Month three of the race meant being on a new continent. I didn’t know what to expect from South Africa, but I’m sure even if I had had expectations, this beautiful country would have blown them out of the water.
We flew in to Johannesburg, the capital city of South Africa, and then embarked on our 17 hour journey to the southern tip of the country to our home for the month: Jeffrey’s Bay, or J-bay as the locals like to call it. Here we would partner with Global Leadership Academy (GLA). GLA is a private school with a large campus that sits on top of a hill looking down on the rest of the town and the ocean in the distance.
Our first night was spent in our tents at a beach campground. We set up our tents, walked on the beach, went swimming in the ocean, and got treated to a traditional South African Braai (barbecue/cookout) by the interns and then went out for milkshakes at their favorite local spot. We awoke the next morning to the sound of waves crashing and birds chirping. Month three was off to a great start.
We then made our way to where we would be living the entire month. We lived in the upstairs of a preschool building on the GLA campus. Everyday as we were fixing breakfast, young children would stroll into *our* living room and dining room (their classroom and lunch table). Our backyard view was the soccer field for the high school and off into the distance we could see windmills churning to the strong winds that are characteristic of J-bay. The sunset we would watch each evening as we ate dinner was beautiful and vibrant.
We drank lots of Roiboos Tea this month and had cornflakes, yogurt, and toast for breakfast; sandwiches or ramen for lunch; and dinners were prepared by a woman named Wendy. She would often make us traditional South African dishes with some of our favorites being fat cakes and Bobotie. We also enjoyed putting Flipping Lekka spice on everything and our favorite ramen seasoning was “Chakka Lakka.” Wendy also made an amazing dessert called Milktart, that paired perfectly with a cup of Vanilla Roiboos Tea from Spar.
Wendy is the mother of a guy named Austin, and mother-in-law to Austin’s wife, Rebecca. Austin and Rebecca were missionaries, Austin on the South African version of the World Race (Global Challenge) and Rebecca a world racer from the states. They tragically died in a car accident in America shortly after getting married. Austin’s parents, Wendy and Roger Wesson, have chosen to dedicate their lives to following the same call Austin followed. They now help the ministry accommodate for the incoming missionaries, feed them, and just provide a family to fellowship with during their time at GLA. The Wesson family played a huge role in me being able to feel at home in J-bay and I miss them dearly.
We had access to wifi over at the open-air high school after school hours, which usually turned into us posting up in the girls’ and boys’ bathrooms to catch a break from the wind as we face timed family and posted updates.
We took our laundry to a sweet woman that would wash, dry, and fold our laundry for a reasonable price. A lot of my clothes shrunk in her heavy duty dryer, but I remained thankful that I wasn’t returning to hand washing my clothes just yet.
Ministry this month included assisting teachers in classrooms at a school in a more poor area of the town; helping the construction crew at the log home stain, paint, sand, and chink towards completion of the ministry’s on-campus missionary housing being built in honor of Austin and Rebecca; helping at an after school program called “Beats and Books” that tutored kids and taught them how to play instruments; singing in a choir with the construction crew in preparation for a performance at church; babysitting for the church staff when there were meetings; being a camp counselor at a middle school leadership camp; and being a camp counselor for a specialized camp for kids diagnosed with cerebral palsy and their parents.
We were busy, and pouring out constantly, but God kept our cups overflowing. We had devotionals every other morning with the rest of the ministry staff in the cafe at the high school as we read through the book of Mark and prayed over one another and sang worship songs. This time of fellowship was so sweet for us.
Off days were spent going to a local farmer’s market on Saturday mornings, trips to the shopping mall or McDonalds that were both in walking distance, sitting in coffee shops down in town, or hitting up the beach to go surfing or just hang out. We also participated in “fun runs” which is a national initiative in SA to promote public health through weekly meet-ups on Saturday mornings for people in various cities of the country to walk or run a 5K. These events were always crowded and it was encouraging as a health care provider to see how many people in this community valued their physical health and the way it brought the whole community together was inspiring.
. . .
I’ll miss morning quiet times while holding a cup of Roiboos tea.
I’ll miss the farmer’s market full of sweet treats like Crepes, and artisan crafts and home baked goods.
I’ll miss fellowship with the GLA staff and our sweet friendship with the Wesson family.
I’ll miss our wonderful host Anita, her family, and their coffee shop and brewery where we spent a lot of time and money at.
I’ll miss strolls through the mall to window shop.
I’ll miss chinking next to the construction guys, and then singing next to them in choir practice.
I’ll miss the precious Timion Cerebral Palsy camp kiddos and their families.
I’ll miss the laughs my team and I had at UCSA camp.
Songs that remind me of this month are:
- Come Holy Spirit (Uthando) by Live at LIV Worship Central South Africa
- Peace Like a River by Vinesong
- The Monkey by Hillsong SA youth
Want to know more? Ask me about:
- Timion camp and how I used my physical therapy skills
- UCSA camp and the time my team and I sprinted to team time
- Surfing and whether I was good at it
