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!