When we were in Cape Town in October we worked with a ministry called Alta du Toit. It is a home for people who are intellectually challenged. I was nervous because I was afraid I wouldn’t know what to do with them, I don’t speak Afrikaans, I can’t really relate to their struggles, I’ve never had much interaction with intellectually challenged before. I was worried I would accidentally say something wrong or do something that would offend them. I struggled because I thought had nothing really to give them.
But I was wrong. They just wanted to be friends. Plain and simple.
It didn’t matter that I couldn’t speak Africans. One the the guys that we got closest to didn’t speak English but we still had a great time hanging out.
It didn’t matter that I didn’t know what to do. The minute my team was introduced to the group I was grabbed by Eliza and whisked away to the station she was working at. She pulled up a chair for me and introduced me to the other people at the table. She eagerly taught me what they were doing so I could join in too.
It didn’t matter that I didn’t know how to interact. Eliza and Lilly just wanted to tell me about their lives and ask about mine. Its crazy to see how similar we are. It may have also helped that both of them can speak English really really well. Anyway ….
I LOVED IT.
I have never felt so much love in my entire life. We were always greeted with big smiles and giant hugs every time we walked in the door. Words cannot capture the joy I felt when I was there. There was never a time that I didn’t have a smile on my face. I loved everything about Atla du Toit. God definitely gave me my joy back.
