South Africa. Her association with our family and AAF is long, and profound – a testimony to the transforming work of the Foundation, how a broken life can be regenerated to a life of significance, hope and impact. Phum is a beacon of hope, and she is deep in a battle with COVID.
Phum’s story of transformation is the backdrop to her impact in the community. One who has been desperately broken and forgotten can minister to people in ways that are beyond our comprehension. Phum finds people who may have HIV/AIDS and sorts out their testing and ARV treatments. She feeds hungry families with what she has, and advocates for the fatherless. She is the sole teacher of 80 home-based carers, an integral component of AAF’s work in the community. She trains these strong and selfless women to search for, visit, care for, wash, and palliate zulu people scattered in villages beneath the mountains.
Even in her COVID battle, she continues her mission to help neighbours find burial plots, hand out masks, share sanitiser in the absence of running water, and convince those in her community to cremate their dying.
Phum finds the diamonds that are unseen by the world, the transformation stories yet to be written, and she shines them. I am certain that it was the openness and kindness of her heart to seek out the hidden diamonds that opened the door to COVID.
We are reassured that her children, Benjamin and Miracle, have been held and cared for by those in her community. While Phum has traversed the shadow of the valley of death, she has been supported by countless Aussies who know her story. So many of you, our friends, have lifted Phum and her children up in your prayers. We give great thanks for these prayers, as she faces an ongoing tough and unknown recovery phase. For now, the AAF team will support her as she learns to be still and know.
As I write this, our AAF team are entering their 160th day of lockdown. One in three people are jobless. Our team describe a terrain in which people are not tested when they become ill from breathing in this icy bitter winter. We hear stories of death descending on the third day. They describe recurrent red mounds of dirt near the many AAF gardens, signalling the end of dreams and hopes for a neighbour. They fret that these lost souls will not be numbered as COVID fatalities, but simply forgotten. They write of hunger which growls deeper than the dreaded COVID beast, as bellies shrink and ache at bedtime.
One in Three are now Jobless in the communities in which AAF works
My tea has now gone cold and the orange sky has brightened. Despite the trepidation and the messages laced with fear and sadness, I would be betraying our African brothers and sisters if I did not share the corresponding aroma of hope. The surety that goodness, love and mercy will follow all the days of our lives.
Friends, there are countless more Phum-like stories waiting to be written. Broken and forgotten lives waiting to be transformed. We, the AAF Board and team, live expectantly with the hope and promise of a new dawn. It is my earnest hope that you will see the potential of one transformed life, and the difference it can make to an entire community. This is the business of AAF – transforming lives, one by one.
May we be thankful for our many blessings in Australia, which allow us to extend our hands to others and be a blessing. Our team remains committed to finding the hidden diamonds. Will you help us keep Phum’s light shining brightly, to reach those who are most in need?
Grass withers and flowers fade, but hope persists.
Thank you
Jane.
AAF Board Member.