24th & 25th August 2025
I delayed the start to the day as long as possible but at a certain point I knew I’d have to get up, pack my bags, and face the morning head on. I dressed and packed and then stepped out of my room for a cup of coffee. I managed to get a nice photo of the sunrise and relax a bit before go time. Soon enough Derek and Dan were awake and preparing for the morning as well. As usual Dan and Carol (and Dekha and the guys) were great hosts. It’s always bittersweet leaving a place and getting ready to go to another. Soon enough Gracious had arrived to take us and our bags to the airport. As usual Dan accompanied him to the airport where we said our goodbyes. It was time for us to begin our journey home starting with another layover in South Africa.
On most of this trip we’ve survived on instant coffee, much of which was a combination of beans with the occasional jar of Jacob’s brand which many in this part of the world consider the best. Regardless of our tolerance for various coffees (and in general having something is better than nothing) it’s always nice to have a good quality espresso drink like a latte or flat white or cappuccino. We found just the thing in the small upstairs international terminal at the Blantyre airport.
Derek and I talked, going over some of the elements of our experience in Malawi and the people we had visited during our short stay. We also talked about opportunities to help and serve in and out of our congregations back home. In many of the large cities in the U.S. there are large homeless populations. The members of UCG often hope we can be the ones to organize aid for those people who have fallen on hard times, but so many times we lack the resources or manpower or know how to make it happen. But still there are those who volunteer with other organizations to serve in their own communities. It’s easy to become overwhelmed with the amount of need there is in the world. On the other hand it can be easy to minimize the power of our example of service both in and out of the Church of God.
The flight from Blantyre to Johannesburg was thankfully uneventful. Our plane was larger than the last one, with jet engines rather than propellers. I think we are getting to the point that we are tired from the trip but spiritually rejuvenated by the people and places we’ve seen. Thankfully our flight was short. We were up in the clouds, we ate a tasty breakfast, and then we were on the ground again. This time we knew where to go without having to rely on a porter. We easily navigated through immigration, found our bags, and caught the shuttle to the same hotel. We checked into our room, ate a quick lunch, and I proceeded to take a nap before our next adventure. I think Derek was too excited to sleep at the moment. He had to get ready for the next event of the day.
As Derek has mentioned a few times to different people, he was born in Zimbabwe and then fled to South Africa at the age of 20. He met his lovely wife Denise there and they made their home together in the Johannesburg area for 20 years. It just so happens that he has a handful of friends in the area who have a similar history. We made plans to get together with three of his closest school mates who he has managed to stay connected with for more than 50 years.
We took a half hour Uber ride northwest of the airport to a beautiful neighborhood with some amazing houses. Derek chatted with the driver about life and the state of South Africa. The young man was great company even though I sat quietly on the back trying to catch up on sleep. We were going to meet some amazing people with a very interesting life story and I wanted to be awake for it.
We were met at the gate by Bev. Her husband Garth was one of Derek’s closest friends in school back in Rhodesia where they grew up, along with Kieth who only lives a short distance away and stops by for a visit at least a couple times a week. Garth was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease more than a decade ago, and even though he has slowly lost many abilities (both physical and mental) his long-term memory is strong and he never complains a bit. We had a lovely visit over afternoon tea (coffee for me) and cake.
It was wonderful to hear these four old school chums reminisce, tell of the mischief they got into once upon a time, and hear where their lives have taken them. At a certain point Keith left. We stayed a little longer and talked a little about travel and faith, about family and personal histories. At the end, before we left, Derek and I laid hands on Garth, asking God to continue to sustain him and also give Bev the strength and peace of mind to continue to care for him. There were some very touching moments among old friends that I had the pleasure to witness. It was all a reminder of the power of friendship through hardships in life. The Uber ride home was quiet and contemplative.
We were told that there would be a wine and cheese meet and greet in the lounge of the hotel, but we didn’t make it back in time. We weren’t sure if we were hungry again yet. After all, the only thing we did yet again was sit and eat and sit some more before sitting somewhere else eating something else with someone else. The night was still young and we’d got a second wind.
We perused the gift shop for a while. I bought a couple of things and looked at a couple of things I couldn’t quite justify spending the money on. Then we decided to skip the hotel restaurant where we had eaten several times already. Instead we took advantage of the fact that the hotel shuttle to the airport runs every 15 minutes all day and all night. We hopped on the next shuttle and proceeded to walk up and down the terminal area looking at all the shops and restaurants. Eventually we settled on a place that had some delicious fish and chips.
We walked around a little more after dinner, picking up a few things at some small shops. This gave us a chance to get some more steps in before the end of the day. In one of the airport pharmacies I happened to see some rapid tests for HIV and Malaria. These aren’t tests that I’ve ever seen in my home country, but seeing them there available for the public to purchase was a reminder of the diseases of the world that affect many people every single day.
After finishing our walk through the airport shops, we caught a shuttle back to the hotel and settled in for the evening. We had to make sure we were well rested enough for the next morning. We weren’t sure how we would feel in the morning, but we thought about waking up early enough to take the shuttle back to the airport where we knew we could get some delicious coffee. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but neither of us were too keen on the idea come morning.
Instead we decided to take our chances with the coffee in the lobby. After packing everything up in preparation for our departure, we headed downstairs. As we searched for the nonexistent coffee, I saw a stranger looking over at us and starting to follow us. Not a stranger. It was Jimmy! We made plans to get together with him for breakfast but he was a little early since traffic cooperated. Jimmy is a UCG member in South Africa. He’s a pretty adventurous guy who drives to various southern African countries doing business and taking people on safari. Jimmy is very interested in joining us on a future adventure.
We had the chance to sit and chat with Jimmy for quite a while before Arthur and Gail Fisher arrived. We had also invited them to have breakfast with us. Arthur is the UCG pastor of congregations in the greater Johannesburg area which includes Kempton Park just around the corner from the airport, and Kimberly which is more than 300 miles away. Lena and I first met the Fishers on 2016 when we came to South Africa to serve at the youth camp before moving to Malawi. It was great to see them again and hear about the brethren they serve in this area.
The five of us chatted over coffee and breakfast (fruit and yogurt), and stayed long enough to have more coffee and more breakfast (omelets). While the areas in Africa we serve in are different in some ways, in other ways they are much the same. Additionally there are Zimbabweans and Malawians that move to South Africa through the years, and others who come to the country to work for a while. I think it would be great to get more interaction between our areas. I think such an endeavor could help strengthen the work of the Church of God and the bonds between brethren in many ways.
At a certain point Derek and I had to check out of our hotel room and head to the airport so we said our goodbyes to our South African brethren. This wasn’t a planned visit but we are grateful that we had the time and opportunity to make it happen.
Now onto the next leg of the journey. But first some more coffee before our flight to Cape Town. We have a short layover there where we will probably need to get our exit stamps out of South Africa before leaving the continent and heading back to New Jersey where we first started this journey (if we don’t count Derek’s flight from Dallas).
-Lewis VanAusdle
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