Ok, so it’s been a few days since I’ve last updated… sorry! I was doing so well there for a while… what happened? So what’s new…? Not all that much, really. Last week was good. The weekend was fun. :) Oh! I finally started going back to power boxing again. Wow, I could tell it had been a while since I’d done it, but now that I’m back into the regular routine again, I’m doing fine.
School and girls club has been going very well lately. The schools continue to confuse me with changes in schedule and unexpected assemblies (so then I don’t get to teach) but I’ve learned to be flexible and just go with the flow! Girls club is different every week. Last week I had a ton of girls there, and they were quite unruly! But this past week baseball practice started, so a lot of them were there, and the numbers were back down to a reasonable size. I like having a lot of girls there, but at the same time, too many overwhelms me!! Yesterday was a great number. There were a lot of them, but not so many that I couldn’t control them. We learned some new songs, did some art, and had a lesson on how special they are and how God even knows their names. I love teaching them such simple, but truthful lessons! Yesterday I also gave a lift home to a couple of the girls. They each lived in pretty nice houses (compared to the others in their area). Here’s some exciting news! On Friday, I am picking one of the girls up from school and I’m going to her house to visit!! I’ve never been to my students’ homes before, so this will be a new experience for me. I’m excited to meet her family! The girl’s name is Ziphora, and she’s been one of my treasures since last year. Who knows where this will lead!
This past weekend I hung out with the missionary families. American Idol is on here if you have a satellite dish, so I went to the Lechners’ house to watch that on Friday night. :) Saturday afternoon I spent with Janna Kay and Joshuwa when Kurt and Ruth Anne went to a rugby match. What would I do without my missionary family?? Sunday morning I went to Rand Lisa’s again. It went pretty well… the kids were crazy, but hey… that’s what makes them fun and exciting! :) Sunday evening I went back to Northcliff and once again, I really enjoyed it. I also went back to the young adults Bible study on Tuesday night and for the first time in quite a while, I really felt like I fit in! It was so great to walk into a room full of people my age, and know at least half of them by name. I’ll definitely be making that a regular Tuesday event!
Now I am busy with preparing for my exams next week. It’s crazy to be studying for exams again! But after next week I’ll have about a month until the next term begins at the college. It’ll be nice to have the break, but I don’t know what I’m going to do with my extra time!! I’ve enjoyed having something to do and somewhere to go when I’m not teaching. I’m sure I’ll find something to keep me occupies though!
That’s about it for now… I’m strangely tired today, and I’m going to TRY to go to bed at a regular hour tonight. Usually when I try that though, I can’t sleep! Tonight I think will be different though. Having to get up early for college makes me sleepy by the end of the day!
Have a great week, and thanks for checking in on me!!!
Love to you all…
Bonnie B.

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

What a great weekend! On Saturday I joined a group from Northcliff Union for a ministry event in Rand Lisa's, an informal settlement close by. Everything went very well until it started to rain... and then pour... and then HAIL! Crazy... they kept on playing soccer (football) though. They're serious about some soccer! Afterwards some people shared testimonies and the like. It went very well! (By the way, I played volleyball, not soccer, and we stopped playing when the rains came!!) I went back today to see what was happening at the church, and I just loved it. I helped with the kids part. We take the kids out for Sunday School while the adults have the sermon. I LOVED it!! I ended up with the little bitty kids... the ones who don't really listen to the lesson, and afterwards I was asked if I would come back and kind of take on the little kids every week! I said yes, and I am so VERY excited! This is the kind of thing I have wanted to be a part of for quite some time. God is truly answering my requests of something new in the area of ministry, and I couldn't have asked for something better. I finally get to work with little kids again!!! Tonight I went back to Northcliff Union and had a totally different experience than last week. This time I knew enough people that I didn't feel left out and like a stranger. I met some awesome people yesterday (at the sports event and then later at a bday party) and it was cool to be able to see them again tonight. I'm also meeting one of the girls and going through with her to the Bible study on Tuesday night! Hooray for new and exciting things to look forward to!! 5 or 6 weeks ago I couldn't have imagined my plate being this full and life being so exciting. It's funny the way God works... and the people He works through to get you to points like this!! (Rog, that's a shout out for you man... all this is happening b/c of one conversation... and then one thing leads to the next!) Who knows what the future holds. :-D Life is grand. For once it is Sunday night and I am thrilled beyond description to be going into a new week. No more, "oh yay... another week." Dang, God's awesome, isn't He?!? I can't wait to see my kids tomorrow and Tuesday and my girls at girls club Tuesday afternoon. We're finally starting the actual Bible study this week, so that ought to be fun and exciting. Alright friends... those faithful few of you who still check this thing. You guys rock. God bless!!
Cheers,
Bon

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Alright... It's been a few days since I have last updated, so here is a short update. (I’m tired, so it’s going to HAVE to be short!) Mom and Dad left on Thursday. That was definitely hard, and it hasn’t been an easy transition for me, but God is bringing peace to my heart one day at a time. Angie took us to the airport, and I was so thankful for her presence!! She helped everything go as smooth as possible, and I was grateful for not having to drive after saying the VERY hard goodbyes to Mom and Dad. My missionary family has been doing their best to keep me busy so I don’t think too much about missing Mom and Dad. Friday night I went to Frank and Sheri’s house for dinner and cards. Then I went and spent the night at the Holidays’ house since I had to get up early to go with them to Ruth Anne’s big horse show Saturday morning. I went to watch after Joshuwa, but I also got to see Ruth Anne ride, which was a really neat experience! She did great… both she and Ivy (her horse) were beautiful. :) That lasted almost all day Saturday, but once I came home around 4pm I got sad again! Just about everything reminded me of Mom and Dad’s being here and I just wanted them to be back again! But I got through the night, as usual! Hehe Today I went to church at Ridgecrest and then out to lunch with the Holidays afterwards. Ruth Anne and I chilled for a while at the mall and then I went back to their house. Then a little later we went over to the Lechner house to practice music for AMTM (Annual Missionary Training Meeting) since we’re leading for that week. I visited a new church tonight called Northcliff Union. It was a great service, but I hate being a stranger! (Guess I should like it though since Christ tells us to be strangers to this world!!… but that’s another topic… hehe) Anyway, here’s a challenge to any young adults out there who are involved in a church. If you ever see someone who looks remotely close to your age and sitting alone, TALK to them! I know it’s not always easy, but I assure you that the visitor feels 10xs more uncomfortable than you!! By simply saying hello and introducing yourself, you can ease their nerves tremendously. All that to say, that didn’t happen to me tonight. People weren’t rude or anything, but no one went out of their way to say hello. I guess they all have their quota of friends or something… who knows. I did see one girl that I had kind of met before, so we chatted briefly and then I saw Craig, who goes to my college, and he introduced me to a few people before I had to go to team prayer. I’ll probably go back again sometime (maybe even next week!) and maybe more people will talk this time. Or maybe for once I’ll get the nerve to talk to people – we’ll just have to see! I really did enjoy the service though, and I certainly met with God, which is what worship is about anyway! Talking to strangers isn’t easy for anyone, so I’m not gonna hold it against them (yet! hehe) It takes a while to make friends, and since this is a good, close church that is into missions, I want to give them another chance. :) Well, that’s about it for tonight. Tomorrow I go to Lake View Primary to teach, and I pray it goes smoother than it did last week!! Thanks for checking in on me!
Cheers,
Bonnie B.

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Ok, I am quite irritated with this website right now!! I just updated a lot about my parents’ visit to Soweto earlier this week, and all of a sudden it’s gone – just like that. Grr… I love computers, but they can be a real pain sometimes. So let me try to quickly recap. On Monday I took my parents with me to Lake View Primary to see me teach. But since Monday was Valentine’s Day, every kid in the school was going crazy. I kind of got to teach one class, and even that was filled with interruptions. It’s a good thing that being a teacher, as well as a missionary, the words, “be flexible” are drilled into my head! After that, we drove around Soweto for a little while and visited a museum about the Soweto uprisings that lead to the ending of Apartheid. On Tuesday we went to Emadlelweni Primary, but soon after arriving, I was informed that a child from the neighbouring school had passed away earlier in the week. (The child was from Lilydale, but since she was a grade 5, I never taught her.) Well, the kids at Emadlelweni were busy preparing for a memorial service that was to be held later in the week. We got to teach one class though, so I’m grateful for that! After that, we went over to Lilydale for the girls’ club. When I arrived, I saw that they had decorated the chalk-board and it said, “We love Bonnie, from Girls of Grace.” Wow… talk about a blessing. I guess the girls now have an official name, “Girls of Grace.” Sounds good to me! The girls numbered about 50 this week – WOW! They’re growing every week. The more the merrier… more kids means more girls hearing about Christ! They sang many songs this week both in English as well as Zulu. My parents and I were truly blessed.

