Monday, April 9. 2007…Dream Girls
So today was movie day with Brenda, Abigail, and Emma. We went and saw Dream Girls…first of all it was great to be able to relax with a movie, but with Dream Girls it was fantastic. I just love the dancing and music…just all in all a relaxing day.
Tuesday, April 10. 2007…Dress Day
Today Abigail and I got to try on wedding and bridesmaid dresses with Gloria, Vigi, and Bussi. Gloria (pastors wife) is starting a wedding dress and bridesmaid dress rental business. One to promote marriage as well as allow women to walk down that aisle in the most beautiful dress they could ever imagine. So a woman from the States sent over 10 wedding dresses and about 20 bridesmaid dresses to get her company up and going. We had the privilege of putting them on to model for the soon to be catalog. It was so much fun they just kept on getting more and more beautiful! Also, Gloria that night asked me to be a bridesmaid in her and Pas. Vincents wedding! So looks like I will be back in October for a week. Gloria and Pas. Vincent got married like 20 years ago the traditional African way but not the “legal” way, so now they are going to be married “legally”. So Ladies if you have a wedding dress or a bridesmaid dress that you will never wear again and want to see it be used for a good cause this would be a great way to help. Just simply let me know that you are interested in donating the dress to Gloria’s new business and take care of getting it there.
Wednesday, April 11. 2007…Sundowns Win Again
So the Sundowns (Mamelodi Soccer Team) have by far become my most favorite soccer team in the entire world. Really bold statement I know but seriously they are amazing. We went to our second match today…this one was for the regional cup…and you better believe in the last 2 minutes they won with their second goal…gosh it was a nail biter but we pulled through in the end.
I wear my jersey proudly around on game days and I always get people running up to me because they can’t believe a white girl is wearing a Sundowns jersey (white people here are more rugby fans than soccer fans). So then when I do the Sundowns hand sign and say their slogan, “the sky is the limit.” They then know I am for real and start laughing. People are so shocked by it that even at the match they will bust out their cameras and take pics of Abigail and I…we just laugh.
Thursday, April 12. 2007…Women’s Fellowship
We just hired a new pastor at Powerhouse and his wife is a social worker in Mamelodi. Needless to say I wanted to really get to know her. So today Abigail and I had some great vanilla custard with Anicky (Pastor Temba’s wife) while chatting about the children’s home that Powerhouse will be building. She had great advice as to how to go about starting and doing it. She will be very helpful in the surveying of the area that I have to do for the proposal of the children’s home for the government. Most of all I just enjoyed being around her and hearing her heart for Mamelodi.
Friday, April 13.2007…Farewell Mohau/Hello Brenda
Today was really hard for me as I said good bye to a great staff and some amazing children. The morning was easy as I just had meetings to attend to and go over my evaluation with my supervisors…but the afternoon when the children returned from school I started to say goodbye one by one and it only got harder and harder. My girl who proved to be the most challenging at the beginning and was the girl that was involved in all the sexual activity in the house was the hardest to say goodbye to. She has made so much progress and I am so proud of her and her willingness to change no matter how hard it was for her. We sat for along time discussing how much she had changed and how she hasn’t had any sexual incidents since we had our first talk. We then read her favorite book, Sleeping Beauty, and after that she walked me to the door. Saying, “see you tomorrow.” She is clearly in denial that I am really leaving…I cried the whole way home cause I would like to be there for her and for the others and see them walk through the doors of Mohau telling me goodbye as they walk into the arms of their family or to a job or university.
This evening we (Gabe, Rach, Abigail, and I) took Brenda to Dros (nice restaurant in South Africa) for a celebration and farewell Abigail dinner. Since we got here Brenda has told us her story about her past year of life and what a struggle it has been for her…and throughout this time we have seen how faithful she has been to Powerhouse as their unpaid secretary and what an AMAZING friend she has been to each one of us. We also know that it is a dream of hers to go to the States one day. So tonight we surprised her with a roundtrip ticket to the States for a month to come and visit us. I have never seen her speechless but for about 5 min. she couldn’t talk. Next April she will be arriving in the States and I am so excited to show her around and have her meet all my friends and family!
Saturday, April 14. 2007…Debrief with Vincent
Today I debriefed with Vincent as to how this trip went for him and suggestions he had for me for the future of Africa Revolution. Let me just tell you that I could sit at the feet of this man for hours to seek wise counsel. Seriously, any question I brought up he had an insightful well thought out answer and it was biblical. I don’t even know how he does it…I think it is a testament as to how much he is in the bible daily. Anyways, he was very encouraging and very honest with me as to future endeavors for me and AR.
