Good News... Bad News...

Hello friends.  This week has been both very good and very bad.  I shall share the good news with you first. 

This past week Cape Town has been hosting the Lausanne Congress at Cape Towns International Convention Center.  For those of you who aren’t familiar with the Lausanne Congress, it is an International event that happens only every 15 years and they have been planning this event since 2004.  (Holy planning!)  From what I understand Billy Graham was one of the people who started this Congress.  It’s purpose is to bring together influential Pastoral Leaders from around the world to discuss what is going on in the world regarding evangelism and Christianity.  Their goal of the Congress is to have the “whole church, take the whole gospel, into the whole world.”   The excitement in the air regarding this Congress taking place here in Cape Town was really cool.  Even at Kuyasa we had a team of folks working many months to design a store for this conference and people in the township were making items to sell in the store.  I also believe that the little brochure I discussed awhile back in my “Finding a New Identity” blog ended up in the store as well.   How awesome is that!?  An event that happens only every 15 years and I was blessed to be a tiny bit involved.  Very cool. 

Another piece of good news, I found a new church this past week that I am enjoying.  I was happy to hear that the entire service was in English and they sang contemporary Christian American songs, (even my boyfriend Chris Tomlin’s songs.)  When I walked in I was kindly greeted and the minute I open my mouth and people here an American accent they are very interested and want to hear why I’m here.  That is always fun to share - especially in a church environment.  The guest speaker for the day was Daniel Willis, one of the Australian delegates from the Lausanne Congress.  He explained that their were 4,000 delegates from around the world invited.  There are 192 countries represented.  There is no way to get a ticket or to even walk the floor.  Only the 4,000 personally invited attend.  What an honor.  I can’t even imagine how those 4,000 felt to be chosen around the world.   I had heard about 400 Americans were invited, one of whom was John Piper.   Gosh, that would have been so cool to run into one of them this past week.

At Kuyasa we had a big event planned for a huge bus full of delegates that were coming for a township - ministry visit.  The Director toured them around through the learning center (where I work), the arts, video, sports, IT lab, Hats & Glasses and all of the other departments.  When It came time for lunch, I happened to be in the kitchen and jumped at the chance to serve them food and walk the plates into the dining room area.  Of course it was a bit selfish of me because I really wanted to see if I could scan their name tags and see if any of them were Americans I had heard of.   I didn’t find any, but I did get to hear a lot of cool accents and felt honored that they were in my presence.

So that was the good news...............

The bad news now......  Two days ago I received an email from one of my close childhood friends (since kindergarten) that her Dad had left this Earth.  It was such a horrible feeling to read those words and to feel so helpless, so far away.  I wanted to hug her.   I knew that Tara’s dad had got into the accident because she had emailed me immediately to ask for my prayers and to keep me updated.  Daily I asked her what the status was and there was no change.  To read those horrible words that he had passed made me sick to my stomach and so very sad for my friend and her family.    I could tell it had affected my own family as well because I received an email from both my mom and step-mom letting me know and I also spoke to my mom and dad on the phone about it.  Death suddenly makes you realize how important family is and how life can change in an instant.  

I was able to talk to my friend Tara yesterday in the morning before the viewing and it was so very sad.  She was holding up surprisingly well and I could tell she was drained and had no tears left at that moment.  I didn’t know what to say and there was obviously nothing anyone could do to take away the pain that family is experiencing.  I told her how very sorry I was that I couldn’t be there for her.  Her words shocked me and impressed me.  Her Faith keeps her so strong and at peace with the situation.  She knows her Father is in Heaven and he is in a better place now.  She knows that her whole family will see him again one day.  She said to me “Well, at least now I know how it feels and I can be there to help all of our other friends when this time comes for them.”   I was in awe and sat in silence.  Here she was dealing with this excruciating pain of losing her Father and she was thinking of me and our friends.  It was incredible.    You are an amazing woman and you inspire me so much. 

