SMILE

THE CHILDREN IN AFRICA SMILE!

One guy I met while in Coffee Bay said it best when he said: Even though there are awful wars in Africa, the people in Africa still dance. And they are so happy even though they do not have the basic necessities of life like food and running water.

  When I was walking back from school, the children or anyone in the community would take their shirt off of their back to help a neighbor or a complete stranger like myself. Seriously there were many occasions where the community tried to give me hats, umbrellas, or shirts for assistance. I never asked, they would just give. 

THE CHILDREN IN AFRICA SMILE!

MY HEARTBEAT

If there is anything I have learned in the last few years of teaching & relationships in life is that sometimes relationships just do not work. Period. We all make mistakes, but there is no reason to stew on them. Move on, and most of the time the friendships that were ever important come back stronger than ever in the long run. If they do not then those people have fully served their purpose in your world. This has happened many times in my past & it did with my drum too.


I became very infatuated with Native Americans after my first year of teaching kindergarten. We do a huge Native American unit. We even had Tonkawa Native Americans that lived on our actual school grounds! The Native Americans believe that there is a spirit in every living thing. They also believe that The drum is your heart. Traditionally it was a very big deal to receive your drum. The Xhosa culture had some similarities. In Asia they say same same, but different.


When I went to Coffee Bay the first time with Sarah, we were tourists. A backpacker. Whatever you want to call it. Kevin was very quick to point that out. I tried to rush a process that is not meant to be rushed. Lets face it my nickname is tortuga (aka Turtle) and I hate being rushed. I was rushing because I was hoping to finish my drum & send it home with Sarah. Big mistake. Huge. The story is long. WAY TO LONG FOR THIS BLOG.


Kevin & I both made mistakes. We were not able to finish making the drum. Then after really settling back in Coffee Bay I made some ishomis (or friends) in the village that recommended Willie. (I probably would have used him the first time but he was out of town on holiday.)


I am not kidding when I tell you there were many prayers, blood, sweat, tears, and plenty of other forces in this drum of mine. I had wanted a drum for the past 5 years. Now, I could not imagine having done it any other way. I can hardly wait to be banging on this drum with all my gypsy friends back in Austin!

Kevin was my first teacher. Incredibly strong & probably equally as stubborn as me.

Had to throw Sarah back in the mix since she was a big part of the beginning stages of my drum.

Sanding down the drum.

Tanning the hide. (I got to do this one 3 times.)

Wrapping the rings that hold the strings to tighten he hide.

Sarah re-teaching me how to tie the knots because I had taken a surf break.

Before I left Coffee Bay the first time I stayed up all night by the fire to watch the drum & hope for it to dry in time for us to finish tightening it so we could leave for Durban. Needless to say mine was not ready. Thankfully Sarah's was! I was having so much fun I really did not want to leave anyway. So the drum was the last straw that forced me to return to Coffee Bay.

SWITCH:

WILLIE!!!!!!

Willie is known throughout the whole village as the drum master. Whenever he is around he leads all the drum circles. He is an excellent teacher, patient, and has a great sense of humor. The bottom line is he made the whole process easy and fun.

It is said that the drum is your heartbeat. I went to Coffee Bay to finish my drum and maybe "volunteer" in a classroom. But I found my heart and way more than I bargained for. So watch out Austin- I can actually keep the beat at least as a beginner.

Coffee Bay

I joke that when you grow up going to Galveston's beaches it only gets better. Seriously though, Coffee Bay has some of the most beautiful beaches I have ever encountered. In fact it is the place that made me fall in love with the ocean. Where else can you see cows chillaxing on the beach too?

This hill you see divides the 2 main beaches in coffee bay.

Here is a shot from Simon's rendesvous.

These 2 photos overlook my favorite cliffs in Coffee Bay. I would go there to do yoga a lot and often there would be a pick up game of soccer too.

Josh is going to be a bong playing, Xhosa speaking, surf champion. His parents are the owners of the Coffee Shack. We joke that he will have nothing ot rebel against because every night he goes to bed to the beat of the drums.

This was snapped from a low water bridge. For all those Mystic ladies it really reminded me of Cypress Creek.

I saw this lamb on my way to school one morning. Although you cannot see in this photo you could see its umbilical cord hanging down. If I had to guess, it probably was born the day before.

FULL MOON RISING OVER THE OCEAN!!!

(Yes I got to surf on the full moon.)

The Coffee Shack had drumming several times a week, and there was always a special full moon fiesta which brought out more intense drumming.