Sunday, April 15. 2007…Last Service/See Annie and Allan for the first time
This morning in service I gave my testimony about the time that I have spent here…I talked about Heaven and how in Mark 6 we pray, Thy kingdom come on Earth as it is in Heaven, and how Powerhouse has been a slice of what Heaven is. Then I went on to talk about how at the beginning of my trip there was an incident that made me want to go home…but due to my passport being taken I couldn’t and if I would’ve gone home I would’ve never experienced….then listed all of my favorite things about my time with Powerhouse. Later on in the service Pas. Vincent called me back to the front to have the church pray for me. First of all he prayed in his native tongue which made me so mad cause I was like hey if you are prophesying over my life I would like to know what you are saying secondly he said this, “whatever you succeed in we succeed in.” This was profound for me cause I have been battling with a big decision and in that instant it all became really clear! Once again this man is so wise…do you see what I am saying…if only we could all follow him around 24/7 this world would be such a better place.
Also we got to attend Annie and Allan’s family braii to welcome them to South Africa. It was really great to see them on this side. Can’t believe they are married…too crazy for me to comprehend.
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Sunday, April 8, 2007
Thursday, March 29. 2007…My brother, Levi’s Birthday!
Next year this time my brother will already have a 9 mos. old baby boy! I am so excited to be an aunt for the first time…Today Abigail and I visited this couple who are a place of safety. Not only did this couple raise their own 2 children (who are now grown), but now they are raising 23 children in their home (trust me their house was only like 5 bedrooms---not big but full of love). They both stay at home full-time to give the children the most attention that they can…but through the past 12 years of doing this they have had over 300+ children through their home. It was really great to see a couple doing this together because it is especially rare to see a man think of his responsibility in Africa as child rearing. It also really made me desire for one day when I meet prince charming that God gives us similar desires to do something together for God.
Friday, March 30. 2007…Farewell Shirle
Tonight we gave farewell hugs to Shirle (Allan’s mom) before she left to go to the other side for the big wedding! It was good to see her off, but also weird knowing that she was going to stay in my apartment when she arrived in Chicago.
Saturday, March 31. 2007…Mercedes Friend came to Volunteer
Today we introduced Abigail to the farmers market at 5:30 AM…she loved it and decided it would be her last farmers market in South Africa. The rest of the day I completed my homework while the others went to teach computers. Today they had an extra person from Mercedes with them, Matt. It was really good for him too because it was his first time to see a township and he has been here since December. He was a little leary about it…but when he came back he was uber excited about what he had done and the small impact he had on the people he helped.
Sunday, April 1. 2007…Chuckie Martin’s Birthday! April Fools/Church 2x in 1 day
So morning service was good and normal…then in the evening we went to Hatfield Christian Church…which is like the Willow Creek Community Church for South Africa. Well the service started and all of a sudden the pastor called us to get into groups of 4 to start praying. So we broke up into groups of 4 and started praying…in the States it would be like, go around and pray one by one on the topics that the pastor gives…but here everyone just starts praying out loud…at the end of this prayer he asked us to start praying in the language of the spirit. I was like hold on a second…what did he just say…I thought people were just praying this whole time in various African languages…who knew they were praying in tongues? So at the end the woman to my left said, “Do you not speak in tongues?” I just said the first thing that came to my mind which was, “I can’t speak in tongues cause I am American.” What was that? So she was like I will pray for you to have the spirit of tongues…so I guess somewhere in the Bible (pretty sure actually no where in the Bible does it say this) it says if you don’t have the gift of tongues find someone that does and get it from them. So now I have the gift of tongues, who knew it was that easy? haha
Monday, April 2. 2007…Stayed in our Box
So Abby and I share a box aka our bedroom although we are pretty much in it all the time so it is more like our dinning room, bedroom, living room, bathroom (ok not really). We have twin beds with matching sheets of course…I worked on my paper all day and she read, read, talked, read, and laughed. It was just great to chill and relax as this week we are on holiday for the Easter week. Everything in South Africa closes down the week before Easter…so there was no work for us to go to. Hey I am not complaining it is actually quite nice.
Tuesday, April 3. 2007…Passover Dinner in Africa
Who knew I would have to go all the way to South Africa to have an authentic Passover meal? Gabe one of Africa Revolution’s volunteers grew up Jewish and so he gave the elders of the church and their families an authentic Passover meal. It was so great understanding how the God that I serve was raised. And hey they have four glasses of wine throughout the meal…I say it is a pretty great way to celebrate.
Wednesday, April 4. 2007…Time to myself
Today I worked and completed my 45 page paper! Who says doing grad school overseas is easy? The rest of the house all went to Soshanguve to hand out Easter baskets to the children that we work with there. It was so great the hired house helper, Liette, and I were able to chat for awhile and share a nice piece of chocolate cake together. It was the first day since I have been here (9 weeks) that I had the house to myself. Even though I love people I am actually an introvert, so I pull my energy from being by myself…so this was a great day to build up my supply of energy.
Thursday, April 5. 2007…Kit Kat
You thought I was talking about the candy bar…I am actually talking about this new store that just opened up down the street from where I stay. Abby and I went up and down every aisle to see all the goodness that they offer. Needless to say they offer a lot and we are bringing home a lot of it. It is almost as great as Target, but not quite. We also went on an hour and a half walk around the neighborhood. I am sure we will feel it tomorrow.
