By far my favorite Zulu word. uNkulunkulu (oon-koo-loon-koooo-loo) means God. It sounds awesome when all the kids say it.
All 3 of our schools today were secondary schools. It is a totally different presentation for high schoolers and you have to be on your toes or you lose them quickly. Granted we are immediately received as famous Americans the minute we say we’re from the
At the second school today we broke up in groups and went class to class. This is fun because we allow the learners to ask questions at the end. Sometimes they ask about
Luckily Vanessa, one of our leaders, was in our group and had a great response for this teacher. I was caught totally speechless, and left feeling quite sick to my stomach. The situations that exist here are far beyond difficult. It saddened me to hear this teacher’s views. It saddened me to once again see the complexity of life here. The situation here in
At the next school we did two large assembly presentations. A reserved girl named Khanyisile came up to me afterwards. She was soft-spoken and had semi-broken English so it took some patience in understanding what she was telling me. I learned that she was 21, and studying in grade 11. She was telling me about her family. “We are suffering, can you help me? My mother is positive (HIV)… she is very sick… my father has already gone… my brothers and sisters, we are five…. Can you tell me what to do?” Hillary, one of my teammates, was there with me as we tried to comfort this girl. We talked, asked questions, and listened. It was very difficult to know the right things to say. We prayed with her and I took down her name on my hand. I told her we would continue praying for her and her family.
Today was a difficult day for me. I find myself thinking about my small group of high schoolers back home. I cannot believe that girls just like them here- girls the same age- are faced with such different decisions… They have the same teenage-girl spunk and personality yet live completely different lives. Please keep Khanyisile in your prayers.
Renee,
ReplyDeleteThis is Michael Strong, Gio's future father-in-law, Maybe? Ha-ha. (Only if he keeps answering the right way about only having 1(ONE) girlfriend).LOL.
Anyway my wife(Teresa) and I were reading your blogs today, trying to catch up on your God given ability to BLOG with humor and in such a perilous environment. And this days writings brought us both to tears that a lovely young woman would have SUCH A BURDEN as she does to reach out to anyone who could help her because she only wants the best for her family, because she just LOVES them so.
Is there a way to help Khanyisile with our limited resources directly from us to her? We understand that there are oh so many who are like Khanyisile in SA. But feel led to ask for her just because she IS REACHING out to you.
Gio knows how to get a hold of us.
Renee,
ReplyDeleteI am trying to think what my response would have been in the same situation, but I can’t think of any. What did Vanessa say to the instructor? All I can think of is Jacob and Esau where a future was sold to satisfy an immediate need of food. (Genesis 25:29-34) The family was fed for a day, and a girl’s future is gone. The sin was committed by some older man and the consequences are suffered by an entire family of young brothers and sisters.
I hear about organizations working on many African needs. The hunger for food, the hunger for hope, education to instruct the young about HIV, and education for farming projects. So many times I saw people who wanted work but couldn’t find it. They would pump gas, carry groceries, direct people to empty parking spots and watch cars all for tips. South Africa just does not have enough opportunities for everyone to make a living. Where ever I am in the world, I want to make a difference for the better. I am sure you feel the same calling and are accomplishing a lot in this trip.