Rina's final blogs combined

Time to Leave

Now that I'm actually at the airport/ on the plane, I feel like I'm ready to go home.  My last day in CT was beautiful.  I woke up on a cloudy Saturday at Lion House, and Amariliz and I went, one last time, to the Old Biscuit Mill in Woodstock (an event only open on Saturdays for food-lovers and hipsters alike.)  They have everything there, from crepes and waffles, gyros and ostrich burgers, to pizza and pesto.  As we left, the sun came out and we took a minibus back to Observatory.  We shopped around on Lower Main Road, and spent the last of our Rand at Instangu Boutique.  We said our goodbyes to everyone we could, and packed our bags and ourselves into the cab.  I couldn't stop feeling like I'd forgotten something.  I kept thinking about all the things I didn't get to do, what I wished I had done, differently maybe or maybe not, and then a crazy, fast-forwarded reflection of the entire trip, or certain moments in time that stood out.  I loved thinking back to all the valuable interpersonal experiences I went through during my time here.  Once at the airport, I think about what's to come when I get home, and this summer.  How much I missed my family all of a sudden.  How I feel happy, even though I am leaving.  As much as I don't want to leave, the trip has to end at some point, unfortunately!  I know I will be back to ZA someday, hopefully soon.  I feel blessed to have been able to experience everything I did, and so very grateful.  No waterworks, no bawling my eyes out, just this feeling of peacefulness that is comforting me as I say goodbye to my Cape Town.  

Life back in the States

Being home isn't as terrible as I had imagined it being.  It's good to be home, and see my family and friends again.  But I miss Cape Town whenever I find myself looking for something to do around here (central Connecticut). 

It's weird when they ask me to talk about my trip... I ask them what aspect they'd like to hear about.  Just the "good stuff."  (All of it was the good stuff.)   Or they say; anything.  Too vague, I don't know where to start!  I love talking about my trip and the things I did, what life is like there, and all that I learned.   I could talk about it for days, but sometimes I find myself wishing I didn't talk about it at all.  I can't fully explain experiences, people or places to them, because they've never been there, so they will never be able to fully comprehend... skewing the story.  I feel like my pictures aren't good enough to illustrate what I'm trying to explain.  (Wish I took more pictures!) It's weird when people don't realize how much a semester abroad can affect you, because they have never spent a semester studying/volunteering in a different country (My entire family, and the majority of my friends).  It's worse realizing most people don't really want to hear what you experienced abroad, asking about the trip just to ask.  I'm much more aware of my surroundings, the differences, the things I've taken for granted I can really appreciate, and I try my best to keep the Capetonian in me alive.  

Being a Capetonian means 

-Looking and being smart-casual.  

-Slowing down to enjoy the simple and sometimes monotonous things/tasks of our day-to-day

-Acknowledging that we are all brothers and sisters, and helping one another

-Sincerely asking another person 'How are you?' or "Howzit?" as they say in CT

-Being unique

-Spreading love/warmth

-Hugs and Kisses!! 

-No worries

-Faith, hope, determination, motivation, perseverance

-Forward struggle

-Ubuntu (I am what I am because of who we all are) 

Brandi's reflections on what she learned

Brandi in Ocean View

To be completely honest, this semester changed my life. The race & gender course seriously opened my eyes to a whole new realm of not just thinking but new information I never even knew existed. Before this trip I kind of just accepted everything that was told me to. Now I have learned to not believe everything someone tells me and to always research things before I trust completely. I have learned to question assumptions but to not loose myself in the process and I have learned how easily people can jump on bandwagon of any kind.

My life choices…that’s so strange to think about because it seems so far away but in reality that’s so close! Well, my life choices have definitely been altered because of this trip. I think differently now. I feel more socially aware about issues like racism and sexism. Before this trip if someone made a racist joke I probably would have laughed and thought it was funny. But by being in your class and seeing first hand how racism affects people, I feel like I can stand up against it and tell people how seriously wrong it is. I have learned how even if something isn’t offensive to you, it could be to someone else. I have really learned a new perspective on people that I definitely know will affect whom I hang out with and what I do today, tomorrow and for the rest of my life. I think the biggest thing is that I have learned to open my eyes. Before I came on the trip I knew I didn’t have a lot figured out but I thought I knew a good amount about a lot of things. But boy did that change, especially by being in your class. I feel like I was so ignorant before I came on this trip but I am not angry at myself because of it but I now realize how important it is to stay informed. I have never been much for watching the news or keeping up with social issues but now I think it is so important to stay informed. Seriously, I know that I will stay informed when I go home and that will help me so much later on in life.