Friday, April 6. 2007…Good Friday-Botanical Garden
Abigail and I after church (which was a little crazy-visiting pastor discussed how if you pray hard enough and worship God hard enough that you will become very wealthy—wow not sure where that is at in the Bible but wish it were true! haha) went and walked around the Botanical Gardens. There was a whole lot of deserty things…pretty much my sista would have loved it. Don’t worry Kyla I collected some samples for you and hopefully they will pass through customs. I am just really enjoying spending quality time with Abigail and having a companion that enjoys doing similar things as me while I am over here. She is a great woman of God and has great insight. I am blessed to have her as a good friend and roommate.
Saturday, April 7. 2007…Soccer Match, Mamelodi Sundowns!
I experienced my first professional soccer match today between Mamelodi Sundowns and Al-Ahy (Egypt team). Al-Ahy is the best team in all of Africa right now and Mamelodi hasn’t lost a match yet, so we knew it was going to be a good game going into it. We prepared by tons of prayers, dancing, and wearing Sundowns jerseys. The first half we had like 6 attempts at the goal, but no goals and Al-Ahy had 2 attempts and they both went in. So we were a little depressed cause this was our first match and all…the last 10 min. of the game you better believe Sundowns scored two goals to tie the game…OH MY GOSH it was crazy! Since it wasn’t a tournament game they did not go into overtime…but hey at least we didn’t loose. Then on our way home while riding in the back of the truck (which is so great!) our friend Vigi called to tell us that we were on TV. Just a great way to end the day.
Sunday, April 8, 2007…Happy Easter/Amazing Grace/Traditional Dance
Today has been quite the Easter. There haven’t been any Easter egg hunts or pictures with the Easter bunny…but it has been a good one. As we drove to church we saw the cemetery flooding with people with small offerings for their ancestors. It just made me realize that they are worshiping a dead god and as a Christian I get the pleasure of worshiping a LIVING God! Abby and I sang Amazing Grace this morning at church with a few of our friends…it is really the least we can do for our God who rose from the dead…I mean seriously that is pretty hard to do…try it yourself sometime. After church we went to Kaili Lodge to see some traditional African dances (1 they can shake it like I haven’t seen anyone shake it before, 2 they would blow any dance off in the States away, 3 pretty sure I want to be like them)…they didn’t offer for the audience to come down and practice with them cause you know I would’ve been down there. Instead I practiced in the parking lot afterwards…hey whatever works right. Oh ya by the way River City Abby and I are bringing the congo line to church…so get ready!
Next year this time my brother will already have a 9 mos. old baby boy! I am so excited to be an aunt for the first time…Today Abigail and I visited this couple who are a place of safety. Not only did this couple raise their own 2 children (who are now grown), but now they are raising 23 children in their home (trust me their house was only like 5 bedrooms---not big but full of love). They both stay at home full-time to give the children the most attention that they can…but through the past 12 years of doing this they have had over 300+ children through their home. It was really great to see a couple doing this together because it is especially rare to see a man think of his responsibility in Africa as child rearing. It also really made me desire for one day when I meet prince charming that God gives us similar desires to do something together for God.
Friday, March 30. 2007…Farewell Shirle
Tonight we gave farewell hugs to Shirle (Allan’s mom) before she left to go to the other side for the big wedding! It was good to see her off, but also weird knowing that she was going to stay in my apartment when she arrived in Chicago.
Saturday, March 31. 2007…Mercedes Friend came to Volunteer
Today we introduced Abigail to the farmers market at 5:30 AM…she loved it and decided it would be her last farmers market in South Africa. The rest of the day I completed my homework while the others went to teach computers. Today they had an extra person from Mercedes with them, Matt. It was really good for him too because it was his first time to see a township and he has been here since December. He was a little leary about it…but when he came back he was uber excited about what he had done and the small impact he had on the people he helped.
Sunday, April 1. 2007…Chuckie Martin’s Birthday! April Fools/Church 2x in 1 day
So morning service was good and normal…then in the evening we went to Hatfield Christian Church…which is like the Willow Creek Community Church for South Africa. Well the service started and all of a sudden the pastor called us to get into groups of 4 to start praying. So we broke up into groups of 4 and started praying…in the States it would be like, go around and pray one by one on the topics that the pastor gives…but here everyone just starts praying out loud…at the end of this prayer he asked us to start praying in the language of the spirit. I was like hold on a second…what did he just say…I thought people were just praying this whole time in various African languages…who knew they were praying in tongues? So at the end the woman to my left said, “Do you not speak in tongues?” I just said the first thing that came to my mind which was, “I can’t speak in tongues cause I am American.” What was that? So she was like I will pray for you to have the spirit of tongues…so I guess somewhere in the Bible (pretty sure actually no where in the Bible does it say this) it says if you don’t have the gift of tongues find someone that does and get it from them. So now I have the gift of tongues, who knew it was that easy? haha
Monday, April 2. 2007…Stayed in our Box
So Abby and I share a box aka our bedroom although we are pretty much in it all the time so it is more like our dinning room, bedroom, living room, bathroom (ok not really). We have twin beds with matching sheets of course…I worked on my paper all day and she read, read, talked, read, and laughed. It was just great to chill and relax as this week we are on holiday for the Easter week. Everything in South Africa closes down the week before Easter…so there was no work for us to go to. Hey I am not complaining it is actually quite nice.
