Exit ... Stage right ...

I keep pondering how I want to close out this adventure, what wise words I might say to you readers, and those that may follow after me on this trip.  And, surprisingly, nothing comes to mind.  Oh sure, there are some flip quotes I could use, or "inspirational" words, but none of that really seems like the closure that I need to put on this trip.

This morning, I went to my first spin class since I have returned to the States.  I was actually hot, I sweated, I felt good.  Yesterday, I sat in the hot tub at my local gym and felt warm.  The coldness of winter in South Africa is draining away, just like the memories are already becoming faded.

Did I REALLY sit in the dust and dirt of Joyce's front yard, in the informal settlement section of Kalkfontein, and help think through a multi-phase strategy for the Iso'Lezwe Care Givers?  That seems like such a distant memory.

Did I REALLY climb 95% of Lion's Head?

Was I REALLY in Dubai, not once but twice, and was I REALLY on one of the longest available commercial flights in the world?  That being Dubai to San Francisco ...

Did I really eat Snook and Hake?

Was I REALLY so cold at night, in the first few weeks, that I wore just about all of the clothing that I brought with me to bed?

Did I really miss Jim with every ounce of my being, knowing that whatever happens in the future, that I never want to be that far from him or my family again?

Did I REALLY do two interviews on my little Blackberry phone, from South Africa, for a new Director of Finance position that I am finalizing the details on today, and most likely start working at tomorrow?

In looking back through this blog, did I REALLY do all of those assorted posts?

And there is where I think this adventure gets passed along to someone else.  Someone will pick up where I left off and the work will continue.  Someone is going to make sure the NPO paperwork for Iso'Lezwe is registered.  Someone will help Kirstin at LEAP write more proposals.  Someone will help Adisani with the Peace Lovers Football Club.

And while that someone else is doing those things, I will just quietly slip out, behind the curtain, and exit ... stage right ....

Back home again ...

It's been a week now since I returned home.  Many thoughts, feelings, comments are swirling in my head, and I am thinking of the best way to get them all down on paper.

In the meantime, Welcome Home to Myself :)

Running on empty ...

The Gym that is across the street doesn't have spin classes that fit my schedule, so I have been going over almost every day and bringing my ipod and making up my own spin class.  I have some favorites that I play every day, in almost the same order (imagine that!!!! the fact that I like repetition!  anyone surprised at THAT?), but even those songs are getting rather old and tiresome.  Yesterday, I was flipping through the library, looking for something new, wishing I had brought my glasses so I could actually read the titles, when I came across an old playlist.  Clicked through it .... not this one .... not that one ......  Desperado .... yes ... played it twice, heavy hill both times ..... then found it.

Jackson Browne's Running on Empty. Only four songs from the album, but the title is what I wanted, and to hear The Load-Out/Stay.

I feel as if I could stay just a bit longer that I could accomplish sooo much ..... that there is SO much work to be done here. Not that I want to stay, I am pretty excited about seeing everyone on Friday (most especially Jim, who said he would be at the airport waiting for me "with bells on") ....

It's a conundrum, for sure.

The last few days I have felt as if I have zero energy.  Getting out of bed feels like a task, walking to school takes effort, even going to the gym - I have been cutting that short.  Today, Subina and I went to Kalkfontein to say goodbye to the caregivers and to Joyce.  I almost feel asleep in her living room, under those dolphin curtains. It was so warm and stuffy and she was telling a long story, and we had just had a cup of peppermint tea, and somehow my brain seemed to think it would be ok for me to doze off ....  until I came to my senses and thought that might be misinterpreted as bad manners.

Which brings me back to my original thought, which is that I am literally Running on Empty.  There is no fuel in the tank, the well is dry.  Tomorrow, round about 3:00 South African time (which means 3:45 and in a panic), I will put the trip into reverse and head east on the M2 towards Cape Town International Airport.  Beyond the power plant towers that are being demolished next Sunday, I will not be here for that.  Beyond the Coloured township back wall where the goats and cows graze, right next to the on ramp to the M3.  Beyond where the gangs have graffitied their beautiful blue script.  We won't take the Stellensbach Arterial Road, which takes us to Kalkfontein, nor will we take the Langa exit.  We will check our bags and I hope that Customs doesn't notice the baggies filled with spices that I am bringing back for Jim, or the curry leaves which look strangely like some other sorts of leaves.

And then, before I know it, I will be in Dubai again, and then, I will be .....

home.

Lunchtime at LEAP

I happened to be out in the yard today at mid day, when the school lunch break is.

Jonah was teaching a group of boys how to skateboard ....


"Hop on it like this .... "

Your turn .....

Same thing tomorrow ....  all of these budding young skateboard artists ...

Meanwhile, on the other side of the lunch yard ...



Sammy (who is in charge of the Learning Center and the tutors), Mona, Steven, Jamie, and ..... someone I don't know his name.

