On my way...

So, I went to Walgreens today to get my Visa pictures. The first one turned out perfectly nice, but the lady just remembered that you cannot wear glasses in some Visa photos. The second picture wasn't a taker because I smiled. Apparently that's not allowed either...I mean who wants a happy traveler? The next picture my bangs were hanging just over my eyebrows. Well, those consulate people need to see both eyebrows...they may reject it if you have only one! Finally, I took a squinty, unsmiling picture with my hair shoved to the side...success! "Please come back in 45 minutes to pick up your photos". Sheesh. I left.

This is a little taste of what's I'm going to experience in South Africa. Seemingly simple endeavors will take ages and what seems like straightforward procedures will be fraught with rules that leave you scratching your head!

It's only 7 weeks left until I head to Modjadjiskloof, South Africa and I have so much to get done before then. Finish my Visa application, continue to raise support, start planning for the school year...not to mention prepare for Christmas, say goodbye to friends and family and finish work.

For those of you who aren't familiar with why or how I'm heading across the world, let me give you a little recap. (I hope to make this interesting so please, if you were thinking of navigating to Facebook, Etsy, CNN...give me a shot!)


Sometime in late 2007 I got a call from my dad saying "I have a bunch of frequent flyer miles that are about to expire. Pick anywhere in the world you want to go and I'll send you." Hoorah!!!

I'd always wanted to go to South Africa and decided to contact some acquaintances there to see if I could visit them! In early 2008 I flew into the Cape Town airport. It really was a lesson in everything you shouldn't do when traveling. So, for those of you thinking of traveling to Africa, here's a few tips.

1. Check the weather. Sweaters in 90 degree weather are brutal.


2. Have someone explain the rental car before driving off. And the rules of the rode. And get a trusty map. Smoke pouring out of your engine may seem like a funny story now...not so much at the time.


3. When people don't understand your American accent, don't try to imitate a South African accent. It only makes things worse.


4. Don't trust a hotel just because the pictures on the website look nice. You may (hypothetically of course) find yourself hiding in the bathroom because an all out brawl started in the front office. In that case, don't run outside when they start shooting. Your frugal ways have you staying in a hotel surrounded by a squatter camp and a lion park. Again, hypothetical story...

All joking aside, my trip was a great one. I loved Cape Town and it's wild beauty. The people in the country were so friendly and warm. I went up north to Limpopo Province to visit my friend Sarah Haver and the school she worked at called Pfunanane. This, school, which teaches children grades R (kindergarten to me) through 7th grade is a wonderful Christian school that reaches out to the poor and orphaned children of the community with quality education. I spent a few days at the school and admired the unity of the teachers and the energy of the kids. The problems that these kids had to face were dire: hunger, AIDS, violence. Yet, they seemed so happy to be in school and with teachers who loved them!

I left the country not thinking that I would go back again. I was wrong.

Earlier this year I sensed a restlessness inside me. I kept thinking and thinking of Africa. The funny thing was, I really didn't consider going to live there. I mean, leave my friends, church, family, job, security, Chicago weather (wait...I could leave that) and home? No thank you. But...I really couldn't shake this feeling that I may go there someday.

I began to pray that if God really wanted me to go to South Africa, that he be very, very clear. Everywhere, I went I ran into South Africans. When I say everywhere here are a few samples: on a plane to Ireland, in a kitchen supply store, at work, in a college ministry event...seriously everywhere! I wrote them off as mere coincidences, I didn't want to be superstitious. But as I met with friends about the subject, talked with mentors and pastors, read scripture and finally ended up talking with Sarah in South Africa, everything pointed to one place...and I couldn't ignore it anymore.

On January 7th I hop on a plane to Johannesburg. I will be working as a teacher at Pfunanane Academy and mentoring children after school. I will, in time, be developing a program to train lay leaders in health education. I will be following God into the unknown!

Honestly, it feels that my life has taken a free fall, with very little certain. I've spend many years carefully planning and creating a comfortable life for myself. Now I'm not sure where I'll live, what my class will be like, if people will receive me in the community nor if I'll be able to build up the wonderful sense of fellowship that I have here in the States. But, holding tightly to the knowledge that my God loves me and has the best in mind, I head out. I'm on my way....