So here it is… I’ve landed and well, loving it. When we first
arrived it was different than I expected but after unpacking and getting
settled; adjustment has occurred.
We arrived at our agency Monday around 1pm and were met by
Melissa and Cindee, the agency’s two social workers. We had a minor
orientation/ question and answer but were then free to unpack and settle. There
is a small flat (apartment) on the side of one of the children’s cottages we
were going to stay in but due to the collapse of the ceiling, we are living
with one of the senior care workers. Rose, our roommate, has lived at Leliebloem
for years and welcomed us into her home with open arms. She lives in a flat on
the second floor of the administration building with a private entrance and though
it is a small area, we have beds, a kitchen and bath. It is also conveniently
located next to the main gate with a private entrance. Rose also has her
Christian music playing most of the day and we have had many wonderful
conversations on faith, family, the children and Jesus. I am going to attend church
with her next week and she said she will go with me other weeks if I go to ones
in the area (our neighborhood is not a place for a tall, blonde, American girl
to walk on her own). She has been a ray of love and encouragement in everything
she does and always makes sure we are doing well. On multiple occasions Tia and
I have talked of how happy we are be with Rose and couldn’t imagine being
without her!!! PTL!
(Pic of the bedroom after I added my own touch and a little scrapbooking paper)
That first day we were also greeted by a certain Becki Faulk’s
sister, Carrie, who took us to a grocery store called Woolworth’s. It was nice
to have a little stability during our transition of feeling overwhelmed and
lost. Carrie gave us the down low on Cape Town and helped get my VodaCom phone
(again, thank you Becki Faulks) set with airtime. It is so nice to have
connections while I’m half way across the world and I want to say thank you to
all of you who set them up. It has honestly made the world of difference in
this transition.
That second day we were given the opportunity to assist The
Family Reunification Project at a home visit/investigation. We went into the township’s
Delft and Guguletu (both of which reminded me very much of Alexandria). The
workers were looking to make contact with family members of the children
through the Family Reunification Project. They will use all resources available
to re-connect children with family and re-form ties (with both immediate and
extended family). It is almost like an investigation from one home to another.
Re-tracing steps and talking to any neighbor who has information. It may seem extreme
but since the houses are not clearly marked and so many residents are
undocumented, it is nearly impossible to find people in the system. It was
amazing to see the determination of the workers and they want us to experience
full immersion so they encourage our involvement in any way.
(Tia and I out on one of our many adventures around the city!! Notice my 5 rand ($ .75) oranges.)
That day we also spent time with the children once they came
home from school. They start coming back between 2 and 3 and it was cool to see
them in their element. Nearly all knew English so we hit it off from the get
go. Tia was told she looked like a South African soap opera star and well… I
got that I looked like Justin Bieber’s girlfriend, lol. Oh and another girl thought
I was Kesha from a distant, haha!! I could tell what American Media has done to
these children’s minds and it was actually really sad. They wanted to know if
we dated football players, were cheerleaders, knew Justin Bieber, wore
letterman jackets, and went to home coming. Some of them didn’t even believe we
had homeless people and they seemed shocked when I told them I grew up in a
mixed race community.
The children also asked if I knew any language beside English
so, as always, I started signing. They seemed fascinated and asked if I would
teach them so I said we could trade services. If they taught me Afrikaans I
would teach them ASL (fare trade if you ask me, right?)
After I showed them a few words we spent most of our time in
one of the girl cottages hanging out. I taught some how to shuffle cards and
they taught me a fun foot slapping dance. One of them had taken ballroom dance
so I showed her the basic swing dance steps and we had a ball (literally…ha). It
was fun to interact on their level and have some one on one time outside of the
“office”. I will also (hopefully) be doing some one on one work with a 12 year
old girl who is not enrolled in school. I will use my 2 years of education training
to put together a little lesson plan. Then once
I know her better I can tweak it and work on what she really
needs. Although my education major took me off track for a time I will still
use it to be the best social worker possible. Every road/detour has brought me
to the point I am today and I am amazed at how God can use every area of my
life to impact His kingdom. Wow am I glad not to be in control!!!
The next day one of the workers took us out by taxi (a big van
full or random people going from one stop to the other) to downtown Cape Town
or as the locals say city center. The workers do not feel secure sending us out
on our own in our neighborhood so MaryAnn wanted to show us the ropes. We went
from market to market and explored the area up and down Longstreet (apparently
that is the “Water Street” of Cape Town) where there are a lot of the clubs,
hostels, coffee shops and restaurants.
We were definitely a sight for sore eyes and plenty of locals asked MaryAnn
what we were doing and why we were in the neighborhood. She said people are
just nosey cause they are unemployed /: and we kept walking. Oh…and if anyone
tried to “take advantage of us” she was there to put them in their place. She’d
say, “They are with me and start speaking Afrikaans!!” Needless to say, I felt
veryyyy secure.
(Picture of City Center!!!
P.S We often don’t have WIFI access so updates may be rare but
when they come there will probably be multiple at a time!!!
Remember, nothing is impossible when you realize you are FREE!
Grace and Peace
-Kay
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