I am not sure of this young chap's name either (one would think after two months  I would know) is trying one of my Sugar Snap Peas.  At the Woolworth's food store (which is about as close to Whole Foods as you can get here, they sell Sugar Snap Peas in the "large, economy" size, which means it is about 8 ounces, or for me, single-serving.  I have been passing them around to all of the kids when I am out and about.  This student ate half and said it tasted like grass, and that if you have to eat anything green, it should be cooked until soft, not eaten straight from the ground.

Sarah was also out on the yard, chatting it up with some girls ..

Josh, Jamie, and Jen - looking decidedly perplexed over something a student is doing .....


That is a root beer bottle in Josh's hand, by the way.

Adisani (on the right) sharing his root beer with a student.  Note the sweatshirt he is wearing - it makes me happy to see him wearing this - Grant out grew it a couple of years ago and I brought it over.

There's a nice group shot - Jamie, the back of Subina's head, Mona, Jen, Josh, Frances - all with students sprinkled in.


About that time, everyone headed off for afternoon classes.

I {{{{{heart}}}} my phone

My Blackberry, that is.

Meanwhile ........  this is my South Africa cell phone.  Subina calls it a calculator.  I can't see the face, I can't hear the ring, and when it vibrates, it just sort of, well, tinkles.

Many things I will miss about South Africa, but it won't be this.

What I will miss ...

With two days remaining in this trip, the Fellows have been talking amongst ourselves as to what we will all miss, once we return to the states.  Over the last few days, I have been thinking about this post, and here are my conclusions;

>  I am going to miss my fingernails, the ones that have grown long enough to click on this keyboard.  At home, because I garden so much, I don't have fingernails of any length and it has been nice to have pretty nails.

>  I am going to miss the "Maranga" birds that are outside my bedroom all day.  I call them this because a) I don't know what kind of birds they really are and b) because they sing this song:  Da-da-dada-da DA!!  Da-da-dada-da- DA!!  All day long.

>  I am NOT going to miss the Shamrock socks I have been wearing for two months.  If'n you recall, there was a problem with the socks I brought here (some of them were not mine) giving me a pretty limited supply of socks.  I have been rotating through three pairs, allowing for two days out with laundry, meaning these socks have been well loved and well worn and now I am done with them.  Let it be said that I certainly could have gone out and bought new socks, but I was determined to make do on this trip with what I brought.

>  I am going to miss all of my new friends. Kirstin from LEAP, Sammy from the Learning Center at school, Joyce from Kalkfontein, Lenize and Rebecca from here at the lodge - the list goes on and on.  The guards who used to joke about me when I scampered across the parking lot in my workout gear (short bike shorts, tank top, my Disneyland sweatshirt - nobody wears that type of clothing here!) and now say hi and smile.

>  Speaking of the gym, I am going to happily leave behind 10 pounds that I lost somewhere here. 

>  I am going to miss the music of the children at the school and wish that I had been able to upload any one of my numerous videos.

This list could go on for days and days as I continue to think up things. 

Type, erase, type, erase.  Everything I say seems to sappy or shallow or not quite right, so I will just leave it that I will miss South Africa.

Women's Day - August 9, 2010

August 9 is a legal holiday here in South Africa.  The story goes that in 1954, 20,000 women marched to Pretoria with a petition that they wanted to become law.  From that day, Women's Day has developed.

Now, I really should go and research the details, as all of that is rather sketchy, but the Internet being what it is here, well ...... you can look it up if you like.  The real point is that today, all of us Fellows got to LEAP early (8:30) and boarded the bus which took us to Langa. 

Today is a real legal holiday, as in everything is closed, and there are celebrations everywhere.  The one we participated in was at the South African Methodist Church, here in Langa.  Do you remember me talking about Langa?  This was one of the first Black Townships developed after Apartheid was inacted.

The celebration was to honor women in the Langa community that have given back to the community.  Mama from the soup kitchen was honored, as were a number of other women.  I am a bit vague as to who was honored and why, as the entire celebration was spoken in Xhosa. 

Just about the only thing that was said in English was by the moderator, who said "When you sing, you need to stand up" and from that time on, every time the LEAP Choir started to sing, all of us Fellows stood up.


Here's the LEAP 1 and LEAP 2 choirs (remember, there are two different schools at the same site - one serves the township of Langa and one serves the township of Guguletu.)

As always, the voice of these kids was beautiful.  I wish I had the technology to capture that for you to hear.

The seating order in the church was of some pre-determined status.  When I originally sat down, in one of the center middle pews, I was asked to get up and move to one of the other areas because the "elders" sat where I was sitting.  I got up and moved to one of the side pews, and slowly, ever so slowly, the middle seats filled up with the older women.  here you can see five of them, all in their hat bandanas.

Lunch was part of the ceremony. I didn't eat because my stomach was bothered by something or other that I had eaten recently, but enough people at to generate this stack of dishes.  I probably don't need to say that the water outside here was cold water only, and the fact that they had a tap, here in the church yard, was a luxury.

(That is Subina, Josh, and Sarah in the back row.  I don't know the name of the LEAP student.)

The day was pleasant, and company was good, the cause honorable.