Welcome back to the show everyone. It's Jackson... but not for long

Well hello! This is not Jackson. This is Amanda, Mrs. D, Maii… all the names I may be known as. 😊 Jackson asked if I would write a blog post about the PVT, or Parent Vision Trip, from back in March. I don’t quite have the wittiness that he does in his writing, but the trip was beyond amazing, so I will do my best to recap it here for you all, and I apologize in advance for the lengthiness. Feel free to break it up. 😉

The Arrival

Gavin (aka Mr. D or Daii) and I had the opportunity to spend 3 days in Cape Town before arriving into Eswatini. That city is truly a gem, and I highly recommend a visit if you are ever “in the area!" Besides being spectacular, these few days also took away some of the anxious anticipation that we had in seeing Jackson, as we were busy being tourists in that remarkable city.

Sunday, Mar 10, we woke at 3:30am to catch a 6am flight to Johannesburg, then another short flight into Manzini. We were beyond excited, as the day we got to see Jackson was finally here! For some perspective, we had not talked with him much at all since Christmas, as he had been off the grid in  Cambodia, and when he had wifi there on Saturdays, it was when we were always sleeping in the middle of the night. I think we had talked on the phone maybe 3 times since Christmas, and exchanged just a handful of texts. He also had not been able to blog, so it had been a while.

We met up with a delightful couple in the Cape Town airport, also on our flight to J-burg. Their son Malachi is on the other boys’ team. We arrived into J-burg and immediately spotted a very large group of *very excited Americans waiting to board our flight to Manzini. We took up 35 of the 37 seats on that flight, and I feel very sorry for those 2 non-WR folks who had to endure our endless introductions and loud, excited voices. In total there were 59 parents attending the PVT, and we were spread amongst 3 flights.

Last flight... almost there!

Finally, we touch down in Manzini. First thing, it’s hot and humid. We load up in our assigned vans and are handed lunches that were obviously put together by our Racer (the term for the kids that are on World Race) – I immediately recognized Jackson’s handwriting and “Maii” written on my bag. I was so excited, and it all felt a little surreal.

Seeing his handwriting on our bags was so unexpected, but just added to the anticipation

We drove for what felt like 2 hours (but the return trip was only 45 min, so…), and finally saw the sign for Legend's Lodge, where we were staying. My heart beat a bit faster, and as we turned into the drive, we hear huge shouts and whoops coming from the Racers, who were eagerly awaiting our arrival. I got tears in my eyes at that point. I didn’t realize yet that we were the first of the 3 vans to arrive until we parked and the 20 of us got out, standing on the gravel drive, seeing all these heads peeking out a doorway a little ways away. No one really knew if we were supposed to go to them, or them to us, until one girl (Elise) broke away, ran, and flung herself into her mom’s arms. That opened the floodgates, and the Racers ran up and pretty much tackled parents. I stood there scanning for Jackson amid everyone, and then see him running towards me. He gives me a hug I will remember for the rest of my life. At one point I went to let go, thinking Gavin should get a chance to hug, but Jackson hung on tightly, so I did too. It was 6 months wrapped up into one enormous hug. Gavin finally got his long hug, and we stood there with tears in our eyes, so thankful for such a sweet reunion. Even as I type this, I get teary thinking about it all. It was beautiful, and we were watching it happen over and over all around us as the other vans arrived and all the Racers found their parents.

The memorable first hug

A teary, sweet reunion

Disclaimer: I know that was long, but that reunion was such a huge part of the experience, I had to spell it out for you. I’ll try and be a bit briefer for the rest. 😊

Events of the Week

AIM did such a great job planning the week for the parents. It was a great blend of time spent just with Jackson, time doing ministry together, time to see the country (which is gorgeous) and where they are living, time with worship and testimonies, and time with the other squad mates and their parents. We stayed in this backpackers’ lodge, so there were about 12 moms to a room of bunk beds, then same for the dads, and the Racers slept in tents (or hammocks in the case of Jackson). The ministry hosts cooked delightful meals for us and had put up a HUGE tent for us to sit under for meals, meetings, and worship (and to keep us dry during all the rain that came the 2^nd half of the week).

Racers camp

Jackson's hammock (and wet clothes hung out to dry after some hard rain!)

A typical meal set-up

On Monday we had the chance to drive 2 hours across the country and see Nsoko, where they were living for their few weeks in Swazi. It was remote, rustic, and HOT. The country went from lush green valleys to dry desert-like landscape over the course of about an hour’s drive. Mountains overlooked their base, and that was the South African border. They were literally in the middle of nowhere in a guarded compound, and they loved it. We also had the chance to meet a small handful of squad mates who didn’t have parents on the PVT for one reason or another – my heart felt heavy for them most of the week, but Jackson told me later that they had one the best weeks of the race together while everyone else was gone, so I was thankful for that.

Their base in Nsoko.

The spot Jackson watched nightly sunsets

On Tuesday and Wednesday we were divided into groups of about 20, and went to various Care Points somewhat close to where we were staying. We were able to experience a bit of what the Racers were doing that month, caring for and playing with kids. We did a home visit one day with about 7 of us, and visited this older woman who was so excited we were there that she literally danced around praising God and giving us bear hugs. That was even before we brought her food, which we had forgotten to take with us, so she danced around again when we returned with bags of rice, oil and other small food items. She lived in extreme poverty and was caring for very young kids, and we had the chance to pray over her and encourage her with Scripture. Back at the Care Point I hung out most of the time with 2 girls who had attached themselves to me as soon as I stepped out of the van. They spoke great English, so we had a good time chatting. They were so excited we were there, and I got to hear about their dreams of becoming a doctor and going to university one day. Jackson played soccer with some boys, and Gavin hung out with another group of kids.

