And it begins… my feet have landed on South African ground. It
is strange to think that just yesterday I was on American soil. And somehow
after a 17 hour flight (yeah I don’t know much longer you can actually get… The
lady who sat next to me on the plane said the longest was 18 hours) I’m here in
Johannesburg. The other interns and I will be spending the weekend together
with our advisor but come Monday, we are off to our placements.
As I left Milwaukee I was overwhelmed by the out pour of love
and support I received from friends, family and even strangers at Costco ;) It
is amazing how God orchestrates every person to come into your life when the
time is right and say what you need to hear in the moment. I know I am leaving
with prayer and support from many loved ones and I want to say thank you, thank
you, thank you. Thank you for the cards, the gifts, the prayers, the laughter
and yes even the chocolate (which made the 17 hours fly by). I may be working
hand in hand with these little ones but through people lifting me up back home,
their hands are just as present as mine. They may not be writing case studies,
combing hair, coloring or giving hugs but they are pushing me to serve and love
as Christ does.
So…as for the actual trip. There are a few shout outs I have
to make in regards to South African Airlines. First, you would not believe what
I noticed when they came around offering food and drink… every cup, plate,
utensil and tray was washable. That’s right I ate my dinner on a plastic tray
with METAL utensils and a little plastic tea mug. It the most pleasant shock to
see conservation and resourcefulness made a priority in the air. Secondly, when
you went to wash your hands in the restroom, the button you pressed to start
the water flow actually stayed on unattended for almost 5 seconds. There
was none of that awkward one hand rinse business as you pump the water button. And after washing, you felt like the soap was actually rinsed. Things like that may seem
minuscule and silly to most people but I couldn’t get over how it brightened my
experience. Sure, extra leg room and wider aisles would be nice but today I
will be grateful for my metal fork, plastic tea mug and 5 second spout. It’s
the little things that make a difference and as my dove chocolate wrapper says,
“happiness never decreases by being shared.”
Also, we made it to our hotel in Airport certified Taxi cars (Licensed and all. Apparently that is something I really need to make sure of), both of which were Mercedes Benz. When I mentioned to the man that he had one of the nicest taxi cars I'd ever seen, he said Mercedes was very common here and laughed! I guess my compliment was short lived! Also, our hotel believe it or not, is after all not too far from home. We are staying at what I assume, is the only Holiday INN is Johannesburg but loving every moment of it. And when it comes down to swanky-ness it's covered. Oh and from the looks of it there is almost no privacy when it comes to early morning room cleaning. We were definitely woken at 9 am (after jet lag it's not fun, trust me) by the cleaner coming to change the bed linens we were sleeping in. Being caught completely off guard we got out of bed, sat on the ground and watched as out warm, broken in beds got stripped clean. And to add even more humor to the situation she only put a fitted sheet back on. Needless to say, the lack of a pillow case and top sheet did not stop us from getting back into bed. However, her return an our later did. When she came to put the rest of the sheets on the bed, we told her we just put them on once we got up. I guess culture shock is already happening, haha. Off for more adventures!!
Grace and Peace
Kay
(Our adventure in Johannesburg started today so more posts will follow!)
