A Good Night

                Good eveningJ.  This is night #3 for me in this home, and it has been a good one.  I don’t want to overwhelm you all with many long posts, so I will do my best to keep this shorter. There is just so much to tell!  Today, I met a student’s family, chewed on a stick of sugar cane (I do not have strong teeth), chased a cow out of the yard, and for the second day in a row stubbed a toe playing games with children.  I didn’t end up getting anywhere today to look for internet, I’ll just have to plan on Monday I suppose.  I try not to get my hopes up anymore, because I so badly want to have contact with people from home.   Overall, I am trying to slow myself down from the fast paced American lifestyle I have and learn to be okay with having nothing to do.  I find myself staring at the mountains quite a bit, something many people no longer pay attention to.  But God has created amazing beauty, and I am thankful to have this physical reminder of his presence; it’s been so helpful to me.

                The most interesting thing about tonight that I want to fill you in on is a conversation I had with the mother and father of the family.  As dinner was finishing up (which is usually eaten in silence, which I’m good at…) the father began to talk about his visit with his mother today.  He was speaking in English which means it was meant for me to hear (otherwise all conversations are in Venda).  I listened, and have learned that in order to have successful conversation it is best for me to respond with small noises or nods of approval and little else.  So I did a lot of listening.  The conversation turned many directions, from a funeral they are attending tomorrow to interesting information about the educational system (the Mother is a teacher in the public school) and then quite a conversation about their life during the Apartheid and Nelson Mandela.  Wow.  22 years ago, at my exact age, these adults were living a life so different from mine.  They explained many things; walking to school for many kilometers barefoot, no radio, television, or electricity.  They made lamps from empty milk cartons they filled with paraffin and put a napkin in for a wick.  The food they ate, the jobs they were able to do, and the life they lived in general was amazing.  And the neat thing is to hear it from a direct source.  These people are so excited for their children to be able to have any career choice, any opportunity, and multiple more resources than they had.  Often, though, many of the children are choosing similar career paths because it is what their parents have done.  So there is a big push for helping children see the possibilities and pursue new avenues.  This in turn puts quite a pressure on secondary education and final exams for grade 12 students.

                I have learned so much tonight, and am sure I will continue learning so much each and every day that I am here.  Little things like this are making me slowly understand this culture and helping me be a little more comfortable as well.  This is still difficult, but I am learning to thank God for the little things and not wish time away from this experience.

                Well, this post is long, I’m sorry.  I’ve always been one to write way too much!  God’s blessings to everyone at home, I think about you and pray for you often.  There is a lot of time for that around here!