Kaitlyn's amazing homestay weekend

Who would've thought one could feel so much love from people who have so little? This weekend, simply put, was amazing. I easily consider our homestay in Oceanview one of the best parts of my entire semester so far. Everything that everyone does is out of pure love, nothing is ever done for show. To give an idea of what this looks like, Chantel told us that sometimes bungalows burn down because of the dryness. The entire rest of the community will know within a few hours and there will be ample supplies/food delivered to the family. If a neighbor is struggling and has no food to eat, other next door neighbors will make sure those people have something to eat. The spirit of ubuntu was really present this weekend and it was wonderful to be a part of. 

Laura T and I stayed with Auntie Alice and Uncle David in their home, conveniently across the street from Sara, Kat, and Ethan. I was definitely apprehensive after our first meal there on Thursday evening, when Auntie told us to sit at the table and instead of the family coming to sit with us, they all sat in the chairs and couches in front of the TV. I was really looking forward to get to know them, but I realized this wasn’t meant to be offensive or negative; that was just their normal dinner-time routine. After dinner, we sat in the living room with them and Uncle David was openly talking to us about how minimal education; he had to pay someone in the community for sewing something of Auntie’s and was unable to understand simple times tables. He was prepared to give the lady over R300, when it was actually only R35. He commented on the fact that he went to school during apartheid and was not taught or exposed to any of the material people learned in other parts of the world during the same time and now. We then went ballroom dancing, which was much more fun than I expected it to be. The people in the community are so talented and they were so eager to share their knowledge with us. 

 

Friday morning we all started off working at different creche’s (preschools) around the community. Auntie Alice runs one out of her home, so I didn’t have to go anywhere. Sara, Kat, and Ethan came over from across the street and we played with the kids during free play, song time, coloring time, etc. They were all so fun, it made my heart happy. Auntie is such an incredible woman. She’s been running this creche for over twenty years now; she decided to open it to provide a safe space for children who would otherwise have little to eat and no supervision throughout the day. If parents cannot afford to pay her, she doesn’t turn them away. In the toughest of times, she makes sure the children eat, even if that means there is no food for her and her family. After spending time at the creche, we went to Imhoff Farm in Oceanview where we all bought lunch and looked amongst all the other shops. We walked over to meet the group of children Chantel spends much of her time with and went to Long Beach. The cloudy, rainy weather didn’t stop us from having a blast at the beach! We had sand castle building contests, a modeling competition, team name competition, and more. The kids were so content and happy with life while there, so seeing that made it all even more worth it. 

Saturday was the day where everything clicked for me. It was the moment I fell in love with South Africa in a way I hadn’t felt before. Of course, I was already so so happy and loved being here, but that was the day that made me never want to leave. I’m not really even sure why, as it was just an ordinary day like any other. Uncle David brought Laura and I down to Fish Hoek and Kalk Bay to take a nice walk and see the area. He told us he does this walk most weekends in the nice weather with Auntie Alice; they walk along the beach, down to Kalk Bay and back, and along Jager’s Walk, which is a path alongside the ocean side of Fish Hoek beach. It was comforting to know he wasn’t going completely out of his way to show us and that it was something he genuinely loves to do. We talked a lot, heard some wise words from Uncle David and listened to many of his hilarious (and long) stories, but there was also a lot of silence throughout the day. That silence almost taught me more though. It reminded me of how important it is to just enjoy moments in life and take everything in. I wasn’t behind a camera lens and never felt like words had to be spoken to break awkward silence. Just being there with Uncle David, so content and at peace, was exactly what I needed. We took the walk slow, just like he likes to do and it made me realize how I often go too fast at home in everything that I do. I need to remember to slow down and just relax more at home, even when the rest of the world around me is moving fast. When we made it to the end of Jagar’s Walk, we sat down on a bench to rest before walking back to the minibus station to go home. Uncle David turned to us and said “Thank you for your kindness and thank you for your humbleness”, followed with something along the lines of how it made him feel good. My first thought was: Why is he thanking us? We should be the ones thanking him… no one at home would ever say that. Something in that moment just amazed me and everything felt so right. That night Ethan drove myself, Laura, Kat, and Sara to see the sunset and we met Ashley and Rachele’s host family there as well. Chantel also ended up bringing Maddy, Rav, and Claire as we were leaving. I could have cried from happiness, sitting on the rocks watching the sunset. The area we were in was unreal and even though the sunset was blocked by the clouds, it summed up my day perfectly in the company of great people that I love. 

Sunday means church, but church for our family was in their home. Uncle David is a pastor and sets up church in the creche. It was a small, yet intimate crowd who attended. I had some expectations after attending that church service in Gugulethu, but I realized that every service is so unique. There was so much singing and rejoicing, such happiness and love that spread throughout the room. Uncle David had Laura and I go up to the front and introduce ourselves to everyone and at the end he had us come back up so they could bless us and say a prayer as we were leaving a few hours later. It amazes me every time to see how much of their life is revolved around loving God. It shapes every aspect of their lives. It’s crazy that they have so little and that it doesn’t even matter to them because regardless of the material items they have, their hearts are so full of love. Our host family had so much love for us as complete strangers, it was definitely bittersweet leaving to come back to Rondebosch. It was eye-opening to see how they live and such an informative experience.