Tomorrow (Thursday) my parents are leaving South Africa and flying home. :( Such bitter-sweetness! I’m sure they’re ready to get home, and I am kind of ready to get back to my usual life, but we know it will be at least 9 months before we see each other again! The past two weeks have been so nice… being able to let them share in my South African life. I’ll truly miss them. Please pray for the three of us as we say difficult goodbyes!! Thanks!

Love and Peace,
Bonnie B.

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Wow... it's almost 2am here, and I'm not asleep. Why you ask? Well, let's just say that having 2 cups of coffee after sunset is not such a great idea!! Oh well, at least I got all my homeork done for college tomorrow and I managed to bake a 1/2 recipe of choc chip cookies to take with me to share with my collegues tomorrow. Hope they appreciate them! hehe Tonight was an awesome night. My friends all came over and they each brought something "South African" for dinner. I wish I knew how to spell what we had, but even if I could, you wouldn't know what they were anyway, so I'll spare us all the confusion and just say it was all wonderful!! It was also cool to have most of my friends all over here again. I think my life is finally coming back and it's such a great feeling. :o) I know my parents enjoyed seeing how crazy my friends here are! They feel pretty confident that I "am in good hands" with the friends I have made here. Each one of them is such a blessing to me... I need to think about that more often and really learn how to appreciate them! Well, the cookies are almost done, and I should at least TRY to go to sleep... since I do have class for almost 6 hours tomorrow - yikes!!
Goodnight all...
Bonnie B.

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Sunday mornin' rain is fallin'... Ok, so there's no rain fallin' but it is Sunday morning! Last night Mom, Dad and I went to Carnivoure, which is a nice restaurant that serves game meats (as well as other things). I finally got to try giraffe! I've been to Carnivoure 4 times and they'd never had that one. The only thing I have left now is Zebra... We also had Sable, Belsbok, Kudu, Ostrich, Crocodile and some other things that I can't remember right now. They also had mealie pap for the first time. Well, I'd write more, but I've got to go get ready for church! Later!
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Today was a fairly quiet day... I went to college this morning while my parents slept in and then chilled out in my flat for a while. While at college, I got invited to go to a club called the Blues Room to hear a friend of a friend perform. It was quite outside my usual comfort zone, but I finally decided to join them. My parents were cool, and stayed home watching my DVDs. I guess I've not been a very good hostess today! I'll have to try to make it up to them somehow... any ideas? Let me know... It was definitely cool tonight though. I met tons of new people, and even though chances are I will never see them again, I'm glad I went and I'm glad I met them!! I'm pretty tired though... I've been running on 4 hours of sleep today and it's time to go to bed!!
Goodnight friends!
Bonnie B.

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

We're back! Kruger Park was great. We saw three of the "big five": lion, buffalo and elephant. There were lots of elephant, but we only saw 2 lions once and a herd of buffalo once. The other 2 of the 5 are pretty elusive! (Leopard and Rhino) Now the only one of the big 5 I haven't seen is the leopard, and chances are I won't get to... those cats can hide!! Eventually I'll be able to get some pictures online, but it's going to take a while since my Mom and Dad had the cameras. I'll have to wait till they go back to the States and they get them developed there. Oh well... good things are worth waiting for I guess! We stayed in a really cute, one bedroom bungalow inside Kruger Park, and we ate at 2 really neat restaurants inside our camp (Skukuza). We also did one night drive, but it was pretty much a waste of time and money. We saw more when we drove ourselves around!! Yesterday I wanted to go see some of Blyde River Canyon before coming home... Well, it took us way out of the way, and we didn't get home until about 9:30pm, and we'd been in the car almost all day since 6am!! I think my parents were pretty happy to get back! I still had homework however, since I am going to class today, so I was up until about 2:45 this morning... college life is setting back in!! Well, I have to get ready for class. Thanks for checking in on us!
Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

My parents are here! Wow, I can't even begin to explain how this feels. Sometimes I have to just remind myself that they really are HERE, in South Africa! It's quite cool though. Today we had a braai with some of my friends and that was very nice. I'm glad my folks can see that I have some friends around here. Tomorrow morning we are leaving to go to Kruger National Park for a couple of days. I still haven't packed, and yes, it's almost 1am here. Not smart on Bonnie's part, but such if life. A friend came over tonight to fetch a video, and stayed longer than I thought he would! So that put me behind schedule a little bit, but hey, it was well worth it. Friends are more valuable than sleep!! hehe Anyways, I must go pack now... before it's time to LEAVE! Geez... and I have to drive the whole time too. I'm gonna be spent. But it'll be worth it... I HAS to be worth it.

Goodnight friends!!
BonnieB.

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

All I have to say tonight is: MY PARENTS ARE COMING TOMORROW!!! They are scheduled to arrive at 10:45am. I can't wait! Hope I can sleep tonight... :o)

Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Well, it's Wednesday. The kids club in Dhlamini was a TOTAL flop. I guess part of being a missionary is accepting that not everything works out as planned!! Ruth Anne and I went to the field where we were going to have the club, and it is different from last time I was there. It's over grown with atleas 2 feet of grass... plus my helpers from my girls club didn't show up either. So, we weren't able to have the club - yet. We'll see what happens in the future!

In other exciting news, I am taking a couple courses at a Bible College here in Jo'burg. A friend suggested it to me, and I think it's the best idea I've heard in a long time! I am taking two classes, Bible Study Methods, and Biblical Portrait of Marriage. I'm only going one day a week so that it won't interfere with ministry. I can't remember the last time I've been so exicted about classes! Technically, I am still awaiting the approval of someone higher up in the IMB before I'll know for sure if I can keep going, so PLEASE pray that I'll get the go-ahead from him!! I met some people today who also minister in Soweto (and surrounding areas) so that was quite cool. I'm 2 weeks behind in the classes, AND I'll miss next week, so I have a lot of work to catch up on... all while my parents are here - yikes! But I can do it!!

Well, I only have tomorrow to get through before I go get my parents. Tomorrow will be spent cleaning up around here so my parents think I'm orderly and neat. HA! I can't fool them, but I can at least make the place look nice. :) 2 more sleeps!!

Goodnight!
Bonnie B.
Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Wahoo!! Bonnie's back and ready for action! The past few days have been strange for me... first an emotional wacked out sensation, and then a very physically not-so-nice day yesterday. It even caused me to break my daily gym streak, which I'm not proud of, but staying home was a better option than passing out or losing my lunch on the treadmill... Anyway, I feel amazing today! School went very well, even though today's lesson proved to be a little more challenging to extent to an hour (but I made it!). I went to my power boxing class tonight, and it was great. Tonight I finally worked up the courage to go talk to the instructor, Wouter. He's actually a cool little man (well, he's built, so he's not "little", but he is quite short!!). Tonight when I thought I was about to give up during the "imaginary jump roping" we do, he smiled at me, and by golly... I smiled back and kept going. So afterwards I finally went and introduced myself. I wanted him to know that I'm not slacking off in the coming weeks (since i won't be able to go because of my parents visit!). I also gave him permission to correct me when I'm doing something wrong, and to push me. He said he will, and that he usually just waits for people to say that. He said he'd be on my case now! Uh oh!! He was really cool to talk to though, and I like knowing he's a nice guy. It's a little easier to take it when someone yells at you, as long as he's actually nice and he's doing it to help you. hehe :o) Anyway... I've got to get up early tomorrow for a little venture of mine, so I'd better be going. Thought you should know that I'm finally back to me again - praise the Lord! 4 more sleeps till my parents get here. HOORAY!!!
Cheers!
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Last night was a strange night for me. For the first time in quite a while, I was able to spend time with friends. One would think I’d be thrilled at the opportunity, and that I’d come home refreshed and joyful after spending time with people. But, quite to the contrary, I had a miserable night, and much of the time I just wanted to leave. At one point, I was about to head home, but a friend decided to ride with me to the next destination, which foiled my plan (but it was good plan to foil!). My poor friend had to listen to me complain about just about everything under the sun, and I’m sure when we reached our destination, he was pleased to get out of my car! You see, I’ve learned lately, that having friends here is a strange thing. Sometimes they exist, and sometimes they don’t. I think part of that is because I’m a stranger to their world. I’ve come in from the outside, and though it appears I could and should fit in, I just don’t. They have a world completely different from mine, and it seems that unless I invite myself into it, they don’t think to bring me in. I’ll admit, that bothers me at times. I want to have real friends, to be included, and to have a place where I feel I belong. But, I am learning… this isn’t my world. Even in the States, I was not created to truly belong to this world. By the end of last night, though I wasn’t giddy and in my best of moods, I was glad I spent time with these people I call my friends (by the way, I do believe they are my friends, just… a different kind of friend I think). But before I went to bed, I decided to read some of my new book, “Keep a Quiet Heart,” by, none other than, Elisabeth Elliot. Though I have never talked to this woman in depth (I did meet her once though!), I believe she is my number one mentor in life! Every time I read something of hers, I am constantly drawn closer to Christ. Her writings, which are filled with scripture and not just her thoughts, teach me more every time I read them. I read a lot last night, and the better part of my morning today has been consumed by this book. I could not have read a better passage last night. First I was lead to Psalm 73:21-28… “When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you. Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.” This is a cool Psalm… In the beginning of it, the writer talks about the temptation he has felt to be jealous of the world, to desire the wealth and ‘security’ that the world offers, but in the end he realizes how much greater it is to be with God, which is the very same thing I am realizing! In the chapter I read last night in the book, Elisabeth also writes, “Heaven is not here, it’s There. If we were given all we wanted here, our hearts would settle for this world rather than the next. God is forever luring us up and away from this one, wooing us to Himself and His still invisible Kingdom, where we will certainly find what we so keenly long for.” How easy it is to get caught up in longing for earthly passions and desires! Thank God for humbling moments in my life, when God brings me back to His side and corrects my desires to be in line with His! Like I said, I have been reading this book all morning, and I have read many wonderful things. I’m going to include some of them here… read them if you have the desire and/or the time, but it’s purely for your enrichment, and so that someday when I go back and read this I’ll remember what God is/was teaching me! God bless you!