The coolest toy cars ever! The village boys said that it did not take long to make. Everything was made from wires excpet the wheels which were old coke cans. They had it attached to a steering wheel that they were all holding onto which was so much fun to drive.

Mark & Burnie playing acoustic style.

Nomandla who was one of the managers at the coffee shack & one of my best Xhosa teachers invited me to her house on one of her days off. She kinda had the local hang out. Many of the houses did not have electricity, her house definitely did. We watched TV, listened to some tunes, had a dance party, made a picnic, played checkers, and of course there was a fun Xhosa lesson involved too.

Baby Ella & Pumeze.

The Sacred Beach

One of the most Special days I had in Coffee bay was taking all the kiddos to the beach. After that I managed to go for a surf, and then 2 of my closest ishomis, or friends, took me to the sacred pools.

Beach Day with the Kiddos

Typically I went to Khaya Lethu Monday-Friday for school. Then on Sundays I would go for singing, dancing, or whatever fun the children may have been up to. This particular Sunday Christine & I took all the children to the beach. Can you imagine swimming with 17 children and only 3 official caregivers? It was an adventure that rivaled my first year teaching at times. But this experience definitely solidified a lot of my relationships with the children.

If the children did not trust me before the beach they definitely did after the beach. There were times where I was scooping them out of the river because the waves had overpowered them. (Omhle, my danam, actually was so terrified of the water that she clung to me the whole time.)

Right before we had taken this excursion we had just taken in more children. I had barely been there a week, and I was watching everyone's roles shift. I believe the beach was the mold that helped glue the children and me together.

Unfortunately I did not bring my camera to the beach. (Not that I am positive I would have had seconds to snap any shots because there were always small children in my arms.)

We all rode in the truck which was easily one of the highlights of my whole trip. It was like a parade of sorts. The girls (plus 4 boys) rarely get to ride in the truck (only to go to the “local” clinic.) As the car swooshed past any creature that moved the children would scream out all kinds of greetings.

After we got back to Khaya Lethu, Christine had all the kids rinse off in the basins. Khaya Lethu had no electricity or showers. I do not know if I will ever be able to express how captivating it has been to see the way all the children really do care for each other. 17 children showered off in seriously like 10 minutes. the 6 year olds were helping the 2,3, & 4 year olds. Then the teenage children helped hose off the middle age children. The family dynamics of this place is mesmerizing. Each one plays such an important roll in making the house run. Their skills and adaptability simple blow my mind.

The Sacred Pool

Later that day Ilanka & Simon took me to the sacred pools. It was about a 2-3 hour hike in total. It a cross between the green belt & the tubs from camp but honestly WAY more secluded.

I captured Ilanka here at one of our final resting spots. The traditional Xhosa people are actually baptized here. You are not supposed to swim here unless you have special permission.

SIMON!!! Who can say they met their Indian Guru around the fire in Africa? And better yet - HE IS BRITISH! (For those of you who do not know guru literally means "remover of ignorance.")

After we emerged from the sacred pools, we had a beautiful sunset and some local children dancing in their lollies. Pretty much the perfect ending to a beautiful day!

Khaya Lethu

Life is all about timing. And for some reason I was in the right place at the right time & everything fell into place perfectly when I was in Coffee Bay. Honestly I was tired of doing the same old backpacker song & dance and kinda freaking out about missing one of my best friends weddings (I LOVE YOU HAYLEY!!!) but something special was calling me back to Coffee Bay.

Belinda one of the (the owners of the Coffee Shack) arranged for me to meet the owners of a Christian orphanage. Honestly my initial reaction was hesitation because I am a teacher, and I wanted to teach. But I thought about it for a while, and I figured God was going to take care of me here because I was ready to do something different.

When I met Christine & Guerie we decided I would go for a week and then decide if I was a fit or not. Even though Christine had spoken about their project, nothing prepares you for extreme culture shock. NOTHING. When we arrived in one of their buckeys (aka pickup trucks,) the children ran to welcome us at the doors. Although they were shining and glowing with enthusiasm, they also had open wounds all over their bodies including their heads which were oozing. It did not seem to bother them, but I was hesitant to touch them. That quickly changed. By the end of the first day I knew I was hooked, and luckily with time Christine & Guerie felt the same way too!

This experience has changed my life in ways that I will never be able to articulate in this blog. I was tired & broken for so many different reasons. Christine & Guerie not only welcomed me into their home but also into their newly developing project. And I quickly became apart of the whole Khaya Lhetu family.

