This past week here in Cape Town
has been all about the small joys. Those amazing ordinary moments throughout
the day that make me smile and remind me of the goodness in my life. Moments like talking about poverty in
Philippi with Nina (long-term German volunteer at iThemba Labantu). Or joking
with the many South Africans at iThemba Labantu- I am finally starting to feel
like I belong there. Tuesday was filled with many of these moments. Because
Nina and the other German volunteers were all busy, I spent a lot of time with
Natasha (South African volunteer/ program facilitator). She and I picked up the
kids from school in a giant bus and brought them back to iThemba Labantu for
after-school programming. It was amazing to see more of the area around iThemba
Labantu and to see some of the schools where the kids go. We drove through
Mitchell’s Plain talking about music, art, dance, and high school. Natasha is
such a vibrant and joyous woman and I cannot help but smile when I am around
her. Later that day I was to begin tutoring a new kid, but I did not know who
it was or what he/she looked like. Constantine (another long-term German
volunteer) ran all over iThemba Labantu helping me figure it out. This
particular instance was a nice reminder that no matter how independent I will
ever be (traveling in a foreign country, spending two days a week at an
organization at which I knew no one, advocating for myself at a foreign
university, etc.) I will always need the help of others.
And the small joys continued at incredible speed. Once I started noticing them, they multiplied in occurrence (or I was just more aware of them). Wednesday my last class was cancelled, so of course we went straight to the beach! Walking down the street I ran into the girl I had sat next to on the 17 hour plane ride from Washington D.C. to Johannesburg. I had emailed Sarah earlier that week just to say hello and see how her time has been in South Africa, so I was surprised and excited to see her right in front of me. This is Sarah’s fourth time in South Africa. She has been coming for three months at a time to volunteer here, goes home for a month to renew her visa, and then comes straight back. On the plane she drew me maps and wrote down all the great things to do in Cape Town and the surrounding area. It was so great to see her and talk to her for a bit. Seeing Sarah was awesome, too bad the beach weather was not as great. Just as Kari (one of my housemates from Minnesota) and I got to the beach it started raining. We relocated to a nearby coffee shop for some cappuccino while we watched our friends surf for the rest of the afternoon. Despite the rain, it could not have been a better afternoon. Kari and I talked about her time in France, Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya and her schooling at Montessori. We shared coffee and conversation (two of my favorites) and reveled at how lucky we could be to be in that coffee shop in South Africa. To top it off, our friends had one of the best days surfing and could not contain their excitement telling us all about it. Their elation continued onto the very crowded train where I met a little mischievous boy. He was holding a rubber band and was not afraid to use it or stretch it over his face. After giving up my seat for another woman, I stood next to the little boy who started to play “peek-a-boo” tickle me around and in between the many bodies shoved around us. To him, I was just another person to play with on a boring train ride- it didn’t matter that I was white, American, a university student, living in Observatory, or even that I was totally covered in sand. He just wanted someone to play with. By the time we made it to my stop he had grabbed hold of my hand so tightly that I thought I would not make it off the train. I gave him one last tickle and scrunched-up-funny-face under which he released his death grip and I slipped away smiling and laughing. This week was filled with so many smalls joys that I know will continue to define my time here if only I am present and aware enough to realize them.
And the small joys continued at incredible speed. Once I started noticing them, they multiplied in occurrence (or I was just more aware of them). Wednesday my last class was cancelled, so of course we went straight to the beach! Walking down the street I ran into the girl I had sat next to on the 17 hour plane ride from Washington D.C. to Johannesburg. I had emailed Sarah earlier that week just to say hello and see how her time has been in South Africa, so I was surprised and excited to see her right in front of me. This is Sarah’s fourth time in South Africa. She has been coming for three months at a time to volunteer here, goes home for a month to renew her visa, and then comes straight back. On the plane she drew me maps and wrote down all the great things to do in Cape Town and the surrounding area. It was so great to see her and talk to her for a bit. Seeing Sarah was awesome, too bad the beach weather was not as great. Just as Kari (one of my housemates from Minnesota) and I got to the beach it started raining. We relocated to a nearby coffee shop for some cappuccino while we watched our friends surf for the rest of the afternoon. Despite the rain, it could not have been a better afternoon. Kari and I talked about her time in France, Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya and her schooling at Montessori. We shared coffee and conversation (two of my favorites) and reveled at how lucky we could be to be in that coffee shop in South Africa. To top it off, our friends had one of the best days surfing and could not contain their excitement telling us all about it. Their elation continued onto the very crowded train where I met a little mischievous boy. He was holding a rubber band and was not afraid to use it or stretch it over his face. After giving up my seat for another woman, I stood next to the little boy who started to play “peek-a-boo” tickle me around and in between the many bodies shoved around us. To him, I was just another person to play with on a boring train ride- it didn’t matter that I was white, American, a university student, living in Observatory, or even that I was totally covered in sand. He just wanted someone to play with. By the time we made it to my stop he had grabbed hold of my hand so tightly that I thought I would not make it off the train. I gave him one last tickle and scrunched-up-funny-face under which he released his death grip and I slipped away smiling and laughing. This week was filled with so many smalls joys that I know will continue to define my time here if only I am present and aware enough to realize them.
While weekdays here are filled with
service and school, weekends are jam-packed with bucket list activities and
exploration. Friday night Hannah (friend from SLU) joined some South African
friends we had met at church to a LifeTeen conference in Constantia. It was the
opening night of the conference and consisted of praise and worship and, of
course, meeting new friends. LifeTeen is a youth ministry organization that has
spread from the United States all over the world. Ever since arriving in South Africa,
I have struggled to find a faith community here. Participating in religious,
spiritual, and faith-based groups is a large part of my life back at SLU, so I
have been missing that aspect of my routine. However, Friday night was great.
It was so fun spending time with my new friends, both teenagers and adult
leaders, singing songs I knew, and worshipping with a larger community. The
coolest part of the night was listening to a talk given by a guy named Steve.
Steve is from Missouri! After the night had ended, Hannah and I went to talk to
him and found out he lives right by SLU and knows some of our friends. Seeing
and talking to him was such a cool way to tie home and South Africa together.
You really never know whom you are going to meet here.
Saturday was adventure day! A small group of us woke up relatively early Saturday morning and caught the 8:47 train to Muizenberg. From there we took a cab to Silvermine Nature Reserve to go hiking and swimming. Even though it was a hassle to get there, we enjoyed a beautiful day hiking through rocks, woods, and plenty of sunshine.
Saturday was adventure day! A small group of us woke up relatively early Saturday morning and caught the 8:47 train to Muizenberg. From there we took a cab to Silvermine Nature Reserve to go hiking and swimming. Even though it was a hassle to get there, we enjoyed a beautiful day hiking through rocks, woods, and plenty of sunshine.
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| Silvermine Nature Reserve |
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| Halfway to our destination |
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| View of Elephant's Eye from the trail- cave (dark spot on the mountain) was our destination |
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| Rock climbing! |
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| Duke, me, Dylan, and Sarah (photo cred to Hannah) |
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| Hannah and I must have been on the same multi-wavelength haha...astronomy joke. No we did not plan this. |
Even as I sit here at honeybun drinking my fabulous cappuccino I am amazed by the immense blessing it is to be here. Every day brings new joys and challenges. And I cannot wait for the rest.
Cheers!
(that's the favored "goodbye" or "hello" or "yay"...it can be used in a multitude of contexts really)
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