All Good Things Come to an End...

July 29^th - August 7^th 

We began our week off by going to visit the beautiful city of Stellenbosch. One the way we passed a number of beautiful vineyards. When we arrived to the city, I noticed how beautiful it was! It was all antiques, most of the buildings there are in its original form and the city was just full of history and art. We took a tour of the University there and the campus was absolutely gorgeous. It’s hard to believe that such a beautiful city is such a big college town because it seems that the town is just so quiet and calm.

After the tour, we went to a wonderful wine vineyard and had lunch. I was very nervous because I did not know what anything was on the menu but after the food arrived, it was the best meal I have had since being in Cape Town! And it was cheap! We got an appetizer, a steak and potato and salad dinner, plus dessert for fourteen American dollars! You cannot beat that.

Later in the week, we went to a natural park which we took a small tour and learned about the Khoe and San people, who are the oldest known people to inhabit the Earth. We learned a little about their tradition and culture and it is just amazing how smart and innovative these people were. It really saddened me to hear that when the Europeans came in, they started killing off these people; literally hunting them down like animals and putting them up on display. It was a sad sad time and shows why only so few of them still live today. And some of the ones who are still living today, still live in their primitive, nomadic ways. That was a great experience.

Today was also the first day that we got to visit a beach! The weather was great, there were no clouds, the water was clear and it was just a good time. Even though we were only out there for about 15 minutes, it seemed like an hour and we were all like little kids out there playing in the water and sand. I really wish we could have gone back.

We got to go to the South African Parliament. I must say that I was not excited about this trip at all because government and politics completely bores me! But when we got there it was interesting to learn about the history of their government and how even the government was separated by race during the Apartheid and to see where it all takes place. We even got to sit in on a conference about trade and got a shout out!lol It actually shined a whole new light on government for me and I realized that this is something that I really should get more involved in and learn more about when I returned. Because our tour guide knew more about our governmental system than I did and that was pretty sad.

The last few days for me were all kind of blurred together. We had free days and work days and they all seemed to run together. On these days I did work, a lot of chilling and talking with the girls and shopping for my final souvenirs. When I wasn’t doing any of those things, I was just thinking and reflecting on this trip and just trying to take it all in. everything that we had gone through and accomplished, place it with its proper emotion. Trying to figure out what my next moves will be when I return and new ways that I can contribute to my own community. It is very cliché to say that something was an eye-opening experience and changed my view on life but that is exactly what it was. It’s occurred to me more than ever before now to just keep life simple, not to let small things stress me and get me bothered. And most of all that our younger generation has to be up to speed and motivated when it comes to education. They are the future and they/we will be the ones running this country and being the doctors and raising their own children. And if they are not educated then the who population could easily be destroyed.

I will leave you all with this quote- “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be: You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are born to make manifest the Glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us, it’s in everyone, and as we let our own light shine, we consciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” 

I felt the need to say this one because I was fearful of leaving the country to go to Africa but I did. I was afraid to try new things while I was here but I did. I took advantage of everything that I did here and I hope I touched at least one child there just for them to see my excitement and my enthusiasm and how motivated I was to help them. Hopefully it inspired them to do the same and feel that they could expand their education as well and forget about any fears that may come their way.