06 May 2010 – Thursday

I woke up not feeling well and spent most of the morning until 10:30 sleeping. While I was doing this, Mary woke me up to tell me that someone had just stolen the front gate! She had heard a noise and got up to see if someone was trying to get in and saw that the gate was gone. I would say that they were rather bold thieves to take it in broad daylight without knowing that we were gone.

I called to tell the landlord that we needed the gate replaced and he came right out to measure for a new one but it will not go in until Saturday. We are concerned that the thieves might come back and take the air-conditioning units or even the bars on the window. This is the first time that the rampant  crime in South Africa has actually touched our lives. I must say that I feel a little less safe than I did when I woke up this morning.

The rush of the gate loss drove away my headache but when I calmed down again, unfortunately it came back. I am not going to be much good to Mary this afternoon as she teaches English, youth and piano.

Once the gate maker showed up to take measurements for a new gate, we had lunch and then went to the store to buy a food order to be delivered to Port Durnford. From the time we got out of our car to the time we got back in it took less than 25 minutes. Elder B said he could gather up the food for an order in 10 minutes – I think he was stretching it a little.

We then drove to PD to deliver the food and pick up the sisters for English. Sister Chirwa could not go because they only have one key to the lock on their house and someone had it out. I think I will get her a new lock with 3 or 4 keys.

While Mary taught English I tried to sleep – it did not work. We had earlier decided that Thandi Nzama would teach the youth today so I could go home and try to get some sleep before Mary’s RS meeting.

In the evening Mary and Sister Khumalo met with Jackie Duplooy and gave her some training for her new calling as RS president of the Richards Bay branch. While they did that I found a comfortable pew in the chapel and went to sleep. I am tired all the time now and I am pretty sure it is tick-bite fever.