Our time in South Africa has come to a close, and this goodbye will be hard. We have absolutely loved our time in Jeffreys Bay, and we owe part of that to the ocean and playing at the beach and great coffee shops and fun ministry, but what really makes this goodbye hard is the people to whom we say it. We met some really wonderful people this month, and made really really wonderful friends. Here’s a few of them!
Matthys & Jonette
Matthys (mah-tay-us) and Jonette (yah-net) were our ministry hosts this month, but they felt more like family. From day one, Jonette made sure that we knew we were always welcome in her home. I will miss her sing-song shouts of “you are welcome!” as we enter her front door. Both Matthys and Jonette walk in Christlike love and hospitality unlike anyone I’ve ever met. Through serving meals, watching rugby games, drinking tea and coffee, doing bible studies after dinner, sharing biltong (the South African version of jerky), and so much more, this couple shared so much of themselves to love us well. WOW they’re incredible. Matthys is a strong and respectable man of God, full of wisdom and truth from the Lord. He taught me so much this month about God and about leadership. He’s full of jokes and sarcasm and inspiration and quite a lot of coffee. I’ve learned not to take him too seriously when he gets a big mischievous grin on his face, and take him very seriously when he’s sharing about God or the Bible. Jonette is an incredible woman – WOW – she’s wonderful. She is full of grace and wisdom and love and gentleness and compassion. She took time out of one of her busiest afternoons to sit with me over tea and pour out truth and insight onto me, helping me through one of my hardest days of this month. I watched her walk in Christlikeness with her children and with her friends; she is a patient and gentle mom and a deeply caring and perceptive friend. WOW, I admire her so much. Both these people loved me so well this month and I am so thankful for their example and their friendship. I’m already trying to figure out when I could possibly come back to see them again.
Tarina
Tarina was one of our daily ministry hosts this month, which means we saw her and interacted with her every day. She helped feed us and did our training the first week we were here, then went above and beyond for us by driving us on adventure days and spending so much of her free time (and work time hehe) hanging out with us. She truly became a dear friend of mine. One day, I found her looking downcast and asked her if she was okay and she said yes and quickly changed the subject; as I walked away from the conversation, I asked her, “if you weren’t okay, would you tell me?” She laughed and said no, probably not. But then not 10 minutes later she was standing in the kitchen with me, telling me about some things she’s currently struggling with, opening up to me in a way I didn’t expect given her reaction earlier. Our friendship deepened greatly through that conversation. Over the following two weeks we grew in friendship. She taught me how to be comfortable giving and receiving sarcasm (something that has been really challenging for me on the Race), and I think I taught her to be comfortable with vulnerability. She saw me really well and knew when to ask me, “are you okay?” and “if you weren’t okay, would you tell me?” We shared so many conversations and so much laughter together, and wowie wow her friendship made this month so fun. On our last morning together (she had to leave town for work a few days before we left JBay), we sat down and shared our testimonies and current struggles with one another, and it was really really beautiful to hear her story and hear what God is orchestrating in her life right now, in these very moments. It was such an honor to see her open up bit by bit throughout the month and learn to share her heart and her story with me. I’m beyond honored that God trusted me with her friendship this month, and I’m hoping and praying that we don’t lose contact any time soon!
Hannah
Hannah is the year-long intern at UCSA, and she is in charge of running camps. Let me tell y’all: this girl is incredible. When we first met her she was very quiet, and in our first one-on-one conversation the next day she shared with me a handful of observations that she made of me in our first 24 hours of interaction, and she was spot-on with all of them! She is humble and gentle and kind. She is a pillar of selflessness. She also runs camps of 30-70+ middle-school-aged kids by herself. Holy moly! She rocks. We moved into her house with her after our second week here, and she was so gracious about sharing her small living space with four World Racers and all their stuff. She taught me a lot about leading camp with gentleness and humility and then she empowered me and Mary Beth to run a camp by ourselves, and she loved us well by trusting us with that responsibility. I’m thankful to have met her, and I will miss her. We’re still trying to convince her to hide away in one of our backpacks and come with us, but I don’t think it’s working.
Elizca
I talked about Elizca in my last blog. She and I spent a lot of quality time together when I worked in the kitchen with her during our second camp. We grew in friendship through our many chats over giant pots of rice, frozen curry chicken, and baked goods (not all together of course). Our motto was, “our diet starts tomorrow” haha! I loved learning about her, getting to know her, hearing her stories, and listening to the witty banter between her and Tarina. We learned a lot about effective communication together through a situation of miscommunication and asking for forgiveness, which was honestly really special. She also showed me her wedding photos which was so fun! I’m really thankful for the opportunity I had to hang out in her kitchen and love her well for four whole days; I’m glad I didn’t miss out on the opportunity to get to know her better.
The Staff of Tasty Table
Attention all visitors to Jeffreys Bay: GO TO TASTY TABLE! If we were the cast of Friends, Tasty Table would be our Central Perk. We hung out here a lot, which says something because we had very little free time this month. The staff at Tasty Table are the most genuinely nice people. I’m not kidding, they won’t just open the door for you, but they will also walk outside and help the elderly walk up the steps to the front door! You don’t find that just anywhere! I’ll probably spell their names incorrectly, but we as a team got really close to a few of the waiters – Wiekes, Johan, Dyllan, and Pieter – and they quickly became our friends and would greet us excitedly when we arrived and offer suggestions for their favorite drinks and pastries. I ran into Pieter downtown one day on his day off, and he asked us for prayer. We had never had a religious conversation with him, but he knew we were women of prayer – how cool is that! Dyllan even asked us the first time we met him if we were World Racers; he had been friends with the past World Race teams who have come through J-Bay and he could spot us a mile (or kilometer hehe) away! And Johan asked Ally and I to send him a package of snow from the United States because he really wants to experience snow. I loved Tasty Table for the food, coffee, WiFi, and vibes, but the staff and service were really the best part.
South Africa was full of fun and friends – friends who became family – and I am so thankful for the relationships (hopefully life-long relationships!) that came out of our time here. Please keep these new, sweet friends of mine in your prayers as they continue in life and ministry in J-Bay as we depart.
To God be the glory!
Jess (or “Joos” as they call me at camp)
