FROM SOUTH OF THE BORDER

With passports in tow we headed north to cross the border into Botswana.  When we arrived, we met with impressively amazing Bishop Matswagothata to plan our meeting with a member of the Labour and Home Affairs Ministry and to determine how we could be of service to the young adult groups in Gaborone.  The next day Bishop Matswagothata drove us to meet with the government official he had set an appointment with.  We were honored to meet the Director of the Department of the National Internship Programme. 
We gave our presentation on employment resources and showed her the Career Workshop book and Career Fair slide show I produced.  She was favorably impressed with the church program to help empower prospective employees and business owners and invited us to teach 4000 college graduates throughout the country.  WOW!

 
On the following day, Elder Basso trained Ward/Branch Councils in the Gaborone District.  He taught the concepts from Elder Ballard’s Book on “Counseling with Our Councils” and reviewed Julie Beck’s talk “Why We Are Organized into Quorums and Relief Societies.”  There were about 60+ leaders in attendance and favorable feedback was received.  We also taught an abbreviated Career/Self-Employment Workshop.  We used the Botswana shield to introduce the personal shield exercise in the lesson book.  Here is a drawing one of the students made on the blackboard from memory as she explained what it meant.  We thought it was pretty impressive even if one of the zebras only had one leg to stand on!

Here is the actual Coat of Arms/Shield.

The coat of arms of Botswana was adopted on January 25, 1966. The center shield is supported by two zebras. The shape of the shield is that of traditional shields found in East Africa. On the top portion of the shield are three cogwheels that represent industry.  The three waves symbolize water, and remind the viewer of the motto of the nation: pula, which means simply "rain", but also good luck, and is the name of the nation's currency. This motto also highlights the importance of water to Botswana. The motto is found at the bottom of the coat of arms on a blue banner.  At the bottom of the shield is the head of a bull, which symbolizes the importance of cattle herding to Botswana. The two zebras are present since zebras are an important part of Botswana's wildlife. The zebra on the right holds an ear of sorghum, an important crop in the nation. The zebra on the left holds a tusk of ivory, symbolic of the former ivory trade in Botswana.

Some of the Self-Employment Workshop participants

We attended the YSA Ward meetings and spoke at a YSA fireside gathering in the afternoon and concluded with the Career Fair Slide Show and a question and answer session.  There were about a hundred or more young adults in attendance.  What a spiritual feast we had with those energetic young people!

Several of the students from the workshop wanted to counsel with Elder Basso about their business plans.  To accommodate them, we booked appointments all morning at our hotel and spent time with those who wanted individual attention.  They appreciated the new insights and ideas learned as we advised them to “think outside the box” and be creative in showcasing their business ideas in ways to attract both business clients and investors.  We concluded all of our teaching moments with testimonies and words of encouragement.  We reminded them to draw upon the powers of heaven because God wants them to be successful and will help them reach their goals and dreams. 

Coming to our hotel for “last minute” individual coaching.

We said our goodbyes to our new-found friends and headed south of the border over the potholes and through the woods to our “home away from home” in South Africa.