Tara and I talked about how we are all getting older and our parents are getting to that age.  She said “Everyone will have to deal with this.” and it’s so very true.  It made me so sad and my stomach hurt.  I was fighting back crying on the phone with her.  It obviously made me think of my own family and how important it is to make the most of every day with them, while they are still here on Earth.   How many of us think “Oh I will call them tomorrow...” or “I will visit them another weekend.” or... “It’s okay if I don’t see them for the holidays or their birthday’s.”... or better yet, people say “I will serve next year, or I will volunteer my time next month.”   What if there isn’t a tomorrow?  Too many people don’t live in the moment, making the most of the present day.  Our thoughts are too focused on the future and planning ahead and thinking that there will always be a tomorrow.  There was no tomorrow for Tara’s dad.  There might not be a tomorrow for you or I.  We just never know when it’s our time to go Home.  

In Max Lucado’s book “Fearless”, in chapter 7 he talks about these two girls at a pool with their dad.  The one girl is fearless and trusts her Dad.  She has Faith that her dad will catch her as she jumps into his arms.  The other daughter is afraid and says “No” and refuses to participate.  She sits there watching her sister have fun.  Then Max asks the question, “How many of you spend your life on the edge of the pool?  Consulting caution.  Ignoring Faith.  Never taking the plunge.  Happy to experience life vicariously through others, preferring to take no risk rather than any risk.  For fear of the worst, they never enjoy life at it’s best.”  

Think about that for awhile.  Enjoy life at it’s best and don’t wait till tomorrow to spend time with your loved ones and tell them how much you love them.  There just might not be a tomorrow.

To the Kauffman family I am so very sorry for your loss and I wish I could be there for you today.  I will keep all of you in my thoughts and prayers.  I ask all of my friends and followers of this blog to please pray for my friend and her family through this tough time.  I believe in the power of prayer.  Thank you.

Happy, Happy, Happy! Thank you friends!

This week has been wonderful and I feel so very special because I received not 1 but 3 packages this week.   Holy Cow!  Or... "Holy Hannah!" (as I like to say.)  My first care packages.  They took more than a month to arrive, so I have been anxiously awaiting them!   The funny part is that I owed 25.00 Rand (roughly $4.00) on each of the packages for customs & clearance fees and the post office charges to park there, but again, that’s South Africa and the governments way of making money.  It’s okay though.  I don’t mind the charges and the packages made me SO HAPPY!  I was in the best mood this week! Thank you everyone. 

Thank you Jennifer Douse (my wonderful friend and realtor from South Carolina).  Yours was the first I received which was carefully packaged and delicately decorated with paper colored Fall leaves which flew everywhere as I excitedly ripped open the package.  The leaves made me feel so at home with the fall harvest.  I will use those to decorate my little room for the Thanksgiving I will miss at home.   I loved the warm, long socks and fleece cheetah print pajama bottoms!  I used them immediately and was so very warm and comfy.  It has warmed up here so I will use the beautiful hat for winter in Michigan when I return.   The pumpkin flavored granola bars are delicious!  The American trashy gossip magazine cracked me up and I couldn’t wait to go home and enjoy it to catch up on the Hollywood gossip.  I laughed as I turned the pages.  My immediate first response was “Ahhh....” and I smiled as I turned each page.  Then after about only a 1/4 of the way through the magazine I thought “I do not miss this crap at all.” and I shook my head very disturbed thinking about Hollywood life and how obsessed us Americans are to keep up with their unrealistic, stupid lives.   I saw headlines regarding Lindsey Lohan and Jennifer Aniston fighting over the same dude - this was dated Sept 27th.  (I'm a little confused, when I left America is August Jennifer was apparently sneaking around with her ex Brad Pitt and pregnant, which was upsetting Angie.  Guess Jen is a little lonely these days.)  Lindsey’s fake lips, perfect hair and skin just made me cringe.   I suddenly realized where I was again and laughed thinking “ Oh my goodness, I am in AFRICA!”  It was a cool moment.  After I was done skimming through it, I tossed the magazine on the floor and was so happy and thankful for my life and the opportunity I am experiencing here.