Tuesday, April 3. 2007…Passover Dinner in Africa
Who knew I would have to go all the way to South Africa to have an authentic Passover meal? Gabe one of Africa Revolution’s volunteers grew up Jewish and so he gave the elders of the church and their families an authentic Passover meal. It was so great understanding how the God that I serve was raised. And hey they have four glasses of wine throughout the meal…I say it is a pretty great way to celebrate.
Wednesday, April 4. 2007…Time to myself
Today I worked and completed my 45 page paper! Who says doing grad school overseas is easy? The rest of the house all went to Soshanguve to hand out Easter baskets to the children that we work with there. It was so great the hired house helper, Liette, and I were able to chat for awhile and share a nice piece of chocolate cake together. It was the first day since I have been here (9 weeks) that I had the house to myself. Even though I love people I am actually an introvert, so I pull my energy from being by myself…so this was a great day to build up my supply of energy.
Thursday, April 5. 2007…Kit Kat
You thought I was talking about the candy bar…I am actually talking about this new store that just opened up down the street from where I stay. Abby and I went up and down every aisle to see all the goodness that they offer. Needless to say they offer a lot and we are bringing home a lot of it. It is almost as great as Target, but not quite. We also went on an hour and a half walk around the neighborhood. I am sure we will feel it tomorrow.
Friday, April 6. 2007…Good Friday-Botanical Garden
Abigail and I after church (which was a little crazy-visiting pastor discussed how if you pray hard enough and worship God hard enough that you will become very wealthy—wow not sure where that is at in the Bible but wish it were true! haha) went and walked around the Botanical Gardens. There was a whole lot of deserty things…pretty much my sista would have loved it. Don’t worry Kyla I collected some samples for you and hopefully they will pass through customs. I am just really enjoying spending quality time with Abigail and having a companion that enjoys doing similar things as me while I am over here. She is a great woman of God and has great insight. I am blessed to have her as a good friend and roommate.
Saturday, April 7. 2007…Soccer Match, Mamelodi Sundowns!
I experienced my first professional soccer match today between Mamelodi Sundowns and Al-Ahy (Egypt team). Al-Ahy is the best team in all of Africa right now and Mamelodi hasn’t lost a match yet, so we knew it was going to be a good game going into it. We prepared by tons of prayers, dancing, and wearing Sundowns jerseys. The first half we had like 6 attempts at the goal, but no goals and Al-Ahy had 2 attempts and they both went in. So we were a little depressed cause this was our first match and all…the last 10 min. of the game you better believe Sundowns scored two goals to tie the game…OH MY GOSH it was crazy! Since it wasn’t a tournament game they did not go into overtime…but hey at least we didn’t loose. Then on our way home while riding in the back of the truck (which is so great!) our friend Vigi called to tell us that we were on TV. Just a great way to end the day.
Sunday, April 8, 2007…Happy Easter/Amazing Grace/Traditional Dance
Today has been quite the Easter. There haven’t been any Easter egg hunts or pictures with the Easter bunny…but it has been a good one. As we drove to church we saw the cemetery flooding with people with small offerings for their ancestors. It just made me realize that they are worshiping a dead god and as a Christian I get the pleasure of worshiping a LIVING God! Abby and I sang Amazing Grace this morning at church with a few of our friends…it is really the least we can do for our God who rose from the dead…I mean seriously that is pretty hard to do…try it yourself sometime. After church we went to Kaili Lodge to see some traditional African dances (1 they can shake it like I haven’t seen anyone shake it before, 2 they would blow any dance off in the States away, 3 pretty sure I want to be like them)…they didn’t offer for the audience to come down and practice with them cause you know I would’ve been down there. Instead I practiced in the parking lot afterwards…hey whatever works right. Oh ya by the way River City Abby and I are bringing the congo line to church…so get ready!
Thursday, March 29, 2007
A week of posts...
Monday, March 19, 2007…Gloria’s Birthday!
Today we celebrated Gloria’s 39th birthday…nothing like celebrating it at the local Spur (great South African restaurant). On Sunday during the church service Vincent said that it was her 50th birthday and the 3 of us being so gullible spread the news around the church and community that it was her 50th. Then when we went out for her birthday dinner we were like gosh you don’t look 50 she was like well cause I am 39. Whoops so sorry Powerhouse for giving you the wrong age. Oh Vincent you funny guy. Haha
Tuesday, March 20, 2007…Paper
Well the date is coming closer and closer to graduation! I have all of my papers now complete just 3 presentations to do when I return to the States. It feels so great to know that I am complete with my masters!
