One of the most inspiring and heart warming things about this journey has been getting to know the most wonderful group of 21 that UConn has to offer. Of course, we have our moments, where pettiness and frustration over dishes and other housekeeping matters makes us want to pull our hair, but overall we are so lucky to have each other as a support system here in Cape Town.
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| Meika, Theresa, Alex, Nellie, Maria, Brandi, Kristin, Nicole, Sam |
This non-homogenous group of people, with interests from indie music to Justin Bieber from gymnastics to politics from meat based to vegan diets, has the common thread of all having good intentions and loving spirits. Another thing we all have in common is that we all came here to grow or change in someway, and for some of us to expand our comfort zones. My own growth has been frustrating, at times overwhelming, but rewarding and worthwhile. Participating and watching the growth of my co-educators has been my favorite part of being in Cape Town though.
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| Theresa, Brandi, Kristin |
I was lucky to take a Women’s Studies’ class my first year at UConn with a wonderful professor and I’ve been surrounded by some pretty cool people at UConn who have talked to me about race, gender, class, sexuality, etc so some of the things we are learning in class here has been slightly redundant and things I’ve already “learnt” but being able to talk these issues over with my co-educators has been a rewarding and a growing experience for me. Being able to grapple with some of the world’s largest problems, and having people who are just as interested in trying to think about them and then hopefully solve them one day in the future has been wonderful.
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| Nellie, Meika, Alex, Theresa |
What I love most about my co-educators though, is the love they are so willing to share with everyone they encounter. From celebrating Ryan’s birthday on top of Table Mountain to organizing to go to Ocean View to tutor to planning an adventure to go bungee jump together to sharing the fear and sorrow that comes when thinking about leaving to running in a half marathon and being their to warm their cold, wet bodies at the end to organizing to go to a football (soccer) game to inviting lots of young teenagers into our home to meeting Capetonians and foreign nationals out and about to truly loving and caring about the people we are all working with. I hope my co-educators know that even when they have left, and our beds on Loch Road no longer are warmed by our bodies, just like we will always carry Cape Town in our hearts, the love that we have spread here will always remain. Leaving, growing, changing are all inevitable parts of life, but if we go throughout our days with the best intentions, spreading our love, and good energy at least we will know that our presence for that moment in time was worthwhile and we cannot ask for anything more.
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| Alex, Theresa, Nellie, Brittany, Becky, Meika, Rebecca |
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