About my future career; being here in South Africa just emphasized exactly what I want to do with my life. Working at Christel House with the grade three children who come from nothing but work so hard just to live makes me even more passionate about working at The Hole In The Wall Gang Camp when I am older. I know that I want to travel and see the world and maybe even start a camp here in South Africa. I just want to help people and by experiencing all that I have here it has made me realize how possible it actually is to do that.

            

I have learned so much about race and gender that will definitely help me become a more informed global citizen. I now realize how important it is to talk about issues like race and gender because it is when we ignore issues that nothing gets solved and the cycle continues. We watched a video in class about how in the United States when people drive through places like Harlem we lock out doors and windows. It gives into the negative stereotype that all black people are bad. That is not okay. By watching videos provided us, and reading articles and discussing issues like this, I realize how prevelant these negative stereotypes are in our culture at home. I see how even before I came I even did some of those things we discussed because subconsciously I accepted many of the messages that are so prevalent in our culture. Now I want to break those stereotypes and I feel like I have the power (from our experiences here and the knowledge I have gained) to stand up to close friends and call them out on a racist remark or sexist comment. The talks we had about how women are portrayed in media and so many different areas blew my mind as well. I never realized how sexualized and degraded women are just in simple magaizines in the US and even on billboards here. I learned that by women calling each other ‘sluts’ and ‘bitches’ it only makes it okay for men to call us that too. Its disgusting when I think how often those terms are used on a daily basis at UConn, whether it’s a man calling a woman those things or even women calling each other that.

            

I feel like I have learned so much about so many issues that are right under my nose at home that I never would have known or realized by coming here. I think by opening my eyes to so many issues like race and gender I see how many more issues need to be addressed. I think everything I have learned makes me a more informed global citizen because even though I don’t know everything about the topics we covered in class I still know so much more then I did. And by even acknowledging that such things exist is the first step in making a change. I feel like I can make other people more aware to and assist them in becoming more aware.

Now here comes the big part- what I learned about myself. I know I have talked about this before but I think the biggest thing I learned was how to love myself. I learned that I really truly love myself and this is the first time in my life I can honestly say that. I wish I could say how it happened but I really can't pinpoint it on one specific event. I think it started at camp this past summer when I learned that there is more to life then surface level fake ideas that people so dearly cling onto because they don’t want to open their eyes and heart to things other then themselves. From working at camp with such incredible people and children I learned that it is possible to love every second of every day. From camp to coming on this trip, I feel like I have grown so much as a person. Not only am I more self aware, but also I am more aware about things happening right in front of me. I am more perceptive to sexist and racist remarks and I now see how there is so much more to a person then what you think you already know.

            

Like I said before though, the biggest thing I think I learned about myself is that I am okay. I know I am not perfect (definitely not perfect) but I am comfortable with myself. I think by learning to accept myself I have learned to accept other people even more and that is so important. I also have learned how important emotions truly are. Openly crying during some class discussion made me realize how important emotions and feelings really are. Its also important to me that I realized I am not alone on so many different things. Even though all of us may have wanted to scream at each other more often then once on this trip, I have learned patience and realized that someone may be going through a hard time at the moment. I think it is so important that I experienced everything I did here. I think coming into this trip with no expectations really made me see how important it is to stay open minded. 

Brandi confronting tough questions

What happens if all you ever have known has been questioned and you feel like there is no real answer to anything anymore? What if you always want to be positive and see the good in everything but sometimes it just becomes too much? Does that make you weak? Does it make you different because sometimes you can’t be happy constantly? If the weight of everything just becomes so real and you realize the world isn’t always a happy place- should you cry? Should you show your weakness or do you keep your head held high because that is all you have ever known? Do you push these feelings away because you know you can escape to your little home in a ‘good’ part of town- or do you realize that maybe nothing has ever been as it seems but you have just been to blinded by ignorance and ‘everything is perfect’ to see it? Do you question everything, or do you let some things be? Do you stand up for your opinion or do you let others have their right to think what they want to think? Even if you know something is right, do you let it be known even if it’s not right in their eyes?

When you see people in need, do you drop everything for them or do you take care of yourself first? Is comfort something real or is something made up that we feel internally at different levels? Does being uncomfortable really make us grow or does it limit us in that moment to looking at things based on our comfort? Where do we stop? When do we stop believing everything we hear and question assumptions? Do we question assumptions so much that the original point gets lost? Or do we let things be based on our own judgments?