“Learning to pray is learning to trust the wisdom, the power, and the love of our Heavenly Father, always so far beyond our dreams. He knows our need and knows ways to meet it that have never entered our heads. Things we feel sure we need for happiness may often lead to our ruin. Things we think will ruin us, if we believe what the Father tells us and surrender ourselves into His strong arms, bring us deliverance and joy.”

“God has allowed in the lives of each of us some sort of loss, the withdrawal of something we valued, in order that we may learn to offer ourselves a little more willingly, to allow the touch of death on one more thing we have clutched so tightly, and thus know the fullness and freedom and joy that much sooner. We’re not naturally inclined to love God and seek His Kingdom. Trouble may help to incline us – that is, it may tip us over, put some pressure on us, lean us in the right direction.”

“’Why does God do this to me?’ When I am inclined to ask this question, it loses its power when I remember that this Lord, into whose strong hands I long ago committed my life, is engineering a universe of unimaginable proportions and complexity. How could I possibly understand all that He must take into consideration as He deals with me, a single individual! He has given us countless assurances that we cannot get lost in the shuffle. He choreographs the ‘molecular dance’, which goes on every second of every minute of every day in every cell in the universe. For the record, one cell has about 200 trillion molecules. He makes note of the smallest seed and the tiniest sparrow. He is not too busy to keep records even of my falling hair. Yet in our darkness we suppose that He has overlooked us. He hasn’t.” (emphasis mine)

“Gold is gold, but it has to go through fire. Faith is even more precious, so faith will always have another test to stand. Remember God’s loving promise of 2 Corinthians 12:9, ‘My grace is all you need; power comes to its full strength in weakness.’”

“The worst pains we experience are not those of the sufferings itself but of our stubborn resistance to it, our resolute insistence on our independence… If we reject this cross, we will not find it in this world again. Here is the opportunity offered. Be patient. Wait on the Lord for whatever He appoints, wait quietly, wait trustingly. He holds every minute of ever hour of every day of the week of every month of every year in His hands. Thank Him in advance for what the future holds, for He is already there. “Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup’ (Psalm 16:5). Shall we not gladly say, ‘I’ll take it, Lord! YES! I’ll trust you for everything. Bless the Lord, O my soul!’”

Be quiet, why this anxious heed
About thy tangled ways?
God knows them all, He giveth speed,
And He allows delays.
E.W.

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

It's decided... I MUST marry a guy who plays guitar. Tonight I actually got to hang out with some friends (what a wonderful concept!) and we went to hear a friend of theirs who plays guitar and sings, and wow... again I say, I must marry a guy who plays guitar. hehe If you know of any elligible, solid Christian guys who play guitar, feel free to pass along my email address! Ok, I'm not serious... it might freak me out to get an email from some guy I've never met. :o) It was so nice tonight to spend time with a few friends. I haven't seen most of them since before Christmas! And that's entirely too long to go without seeing friends! Well, I'm sleepy now... so it's bedtime for me! Have a great weekend!
Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

It was brought to my attention that I didn’t update about Tuesday. So, here goes. Tuesday I went to Emadlelweni Combined School, in Dhlamini (Soweto) to teach two grade 7 classes. Everything went very well! The students seemed to really stick with the lesson the whole time, and once again, I was able to teach for a whole hour. You guys really need to know that that is evidence of some growth on my part! I can’t believe how much God has taught me in the past year. Tuesday was pretty much the same as Monday, so I really don’t have that much to say… I was hoping to start the girls’ club yesterday, but when I went to Lilydale, they told me that the kids would be in class until later because they’d been in athletics (sports) in the morning. So, I plan to start that as well as the kids club next week. Something to look forward to for next week I guess!
Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

School went GREAT today! Today I went to Lakeview Primary. When I got there, they had all just started the morning assembly. The principle (Principle Yaya… what a name!) grabbed my hand and walked me up to the front. First of all, I know it’s cultural, but I am still NOT OK with a strange grown man holding my hand, and second, I’m not a fan of big groups. So he begins to tell them about me. First he says, “we have a new teacher with us.” And of course, all the kids know so far is that I’m white… so they’re all like, “ooooh.” But then he says I’m American, and the kids went nuts. I mean, I never felt so cool in my life. hehe THEN he tells me to talk to them! And I’m all like, “uh, what do I say?” But once I started talking, I was fine (as usual). I told them that I was just here to teach life skills to the grade 7s. Boy, those grade 7s seemed pretty happy to me! Let’s hope they stay that way! But I also told the other kids that they can come talk to me ANY time they want. :o) So then the kids went to class (kind of) and I went to the office to get my schedule. Turns out that the life skills class was scheduled for an hour, not a half hour, as I had been told over the phone. Now, if you’d have put me in a classroom last year and told me I had to teach for an hour, I would have totally freaked! But I was just like, “ok… guess I’ll talk more!” hehe All went VERY well! I absolutely love the new curriculum I am using. It seemed like the kids liked it too, so that’s definitely a plus. Each lesson includes a Bible story, and I’ve decided to take Bibles to class and let the kids actually look up the story on their own this year. It’s cool because it’s obvious that some of these kids have never opened up the Bible before in their lives. But I used today to teach them how to find a book of the Bible using the table of contents, and then to find the “chapter and verse.” It seemed funny for me to have to teach someone that the way to “read” Matthew 25:14 is “Matthew, Chapter 25, Verse 14” but we’re learning the basics here. I’m just thrilled to be able to teach using the Bible in a public school. Man, that’s such a God-thing… You certainly can’t do that in America! God bless SA! hehe So the classes both went well, and it was so nice to come home after teaching and not be totally exhausted from teaching all day long.

So, all in all, today has been a wonderful day! I went to the gym again tonight for another power boxing class. There won’t be a class on Friday because they’re using the room for some race sign up, which I think is totally not fair! Mondays and Fridays are the 2 days a week that I really have FUN exercising! Oh well… I’ll be able to go again next Monday. :o) And MAYBE for once my friends will call me on Friday night and I’ll go have some fun… here’s hoping!

Have a great week everybody. Thanks for checking in on me!
God bless,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

I can finally start teaching tomorrow! Yay! Tomorrow morning I'll go to Lakeview Primary from 8am-10am. On Tuesday I'll go to Emadlelweni from 11:30-1:30 and then head over to Lilydale for the first girls club of the year. I know the girls are read to get started - as am I! I'm not sure if we'll get to start the kids club this Wednesday or not. I have to get my car serviced on Wednesday, and sometimes that can take all day... we'll just have to wait and see about that.

Less than 2 weeks now until Mom and Dad get here!! Hooray! I so can't wait to greet them and welcome them to South Africa. 12 days... and counting... :o)

Well, that's all the update I have for now. I haven't really been doing anything exciting lately. I've still kept up my gym streak... been going every day now for over 2 weeks!

Until next time...
Bonnie B.

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Well, I can finally tell you that I am for sure in one school this year! I will be teaching the grade 7s at Lakeview Primary on Monday mornings. I am pretty sure I'm on the schedule at Emadlelweni too, but today when I called to find out the details, Mr. Ndlovu (the head of department) didn't have his time table with him. He says he'll call me back tomorrow... I'll believe him when I get the call! I'll call him again if I don't hear from him. I am so ready to get moving again... back into the schools. That's the reason I'm here! Hopefully soon I'll be back into the swing of things with schools and after school clubs/Bible studies. Then I'll feel useful again! I'll keep you posted...