Wednesday, March 21.2007…School Uniforms means so Much
Today was our day to head to Soshanguve to work with Constance. We had heard a few weeks back about these two young women, 14 and 16, being shoed away from school for not having the right school uniforms. Gabe and Rach had some extra money and decided that they would purchase the uniforms and take them to the girls. It was Human Rights Day (a public holiday), so the entire family was home. The girls came out of the house and the Dagani’s showed them the uniforms, these beautiful white teeth glowed, as they could not help but smile. They ran into the house giggling to try them on. A few minutes later after looking at themselves in the mirror they came out and strutted right past us in model like fashion. When we saw them for the first time a wave of emotions came over us all and we started crying for joy. For them these uniforms meant that they no longer would be the source of ridicule, they could continue their studies, and they could do it with pride. Who thought one article of clothing could change a person’s life so dramatically.
Thursday, March 22, 2007…Driver
Today I got the honor of taking Rach and Gabe to the airport as they were heading to Durbin for a little holiday. We had been praying for them because Durbin just got swept by a natural phenomenon with 5-12 meter high waves. That’s great if you are a surfer not so much if you are just an average Joe who wants to lay out on the beach. I also got to pick up my new passport. Thank God it was there and had the right photo inside. The rest of the day I colored Easter bags that we will be handing out to some orphan children in Soshanguve.
Friday, March 23. 2007…Body Changes
I got the honor to talk to the group of girls about body changes as we mature. Oh geesh never thought it would be such an intriguing topic for them. Now I know that I am ready for one day when God blesses me with little girls of my own. For the next week I will be house sitting in Capital Park, which is closer to my work and has a swimming pool! Brenda stayed with me for the first two nights as I was getting adjusted to a new neighborhood. We had a great time staying up late talking, about girl things.
Saturday, March 24, 2007…Abigail Arrives and Dagani’s Return!
Brenda and I drove to the airport to pick up the crew. For Brenda (age 25) this was her first time to the airport she was shocked at how much they jack up the prices for cool drinks and snacks. Welcome to low supply and high demand. We got there about an hour early to make sure that we were front and centre at the terminal so Abigail could see us clearly. Brenda and I got so swept up in the return of loved ones, family members, and friends that we didn’t even realize we were waiting at the wrong terminal. We realized it when a man came out and was looking around for his family/friends to pick him up, but no one was there to fetch him. We felt so sorry for him than I thought, gosh it has taken Abby along time to go through customs…OH MY GOSH we are at the wrong terminal. We ran to the other side to get her by this time she was in the back waiting patiently for someone to get her. Oh I felt so bad, but I was soooooooo uber excited to have her next to me.
Sunday, March 25, 2007…Capital Park, mini riot
To celebrate Abigail’s arrival I invited the worship team over to the house we are sitting for a good ol’ braii. There really is no other way than to welcome someone to South Africa with out doing a braii. We had a pool, meat and pap, and people, really what else do you need? About two hours into the celebration filled with dancing (to worship music of course), viewing of The Passion of the Christ (to prepare for Easter), and some swimming I see about 10 white men at the gate screaming. I am like what the Hell is going on. I go to the gate to ask them what they are so angry about and they are like in this neighborhood we don’t have parties on Sundays. I was like sir I can assure you that this is a braii and not a party in fact this is a worship team from a church. He was like I don’t know what you do in the States but the Old South Africa and the New South Africa don’t have parties. What he was really saying was that black people are not allowed in white neighborhoods to hang out, black people are only allowed to work as house servants or to do construction on their homes. But to have 10 black adults and 2 black children laughing, dancing, and enjoying themselves in their neighborhood was unacceptable. The families house that we are at called us because three of the neighbors called them while they were away on holiday to tell them that black people had taken over their house and that they were playing loud music and drinking. Oh the family was furious with me, but when they found out it was a worship team and there was only 12 people they calmed down…but they suggested everyone to leave because the neighbors had threatened to start shooting. Oh my GOD I am living in the civil rights movement where blacks and whites can’t even hang out. Toto I am in not in the States anymore.
Monday, March 26, 2007…Physically Ill
Today I woke up physically ill because of the situation yesterday. I don’t even know how to live in a culture that is racist to the point of forcing harm onto others. It is sooo against the person God has created me to be and I am dang proud that I can’t stand it cause it is not right. The verse that continues to run through my head is, “Thy Kingdom come on Earth as it is in Heaven.” I just want to go to each of these neighbors houses that claim they are also Christians and be like hey you know you may not live next to blacks right now, but I assure you when you get to Heaven God willing He is expecting you to not only live with blacks, but break bread with one another. So maybe we might want to consider having a little piece of Heaven on Earth now. Gosh I don’t know maybe that is a crazy idea but forcing your brothers and sisters in Christ out of your neighborhood with guns on my scale is much crazier!!!
