Settling In and Getting Acquainted with South Africa

It seems that settling into a new country, and looking forward to the year ahead, brings with it so many new experiences all at once that sometimes I’m at a loss for what to share. Just like when you return home from somewhere, and people ask “How was it?”, people I meet and interact with here in South Africa are curious about my response to a similar question…”So how is it? How do you find South Africa so far?”

It’s an interesting question, because an answer can be so simple or so very loaded. How do I find South Africa so far? Beautiful. Complex. Welcoming. Convicting. Hopeful. Full of disparity. A widening gap between rich and poor. A church that is alive and concerned for the world, and attempting to figure out what that means here and now.

Let me catch you up a bit.

From the time we landed in Johannesburg, we had three days there, before heading to Pietermaritzburg for the rest of our orientation. We met up with the young adults group from the area, who would be our host homes for the week. Little did we know how very much these people would affect our first full week in South Africa, and what those friendships and connections will mean for the rest of the year. Our groups meshed well—the 8 Americans, landing in a foreign culture for a whole year, and the 8-12 young adults who said “yes” to hosting us and spending time with us. It didn’t take long for our two groups to realize there was a mutual respect there that allowed us to jump into cross-cultural, religious, political, societal conversations—and have lots of fun doing it. What a blessing!

During our week in Pietermaritzburg, our eyes and ears were opened to a number of different things to keep in mind as we enter into this year. We met with some great people, as they helped us to think critically and compassionately about this place. We were able to get out and have some group building time, just to explore the area and really talk with one another. We were invited to attend an engagement celebration with Zulu families, and are already invited to the wedding!

On Monday, the 8th, the eight of us went our different directions. There is no way one can be completely “orientated” for an experience like this, but it was time.

I rode on a Greyhound bus for about 8 hours, and was greeted by my host at the bus station in Pretoria. I have settled in with my family here, and feel quite at home with my host mom & dad, two sisters near my age, and the little guy—a 14-month old boy who keeps us all on our toes. J

This past week, I’ve been able to catch up on writing, reflection and reading, so that has been good. And this weekend, I had the opportunity to attend the ELCSA Central Diocese Young Adult Conference in Soweto. What a great way to jump in and really learn about what the young adults in this church are up to—what they’re thinking about, what their concerns are, what they’re excited about. I found their topics to be ones that we are needing to address in the ELCA as well, and ones that we are working on. I look forward to the entire ELCSA Young Adult Conference in early October.

It seems I am settling in well. I thank you all for your continuing prayers and emails.
Peace from South Africa,
Amy

Tears & Anticipation... The Journey Begins...

OK, so I've never done this blog thing before, so bear with me on the technical stuff. Hopefully, I'll be an old pro at it in no time!

Thanks for checking in! I'm guessing that some of you have been wondering where I've been and why I haven't gotten to posting yet. Well, here goes...off on the journey and as reflective as ever...

It’s interesting, don’t you think, how many emotions can be expressed through tears? I thought of this as I departed Fargo on Sunday, August 17th, for my week of training in Chicago before heading to South Africa for the year. The past few weeks, for me, have been filled with a variety of tears. Tears can express deep sorrow as in the death of a loved one, or deep pain or deep hurt. But most recently, it’s been a variety of other emotions.

This experience…this transition for me has been bittersweet. The people of Olivet, the faith community I am a part of, the family I’ve found in Fargo/Moorhead over the past 10 years have shown me a kind of love I haven’t experienced in my life before. My tears have been both tears of sadness in parting from these people, these relationships that I hold so dear, and at the same time, it seems, these tears are tears of joy, of anticipation, of excitement for what God has in store for me in the coming year.

As you hug a friend or family member, and you become overwhelmed with emotion…what is that emotion? Sometimes, we cry out of laughter, and sometimes out of fear. As I hugged people goodbye, there was a sense of “I’ll be seeing you.” Or …”until our paths meet again.” We are shaped and formed by the experiences we have and the people we meet along the way. Whether that’s for the moment that our paths cross, or for a long period of time that we get to walk together. I appreciate these relationships, no matter what the length, (or periods of separation) and cherish them for what they are.

How about you? What have your tears said lately? Who are those people in your life who cause emotion like this, and how do they affect you? At the same time, how might you affect them? Today in our morning devotion time, we talked about how God calls us into community, and we must intentionally focus on relationship and trust in order for healthy community to thrive.

As I look forward to the coming year, I wonder about the people I”ll meet. In my experiences around the world so far, my relationships with new and different people have most always been full of rich and beautiful conversations in which we learn from one another. So for now, whether we meet people around the world or around the block, seek out those conversations…those opportunities to ‘show up’ when it really matters.

Peace…from Chicago,
Amy