The next two packages came from two of my very best friends.  Thank you Maelyn and thank you Stephanie!   Maelyn, I will gladly hand out the beautiful bible verse cards to the children at Kuyasa and also in Enkhanini.  I have run out of stickers for the children at the end of class, so the cards will be perfect!   Stephanie, as I emailed you, your package made me smile and I appreciated every bit of it so very much. I loved the picture and the drawings from the girls.  Thank you to all of you!  I know it is expensive to send packages as I saw the price stickers.  I feel very loved.   

Tomorrow (Saturday) a group of us are going to paint a local shelter in Stellenbosch.  On Sunday I am going to try out a new church near the place I am staying.  I hope it is in English.   Next week I will finally begin working with the older kids at Kuyasa in career & personality testing.  I am anxious to work with the teenagers.  I will be working with the kids that I went to camp with, so I am anxious to continue to build those relationships.  I have also started going to the local Kayamandi township highschool to lecture for one hour to the 9, 10 & 11 graders regarding study skills.  3 of us are going there twice a week to talk to each of the classes.  We will be going there for a few weeks to hit all the classes.  I can’t believe it, but the kids literally have NEVER been taught how to study and they don’t get any help from their parents, since their parents didn't know how to study either.  It is a complete foreign concept to them.  I was utterly shocked the first time we went in and I asked the kids about their current studying and the lack of it.  They are not taught to take any notes during their classes or how to study at all.  They had never heard of study partners or groups, nor do they use flash cards, highlighters or anything like that.  They don't ever re-read any of the notes if they happen to take any at all.   I don't know how they learn anything.  So very sad.   (MACY ELLIS, this is why on Face Book I told you to STUDY and be appreciative that you can.)

It amazes me how little these kids know about how to study and that their teachers continue to pass them through.  Most of them have dreams and ambitions about attending a University and a lot of Bursary’s (scholarships) are awarded to these children if they apply,  but yet when they arrive to a Trade School, College or University they can’t handle the pressure and don’t have any of the skills needed to study or pass the courses so most of them drop out.  Then they end up back at their township never being able to get a good job to afford to get out or live in anything besides their shack.  It is a sad, vicious cycle.    The principle of the high-school requested that Kuyasa send some folks to help out, so that is why we are working with them.  We will only be going for the next few weeks while the kids are preparing for their finals before holiday.   I hope that some of them actually get something out of it.  Unfortunately we are going there early in the morning, so most of them stare at me with glossy eyes trying to stay awake.  I am doing the best I can to  get their attention, keep it interesting and trying to use some humor to keep them awake.  I have always been interested in teaching and thought maybe that would be a next career choice for me, so this has been interesting! 

On a last note, I watched the movie “Hotel Rwanda” again last night on my computer.  I had watched it in 1994 when it first came out, but hadn’t seen it since then.  That movie affected me so much differently this time.  It is a true story about the Genocide in 1994 and the slaughter of over 1 million Tutsi’s in Rwanda.  Being here now, living as part of the African system is so different.  It makes me so aware of the problems and issues the blacks face here and how separated the blacks & whites still are today.  I watched it with a different view point and I was emotional and choked up more this time.  When I watched it in ’94 I was young, immature and couldn’t relate or comprehend the sad reality of their lives.  There is a part in the movie where Don Cheadle (Rwanda hotel manager who housed over 1,000 Tutsi refugees ) tells Joaquin Phoenix (American film crew) that he appreciates that they are filming the massacres because once the Americans or British see the footage they would send help and come rescue them.  Joaquin is tipsy at this point and bluntly says “Paul, when America sees this live on TV they will think “Oh that sucks, those poor people” and go back to whatever they were doing and not think twice about it again.”   That comment hit me like someone stabbed me in the stomach.  That is exactly us.  That is our culture.  We see tragedies on the TV all the time and we say “oh man, how awful” and go back to our easy little lives and complain about our stupid issues.  No one does anything about it and thinks that everyone else will take care of it.   I do the same thing.  I'm not trying to judge at all... just speaking the truth.   And what can we do?  Nothing really.  Actually I don’t even watch the news.  I’m too busy to watch the news.  My parents know this and are always on my case about it.  They laugh because I won't pick a side and I yell at them for trying to convince me to love our president or hate him.  (And I wonder why my parents are divorced.)  The news is too depressing for me, so I avoid it purposely and live my life in an ignorant bliss.  But I still find things in my EASY  little life to complain and worry about.   I still find reasons to be depressed.  I find excuses to cry.  How pathetic am I? 