Until then!
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Hm... not too much to report on tonight. I went to the power boxing class again; this is becoming a regular thing for me, and I must admit, I really like it! Today I actually think I noticed my muscles getting a tiny bit bigger! What a feeling. hehe Still haven't heard from the schools, which is getting a little annoying, but I'm trying to be patient. I have an eye doctor's appointment tomorrow, but that's not exciting... Man, I'm struggling to be interesting... Maybe that means I should just say goodnight and let you get on with the rest of your life. hehe :o) Hopefully soon I can report on something great and exciting! Here's hoping....
Cheers!
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Tonight's power boxing class was intense. Why Mr. Wouter chose to pump it up a notch tonight, I have no idea... but in a strange kind of way, even though I can hardly move my arms tonight, I'm glad he did! I struggled, but I made it. That class will either be the death of me or the life of me (I'm thinking it's the later). I've been to the gym everyday now since last Thursday. This must be some kind of record for me. I MUST keep it up!! I'm gonna be buff... watch out! hehe

Well, Wallace and Oreo survived their dr's visits, though they're both really drugged and groggy. I feel bad! But I know it's worth it, and hopefully they'll be back to their spunky kitten selves tomorrow. Poor little Oreo has a shaved spot where they did the surgery... she looks pitiful! I hope cat fur grows fast. :)

I don't have much new to report on lately. I pose the question: Where are my South African friends, and why are we not hanging out on the weekends? Hmm... hopefully that will return in time. :) Goodnight for now from Jo'burg!

Love ya,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

I talked with two principles today, one from Emadlelweni and one from Lakeview. Both are thrilled about me teaching there this year!! Hooray! They still haven’t worked out their timetables (class schedules) yet, but that should happen pretty soon, and then I’ll have a job. It’s about time. I also went to Lilydale today just to visit with the kids and a few teachers. That was quite nice. Some of my girls ran up to me at their break and asked if we were going to have girls club today! Aww… How sweet! :o) I assured them that we will start soon, and I also mentioned the possible kids club in the field behind their school. I told them they would be more like helpers instead of learners, and they seemed pretty happy about that. So… Now I am just waiting on those two schools to call me back and then I will have some kind of idea what I am doing here this year!

On another note, I’m taking my kittens to their first vet appointment tomorrow… time to make sure they don’t reproduce! The not so fun part is that I have to get them to the vet at 7am… ugh. That’s way too early! But it must be done I suppose. I guess that means I should be going to bed!

Goodnight all!
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Schools are finally back in session in Joburg! That means I was finally able to touch base with the two schools I hope to be teaching at this year. I have a meeting set up with both schools tomorrow, so please pray that all goes well. Thanks!
Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Happy Monday! I haven't written much lately because, frankly, there hasn't been a whole lot to write about. I was finally able to get in touch with one school today, but they haven't set their class schedules yet. So I have to wait to hear back from that school (Lakeview Primary). Schools start back on Wednesday of this week, so I really hope that life picks back up for me soon! I've enjoyed the break, but it has been entirely TOO long! I'm ready to get back into the groove of things. I can't believe that a year ago I was just getting ready to come here! This Friday will mark the one year anniversay of my arrival in Johannesburg, South Africa. Wow... a year... It's truely a GOD thing that I've made it!

On another note, I've been going to the gym again lately. Hooray! Go me! I've been every day since Thursday... It's a start! I went to the power boxing class last Friday and again tonight. Man I love that class! It's hard, but it's worth it. I've even gotten Janna Kay to go with me! Yay for a workout buddy. :) I've got to keep going to the gym!!

Well, since there's not much to say, I'll close tonight... Less than one month till my parents arrive!!! Woohoo!!!

Thanks for checking in on me!
Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Well, it's been a few days since I last updated this weblog, so I'd better bring everyone up to date! On New Year's Day the team went to Sonderwater (a township) to do the holiday Bible club. It went very well! Titus, a man in one of Charlie's theological education by extention (TEE) classes hosted the group and organized translators and other helpers, so that was great! We met out in a open soccer field, and everyone seemed to have a great time. While we were there, we got to witness some sort of "right of passage" ceremony for young men and women in the township. I wish I could tell you more about it, but honestly, I don't really know yet what was going on! I didn't get any good pictures either... sad day, but oh well! :) Saturday night the girls who were staying with me and I met up with the journeymen who are in town for a prayer retreat. We all went to visit the MK camp to see the journeymen helping out there, so it was like a journeyman reunion! It was really nice to get to see all of them again. Sunday morning was a typical morning, except that Cal Reynolds (one of the volunteers here) preached. After church we went to BIMS to pick up Rachel. Rachel went to the missionary learning center with me, and she needed a place to stay for the night, so she stayed with me! All the people from MK camp were at BIMS and some of the people from the prayer retreat were there too, so we got to see people and hang out again! We (all the girls staying with me and I) actually stayed at BIMS all day and then at night we went to Monte Casino (yeah, I've been there way too many times lately) for dinner and a movie. I had Thai food for the first time, and I must admit that it was really good! We went to see Oceans 12 at the cinema, and due to some technical difficulties, we ended up getting our money back for the movie... even though we'd already seen the whole thing. Life is good when you get things for free! :)

Today, Monday, Heathe, Megan and Emily left my flat to continue on in their vacation. It's pretty sad for me think about the fact that in all honesty, I don't know when I'll see them again. They are leaving SA around the same time as me, so I do have a better chance of seeing them than of seeing others, so that's nice. But it is still strange to think about. After they left, I went to pick up some of the volunteers and took them to Diepsloot for the HBC. I wish I could say I helped, but I really didn't! They had even more people (volunteers) join them today, so I wasn't needed for much - just transportation. :) But hey, I'm not complaining! Today was a small crowd. Dokotela (the man who's property the church is on) said that many of the people from that area go away on holiday (vacation) during this time of the year, and wow! It was so much quieter than I have EVER heard it be in Diepsloot! But the kids were great and I know they were listening and having a great time. We're going back to the same place tomorrow, so pray that the kids who came today will bring their friends with them tomorrow!

After the club today, Rachel (who had been chillin' at my house) and I went to meet a couple journeyguys for lunch. They're leaving to go back to Mozambique tomorrow, so we wanted to hang out with them while we still could. Like I said before, we're all at the point now where we don't know when/if we'll see each other again. I am one of the more likely to see people again since I live in Jo'burg and most people fly through Jo'burg when they go home. So that's nice! I then took Rachel to a hotel near the airport. I'll be honest, I was sad getting back in my car after dropping her off. It's so quiet now, and I haven't been around quietness in over a week! I've been surrounded by females in my home, and hanging out with all sorts of people outside my home! And now everyone has gone their separate ways again and it's way too quiet around here. I think I am just going to go to bed and hope to feel a bit more cheery in the morning! Oh, I also didn't get much sleep last night b/c we got back kinda late... then right before I was going to bed, I found a DEAD BIRD in the corner of my room!! I'm sure Meisie is the blame for that, and last night, for the first time in my life, I did NOT feel like a "cat person." So... I gathered up the courage to clean up a dead bird. but then I was way too grossed out to fall asleep. So I read for a while... all the while thinking, "what if there's another one here too..." It was no fun at all. I finally fell asleep somewhere between 3:3o and 4am and then got up at about 6:45 am. I think I need sleep!

goodnight friends!
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Happy New Years!!
In a little over a year I will ring in the new year here in Jo'burg with a few fellow journeygals. We went to montecasino tonight for dinner, and now we're back home watching movies.

Anyway, today we went to Brahmfisherville, and the club went VERY well!! There is a new church forming in the area, and they had gone to a great deal of work to invite children. We had plenty of people to transate today - yay! It was very cool to meet the people in the church. They might be interested in me coming out there to lead a youth Bible study... so that's a possibility.

I would write more, but I'm thoroughly exhauted! Tomorrow we're going to Sonderwater, so be in prayer for that! Thanks!

Happy 2005!
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

FYI - I just added a new photo album where I'll put all the pictures I take during the holiday Bible clubs. Please take a look at them! I always find that I can pray better when I can picture what or who I am praying for. Thanks!!

