There
are no extra people alive today. Every single one of us is here for a reason, a
special purpose—a mission. Above all else, be significant. Make your life
matter. Be of use. And be of service to as many people as possible. This is how
each of us can shift from the realm of the ordinary into the heights of the
extraordinary.
This is a quote from the book I just finished, The
Secret Letters of the Monk Who Sold His Ferrari. It was on the bookshelf here
in the house and it has been my companion these past couple of weeks. It has
taught me a lot of good life lessons that I will carry with me for a long time.
I really loved it and would recommend it to anyone who is searching for some
direction in life or simply a really good read.
I will start by sharing my wonderful adventure
day with my friend Duke. Her and I got to explore Cape Town, which was nice
because before that we had always been travelling in a large group. We took the
train to Blue Garage, a market close by our favorite beach. We were proud that
we managed to navigate the trip by ourselves, and we were pleasantly surprised
to find a lot of great clothes, food and other vendors. Duke bought me a
cupcake that I ate later on the beach…hands down best cupcake I have ever had. I
really enjoy communal living because you get to know people more day by day. I
am glad I got that day with Duke.
St. Michaels Church is starting to become my
new Church home here. I have started to meet people at the 6pm Sunday mass,
which attracts mostly young adults. It is nice to have something similar to SLU
mass. I have been out of my comfort zone and trying a lot of new things, so the
feeling I got when the mass started was amazing. It was relief and happiness
and utter joy in my faith and in my choice to be Catholic. I love that no
matter where you go, a Catholic mass is pretty much the same. I felt at peace.
I felt at home. I even had a meeting with a couple of people on the Youth
Ministry team, and we got to know each other better. They gave me some
suggestions on how to get involved in campus ministry activities (I might be in
a CLC!!). I will keep you posted on that.
Truth Coffee=best coffee. This place used to be a fabric company and
now it is a unique café that makes you feel right when you enter. I wish all of
my friends at home could sit down with me there and enjoy each other’s
presence. Bliss.
A group of us went to a field nearby to play ultimate Frisbee and
before we knew it, a national ultimate Frisbee
player came down from his office building to join us. After a couple of
hours of playing, we were all exhausted but it was a great time. Afterwards the
man talked to us and gave us some tips on cool things to do in Cape Town. I love
getting to know the local people here. They are very friendly and open to
talking to us Americans.
I had lunch at school with my new friend Ashley, who is from Cape
Town. She is actually majoring in psychology and theology like me, which is
pretty darn awesome and that took me by surprise. Apparently theology is a rare
major here because many schools do not offer it (another friend I made is
looking into going to the United States for graduate school for theology).
Anyways, we had a great time over our lunch break and she answered all of my
questions about the proper way to say things/do things here (traffic lights are
called “robots” here fyi). She is my first South African friend! I hope to
hangout with her more.
I have been desperately searching for Christian/Catholic
organization on campus, but it is hard to get involved at school because they
do not have an office for this type of things or any kind of brochure like SLU
would. I finally found a poster that looked promising, so I went to the meeting
during lunchtime. What I found was jaw dropping and awesome. It was a Christian
group that prays in tongues. Have you ever heard of that?? I sure have not. I
walked in and everyone was talking to themselves really loudly and I did not
know what was going on. Praying in tongues comes from the Bible, they explained
to me, when it says the Holy Spirit came down and the people started talking in
tongues. You simply pray to God and let the Holy Spirit work through you, but
you are saying everything out loud. The cool thing is, no one can understand each
other, because everyone is talking so loud. Then we got a partner and we asked
them what they wanted us to pray over them, and then we held hands and prayed
out loud for that person. It was a really unique experience. I love learning
about different ways to pray. It opens my eyes to the different ways one can
celebrate and worship God.
My friend Kari and I went to the Company Gardens, which is a giant,
beautiful garden that was created when the Dutch stopped in Cape Town many many
years ago. Once you walk in it for a while and enjoy its beauty, you can go to
the many museums that surround it. We went to the Slave Lodge, which was sad
and made me think about another time period that I hadn’t thought about before in
South Africa. I usually think about apartheid, but then learning about all of
the slaves that were in Cape Town before that even occurred made me realize how
much I still have to learn about the place I am at.