Watching the movie “Hotel Rwanda” once again living over here in Africa was heart wrenching.  It reminded me why I shouldn’t be depressed or ever complain again.   If you haven’t seen it, I suggest you go rent it or put it in your Netflix que.  It is so true to African culture.  Everything about the movie.  It's set over 10 years old, but it's still so realistic.  The people, the kids dancing, the love for one another & family commitment, the land, the houses, the streets, the locks on the doors and light switches outside of the rooms, the drinking, the rapes, the crime ...everything.  Maybe you will watch it again with a fresh perspective.  If anything, you should watch it to get yourself in a good mood and realize what a SAFE and good life you have.  

On that note, have a wonderful weekend and be appreciate this weekend for everything you have in America.  Appreciate your family and tell them how much you love them. 

   

Exciting weekend with Americans

This past weekend I was able to hang out with some Americans from San Diego.  It was very refreshing to hang out with them and discuss the South African culture, what we loved, what we missed, what we take for granted, and what we have all learned so far.  The 3 ladies were part of the same Mission Trip group of Americans who helped with our camp.  These ladies traveled to Swaziland with Kuyasa serving on the other trip.  They only had 2 days left, so I hung out with them, chauffeured them around and took them into Cape Town.  It was my first time driving into Cape Town myself.  I have been into the city a couple of times, but I was never the driver.   We visited the Green Market, which had 100’s of little booths with the locals selling all of their hand crafted treasures.  It was somewhat overwhelming and annoying.  The minute the locals here your American accent they are all over you trying to get you into their booth claiming “For youuuu..., I give you grrrreatttt deal......”  and they are extremely aggressive and pushy.  I finally bought a few of my first African souvenirs, but only to the ones who weren’t pushy.   What I later found out from some local friends is that they hike up the prices for Americans as they think we are all filthy rich....(little do they know), so if I want any more treasures I need to take a local Afrikaan friend to do the negotiating for me and I shouldn’t speak.   Good plan.  I hate the haggling anyway.  

After we were done shopping we drove in many circles before finding the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront.  We enjoyed taking in the local music and walked around checking out the marina and shops.  We celebrated their final evening in S.A. with some pizza, nachos and an inexpensive bottle of white wine at one of the restaurants.  This gave us each 1 glass of wine to enjoy.   I mention this only because it relates to the next part of my story.  Upon driving home on Interstate N-2 back to Gordon’s Bay, the entire Interstate was suddenly in a traffic jam inching along.  We thought there must be an accident and were waiting to see what happened.  When we approached the many flashing police cars, we were detoured off the side of the road into a shady looking dirt parking lot near Khayelitsha (another township) where we saw many people in hand cuffs and getting pulled out of their cars.  My heart raced and we all wondered what was going on.  I was asked for my identification which was in the boot (trunk) and so I had to get out and retrieve it.   I was nervous with all these thoughts of “Do I need a S.A. drivers license?  My name isn’t going to match the vehicle.  I don’t know where the registration is...”  Awful, negative thoughts ran through my mind.  As I nervously gave him my passport and ID I saw more people getting hand-cuffed and some arguing.  I was told to move up ahead and then thoughts of getting thrown into a South African jail came to my mind.   Who would I call?  Would I even get a free call?  Would there be one big cell with scary men in it?  Then I thought of that movie where those girls coming home from Thailand are thrown into jail and can’t get out.   We all were whispering “what is going on?” and then the police officer was stopping our vehicle and telling me to blow into this gadget. I had never actually scene a breathalyzer before... this was my first time.  I said “OK.” and nervously blew.   I think my heart missed a few beats.  He looked at me, waved his hand and said “Now Go.”  I exhaled a huge sigh of relief and we moved on.  The sight of all those people being hand cuffed was scary.  I sure do hope all the tourists coming to South Africa have DD’s during their many scenic visits to the wineries.  