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Today we went to Dhlamini, Soweto and did a little back yard Bible club with the neighborhood kids. We didn't have a translator, which made things quite difficult because lots of small children came, and usually they don't speak English yet. But it was ok! We broke the volunteers in with the hardest day first! Tomorrow we'll have a translator - yippee! Today was fun though, and I think the kids had a good time, even if they didn't understand us. I am most excited about what God was whispering to me almost the entire time. It was as if He was gently whispering, "you can do this... this doesn't have to stop today." So... I'm gonna do it. The field we met in today was right behind Lilydale Primary School, so I know the area well, and the kids know me. I plan to recruit some of the older, more mature (is that possible in a 7th grader??) girls from the girls club I plan to do on Mondays, and I am hoping these girls will help me with a community after school club once a week in the field. They speak English and Zulu, so they can help me translate if little ones come. God only knows where this will lead! I would love to see it lead to helping me form more relationships with adults in the community. At least this will get me out of the school, and more into the community, and I am SO excited about this!! Please pray that God will continue to reveal His desires for me in all this. As I have said before, I only want to what HE is guiding me to do!! Also, pray for the children who came today, and for the adults we had a chance to speak with. Pray that God will continue to work in each of their hearts to reveal Himself more and more everyday!! Thank you for your prayers!!
God bless!
Bonnie B.
Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Happy late Christmas!! I hope everyone out there had a great Christmas, celebrating however you did. I had a really wonderful Christmas, even though I was not with my family. I was too busy most of the time to think about missing them too much! On Christmas Eve I went to a service at Ridgecrest Family Church. I helped with the worship. After the service, I headed to the Saner house (my friends, Heather and Roger's family). I had a blast! After a nice dinner, we all gathered in the lounge to begin a crazy night of opening presents. And when I say crazy, I mean it! (I mean that in a nice way Heath and Rog!) I had a great time opening presents from home that my family has sent, as well as gifts that the Saners had bought (how sweet!). Check out my pictures online to get a better idea of what it was like for me on Christmas Eve! I spent the night at their house Christmas Eve and then on Christmas day I went to BIMS to have Christmas dinner, as prepared by American missionaries! Good stuff!! We had lunch there, then hung out all day playing cards, talking, and just hanging out. Then later that night we all had left-overs for dinner - just like in America! :) I stayed as long as I could, because I figured if I stayed busy, I wouldn't think too much about what I was missing back home. But I did finally come home at about 9pm, and then later that night my family called! It was so nice to get to talk to all of them on Christmas day! By the time we all finished talking, it was quite late, and I was exhausted, so I went to bed! Thus concluding my Christmas celebrations.

Now some more craziness is happening. Lots of things are going on in Jo'burg right now. There is an MK (missionary kid) camp this week, and a lot of journeymen are in town to be counselors for that. There are also other missionaries coming into Jo'burg for their team prayer retreat, so hopefully I'll get to see some of the jmen from those teams too. My flat is serving as a bed and breakfast for some extra people who needed a place to stay, and tomorrow (Wednesday) 2 journeygirls and their sisters are coming to stay with me for a while! Crazy I tell ya! There are also 3 volunteers coming in tomorrow who will be working with our team this coming week. They will be leading in children's evangelism in the townships. That's gonna be insane, so PLEASE pray that it will all work out! I'll be honest. I'm a little nervous about how things are going to go in the townships, as many things are quite unorganized right how. PRAY! Thanks!

That's about it for now... thanks for checking in on me!
Cheers,
Bonnie
Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

What a day!! Today I went to Gold Reef City (an amusement park) with my friends. When they invited me, I declined because I'm running quite low on rands this month! But then they told me they'd pay for me... as a Christmas present. :) How sweet! So today was quite fun. I got drenched many times in the water rides. (Note: For future reference, don't wear jeans if you plan to get soaked on the rides!) I also got to ride on the Jozi Express, the newest roller coaster, and I got to ride in the very front - a first for me, and quite a rush! We rode all the big rides, and a few smaller ones too. We rode the Giant Wheel, other wise known as a modern day ferris wheel... I may have been the only one who enjoyed it though, everyone else was clinging to their seats and wishing for the ride to be over! But I LOVE ferris wheels, so I was having a blast! :) After we'd spent the better part of the day at the park, I came home. Then I went to the gym tonight and attended the power boxing class again - go me! Needless to say, after walking around all day and then going to a power boxing class, I'm exhausted! It's time to cuddle up on the couch, watch a movie, and then go to bed. :) I'm loving this "holiday thing." hehehe
Cheers!
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Merry Christmas to ME! hehehe I just got 5 packages today from my family for Christmas!! Unfortunately, the boxes contained WRAPPED presents, and I promised I'd leave them wrapped until Christmas morning. It's fun to see presents under my tree. I don't have much of a tree... it's a little wire/beaded Christmas tree that someone here made... But nevertheless, my presents are under it! :) I've put a few pictures of my tree on my weshots photo site, under the album heading of "Christmas in Jo'burg." As I do more Christmas stuff, I'll put more pictures there, but for now, this is all I have. Hope you're all having a splendid weekend before Christmas! Get that shopping finished. :)
Love ya,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

I'm home! This morning I drove back from Swaziland... Back to the big city. You know, I have always known that I am not a city girl, but this past week has confirmed that! There's no way I could live in Jo'burg for the rest of my life (as much as I love it for now...). I loved being somewhere quiet and peaceful. The window in my bedroom (at the Allen's house) looks out over the mountains. Talk about an amazing place to have your quiet time. It was hard for me to make myself leave Swaziland, but alas, God has called me to be HERE, in Jo'burg, for the season of my life, and I'll make the very most of it while I am here. Don't get me wrong... it's not that I don't like Jo'burg, it's just that I often feel overwhelmed by the masses of people and cars and buildings. God's got me here for a reason, quite possibly to stretch me! But I hope and pray that He calls me somewhere a little more quiet next time! I had an amazing time this past week spending time with Monica, Steve and Lacie Joy Allen. Lacie Joy is 6 months old, and she is such a cute baby!! Soon I'll post a couple pictures of her on my photo albums. I didn't do all that much... I just used the time to relax and enjoy time with the missionaries. I hope I get to go visit them again in the future! They're such a great family!
Goodnight for now - Thanks for checking in on me!
Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Howzit!? I don't know if I'll be able to update much this coming week because I won't be in town. I am going to Swziland tomorrow morning and coming back sometime on Thursday. I am looking forward to some time away from Jo'burg! I'm going to spend some time with Monica and Steve Allen (and their baby Lacie!!). They're a young couple, and Steve's from NC! He went to Southeastern... It's always nice to know people who are from the same place you are. :) They even know a few people from the Summit! Small world. :) If you want to know something about Swaziland, here's a link to some info: http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/wz.html

Ruth Anne is going to watch the kittens while I'm gone. :) I'm sure she'll enjoy that! But I will miss my kitties!! Please pray for safe travel to and from Swaziland! I've been before, but I've never driven myself. I'll make sure to take lots of pictures and update this blog when I get home!
Love you!!
Bonnie
Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

I just love Saturdays. You get to sleep in and enjoy life... well, at least that holds true for THIS Satuday so far. :) I slept in, and then when my kittens would finally let me sleep no more, I got up, read for a while (which I am loving, by the way) and had breakfast. A little bit later I was picked up by my friends Melissa and Heather and we went to the new mall, Clearwater Mall for lunch. Now I can say I've had a tramazeni (or however you spell it). Then we walked around for a bit and went to get coffee for the road. I was craving a Iced Mocha Freeze... mm mm good. Well, we walk into Seattle Coffee (the best coffee place in SA, at least from an American's point of view!!) and who was there but Kylie, Ronny and Daniel!! Crazy... I can't get away!! haha... not that I would want to get away from them or anything. So, since Heather and Melissa were just going to take me home and drop me off, I got a lift with Kylie and them. So we chilled at the mall a bit longer and then they brought me back here. Kylie and Ronny checked my place out, and then they all left to go back to BIMS. :( So fun getting to see random friends in random places. :-) Now I am doing some computer stuff, and I plan to spend a quiet night in with some movies or books.... my good stand-bys. Hooray!

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Ahh… another GREAT night with the missionaries. They have been the biggest blessing to me in such a long time. I’m sure that God knew exactly what He was doing when he sent these people to BIMS at this specific time. Actually tonight I got to spend time with my own missionary team, as well as the visiting missionaries!! Tonight I went out to dinner with my team (minus the kids!) for a little Christmas celebrating. Then after dinner I rushed off to Montecasino (again) to go see The Incredibles with the other missionaries. I got a bit lost, and more than a bit frustrated that I was arriving to the movie 30 minutes after the start time. But I’d already paid for my ticket online, and I didn’t care how much I missed, I was going to get there! Well, thanks to the obnoxious adverts and previews, I only missed maybe 5 minutes of the movie! After the movie, we got ice cream and hung out for a little while. We took a few pictures and said some goodbyes! I’m glad they are better, so that they can go home (they were here for medical), but I’m sad that they are leaving!!! They have been amazing. It’s been great hanging out with other young people who share my vision, my heart. They understand when I talk about missing home while loving this country at the same time. They understand me – PERIOD! That’s the biggy… It’s awesome to find people who truly do understand you. See why I’m sad that they’re leaving? But I thank God for the time we have had together. Now I must get back to my own life in South Africa! Actually, next week I am leaving South Africa. On Monday I am leaving to go to Swaziland until Thursday. There’s a missionary couple up there, and I’m going to visit with them and use the time to RELAX! Sounds nice, hey? Can’t wait! Wow… I’m sleepy. It’s been a long day… and the kittens kept me up all night last night! Just like having kids… ugh! Hehe Goodnight!
Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Howdy folks! I had a great night tonight! I went to BIMS to meet up with the other young people there and then we went to Banditos, South Africa's clostest thing to a Mexican restaurant... not bad. :) Then the 4 journeymen -me, Jayme, Daniel and Brian (whom I just met)- went to Westgate mall (a mall on MY side of town!) to watch a 10 rand movie (that's really cheap). We saw After the Sunset, which turned out to be a pretty good movie. Then they came back to see my flat. I just wanted them to see where I live! They were pretty shocked at how nice it is... I felt kinda bad, but I'm not complaining. :) Oh yeah, all three of them are journeymen in Mozambique. Jayme is actually heading home to the US tomorrow! These journeymen keep finishing their terms and going home! It's so strange for me to keep seeing them leave... and no one new is coming!! Sad... :( Who's going to be here to tell ME goodbye? Well, they just left, and I'm pretty tired, so I'm going to bed!! Thanks for checking in on me! :)
Cheers!
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

