the silent sojourner speaks again

     I just realized with horror that I have not blogged for nearly a month!... which is actually half of the time that I have been in South Africa so far.  I would feel guilty about this awful lapse if I hadn't been having such a 'jol'  lately (jol:  South African informal.  An occasion of celebration and enjoyment; a good time).    

     So, to catch you up to speed on what has been happening over here in the last while, we've had Christmas Eve.  And Christmas... which hopefully you have all also enjoyed.  The festivities here have included Scrabble games, Christmas presents, Christmas carols, mincemeat pies, and even snowflake decorations (this must be Western influence, since the weather here was nice enough for a swim on Christmas Day!).  A family here has really included me in their celebrations, and I can testify to God's faithfulness in setting the solitary in families! (Psalm 68).  

     This past month I participated in a flash mob.  Around 20 of us danced at Cavendish and Greenmarket Square and handed out invitations to the church's Christmas service.  

     At the clinic, I met a wonderful family from the Congo.  The father has been unable so far to get a job here, but he doesn't want to waste his gifts.  So in the meantime, he has started an NGO and it has been running for several years now on God's grace.  Wow!  I colored pictures with his two young children while he was with the doctor, and they are truly delightful and well-behaved.

    I got my first South African sunburn!, sitting on the beach after a 6 am walk along the ocean-side.  Truly worth it!

     I hiked at Kirstenbosch, which is basically acres of gardens.  South Africa is a beautiful place!

     I updated my blog  (had to mention it, in case you hadn't noticed!).

     And, I am looking forward to the new things that the New Year will bring!  

"Behold, I am doing a new thing; not it springs forth, do you not perceive it?  I will make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.  The wild beasts will honor me, the jackals and the ostriches, for I will give water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my chosen people, the people that I formed for myself that they might declare my praise."  Isaiah 43:19-21

     

     

Prayer Items

I know I have been posting in rapid succession lately.  You either hear nothing from me, or I inundate you with posts :)  So, don't forget to read the other posts too, but I just realized that I haven't updated you with anything to pray about lately.  And I realize that prayer is so vital!  So here are some things to pray specifically about:

Prayer items:

-Thanksgiving that I have access to a pedal-bike for getting to the health center where I volunteer so I no longer need to ask for rides all the time

-Thanksgiving for opportunities to pray with homeless people who ask me for money

-Thanksgiving for the Banting craze around here.  It means that there were gluten-free pancakes at the brunch I attended on Saturday :)

-Pray for A---- who came to the clinic to get help for his depression.  He is in a rough spot, but seems educated and motivated even in his state of depression.  Pray for his family back home, and for a job and a safe place to stay.  

-Prayer for wisdom in what ministries I really get involved in and how to use my time wisely

-Prayer for good relationships and friendships

Boys to Men and Girls to Women

     I cannot remember a time in my recent past that is as book-less as now!  All I have are textbooks on my Kindle, my Bible, and "Gems from "Tozer," a little book of selected writings by A.W. Tozer that I bought at the Operation Mobilization bookstore in Hyderabad.  Thankfully, Jess said I could read some of hers, so tonight I started "Long Walk to Freedom:  The autobiography of Nelson Mandela."
     I just read the part where he speaks of the initiation rituals around manhood.  Circumcision is the main component, including rituals that symbolize purity and leaving one's childhood behind.  At the end, they receive gifts from the community members, such as property and livestock, wherewith to start their life in a new capacity.  I like how the ceremony helps them get going in life with some assets.  Mandela writes:  "I felt strong and proud that day.  I remember walking differently on that day, straighter, taller, firmer.  I was hopeful, and thinking that someday I might have wealth, property, status."
     His descriptions strike me as so different from Canadian society, where I am not entirely sure what the expectation and definition of manhood is.  I am still amazed when I see North American men in their 30s still living at home, playing video games!  
     I wonder if we have any analogous observance or 'rites of passage ' in Canada...  Not anything so communitarian and formalized.  Perhaps when a man moves out... buys his own house... gets married?   There each boy yelled out "I am a man!" after the circumcision instrument descended;  I wonder when North American boys make that transition in their minds from boy to man.  One person I talked to said that he only consciously acknowledged it when he became a father.
     On a more personal note... when did I begin to classify myself as a woman instead of as a girl?... or am I still a girl? :)  I often still feel dependent and there are so many things I don't know!  But I don't think that being a woman means being totally independent and omniscient :)  I think I realize that I am no longer a child in moments when I realize my responsibility for my own health and education and for sorting out logistical things like visas and that.  I also realize that I am no longer a girl as people entrust me with more responsibility in things that 'really matter.'
     On a side note, I find it funny that some people think I am only 19.  People have thought that for 10 years now, since I was 12!
     And finally, on a suggestive note :)  I would love people to interact with me on this, sharing their comments and observations or perhaps the moment they made the transition to being 'grown-up' in their minds.