This afternoon I took a bus to Nyanga to help out with the Africa Unite after-school program. I think I learned more about the world from today then I have any other day since being here. I hung out with the kids and played games with them outside. I spoke with two different nineteen-year-old guys who basically run this program for 60-100 kids on a daily basis. It just, it just shocked me about how much I don’t know about life in general. Hanging out with these kids, some with special needs, some without, just makes me realize how precious it all is. From this trip we are always told to question assumptions. And I get that. And it’s important. But what happens if we start questioning so much that we start to loose the importance of what was originally asked? What if we become so wrapped up in the ending that we loose the process and what got us to where we are? I am scared to come home and get wrapped up back into the fast pace of life. I am scared to loose the feeling of the importance of the small things, like realizing that other people are going through just as much as me and maybe just maybe I need to take a step back. I am scared to get back into the life of ‘everything is great- lets just get through the next week” because seriously- that’s a week you will never get back.

Dan: what did you just say?

…What did you just say?

“Wipe your mouth with that diaper!” “The power is out, go get the torch!” “It’s on the right just after the robot.” “I need to put plaster on my arm before I can go anywhere.”

Do you have any idea what all of that means, or maybe the idea you have doesn’t make any sense? Welcome to a day in the life. South Africa has eleven official languages, but I’ve been lucky enough that everyone I’ve encountered speaks English. The thing is, a lot of words and phrases that we use in the States are completely different than how they say it here in South Africa. The first few lines are perfect examples. At face value, you’re probably thinking of someone wiping their face with a baby’s diaper, instead of a napkin which is what it really says; someone carrying a medieval flaming torch instead of a flash light; a big shiny robot in the street rather than a traffic light; or someone putting the stuff you fix walls with onto their arm rather than a bandaid.

It’s entertaining discovering all the different ways of saying things. A month or so ago I had the most ridiculous conversation in a store trying to explain to the clerk what a clothes pin was (called a peg here). I don’t think I’ll ever get used to telling a sixth grader to let his friend borrow his rubber (eraser); and if your mind wasn’t already in the gutter, imagine what a “humped zebra” is (a raised crosswalk). My favorite fruit is cantaloupe, but it doesn’t exist here. Instead, it’s sweet melon, or if you want to be even more literal, sweet orange melon. There is a difference between a taxi and a cab, and confusing the two in conversation will thoroughly confuse a local. Food doesn’t go bad, it goes off. If you need someone’s attention you can say “excuse me” all you want, but they won’t acknowledge you until you say “sorry.” Though “sneakers” is used, the term “tekkies” is more common. Things don’t get crazy, they get hectic.

Aside from simple word differences, there are sayings that are completely different and often times just as confusing. Instead of saying “really” they say “is it,” instead of saying “what’s up” they say “howzit,” instead of saying “that’s too bad” they say “shame.” To say you’re coming “just now” means you’ll be coming soon, but to say you’re leaving “now now” means you’re leaving that instant. I’m not sure if the word “rent” exists here, instead all the signs say “to let,” whatever that means…

Out of all of the different sayings and words here, my favorites are the words for thank you, “cheers,” and you’re welcome, “pleasure.” They’re just happier words; at least for me it’s hard to say “cheers” without smiling. I'll definitely be bringing some of these latter phrases back to the States with me. I'm sure I will receive the same funny looks I gave to people as I tried to figure out what in the world they were talking about. 