The old woman singing and dancing and praising Jesus that we had come to visit

You can see the small children she is caring for. There are more who were in school at the time

My new friends

Gavin's buddies

Jackson playing soccer. And barefoot... always :)

Thursday we were supposed to go on a safari, but unfortunately had had very heavy rains on Wednesday, and the dirt roads were so muddy that not even the off-road Jeeps could get through. We still went to the safari location for a delicious traditional Swazi lunch, and had a chance to see hippos at the watering hole. When we left, we saw a giraffe literally standing on the side of the road, and a whole bunch of giraffes on the other side of the road. So that part was pretty neat.

As close as we got to a safari... those are hippos in the water behind us!

Giraffe literally right on the side of the road

Throughout the course of the week we pretty much drove through the entire country. Eswatini/Swaziland is such a beautiful hidden place, but there is such poverty throughout.

Typical huts on the side of the road

Beautiful view of the valley we were in; Gavin and Jackson hiked to a peak early one morning and snapped this shot right before the clouds came in

The dirt road out to our Care Point. It got a little treacherous after it rained, but the drivers were fantastic

The Conversations

As I mentioned, during the week we had a lot of time to just spend with Jackson, one on one. That first Sunday we sat on the porch for about 3 hours just catching up on everything and trying to relay so much from the last 6 months. From the beginning, we could see that Jackson was different. If you know him (which you likely do if you have followed this blog), you know that he is generally a pretty quiet person. He thinks deeply but doesn’t always let those thoughts out. Through the course of the week, we had the chance to really see so much of the Jackson that he always kept inside. We saw how much he had grown and matured on this journey. He asked incredibly thoughtful and intentional questions and challenged us in so many ways. He wanted to know everything we could think of about his siblings and how they were really doing. He wanted to know how we had both grown in our faith this year and what God has taught us. He shared with us his heart, and what the Lord has been doing in his life, and where he was at with so many things.

This is where we camped for almost 3 hours that first day

We had deep, life-giving conversations. We laughed, we cried, and in so many ways it felt like I was having a conversation with another adult, not just my son. I mean he is an adult, but you know… I honestly wondered going into the week what we would talk about for all our time together, only because we all tend to be on the more introverted side. But we never ran out of things to say, and if we weren’t talking amongst the 3 of us, we were talking with some of the guys and parents from his team, or with others on his squad.

Our last dinner together at a beautiful restaurant... right before the heavy rain!

The one piece that was very unexpected was how well I would get to know some of the other parents of his squad mates. We had some great meals with other families, and there were a few parents with whom we really connected. We left with this shared experience that bonded us in a very short time. That part was very unexpected but very sweet.

Lastly, each night under the big tent we had worship and testimonies. Their squad is made up of some extremely talented worship leaders (Jackson being one), and they rotated through leading heart-felt times of worship in the evenings. Afterward, each Racer shared a short testimony of what the Lord has done in their life this year, based on a fruit of the spirit. Jackson picked joy, and it was truly a blessing to listen to how God has instilled this unmistakable joy into him this year. Sadly, his testimony was on the first night when we were all bleary-eyed from travel and waking so early, so it’s honestly hard for me to remember all that he said. But I know that it touched me.

Leading worship one night - Nick and Noah (to the right) are both on his team

We then got to hear from all the other Racers throughout the course of the week, and it really gave me a glimpse into their squad and how precious this group of kids are. Until now I had only seen them in photographs, but to meet them in 3D real life and put personalities and stories to their pictures was so beautiful. Now when I look at their pictures or read their blogs, I truly know who they are, and what they have meant to Jackson this year.

The Goodbye

Friday morning we had to say goodbye. We all stood in a big circle, praying together as families, then giving hugs and saying goodbye. It had only been 5 days since we stood in this same gravel parking lot as our Racers ran to attack us with hugs. We were like strangers then, but now it felt like family. We gave our final hugs to Jackson and loaded up into the vans. The Racers all stood in a row and linked arms and waved us off as we pulled out of the drive and headed to the airport. I was sad to leave, but so filled.

Praying together before the final hugs

So thankful for this week

Goodbye waves as the vans pull away

It had been a most incredible week. We got a glimpse of the life Jackson is living, and how special it is. We saw how much he had grown, as well as the people around him. We heard stories of the hard and the good, what he loved and what he didn’t. We saw a true glimpse of just how hard it will be for these kids to return to the US and the fast-paced crazy lives that live here. I thought I knew, having lived in Slovakia for 4.5 years and how hard it was to return to the US, but I don’t know if I would have truly realized how hard that transition will be without being there for those few days. It really felt like I was living another life. I also saw how hard it will be to say goodbye to these people he has lived life with intimately for 9 months by that point; while he will be so excited to see his family and friends, he will also be grieving the absence of the family he has had the previous 9 months.

Since returning home, I miss Jackson more than ever, but the end is soon, about a month away! I can’t wait for him to come home and spend more time with him. He will leave in August for UGA, but it will feel so close compared to this year. The Lord even blessed that decision, as another teammate as well as a squad mate are also going to UGA, so they will have a little pod of them who have been through the same experience. That is such a gift.

This was long, but I hope it gives you a small glimpse of what we experienced. It was a week I will never forget!

*steals the microphone*

There ya have it folks

In Christ,

Jackson (and Maii)

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