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Brooke Bruns
One bright day last May the three of us who were the February 2007 Footprints cohort, walked our final trip down the winding South African dirt road that led from our accommodation to the Hands at Work in Africa staff base. We admired the majestic view of hills filled with huts in the distance, and we teased and joked with one another, remembering our 3-months training time together and anticipating the 6-to-9-month journey we were each about to embark on at separate Hands at Work projects across Africa.
Meg and F.M. had become my close friends. Visits to orphanages, AIDS hospices, orphan schools and daycares, orphan run homes, AIDS patients, police chiefs, and even a witchdoctor had become part of our weekly routine. We had seen and volunteered in all Hands at Work offered to its community-based projects. We were learning to be the kind of volunteers that would strengthen the capacity of the leaders in the projects we would soon depart for.
I was destined for Mozambique where I would offer my skills as a registered nurse at the Rubatano Home-Based Care project, and while I was excitedly anxious for what lay ahead, I was also very sad to leave the dear friends that had become part of my life.
I landed in Mozambique full of curiosity, discovering my new home for the next six and half months. Immediately I began to learn the ways of “bush” nursing as we trained in the baby clinic and worked in the communities with Rubatano home based care. Everyday I learned new things about nursing and steadily fell in love with the people I served.
I loved the hospitality that seemed to be priority in the country, and I never grew tired of the many interesting dishes of food that were set before me. It was a culture that seemed set in a different time when tailors, butchers, and bakers all had their own shops. Outdoor markets were abundant, and fresh produce was stacked in neat piles always ready to be sold. Children loved to run and follow me and any other white person yelling “azungu” as we went along the dirt paths winding around the mud and thatched huts.
As time went on, I felt more confident in my nursing skills and I learned how to practically share God’s love with my patients, hoping seeds would be planted. I also took time to travel to visit Megan in Zambia, my fellow Footprinter and friend, participate in an African wedding, learn the national language of Portuguese, help lead mission teams, enjoy a visit from my Dad, and discover God in a whole new way. I found that God had so much more to show me about his love in Africa. It was there through the volunteers at Rubatano home based care, through Carlos, through my friends at Maforga, and through my friends at Hands at Work that I discovered the power of God’s love for me and for the lost. It was an unforgettable experience that I will always carry with me throughout life, whose lessons have shaped me and my continued walk with the Lord.
I loved my neighbors as well at Maforga Christian mission, where I was inspired by the international group of people there who had dedicated their lives to serving the Mozambiquens. I truly felt like a part of the Christian family there, and enjoyed many hours of bible studies, prayer, church, and game times with them. Carlos, my project leader, lived there as well, and I felt extremely supported by him as almost like a second Dad.
As time went on, I felt more confident in my nursing skills and shared the gospel with all of my patients hoping seeds would be planted. Alongside, I was able to take an adventurous trip to visit Megan in Zambia, my fellow Footprinter and friend, participate in an African wedding, learn the national language of Portuguese, help lead mission teams, enjoy a visit from my Dad, and discover God in a whole new way. I found that God had so much more to show me about his love in Africa. It was there through the volunteers at Rubatano home based care, through Carlos, through my friends at Maforga, and through my friends at Hands @ Work that I discovered the power of God’s love for me and for the lost. It was an unforgettable experience that I will always carry with me throughout life, whose lessons have shaped me and my continued walk with the Lord.