I freakin’ hate Apartheid…Afrikaners get ready for a rude awakening cause the blacks that you have held down for decades are becoming educated and are gaining finances, so believe it or not they are starting to climb the economic ladder. They will soon be able to live anywhere they want, work wherever they want, and not have to take your shit anymore. There are way more of them than you, so get ready to start submitting to their leadership. Ok I am getting off my soapbox now I just can’t help but be enraged. Abigail and I have invited one of the Afrikaners over for dinner Tuesday night to have a nice meal with us. We are praying that God reveals to them that we are not crazy Americans, but that we are His children. Also, show hey look blacks can come into your neighborhood and leave it without stealing anything. More than anything we are praying God starts to open their eyes to a new way of living, a way to live without fear, a way to live with love.
Tuesday, March 27.2007…Ulcer???
Today I went to the doctors (I know it is crazy I don’t even go to the doctors in the States, so you must know it is bad if I am willing to go in a foreign country) because I had severe pains across my abs and am not keeping down any food. Who knows what it is I think it is ulcers, but I also don’t have an MD after my name. Well the whole experience was rather delightful. First of all with no insurance it was only R140=$20! Then I went into the docs office and there was a desk, two chairs, and a typical doctor check up table. I sat down for about 20 min talking about my medical history and my current symptoms. I was shocked! I had never talked to a doctor for so long. The average doctor in the States talks with their client for 30 secs and then starts to diagnose. All in all I was there for 30 min and she concluded that it was stress related, but not necessarily ulcers. So she gave me some amazing stress relieving medicines. Thank God for great doctors in South Africa.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007…Discipline Meeting
Something that has been alarming to me at Mohau is how the caregivers discipline the children. I have talked to the social workers about my concerns and they feel the same way, so today we had a 4 hour meeting as to what is appropriate and not appropriate when disciplining children that come from traumatic pasts. It was really good to get their feedback as to why they do what they do, but also teach them new ways of disciplining children. It was the most feedback we have gotten from the caregivers so something went right with our meeting.
Today we celebrated Gloria’s 39th birthday…nothing like celebrating it at the local Spur (great South African restaurant). On Sunday during the church service Vincent said that it was her 50th birthday and the 3 of us being so gullible spread the news around the church and community that it was her 50th. Then when we went out for her birthday dinner we were like gosh you don’t look 50 she was like well cause I am 39. Whoops so sorry Powerhouse for giving you the wrong age. Oh Vincent you funny guy. Haha
Tuesday, March 20, 2007…Paper
Well the date is coming closer and closer to graduation! I have all of my papers now complete just 3 presentations to do when I return to the States. It feels so great to know that I am complete with my masters!
Wednesday, March 21.2007…School Uniforms means so Much
Today was our day to head to Soshanguve to work with Constance. We had heard a few weeks back about these two young women, 14 and 16, being shoed away from school for not having the right school uniforms. Gabe and Rach had some extra money and decided that they would purchase the uniforms and take them to the girls. It was Human Rights Day (a public holiday), so the entire family was home. The girls came out of the house and the Dagani’s showed them the uniforms, these beautiful white teeth glowed, as they could not help but smile. They ran into the house giggling to try them on. A few minutes later after looking at themselves in the mirror they came out and strutted right past us in model like fashion. When we saw them for the first time a wave of emotions came over us all and we started crying for joy. For them these uniforms meant that they no longer would be the source of ridicule, they could continue their studies, and they could do it with pride. Who thought one article of clothing could change a person’s life so dramatically.
Thursday, March 22, 2007…Driver
Today I got the honor of taking Rach and Gabe to the airport as they were heading to Durbin for a little holiday. We had been praying for them because Durbin just got swept by a natural phenomenon with 5-12 meter high waves. That’s great if you are a surfer not so much if you are just an average Joe who wants to lay out on the beach. I also got to pick up my new passport. Thank God it was there and had the right photo inside. The rest of the day I colored Easter bags that we will be handing out to some orphan children in Soshanguve.
Friday, March 23. 2007…Body Changes
I got the honor to talk to the group of girls about body changes as we mature. Oh geesh never thought it would be such an intriguing topic for them. Now I know that I am ready for one day when God blesses me with little girls of my own. For the next week I will be house sitting in Capital Park, which is closer to my work and has a swimming pool! Brenda stayed with me for the first two nights as I was getting adjusted to a new neighborhood. We had a great time staying up late talking, about girl things.
Saturday, March 24, 2007…Abigail Arrives and Dagani’s Return!
Brenda and I drove to the airport to pick up the crew. For Brenda (age 25) this was her first time to the airport she was shocked at how much they jack up the prices for cool drinks and snacks. Welcome to low supply and high demand. We got there about an hour early to make sure that we were front and centre at the terminal so Abigail could see us clearly. Brenda and I got so swept up in the return of loved ones, family members, and friends that we didn’t even realize we were waiting at the wrong terminal. We realized it when a man came out and was looking around for his family/friends to pick him up, but no one was there to fetch him. We felt so sorry for him than I thought, gosh it has taken Abby along time to go through customs…OH MY GOSH we are at the wrong terminal. We ran to the other side to get her by this time she was in the back waiting patiently for someone to get her. Oh I felt so bad, but I was soooooooo uber excited to have her next to me.