What a nice, relaxing week so far. On Monday I went and baby/kid-sat for the Lechners while Angie took Charlie out to lunch for his birthday. Janna Kay was there too. Joshuwa (JK's son) loves to play with Abby (Angie's daugher), so the two of them kept themselves occupied! Don't you just love kids? :) Then later that night I went back over to their house for cake and ice cream for Charlie's birthday. Hooray for birthdays! Yesterday I got to go to Carnivore to eat with a team of baseball missionaries that were in staying with the Holidays. (I didn't have to pay - yay!) Then I went with them to Bruma Market and bought a couple cute Christmas decorations. On my way home I stopped by BIMS and now there are 2 more journeymen there! I am LOVING all these great people being at BIMS. I guess being a Jo'burg missionary certainly has it's perks! I'm going back to BIMS to hang out with them tonight. :) Last night I went BACK to the Lechner's house to watch Abby,Luke and Coleson. Will is in the hospital!! He was pretty sick since last week, and he got dehydrated, so they had to put him in the hospital so he could have an IV. Yuck... poor kid. Anyway, I got to watch some movies with the muchkins and hung out with them till Angie and Charlie got back. I love my time with their family!! Ok, I'd better be going. Thanks for checking in on me!
Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

*Happy Anniversary* No, not to me... but to my brother Brad and his amazing wife of one year, Cheryl. Today's not THE actual day, but it was this weekend a year ago that they were married. And since I never know when I'll get to blog, I thought I'd go ahead and make the announcement today. :)

Not too much has happened today... nice lazy weekend. :) I talked to my Mom for almost 3 hours today. I think we're still making up for the months we went without me having a phone line. haha! Really though, I'm so thankful to be somewhere with working telephones so that we can talk. I think I'd go crazy if I couldn't have my talks with mom! I've just been online a long time looking at touristy things to do in Sout Africa. Why? Because in TWO MONTHS my Mom and Dad are coming to visit! Hooray! I can't wait! :)

Cheers for now....
Bonnie B.
Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Another night at Montecasino! No, I didn't go gambling. I went to meet the missionaries who are (still) staying at BIMS right now. Kylie and I went to see Bride and Prejudice. Funny, funny... who knew it was going to be a musical!? hehe Well, I had planned to ONLY go see the movie and not go out to dinner with them because I have to make this paycheck last all month, and Jo'burg is not the cheapest place to live! Well... I got coaxed into going to dinner with them at the Japanese place. All was well, until the end of my meal when all of a sudden I had this strange, poking sensation in my mouth, and low and behold, there was a piece of METAL in my stir-fry!!! Wow... That was not cool. But what WAS cool, was that I got my meal free. I was almost finished with it anyway, so... hooray!! Then we went and got coffee and dessert, and because Ronny is such a cool guy, he picked up the whole tab! Amazing I tell ya. There need to be more Ronnys in the world! :) So, I made out nice tonight! Not only did I get to spend more great time with other missionaries (which is always fun and encouraging) but I didn't spend a fortune. Hooray!

Now I am off to dream land... wonder if I'll dream about Indian singing and dancing... That could be fun. :) Goodnight!

Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

The latest piece of news is that I won't be teaching lifeskills at Lilydale anymore next year. The principle told me today, at the end of the prize-giving ceremony. So... now I don't have any schools for sure. But I do know that I will be able to do the girls clubs at Lilydale next year, even though I won't be teaching in a class. Guess there's no better place to start than back at the beginning! I'm sure God likes nothing better than a clean slate, and a willing heart! I'm working real hard on having a willing heart!! :)

Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Wow! It’s December already!! Crazy thought… A year ago I was heading home from the training center around this time to go to my brother’s wedding. He’s almost been married a whole year… wow, and now he and his wife are expecting their first baby – hooray! Today was a pretty fun day. I went to BIMS to watch a movie with Daniel, Kylie, and Ronny. It’s always fun to hang out with people who are a lot like me. They help me to see that I won’t be TOO out of place when I go back to America. :) Then I went to the new mall here in Jo’burg, clearwater mall. Wow… It’s so nice… And so classy! I felt like I was at home. hehe
Tomorrow I am going to the prize-giving ceremony at Lilydale. I get to see my kids again! Yay! Then I’m going out to lunch with the teachers afterwards. I’m a bit nervous about that, but I’m sure it’ll be fun.

Well… I don’t have much more to update you about. I haven’t been doing a whole lot. I’ve been reading a lot! I love having time to actually read the many books I buy.

Ok, I have to go to bed at a reasonable hour tonight since I have to get up early tomorrow and go to school.
Goodnight!
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Hmm… not a whole lot is new since I last wrote. I went to church at Ridgecrest on Sunday and helped with the worship. Well, I don’t know that I personally helped anyone worship, but I did help with the singing. hehe Sunday afternoon I felt horrible! Probably as a result of not enough sleep the past couple of days. So I slept a lot and then went to the team prayer meeting that night. I took the team my extra pumpkin pie (so that I wouldn’t eat the whole thing myself!), and they said it was good! It’s one thing to have guests who say it’s good, but when fellow Americans say pumpkin pie is good, I know they’re not lying to me. Yesterday was a great day. I spent the latter half of it chillin’ with the Lechners! I haven’t done that in way too long. I absolutely love this family! You know when you meet people and you think, "I hope to be like them someday"? Well, that’s how I am with this family. Charlie and Angie are a great couple, and I can only pray to have a marriage like theirs someday! They also have 4 really cool kids and they’re always fun to hang around. I got to help Angie bake some peanut butter cookies last night too. I’m getting more domestic all the time!! So, hooray for time with the Lechners!
Have a great Tuesday!
Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

I forgot to say in my last blog... I've added TWO new albums on my webshots page. One is of my kittens and the other is from tonight's Thanksgiving dinner. Check it out!!
enjoy!

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Wow… I am exhausted! Last night (Friday night) I met up with Daniel, the journeyman staying at BIMS, and Ronnie and Kiley, who are also staying at BIMS. Two permanent BIMS people, Charlotte and Sarah, also joined us. We went to Monetcasino (no, we didn’t gamble). We had dinner and then went to see a movie (well, Charlotte and Sarah went home, but the rest of us went to the movies!). The boys saw National Treasure, and Kiley and I saw "Little Black Book." Well, I got back t BIMS at about 1:30am, then had to drive back to the West side of Joburg. For some reason I decided to go ahead and make my pumpkin pies… at 2 O’CLOCK in the morning!! I was so excited about today that I couldn’t sleep. So, I made pies. I finally tried to go to sleep around 5am, but wasn’t all to successful. Today I cooked ALL day. I made rolls from scratch, green bean casserole, stuffing, butternut squash, and mashed potatoes. Wow… I’ll be honest, I impressed myself! I’ve never done that much by myself at one time before! It’s very rewarding to look at a great meal, and say, "I made this!" I learned a lot today! A lot of what I made was a first for me. I’ve seen the stuff being made, just never done it on my own before. Well… I finally learned! My friends finally started coming at about 6:30 (I love SA, but I hate SA time). A couple of the girls (Kerryn and Heather) helped me reheat everything and make it look presentable. Well… soon after that we ate! And unless people lied, it turned out very well. I’m quite satisfied. J I am so lucky to have friends here in SA to do this for! I think most of them were thankful… most anyway, which is good enough for me. Now I know I CAN cook! Yay! But wow… I need to go to bed now. It’s been a LONG day!!
Cheers!
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Happy Thanksgiving! I had an amazing Thanksgiving day. :) As I mentioned before, today I went to BIMS to go a Thanksgiving dinner, pot-luck style. Well, there were a lot of missionaries at BIMS (it's like the head quarters and people come in for all kinds of reasons)! A lot more people than I expected, one of whom is a fellow journeyman in Mozambique (that'd be Daniel). There was also a young couple in from Namibia. So the four of us had a grand time hanging out at BIMS during and after dinner. I love South Africa, and South Africans (well, most of them... hehehe) but I AM American, and sometimes it's just nice to hear people speak the way I do and about the things I know and understand. The missionary "family" is definitely one of the biggest perks of the IMB!!! I'm meeting back up with the 3 of them tomorrow to go out on the town - yippee! Oh, one more good thing... I made a brocolli/rice casserole to take to the dinner, and it turned out ok! I must say, I'm shocked AND proud! hehe The recipe called for "condensed cram of chicken soup" but somehow accidently got just cream of chicken soup... oops. Well, there's nothing worse than a runny casserole, so I quickly whipped out my "Cooking in Africa" cookbook and looked up a condensed soup recipe. Turns out all I had to do was add some flour. Oh yeah... go me. :) And people ate it so I know its not just me who liked it! Ok, it's way past my bedtime. Happy Thanksgiving!!
Bonnie B.
Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Howzit my friends? Well, it’s been another quiet Monday night for me. I’m getting used to those! The cats keep things pretty lively around here. Right now they do a lot of fighting… Well, actually it’s more like staring and hissing. Last Wednesday I inherited a cat, Meisie ("Macy") from Laura, a journeyman who just went home today. They kittens seem to be ok with her, but she definitely does NOT like the kittens (Wallace and Oreo). It’s pretty entertaining to watch them though… they’re slowly adjusting to one another. So yeah, I have THREE cats now. According to Melissa’s theory, this means I will never get married (women with more than one cat don’t get married…). I’m sure hoping her theory is wrong! Anyway, I also made some amazingly delicious (yeah, I’m braggin’) chocolate chip cookies for tomorrow night. My friends and I are getting together for dinner and the 3 hour finale of Survivor : Allstars (yeah, we’re behind). So that should be fun! Tomorrow’s also my last day of teaching this year!! What a crazy thought…after tomorrow I will have officially survived a whole year of teaching in South Africa. Hooray! Alrighty, I have some chatting to do and some emails to write…. My how I have missed the internet!! :)
Cheers!
Bonnie B.