Kimmi listening to both sides

After watching the Kony 2012 film, talking to others and reading articles all regarding the topic it took me a while to gather my thoughts about Kony 2012. When I first watched the 30-minute film I posted it on my wall right away and was so excited about it. I wanted to do it right away and wanted to spread the word about it as fast as I could. The first thing I did was look at one of my cousin’s wall to see what she thought since I knew she was very big into human rights and topics like these. She had posted a letter that was against the issue. I was shocked! That’s when I decided to look more into the topic. I read the letter then read some other articles regarding the issue. I first could not believe how easily I got sucked into this. This film was good because it did educate and inform me about an issue that I think is very important and should be known worldwide. What I didn’t understand was if this had been going on for 26 years then why am I just learning about it now? Why now are they deciding to talk about it and make it known? I had so many unanswered questions. This organization, Invisible Children, their overall idea and concept is a good one. It is very important to spread the word and educate others. I just don’t think they are doing it in the right manner. I think it is important that everyone knows what is going on but in a way this organization is brain washing us. This film was seen by so many and was spread like wild fire so quickly, everyone was talking about it. At first when people started to debate about it I didn’t understand either like why are we debating? Everyone is just trying to do something right and trying to stop this awful man. Now I see that this film was a good film to see but we are making Africans look helpless. I think that sometimes the U.S tends to step in and try to be the hero. This film shows Africans as helpless and now that the troops are in Uganda they think that will solve this problem. I just don’t understand how it will? First of all why are they in Uganda? I read an article about Uganda being at peace now for about five years and Kony isn’t even in Uganda anymore. So why is the US there if Kony is not? I know that Uganda has a lot of oil there so you cannot help but wonder if that is why we are there all along. Are we there to look like we are there for a good cause and being heroic but in reality we are there for the oil? Why are we invading a peaceful place? What I also don’t understand is what do they plan to do once they have Kony. It will be very good once we catch him but then what? Kony is a smart man and he has been brain washing all of these kids. Who knows what these kids are thinking and if they are doing all of these crimes then maybe Kony brainwashed them to be like him and think like him. If he did then there are so many little Konys running around so if we get one (the leader) there is no guarantee that the LRA will end just because the leader is gone. I also do not understand why Kony 2012? Why did they set a deadline? What happens when 2012 passes and we still have not caught Kony? Then do we just give up and say well at least we tried and gave it our best? Do they really expect us to catch him within these 9 months? Invisible Children gets me mad. I did not realize it but apparently all the money that they want you to donate to this cause well most of it is going to the organization. Most of the money is to keep Invisible Children running and only a small portion of it actually going to those watch towers and everything else they described in the film. What is Invisible Children to begin with? As far as I’m concerned they go around to different colleges and give talks and educate many about topics such as Kony 2012. But then as I was talking to a friend he pointed out that there are four types of people. There are people who know and do something, people who do not know but would do something, people who do not know and would not do anything, and people who know but do nothing. Basically Invisible Children their target audience would be people who do not know but would do something about it. This percentage of people is very small though unfortunately and the majority of people know but do not do anything about it. Those people who do know and do things about it though if you think about it they would have already known about these issues whether there was Invisible Children or not. So once again I believe that the idea of IC educating others and getting the word out is a good idea and it is important. I just do not see what exactly it is doing for the majority of people. I am so glad that I am here because I live in a house with 17 people. So a lot of us do not agree on certain things and Kony 2012 is one of those issues. It is nice to listen to conversations and hear both sides of the story. Through this issue and everything I am experiencing and learning about here in Cape Town I have realized that I want to be up to date with current events and these types of issues. I also cant believe how oblivious I have been in the past. This has been going on for 26 years and I am just learning about it. I knew that I was pretty bad and hardly watched the news and hated listening to NPR. But I thought that a big issue like this I would have known. I am glad that I am now aware of it and other issues going on in the world today. I have realized how important it is to be aware of things. I also see that to every story there are two sides to it. When first reading about this and watching this I thought how could there be two sides to such a wonderful cause. But now after a few weeks of discussing I have seen the other side and tend to lean towards it more and more. I have realized that it is not always as it seems. We need to always question everything that we are presented with. We cannot just assume that everything the news or media is saying to us is correct just because they are the “experts.” We need to be aware of who is telling us what and that maybe there is another side to this issue. In this film I thought all of the money was going to the watchtowers and kids but now I see that most of it is going to Invisible Children itself. This is just like people. Another valuable lesson I have learned here. That you cannot judge people just by the way they look or even what they do. You have no idea what some people are going through and it is best to assume good intent for the most part. Most people mean well but may come off a certain way because they are going through something hard. It is not fair to judge people or think a certain way about them just because they do something. So in the end I believe that we should get the word out about Kony but do not portray these Africans as helpless. We need to keep in mind that we are the ones coming and “helping” them even though they didn’t ask for it. I think its time that someone asks what they think about the whole film.

Erica on reaching for goals

Erica making it to the top

During my time here in Cape Town, I have been avoiding an activity that many people here on the trip enjoy. This activity is hiking! Every time I heard people from the group organizing hikes I would tell them to count me out, but this past weekend was different.

There is a tradition here in Cape Town that many tourist take part in which is to hike Lion’s Head every full moon.  As a group we left the house at about 5 p.m. in hopes of beating rush hour. As we approached the bottom of Lion’s Head, I noticed that there was going to be many people hiking as well.  I stayed with a small group, which consisted of Kimmie, Kelsey, and I.  I truly appreciated hiking with them because they were very encouraging and supportive.  There were many times I wanted to give up and wait for everyone at the bottom of the hill, but they continually pushed me to keep going. That push was definitely worth it because what I witnessed on top of that mountain I shall never forget.