One of my dear friends that I have made here is Maira. We go on
daily walk/jogs together and I really look forward to that part of my day. It
is nice getting to know her a little better day by day. We also share a love
for chocolate, so we have gone to a nearby café to get our chocolate fix at
night.
My favorite day I have had so far occurred on my “me” day. As bad as
it sounds to say that my favorite day has been the day I was by myself, it was
truly magical. The group went on a wine tour, but I hung back to see what
explorer Hannah could find in Cape Town. I started my day at Truth coffee,
obviously, and did homework while I sipped my cappuccino that had a heart drawn
in it. Then I walked up to the Book Lounge, a nearby bookstore. I did more
homework there and I found myself talking to a lady about how I was majoring in
theology and she shared with me how she has recently found the Church. People
are just great and I learn something from every person I encounter. I have
learned that every time you talk to someone, that is an opportunity to grow and
learn something. Then I went to Company Gardens again and walked around to look
at the flowers and trees once again. Get this…I went to the PLANETARIUM next. I
was too excited. I reclined back in my chair and learned all about the
constellations and it made me so happy because in case you didn’t know I really
love stars. Then I went to the Isiko Museum, which basically has a lot of
replicas of animals that are found in Africa. It was kind of creepy so I walked
through it really quickly. There were giant whale skeletons, though, which were
pretty cool! GUESS WHAT I DID AT NIGHT?? I went to the observatory close by our
house and I got to listen to a professor from Italy talk about stars and then
we got to look through a HUGE telescope and look at Jupiter. I could see the
stripes on it!! Mind blowing. During this time, I also talked to two men who
grew up here in Cape Town during apartheid. It was interesting hearing their perspective
on it, especially since one man was white and one was not. Everyone here is
very open about sharing their stories. My brain is like a sponge here, trying
to soak up as much as I can. Basically this day rocked because I was able to be
the most independent I have ever been in my whole life. I was able to choose. I
was able to be. I was able to LIVE.
Every time I open my purse, I see my Mother Theresa coin that Liz
gave me. Makes me smile. Also, whenever I see a message from Liz, my heart I
think comes out of my chest because I am so excited. Everyone in my house knows
who she is and I love that.
You might know that I like finding pennies on the ground because I
believe they are pennies from God. Well, I found a penny today. JOY. And even
more impressive since they do not use pennies here. DOUBLE JOY.
I am starting to find my favorite places here in Cape Town. We live
in Observatory, which is just an area in Cape Town known for its young people
and hip places. I am a frequenter now at the local bookstore and the few cafes
that surround it. I love doing homework there and people watching. I can learn
a lot from just looking at my surroundings.
We finally had family dinner last night! I got to do the opening
prayer and I also included a haiku that I made up right before. Hehe. It was
breakfast for dinner for this clan! Afterwards we did our highs and lows of our
time thus far, as we all laid on the side of the house underneath the stars. It
was a really special moment for all of us I think.
Almost done, I promise. This experience has been so transforming for me and has taught me so many things so
I am just going to ramble off for a minute on some of those things. First, the
lifestyle here is so different. It is not about go go go…it is about being in
the moment and I think that is extremely important. Every moment here to me is
a gift and I try to find joy in all things because I know it is there. Even
when I am walking to the store, or sitting in the grass, or hanging up my
clothes to dry, I seem to keep finding JOY. By being in the moment, I am able to
appreciate the smaller things even more. And you know how much I love the small
things. And another thing…my heart always feels so full here. Full with wonder,
curiosity, and mostly God. You know that feeling you get when you are on a “God
high?” Well, I am in a permanent state of that feeling right now. My heart is
about to burst with how close I feel to God when I am here. I feel so alive
here! I feel like I am learning more about myself. I am enjoying time alone
more than I ever have before. I have no problem being by myself like I did
before. I use it as a time for reflection and peace. I also am getting a better
hold on the values that are instilled in me that I want to keep. I am
understanding the importance of finding the good in everyone. I am learning to
not judge others. I am learning that some things I do are not what everyone else
is going to do, but that is okay because I am being myself. I am learning to
love myself. I am learning to not be hard on myself. I am learning how much I
enjoy learning new things. I am learning how to not be afraid. I am embracing
being unsure. I am embracing spontaneity. I am learning to love life on a whole
new level. I am saying “yes.” I am looking for God in all things. I am a sister
and a daughter and a friend. I am scared. I am hopeful. I am a daughter of
Christ. I am happy. I am me.
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