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

What a wonderful feeling... to be updating my web-log from the splendid comforts of my own home! God is so good. Just when I thought I was going crazy (and broke) having to check my email and update you all from internet cafes (and sometimes at missionary houses), I finally have the ability to be on the internet at home! My lap-top is still in the shop, and is gonna be ridiculously expensive to fix, so I'm not getting it fixed. So much for that old friend! Someone has so graciously lent me the lap-top I am currently using for the next 5 months. I'll figure out what to do later further on down the line. Right now I am just thrilled to have something, ANYTHING to use!! I also just got a phone line on Monday... I love it when all the pieces come together oh so nicely. :)Well, not much has changed to update you all about. Schools are still the same. This coming week might be my last week for this year... I'll have to talk to the principle when I go on Monday. Last week it was all but insane at school. The students had finished writing (taking) their exams on Monday, so when I went on Tuesday, they all thought they were on holiday (vacation)! It was crazy. I don't know how I didn't lose all patience and go crazy! Like I said, God is good. :) This coming Monday and Tuesday WILL be the last days of girls club for this year. What a great ministry that has been. I've loved getting to know my girls, and they seem to have really enjoyed it as well. We'll be having a party for the grade 7 girls since they're going to high school next year! They're growing up! Please pray that they'll be able to go into that high school with a strong faith that NO ONE can destroy!!Socially, life has been slow, but nice. :) Last night I met some friends for dinner and a movie (take away and a dvd... fun times). Today I spent A LOT of time online, catching up on lost time, and chatting with friends I've lost touch with. I rented a movie tonight and had dinner in during a decent sized storm. Nice... stormy weather, and a movie in my pjs... doesn't get much better. :) Tomorrow after church I'm going to my friend Jason's flat for a braai. Ah... South Africa... you gotta love it.Well, Thanksgiving is coming up. How crazy is that? Last year at this time I was at the MLC (missionary learning center) busily planning the Thanksgiving worship service. Man, I miss that... there was just something really cool about having a full out worship service on Thanksgiving. Sure beats over eating and watching football (although I DID watch some football last year... it's gonna be weird not watching it this year!). But in case you're wondering if I'm doing anything, of course I am. I AM still American you know. ;) On the actual day I am going to BIMS to celebrate with fellow missionaries. Then the following Saturday (a week from today) Melissa and I are cooking a Thanksgiving meal for our South African friends. We even have some essential American ingredients from the States. :) Hooray for Thanksgiving! Please be in prayer for me this week, and as the Christmas season approaches. It's so weird not being home for it all (it's also weird talking about Christmas when it's HOT). But I know God has put me here now, and I want to live life to the fullest while I am here!! Being sad about not being with familiar things is not my definition of life to the fullest. I plan to enjoy every minute of South Africa while I can! (Watch... a year from now I'll be saying "pray for me... I miss South Africa" hehe)Alrighty, thanks for checking in on me my friends! God bless! And Happy Thanksgiving!!

Cheers,
Bonnie B.

Link to pictures:

http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Happy Sunday. Wow, I don't know where to begin. Friday afternoon I was with Heather, and through a few random happenings, we ended up saying "let's go to Durban!" After laughing for a few seconds, we both realized we really DID want to go to Durban, and well, neither of us had any weekend plans... I just recently got vacation time (Nov.4th) and have been dying to get out of Jo'burg. So... we got out of Jo'burg. A couple hours later we were on our way to Durban, South Africa. Wow, it's amazing. It's gorgeous, peaceful, and an amazing piece of artwork on our Father's behalf. He did pretty good when he designed Durban!! On Friday Heather and I drove down and stayed with a friend of hers in Petermaritzburg that she had been on Team with (a year long mission thing). We stayed in her 21st story flat and hung out with some of her friends that night. Saturday we drove down to Durban. Though we got lost once, we finally ended up going to the mall to meet some friends. I ate lunch at Pizza Hut!! hehe I hadn't been to one of those since the US! We had lunch with Heather's friend Thyra, the PR lady for MIC, a Christian music group in South Africa (they're apparently pretty big). Then Heath and I went to the beach. We walked out onto the beach (hooray the beach!) and had ice cream on the pier. Then after a little while we went back to the pavilion (the big mall) and saw the movie Jersey Girl. After that we had dinner and then went BACK to the beach to have coffee on the pier! That was my favorite part. It was so peaceful. The wind and waves were massive, but it still seemed quiet (how, I'm not so sure, but I don't really care). Heather and I had some deep conversations over coffee as we stood on the pier. Memories... that's all I can say. It started to rain, so then Heather and I went back to Thyra's house to spend the night. After staying up late to chat with people, we went to sleep. We went to church at Kloof Harvest this morning. MIC was playing there, so I got to meet the band. They're pretty cool... just normal people who happen to be in a cool Christian band. :) Soon after that Heather and I headed back to Jo'burg (sigh). We stopped to have coffee with Goose, a friend of Heather's. We just got back a couple hours ago, and I'll be honest... i want to go back to Durbs. It was so nice, but I wasn't there long enough!! I am thankful that I got to go at all though. It was such a great chance to get away! Praise the Lord for good friends and memories!
Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