Sunday, March 25, 2007…Capital Park, mini riot
To celebrate Abigail’s arrival I invited the worship team over to the house we are sitting for a good ol’ braii. There really is no other way than to welcome someone to South Africa with out doing a braii. We had a pool, meat and pap, and people, really what else do you need? About two hours into the celebration filled with dancing (to worship music of course), viewing of The Passion of the Christ (to prepare for Easter), and some swimming I see about 10 white men at the gate screaming. I am like what the Hell is going on. I go to the gate to ask them what they are so angry about and they are like in this neighborhood we don’t have parties on Sundays. I was like sir I can assure you that this is a braii and not a party in fact this is a worship team from a church. He was like I don’t know what you do in the States but the Old South Africa and the New South Africa don’t have parties. What he was really saying was that black people are not allowed in white neighborhoods to hang out, black people are only allowed to work as house servants or to do construction on their homes. But to have 10 black adults and 2 black children laughing, dancing, and enjoying themselves in their neighborhood was unacceptable. The families house that we are at called us because three of the neighbors called them while they were away on holiday to tell them that black people had taken over their house and that they were playing loud music and drinking. Oh the family was furious with me, but when they found out it was a worship team and there was only 12 people they calmed down…but they suggested everyone to leave because the neighbors had threatened to start shooting. Oh my GOD I am living in the civil rights movement where blacks and whites can’t even hang out. Toto I am in not in the States anymore.
Monday, March 26, 2007…Physically Ill
Today I woke up physically ill because of the situation yesterday. I don’t even know how to live in a culture that is racist to the point of forcing harm onto others. It is sooo against the person God has created me to be and I am dang proud that I can’t stand it cause it is not right. The verse that continues to run through my head is, “Thy Kingdom come on Earth as it is in Heaven.” I just want to go to each of these neighbors houses that claim they are also Christians and be like hey you know you may not live next to blacks right now, but I assure you when you get to Heaven God willing He is expecting you to not only live with blacks, but break bread with one another. So maybe we might want to consider having a little piece of Heaven on Earth now. Gosh I don’t know maybe that is a crazy idea but forcing your brothers and sisters in Christ out of your neighborhood with guns on my scale is much crazier!!!
I freakin’ hate Apartheid…Afrikaners get ready for a rude awakening cause the blacks that you have held down for decades are becoming educated and are gaining finances, so believe it or not they are starting to climb the economic ladder. They will soon be able to live anywhere they want, work wherever they want, and not have to take your shit anymore. There are way more of them than you, so get ready to start submitting to their leadership. Ok I am getting off my soapbox now I just can’t help but be enraged. Abigail and I have invited one of the Afrikaners over for dinner Tuesday night to have a nice meal with us. We are praying that God reveals to them that we are not crazy Americans, but that we are His children. Also, show hey look blacks can come into your neighborhood and leave it without stealing anything. More than anything we are praying God starts to open their eyes to a new way of living, a way to live without fear, a way to live with love.
Tuesday, March 27.2007…Ulcer???
Today I went to the doctors (I know it is crazy I don’t even go to the doctors in the States, so you must know it is bad if I am willing to go in a foreign country) because I had severe pains across my abs and am not keeping down any food. Who knows what it is I think it is ulcers, but I also don’t have an MD after my name. Well the whole experience was rather delightful. First of all with no insurance it was only R140=$20! Then I went into the docs office and there was a desk, two chairs, and a typical doctor check up table. I sat down for about 20 min talking about my medical history and my current symptoms. I was shocked! I had never talked to a doctor for so long. The average doctor in the States talks with their client for 30 secs and then starts to diagnose. All in all I was there for 30 min and she concluded that it was stress related, but not necessarily ulcers. So she gave me some amazing stress relieving medicines. Thank God for great doctors in South Africa.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007…Discipline Meeting
Something that has been alarming to me at Mohau is how the caregivers discipline the children. I have talked to the social workers about my concerns and they feel the same way, so today we had a 4 hour meeting as to what is appropriate and not appropriate when disciplining children that come from traumatic pasts. It was really good to get their feedback as to why they do what they do, but also teach them new ways of disciplining children. It was the most feedback we have gotten from the caregivers so something went right with our meeting.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Sorry it didn't work the first way...so I will try this way
March 12.2007…Homework
Nothing to exciting today just completing more homework…I got done 3.5 papers so that was good!
March 13. 2007…Brenda
Today I just hung out with Brenda all day. She is the secretary for Powerhouse so she gets asked pretty much everyday to cook for the people working on the church and any other people that may be hanging around. So she and I drove to various shops to get the supplies she needed to make lunch. Then we did our own personal clothes shopping as well. It is great because summer is over and they are moving into winter clothing so all of the summer clothes are super cheap. I still feel guilty for buying anything, so we just look and try on.
