A couple of days ago February ended and it seemed as if March had snuck up on me. To most people, this simple passing of the month does not mean much, but to me it meant a lot.
- I have managed to survive on another continent without my family.
- March 1st means I have exactly two months left before I land back in the United States.
- I am able to cook, and keep myself alive for an entire month and a half. (haha that one was supposed to be funny)
If anyone reading this is with me on this trip, I’m sorry because you’ve heard what I’m about to blog about in person about one thousand times, but here I go anyway. So in relation to that list up there, I am incredibly close to my family. My parents, sisters, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. have always played important roles in my life. They all mean so much to me and this is the longest I’ve ever been away from them, especially my parents. The hardest thing is that communication is a lot more difficult here than at home. When I’m at UCONN I can just pick up my cell phone and call or text my family anytime I want. Here it costs a good amount of money, and the time difference can make communication hard. Also sometimes the internet isn’t the best here, so skype calls may not work.
Ok so old me would have looked at all these problems and probably reconsidered coming to South Africa; new me realizes that while I am super close with my family, sometimes a little discomfort and sadness can be worth an amazing experience, which Cape Town is. All of these thoughts popped back into my head after staying for three nights in a family’s home in Ocean View all weekend. The family I stayed with took me in with so much love and kindness that I found my heart aching for the family I have back home.
Even though I got a little homesick again, I learned a few really valuable lessons from the people I stayed with. The one that still sticks out most in my mind is that no matter how much or how little you have, you should always share whatever you can. You don’t need to have a mansion and a yacht to welcome people into your home and make them feel as if they have a second family. The people I stayed with worked as much, and hard as they could because they pay every month to send their two amazing children to school. This does not leave them with much extra, but what extra they do have they use to help and welcome others into their lives.
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| Nicole, Kelsey, Becky, Kimmi, Brandi, Rebecca, Rina, Kristin, & Maria with Chantel Daniels and host families from Ocean View |
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