My attempt to try new things just keeps on going! Tonight I went to a Tae Chi class. Wow, I really stink at Tae Chi! :) But am I going to the next class on Saturday? *sigh* Yeah... I can't give up that easily! I met a couple who have been going to the class for about 3 months, and honestly, I think I can do almost as much as them. (ok, so what if they were almost 60 years old?) A few more classes and I'll get better! I'm really enjoying this new-found freedom to experiment with new things. I don't really have much interesting news to share with you guys. I've been a little bored the past few days. And to be honest, I've been really lonely. It's all part of "being a missionary" so I expect it and deal with it, but that doesn't make loneliness any cooler. I'm really thankful for my kittens right about now... Yesterday if it hadn't been for them, I wouldn't have spoken to anybody at all. Yeah... I know... It's sad. I have a few friends here, but I'm nowhere near comfortable with any of them to be able to call 'em up and say "hey, I'm lonely, let's do something." I wish I was, but I'm not. Guess no one else does that around here, so I'd be the weird one if I did it!! :) The missionaries are cool but they have their families to deal with. Ugh. Anyway, no more complaining Bonnie!! I still don't have a phone line, by the way, and my computer is still dead. I have a bad feeling it's going to stay that way. I miss my lap-top, I really do. Alright... it's time to say goodnight from Jo'burg. Goodnight my friends! I miss you guys more than you know...
Cheers,
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Hello world! Where do I begin? Well, about a week ago a tragedy occurred on the Western Gauteng. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I am sad to say, my computer has died. Bit the dust, kicked the bucket, whatever else you want to say... it did it. Yeah, I'm pretty devastated. That thing holds my life! A friend of mine is looking at it right now, and I'm praying he has some magic touch or something. If not, then I'd better find some spare money somewhere (yeah, THAT'S no problem...) to either get it fixed or buy a new computer. Eish! Easier said than done! But oh well, it's just a computer... a physical piece of matter that was given to me for a time. I refuse to let electronics get me down! I DO pray it gets fixed though!! :) So what's been happening since I last wrote? Not too much... I'm finished in two of my schools, so once I finish on Tuesdays, I have the rest of the week off. Crazy... I'm enjoying time to myself, and time alone in my flat! I've hung out with friends whenever possible, and I'm being more diligent about going to the gym! I've been to see some movies (Luther, the Bourne Supremacy and The Village), had some friends over for a braai, and went to my first Anglican church service. No, I'm not becoming Anglican so don't go calling the IMB on me. I was just visiting. Let's just say, "it ain't Baptist!" (And that's probably a good thing... hehe) I also did something new last night! I went to a Power Boxing class at the gym. If you know me at ALL, you should know that I do not handle new things very well. I'm very much a comfort zone gal. Well, things are a-changin'! I worked up enough nerve to go to the class, and told myself that I didn't care if I looked like a fool! Well, God blessed me! I went in a few minutes early, and there was a lady there (LizAnne) who also had never been to a class before, and she was also like me in the fact that well... she needed to be there as much as I did (get my drift?). I dare say I did a rather nice job in the class. Having done Tae Bo really helped, since that's mostly what the class was. Only thing is, the Tae Bo tape I have is 30 minutes long and the class was 60!! Wow, I think I sweat more in 60 minutes than I have the rest of my life. You know what was cool though? I ENJOYED myself!! It's amazing what the power of a group can do. We would do some things that when I did the advanced Taw Bo tape, I would take a water break during because they were "too hard" for me to do. But being surrounded by lots of people who weren't giving up, and some who were obviously struggling with me, made me keep going! I was surprised to find myself almost laughing at times because I literally was having that much fun. No, I can't believe it myself. Bonnie Boisvert enjoyed exercise! Hooray!!!!! Now, there were a few times there that I thought I was about to die. I mean, I wanted to kick the instructor in the head every time he'd say "just one more set!" Eish! Crazy man, he is. But I'll be going to the next class, that's for sure. I left there feeling amazing. I can't wait to do it again. I can't believe what I'm saying, but I'm so glad and grateful that I'm saying it! LizAnne promised to go to the next class with me, so that'll be cool. I'll have a work-out buddy. Some guy talked to us afterwards about a kick-boxing class somewhere else... but I think it was a plug to get us to pay more money. I'd love to do it. The guy said if you could do the moves from the class, you could do kick-boxing. I think it'd be more than cool, but I can't be spending MORE money! Oh well, I'll enjoy power-boxing while I can. :)
Well, my kids at Lilydale have been writing exams today, so I have free time, and the office said I could use their internet. I didn't even know that HAD internet until a couple weeks ago. What a blessing! I think that's all I have to say for now. If anyone wants to buy me a lap-top, do let me know. ;) I can dream, right? Thanks for checking in on me. :)
Cheers,
Bonnie
Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Well, I don't know how THAT happened... I swear, the computer screen showed me a big error message that said my post didn't post, so I spend more time and money typing it again, only to discover later that it DID post. Have I mentioned I love computer? Aye... You know though, reading through the two messages, I have a better understanding of how the different gospels all sound a little different. I mean, both my messages were written within 30 minutes of each other, by the person who it was about, on the same day of the things I was writing about, and still they both say things a little differently. The Gospels were written by 4 different people about something that happened a few years ago! No wonder they each sound a little different. :)

Anyway, I'm feeling better than I was yesterday when I wrote. Later in the evening yesterday my teammate, Angie, called me just to check in on me. How sweet! Then I went and had dinner with Kerryn. It was good to get out of my flat. Today I spent many hours sanding and painting (talk about making a mess - but it was fun!). Now I'm at the Holiday's house, about to play some games with the missionary women on my team. Their husbands are all leading a pastor's conference somewhere nearby, so we're having fun without the men tonight. Woohoo!! :) Tomorrow I'm having a small braai at my flat for the first time... don't know who's coming yet, but I'm sure it'll be fun no matter what. I'm gonna make some brownies here at the Holiday's house since Janna Kay has all the right ingredients! mmm mm good :) Alright, I'd better go join my fellow females! Hooray for game nights!! :-D
Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Hey All... Today is a strange day. Way too many emotions wrapped up in way too few hours. Today was my last day at Diepsloot Combined School. I played a game with the kids to review our past lessons, and we just had a lot of fun. A lot of the kids (mostly girls, but a few guys too!) wrote me good-bye letter. Man, I wish I could show them to everyone- you'd laugh for sure. My favorite note: "I love you Ms. Bonny (yeah, they all spell my name wrong). You are my favorite teacher. You are beautiful. You look like a fish swimming in the water." WHAT? A fish? Um, is that a good thing? I can't decide... Anyway, so the saying of goodbyes was bitter sweet. I'm excited to have some more free time, and somewhat relieved to be done with Diepsloot, but saying goodbye to some of my kids was a little hard! But another goodbye has been harder and much weirder today. Melissa left this afternoon to go to the States. She's only going for 2 weeks, but when she comes back, everything will be different. She won't be on my team. She won't be my roommate. We won't be teaching together. The list goes on and on. In all honesty, I'm not sure what I'm feeling. I'm definitely having a down moment right now... It's just strange, really strange. I've never lived by myself before, so do to so in another country is a bit new and confusing (though exciting too!). I've also been walking around the mall and seeing lots of Christmas decorations being put up. That makes me sad beyond note because I am not looking forward to spending Christmas away from my family (although it looks like I may spend Christmas with a friend's family here, so that may be cool...). Anyway... I feel like my mind is spinning. I ask you to please pray for me to deal with these wacked out emotions SOON! I need to get back to being myself again and not so down. I don't like being sad!! Thanks for praying. I'm so glad to know people out there are thinking about me even though I am so far from home.

Thanks for checking in on me!
Cheers,
Bonnie
Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

I just want to say... life is good. No, I don't have a phone line yet (life's not THAT good yet!), but really, life is pretty daggum wonderful. I had a great day at school today with my kids, and an even more fantastic time with my girls' club after school. I didn't really "teach" per se today... we watch a movie about Jesus. Turned out to be a good thing I hadn't planned a ton though because there was some lady at the school talking about breast cancer awareness, and she totally messed up the schedule. (I've never seen so many pink ribbons in all my life.) I did talk to the teacher (Mrs. Shabalala) but she told me that she's going to see ALL the teachers from the area on Saturday, and she's going to talk to them then and give them my number if they're interested in me teaching there next year. Please keep praying for this opportunity! I need some more schools to work in next year, and I really want them to all be concentrated in one area of Soweto so I can really get to know people in ONE area (as opposed to 3 different areas this year). Anyway... while the kids watched the video, I pretty much stayed engrossed in my alltime favorite book by my alltime favorite person... "Passion and Purity" by Elisabeth Elliot. I'm tellin' ya, every time read that book I am so encouraged!! She's got to be the coolest lady ever. Well... I'm using a missionary's internet, so I'd better stop spending their money. Cheers!!
Bonnie

Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Hi! I just have a moment, and I wanted to first ask you to please pray with me about something (that is, if you're reading this pretty soon!)... When I went to lilydale for Girls' Club today a teacher (a sweet Christian lady) came to me and said, "the teachers at the other schools ask me when you are coming to their schools." I replied, "I haven't been invited! Who wants me?!" And she said that a junior primary and a higher primary school asked about me teaching there. I'm
not so keen on the junior primary because many of them aren't very good at English yet, but the other school might be a possible ministry for next year. Right now is when I need to be looking into this, and God just dropped this in my lap without me even looking! Both schools are very
close to Dhlamini, where we are working to plant a church. The teacher said that when I come back tomorrow, we would phone the schools together. PLEASE be praying for God's guidance in what to do. I don't want to just take the jobs to be busy. I want to teach there only if God wants me to be there! Pray that HE will make it very clear what I am to do next year. Thank you for praying!!!

Now, quickly... I STILL don't have a phone line at my flat (apartment) and yes, it is killing me. November 5th is when I'm supposed to get one, and I can NOT wait. I don't know what to tell you about because I don't know where to start! I can't remember the last time I wrote, and I've no clue what I wrote about. Life's pretty great at the moment. Changes abound, however... could be good! On a sad note, Melissa is leaving on Thursday to go back to the States for 2 weeks. She'll be finished with the IMB as of Thursday, but not finished with South Africa (really, who could ever be finished with this place? :)). When she comes back she'll be teaching at the school where the missionary kids go.... she's have a "real job!" But I'm sad that she won't be living with me anymore. I'll have a big flat all to myself. Part of me looks forward to it, but I know me, and I know I'll get lonely. Yay for South African friends to come visit!

Ok, I'm spending a fortune at this stupid internet cafe. I could use some donations... haha I'll write more when I can. Thanks for checking in on me!!

Cheers,
Bonnie
Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81

Hey Guys!!
I have no time to write, but I wanted to let everyone know that I am doing VERY well here in Jo'burg. I have moved into a new flat, and I absolutely LOVE it. BUT we have no phone line yet, and so I have no internet! I'll update as soon as I can. but please know that I am loving life at the moment. Hooray! Oh, and Melissa and I got two kittens, brother and sister, Wallace and Oreo. :) Love you!!
Cheers
Bonnie B


Link to pictures:
http://community.webshots.com/user/bonnieb81