What made this day even better is that it was Ryan’s birthday. As soon as the sunset, we went to the opposite side of Lion’s Head to watch the moon rise. As we sat there the group began to sing happy birthday to Ryan and everyone else on top of the mountain joined in.

As I take time to look back at the hike, I find it symbolic to my life.  There are many times in life and I am sure for others that we want to give up or doubt certain goals we want to accomplish. In the end it is worth continuing, because goals can become life changing and a significant part of life.

Viewing the sunset from Lion's Head

Mackenzie on the importance of questioning

Last week I had a nice break from my internship- due to a worker’s strike, school at Christel House was cancelled for the day, so myself and fellow Christel House internees were left to do as we pleased. In the afternoon I headed over to the flat, as I rarely get to do so. We gathered around a computer screen as facebook blew up with notifications about Kony 2012. We were overwhelmed – and instantly downloaded and watched the video. The video won us over, we were inspired and amazed. It urged us to make Joseph Kony’s name known to everyone – to let our leaders know we wanted a military presence in Uganda to end this supposed tragedy. I, personally, was completely inspired by the video and wanted to learn more and do everything I could to help these people. I immediately sent it to my parents; two adults who I thought could do something. Soon after, however, Kony 2012 began to be seriously questioned. All over media sites like reddit and facebook people were sharing their opinions about Kony 2012. At first I wanted to defend this movement and myself. I wanted to believe it was innocent, and that their goals were innocent. This soon faded and curiosity took over. I wanted to know more about the truth of Kony 2012. Now, after speaking to many of my housemates and doing some research, I find that this project is not so innocent. I am frightened of how quickly I came to support the decision to move troops into a foreign country. This whole situation seemed familiar, and suddenly connections were being made. After 9/11, we took one day as a country to decide we were going to war. We wanted to believe we were doing it for the right reasons. To get revenge, to ensure justice was seen. Now a decade has passed and we see we moved far too quickly. We did not question. We did not take our time. We acted. We listened, assumed, and made decisions that have cost many their lives.

I think the most important thing I have learned thus far in Cape Town has been to question things critically. My friends here have showed me how important it is to pay attention to where your information is coming from. Never have I been so shocked and frightened to how manipulated we have been as people of America. Our intentions are good, but we have lost the ability to think for ourselves. It is easy to see – of course we would love to have beliefs. We would love to trust the leaders of our country, our moms and dads. But we put so much in danger by not questioning. If I had not been curious enough or open enough to listen to my peers here in Cape Town I would not have realized the truth of Kony 2012. Even if it is NOT the truth (as there is not concrete truth) it is extremely important for me to consider both sides. To never accept one argument without at least looking critically at the other.  I do not blame any one, I think we all would like to believe people have good intentions. But I need to notice these things. It is unfortunate to think that our government does not act in the interest of the people, but it is what is proving to be true. I feel as though I can see this situation in Cape Town. It would not be a surprise to me if the apartheid came about due to similar circumstances. People receiving information about blacks or coloreds and trusting instead of questioning. We can trace this through out time, in slavery in the U.S. We believed the thoughts that whites were above African Americans. Perhaps if a large group of people had questioned this thought, it could have been reversed.

On a smaller scale, we encounter the importance of critical questioning in our own lives- on a personal level. We let our egos take over – whether they be fear or self doubt or negativity. We believe this part of ourselves, and it dictates what we say and do. We do not spend enough time observing. When we sit with ourselves, we can see where the dysfunction arises. We can trace where our negative thoughts and tendencies come from – and there for chose whether to believe them or not. I think if we did this on a smaller scale in our selves, things like the manipulation of the American people would not happen on the bigger scale. We are often sleep walking through life. We are not awake, and often we are not paying attention to why we feel and act the way we do. It starts with self-observation. When you truly know and understand yourself, you can respond to life – rather than react. If we can do this in our world, we can put off acting out of impulse. The consequences of our actions will be included in our plans.

The human species is not a perfect one – good and bad exists within all of us. But we must take the responsibility to observe these parts of ourselves, and understand ourselves. We are all responsible for our own inner environment, and when we critically question and understand it – we will create a better environment in this world.