I had hard expectations to live up to with teaching back home. None of that mattered anymore. These children craved love, affection, and food. I had all these ideas in the beginning about what the children were going to learn. I thought I was going to waltz in there & change everything. Not only did I have to change all my expectations, but I had no idea how much this experience would change me.

As soon as I arrived the Xhosa woman who was teaching there, Veronica, opened her classroom and made me feel incredibly welcome. She had been working for a couple of months but had no other teaching experience. We all thought that I could give her some guidance especially with organizing the supplies in the classroom. When I was with her, the children were great. But in the beginning there was about a week where she was off doing other training and I had the children to myself. They acted like they could not understand me, they tested me, and pushed all the limits. Basically they walked all over me. (Remember the children primarily speak XHOSA & they begin to learn English in school.) From that moment on, I realized that I needed to throw whatever old teaching expectations I had out the window. These children needed love, attention, and a bit of guidance more than anything in the world (and so did I!) I also knew that I was going to have to start learning some Xhosa & fast.

The mammas: (Nandi, Lullulama, & Squash)

Nandi was actually supposed to be a Child. They lied on her birth certificte and when Christine found out she decided the only thing she could do was have her help out, (instead of kicking her on the streets.) Without these women there would be no orphanage. They did the cooking, cleaning, & everything else that fell under the umbrella of a momma. You did not want to mess with these ladies.

Nobisutu/ Veronica

(I called her Veronica in the beginning. But everyday I learned more & more about the Xhosa culture. A lot of the people that have interactions with White people take on second names because we have such difficulty saying there names.)

I took this picture on one of the first days I was there. The kids were already glowing.

The village where Khaya Lethu is located is called Ematokazine. (Which means village of the unmarried girls.)

Khaya Lethu

The long home was where the kitchen & two small bedrooms were. There were 3 rundavous (which I have no idea how to spell.) 1 was for the guard, 1 was a bedroom for the older sissies, and the closest one you see in the picture by the playscape was the kindergartens classroom. There was also 2 huge organic gardens that all the village women maintained. The profits for whatever crops they sold would go directly to Khaya Lethu.

At least a couple days a week I would take the long road home in that I would have a one & 1/2 hour walk. Those of you who know me well know how I love my long rambling walks. But these walks were some of the best walks of my life because I would get to sing & dance with all the local village children. By the end most of the families recognized & spoke to me.

Lonitha is a LOUD FIRECRACKER.

Here are All of the children inside the classroom. Typically we would have anywhere from 8-16 children depending on the weather. 8 of the children that attended preschool lived at Khaya Lethu the rest of the children would come from the lollies that just walked to school sometimes. This particular day was a special day because the older sissies did not have school & they were able to help me in the preschool a lot because their english was a tad better. I gave them their assigned special seats & to celebrate we had chocolate.

OMHLE (WHICH MEANS BEAUTIFUL IN XHOSA IS MY DANAM.) With Teaching there are no favorites. But every year I have found that there is one child that steals your heart. This session it was Omhle. I have never felt such attachment to anything before in my life, and I cannot wait to go back & see how she has grown. Can you imagine not speaking the same language, and always having a little 3 year old helper running around to do what you need without you even asking or even being able to communicate?

Danam literally means "my child." That was one of the first words I learned in Xhosa. When you hear the mamas burst out with words that have such powerful emotion it is mesmerizing. In fact I think I was forced to learn at a faster rate than I have ever learned anything before. There was such a necessity at times that I had to pick things up quickly or the children would have continued to walk all over me. Bathroom Was another one I learned quicly (funa a gcama.)

Here is Yiva (THE DIVA) in all her glory. Seriosuly this 2 year old was more than a Diva. She is bright, knows how to get her way, & she even poses for the camera.

Ongi shining because we gave them snacks after their doctors visit. Going to one of the local clinics was definitely an eye opening experience.

Veronica & I on our coffee break.

Nandi giving Ongi cream for all the sores on his head.

Latita wanting another ride. ZAB, ZAB, ZAB is what they would chant when they were ready for their turn.

Before I left, I put together a movie of all the photos & video clips I had taken. All the kids from the lollies wanted to see too, so we let them into the classroom. I love this photo because you can see all their energy sucked into the movie.

Minimnandi Kuwea!!

Christine & Guerie single handidly have put this whole project together. It has touched me in so many ways that I look forward to really being able to share with you once I get home. This is one of my favorite photos I took while I was there. It is Batabille's birthday with Squash pumping up the song. Before Khaya Lethu these children's lives were beyond grim. Now they have a positive place to see what God's love can do. Most of these children did not understand what their birthday even was. Now, it seems like everyday is their birthday!