So, our internet is pretty spotty here as you might imagine. I had another beautiful entry about the rest of the first day and then everything crashed before it got a chance to publish.
Perfect.
I shall try again.
Everyone else woke up about an hour after me and breakfast came. Oats, cereal bars and milk out of one of the cows on the farm here. The cereal bard are not the kind you think of but bard that turn into cereal when you add milk. You mush it up with the oatmeal, add some brown sugar and itse awesome.
then we walked down the road and were welcome by the kids who were singing and dancing for us for about 20 mintues. It was pretty great. And most of them are phenomenal hip hop dancers. We mingles with the kids for awhile and then went inside to have a meeting with the steering commitee of Refilwe.
It was preety awesome to see how excited the adults were to have ASTEP back here. Tehy spoke about how great the team was last year and how they hope to see us build on the great work that was started. they watned to know how the parents could be more involved. Tehy loved that ASTEP wasn't afraid to discipline their kids as some organizations are. They really believe in everyone working together for the benefit of the children in the community no matter what that takes. It's pretty powerful.
the meeting lasted about an hour or so and then we waited for a car to go grocery shopping. Will, Mauricio, tanesha and Pete and I went to the store which was about 20 mintues away. and was in the middle of a mall situation. which was odd but cool. I got put in charge of staying in the alloted budget and time limit for shopping.
This porved to be an interesting challenge having no idea where anything was in the store, what was in the store, and everything is in Rand and not Dollar. (if you divide by 7 you get a little extra at the end). But it was a fun challenge and i won and we got groceries with little difficulty.
On the ride back, Will asked Pete if he had gotten contact lenses.
side bar- Pete and Issac are the two people helping us the most. The idea of a youth leadership program came from them in the first place. They are 22 and 24 respectively and grew up at Refilwe and now want to give something back to the communities. SO, Will and Mauricio who were here last year, already have a relationship with them.
Evidently last year, Peter didn't go anywhere without his glasses, couldn't see a thing without them. Refilwe sent him to a leadership training program for the year andwhile he was gone he had an interesting experience. He was at church with his fellow students and they were singing about the passages around "the blind shall see." And he thought a lot in his head about the strength of his faith and the fullness to which he believed. He got swaety in the church and took he glasses off to wipe them on his shirt. When he put them back on, they wer foggy. He took them off and he could see. He put them back on and it was fuzzy. He repeated this several more times until he realized that he could see without his glasses. And he threw them away.
And he has not needed them since.
Perfect.
I shall try again.
Everyone else woke up about an hour after me and breakfast came. Oats, cereal bars and milk out of one of the cows on the farm here. The cereal bard are not the kind you think of but bard that turn into cereal when you add milk. You mush it up with the oatmeal, add some brown sugar and itse awesome.
then we walked down the road and were welcome by the kids who were singing and dancing for us for about 20 mintues. It was pretty great. And most of them are phenomenal hip hop dancers. We mingles with the kids for awhile and then went inside to have a meeting with the steering commitee of Refilwe.
It was preety awesome to see how excited the adults were to have ASTEP back here. Tehy spoke about how great the team was last year and how they hope to see us build on the great work that was started. they watned to know how the parents could be more involved. Tehy loved that ASTEP wasn't afraid to discipline their kids as some organizations are. They really believe in everyone working together for the benefit of the children in the community no matter what that takes. It's pretty powerful.
the meeting lasted about an hour or so and then we waited for a car to go grocery shopping. Will, Mauricio, tanesha and Pete and I went to the store which was about 20 mintues away. and was in the middle of a mall situation. which was odd but cool. I got put in charge of staying in the alloted budget and time limit for shopping.
This porved to be an interesting challenge having no idea where anything was in the store, what was in the store, and everything is in Rand and not Dollar. (if you divide by 7 you get a little extra at the end). But it was a fun challenge and i won and we got groceries with little difficulty.
On the ride back, Will asked Pete if he had gotten contact lenses.
side bar- Pete and Issac are the two people helping us the most. The idea of a youth leadership program came from them in the first place. They are 22 and 24 respectively and grew up at Refilwe and now want to give something back to the communities. SO, Will and Mauricio who were here last year, already have a relationship with them.
Evidently last year, Peter didn't go anywhere without his glasses, couldn't see a thing without them. Refilwe sent him to a leadership training program for the year andwhile he was gone he had an interesting experience. He was at church with his fellow students and they were singing about the passages around "the blind shall see." And he thought a lot in his head about the strength of his faith and the fullness to which he believed. He got swaety in the church and took he glasses off to wipe them on his shirt. When he put them back on, they wer foggy. He took them off and he could see. He put them back on and it was fuzzy. He repeated this several more times until he realized that he could see without his glasses. And he threw them away.
And he has not needed them since.
Speaking of contacts...yours came here to the house last week! Will ship them off this week. Gotta love how well people do what they say they will do and still charge you for NOT doing it!
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