The next day I drove the ladies to the airport and was actual very sad that they were leaving.  They brought me a familiarity to home and I felt a sense of security and ease with them.   All of their stomachs were in knots and they were quiet as I approached the unloading zone.  I realized then how sick to my stomach I will be when I have to leave this country.  They were only here for 3 weeks and they were so very sad.  I was sad just driving up to the airport having my new friends leave.   I am sure it will be very sad when February approaches.   Bitter sweet.   

After our good-byes and promises to keep in touch, I departed and decided that it was time to finally visit one of the local beaches.  It was a very nice day.  Warm with a slight breeze.  It is spring time now in S.A. and the weather is warming up.  I figured there might be a couple people there.  I was planning to take a nice leisurely walk, have a conversation with God (thanking him once again for protecting me from jail) and do some people watching.  To my amazement the beaches were packed!   I can’t even imagine what December (their summer Holiday month) will look like.   Everyone was swimming, surfing, kite-surfing or having picnics and family time.    Ohhh and ladies... not sure what is up with this and hope it is not coming to America - but some South Africans are styling Mohawks and MULLETS these days.  I don’t understand.  I was laughing.  Apparently it is only the younger High-school to College age kids.   These boys are all beefed up, very stocky and muscular with no necks looking like complete Meat Heads who are wearing these styles.  Maybe it’s just a Rugby thing?  If that’s the case then Matt Damon did a poor job beefing up for his Invictus role.  Anyway,  I will try to take some secret pictures for you.   It will crack you up. Thank goodness for zoom lenses.

The wonderful thing about being on the beach that afternoon was watching all the children.  No matter what color, shape, size or income level all children are the same.  They race out screaming to the water with such excitement and laugh hysterically with intense happiness when the water chases them back in.   They all love to build sand castles, dig with shovels, fill buckets with water and chase each other around.  It was beautiful to see so many skin shades playing together and having no judgement or issues with each other.  Children all act the same and don’t realize what they have or don’t have.  They are all so pure at that age.   It is sad how age changes us all.  At the beach everyone is equal.  Everyone is friendly and in a good mood.  Everyone loves the sound of the ice-cream guy.

I continued to watch and write some letters and then realized I was burnt.  I need to purchase some SPF quickly.  The sun is very strong here.   The next day I was invited by some new local friends to join a group of them heading to Hermanus to go whale watching.  Hermanus is famous for it’s rocky shore-line and many whales who hang in the bay between June-November. I believe they have their babies there before heading back.  (To where, I don’t know.) The weather was extremely windy and it was sprinkling on and off, but we had a wonderful time and were able to see some nice whales breach close to the shoreline.   I enjoyed the day very much and smiled learning many new Afrikaans words and cultural differences.  I made some new girlfriends who have planned out some “Girls Day” activities that “I must do before I leave.”  Thank goodness I have many more weekends left in attempt to accomplish this ever growing list.  And like true South African culture, when I thanked them for the lovely day their response was.... “Pleasure.” 

What a nice word that is.  I think I will be adding that to my vocabulary. 

Romans 12:2

A few of you have asked where "Hats & Glasses" name came from.  It is based off of Romans 12:2.  The "Hat" represents renewing your mind.  The "Glasses" represents how we should see clearly.

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will."