March 14.2007…Cinderella the orphan
In a lot of my therapy I will find children’s books that the child I am working with can identify with one or several of the characters. This helps to take off all the focus on the child and their feelings and have them create what the character is feeling. In reality that is really how they are feeling. One of my client’s favorite books is Cinderella, so for our session today I went on a hunt to find it so we could read it together. First of all, I never knew Cinderella’s real name was Ella I always thought that her given name was Cinderella. She got the name Cinderella because she worked so much with cinders. Who knew? Secondly, for the first time today I realized Cinderella was an orphan. Her mother passed away, father got remarried and then shortly after he passed away. No wonder my client loves this book. After reading it today with my client Cinderella’s story took on a whole new meaning.
March 15. 2007…Reach for a Dream
Today Reach for a Dream came to visit the centre. They are like the USA’s Make a Wish foundation, so they came today to do a magic show for the children. The children were totally into the magician until he made them get into a circle and do a dance in the middle. He started off the dance circle, some white dude, and they all started laughing at him. He pretended to be out of breath so that they would jump into the circle and man can our kids dance. Let me tell you I was picking up moves left and right from them.
March 16. 2007…Queen Meeting-Positive Self-Image
Today in group we discussed the things we like about ourselves and the things we don’t like. As well as what people say about us and how that makes us feel. Most of the girls actually have a really good self image, I was fairly amazed. The one girl who is the most sexually active was the one with the poorest self image. Hearing and seeing this really made me realize how much it affects her on a daily basis and why she looks to people to build up her image through her body. She is one of two girls in the house starting to develop breasts, so today they got their first training bras. Oh I remember those days. Anyhow I caught her a few times after putting it on, running around the house lifting up her shirt, to show people her new Barbie bra. So after I caught her doing this we had a long chat about her body being her own and no one else’s to look at. This girl has got a loooooooong ways to go.
March 17. 2007…Happy St. Patty’s Day!
We are going to go out tonight and celebrate with our housemate, Pat, who is from IRELAND. We have a real Irish man to celebrate with we will see how well he can take down a green beer or Guinnes. There is an Irish Pub around the corner I heard it gets packed out with tons of Irish, not too many South Africans…looking forward to all of the Irish accents.
Nothing to exciting today just completing more homework…I got done 3.5 papers so that was good!
March 13. 2007…Brenda
Today I just hung out with Brenda all day. She is the secretary for Powerhouse so she gets asked pretty much everyday to cook for the people working on the church and any other people that may be hanging around. So she and I drove to various shops to get the supplies she needed to make lunch. Then we did our own personal clothes shopping as well. It is great because summer is over and they are moving into winter clothing so all of the summer clothes are super cheap. I still feel guilty for buying anything, so we just look and try on.
March 14.2007…Cinderella the orphan
In a lot of my therapy I will find children’s books that the child I am working with can identify with one or several of the characters. This helps to take off all the focus on the child and their feelings and have them create what the character is feeling. In reality that is really how they are feeling. One of my client’s favorite books is Cinderella, so for our session today I went on a hunt to find it so we could read it together. First of all, I never knew Cinderella’s real name was Ella I always thought that her given name was Cinderella. She got the name Cinderella because she worked so much with cinders. Who knew? Secondly, for the first time today I realized Cinderella was an orphan. Her mother passed away, father got remarried and then shortly after he passed away. No wonder my client loves this book. After reading it today with my client Cinderella’s story took on a whole new meaning.
March 15. 2007…Reach for a Dream
Today Reach for a Dream came to visit the centre. They are like the USA’s Make a Wish foundation, so they came today to do a magic show for the children. The children were totally into the magician until he made them get into a circle and do a dance in the middle. He started off the dance circle, some white dude, and they all started laughing at him. He pretended to be out of breath so that they would jump into the circle and man can our kids dance. Let me tell you I was picking up moves left and right from them.
March 16. 2007…Queen Meeting-Positive Self-Image
Today in group we discussed the things we like about ourselves and the things we don’t like. As well as what people say about us and how that makes us feel. Most of the girls actually have a really good self image, I was fairly amazed. The one girl who is the most sexually active was the one with the poorest self image. Hearing and seeing this really made me realize how much it affects her on a daily basis and why she looks to people to build up her image through her body. She is one of two girls in the house starting to develop breasts, so today they got their first training bras. Oh I remember those days. Anyhow I caught her a few times after putting it on, running around the house lifting up her shirt, to show people her new Barbie bra. So after I caught her doing this we had a long chat about her body being her own and no one else’s to look at. This girl has got a loooooooong ways to go.
March 17. 2007…Happy St. Patty’s Day!
We are going to go out tonight and celebrate with our housemate, Pat, who is from IRELAND. We have a real Irish man to celebrate with we will see how well he can take down a green beer or Guinnes. There is an Irish Pub around the corner I heard it gets packed out with tons of Irish, not too many South Africans…looking forward to all of the Irish accents.
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