Meika on attending a City Council meeting

Last week, the other Black Sash interns and I attended a City Council meeting.  It was held at the Council Chamber in the Civic Centre, which is an enormous government building downtown.  We sat on balconies reserved for the public that looked down into the chamber.  The chamber had a few people, including the Speaker and the City Manager, in the front of the room.  The rest were sitting in aisles facing forward.  It looked like what you’d see any day on C-SPAN.  However, I was surprised to see how clearly the political divisions were drawn along racial lines.  The ANC council members were sitting on the left, and they were all black except for one white man.  The DA council members were on the right, and entirely white or coloured.  I learned that the Democratic Alliance won an absolute majority in Cape Town last year.  The first person to speak was the mayor of Cape Town, Patricia de Lille.  She is also a member of the DA, and an elegant, older woman.  I was impressed with her composure, especially during the questioning period after her speech. 

At one point, a member of the ANC called Cape Town a racist city, and the most racially divided city in South Africa.  He said that Nelson Mandela would be ashamed to see how the DA was running the city.  Needless to say, this caused an uproar throughout the Council.  A DA Councilor responded by telling them they should be ashamed to use Mandela’s name to further their own agenda.  Mayor de Lille told the ANC that they spoke too much of race instead of dealing with the issues of the city, and that was why they did not have the majority.  An ANC Councilor retorted to this that Nelson Mandela would always be one of their own, and it was only because of him that de Lille could even be mayor.  The arguments continued like this back and forth between the parties.  During this part of the meeting, everyone was alert and on the edge of the seat.  Some people in the balcony even threw their two cents in, either cheering or booing the different Councilors.  There was also a man from the Freedom Front Plus, an Afrikaner Nationalist party, who only spoke in Afrikaans.  I thought this was interesting, as it seemed everyone else, including the ANC Councilors whose first language is Xhosa, made an effort to speak in English.  There was no translation, and I wonder if the ANC Councilors had any idea of what he was saying.  It seemed pretty inconsiderate. The passion of both sides was tangible in the room.  I saw quite distinctly how much racial tensions and the legacy of apartheid and were still a part of South African government. 

Dan: those who have the least share the most

Those Who Have the Least Share the Most.

I love being able to share different experiences that leave an impression on me. This post stems from something I do every morning when I get to school: I try and talk to each student in both my classes, asking them how their weekend or previous night was. Most give the typical “good” response, some divulge a bit more, but the student who I have been tutoring (and writing about!) almost always says “bad.” This obviously got my attention. I wanted his response to be “good,” so one day a couple weeks ago I asked him if he’d like to get together over the weekend and do something fun. He was excited about it, so that Sunday I went and visited him at the orphanage where he stays. From there, we started walking into the city because, per his request, we were going to spend our afternoon “just walking.” On our way there we started a dialogue that would be brought up throughout the next few hours we spent together.

Just outside the city limits, we walked past a congregation of maybe 10 homeless people sleeping in a shaded patch of grass. As we passed he pointed them out and said it made him feel “shame” and “sad.” I asked why and he went on to explain that it was because they have no food or homes or money or anything. He’s spent some time on the streets as well, so I wasn’t too surprised at his empathy. Later, towards the end of our walk we got talking about life. I asked him what his dream job was when he grew up and I couldn’t believe what he told me. I expected him to reply with his usual talk of being a basketball player in the United States or winning the lottery, but he gave me an answer that you’d be hard pressed to find another sixteen year old kid say. He told me that he wants to help the homeless people. He wants to give them food and shelter and jobs. Now THAT I did not see coming. But wait, there’s more. On our way out of the city there is a really good bakery that I had been bugging him about going to all day. All I wanted to do was buy him a delicious, ridiculously decorated baked good. As we were walking by the street it is on I decided to give it one last try. Finally, rather than saying that he wasn’t hungry he agreed to let me buy some cake! Except he didn’t want the cake. Rather, he told me to buy the cake and give it to the homeless people we were about to walk by once again on our way home.

You can’t make this stuff up. Here is a refugee orphan who has to wash cars at the touristy waterfront to make money so he can buy his clothes or anything else that he might need refusing to be selfish; here is a sixteen year old kid in the sixth grade who gets made fun of because he can barely read caring for complete strangers. He has every right to feel sorry for himself, and often times he does. He has every right to be mad at the world for the situation that he is in, but instead he wants to give back. It inspired me.

I didn’t buy that cake. I’m not sure why; looking back on it I wish I had. It would have been a powerful thing for a kid whose total possessions could probably fit in a backpack to give a delicious, ridiculously decorated cake to those who don’t even have a backpack. I hope by the end of this trip I have another chance at something like this.