Oh boy here we go...

Today was our first day in the township of Gugulethu. Guglethu is the third oldest township in South Africa, and currently there are around 340,000 people residing there. We will be doing homestays in Gugulethu for the next couple of days. I met my homestay Mama at church on Sunday morning. I absolutely LOVE her! She is a fashion designer and works as the chairperson for a women's community organization centered around agriculture. I'm really interested to hear her perspective on things. She is going to teach us more about Xhosa, how to cook traditional South Africa food (not that I can cook American food), and since all people on this continent have rhythm she is going to teach us to dance.

Today we had our first day at the community center that we will be working with during the daytime in Gugulethu. It is called the JL Zwane community center. Today consisted of lecture from some all-star lecturers, a tour of the township, and volunteering at an after school program.

The morning began with a lecture from Edwin, the community center coordinator, Dr. Rev Spiwo Xapile, who is the reverend at the church which is connected to the community center, and Kennith, who works for the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation. Like I said, all-star cast!

If you read my blog before, you might have noticed the theme of disjointed thoughts and ramblings and not connection between anything really. I also said that my head was spinning a lot and that I have a lot of thoughts but can't articulate them. Its my standard disclaimer, which is even more true today than it was before.

Edwin had a lot of really good things to say. He is a fascinating man with a really interesting perspective. He was born to a black man and a white woman who gave up all of her riches to be with the man she loved. Edwin walked around for many years with hatred toward white people, and it wasn't until his son was born ten years ago that he truly learned to let go of that hatred. He share with our group about how he was looking at the world through his father's eyes- eyes that hated white people because of the injustices in his own world. Edwin carried that anger around until he made a decision that he didn't want his son to inherit the same anger and resentment for his life.

During our three lectures today I noticed two different ideas kept resurfacing through the vocabulary choices of each speaker. The first thing I noticed was that each speaker used the word community, and it makes me wonder what their personal definition of community is. I think that in the U.S. community can sometimes only be seen in a geographical sense, whereas in South Africa I think that community lines can often be blurred. Here I have noticed that people come together and create a community based off of needs and support. During all of the encounters in the township I have noticed more of a sense of community than I have felt in a really long time.

The second thing that I noticed was that each of the speakers also used the metaphor of building a bridge- between different people, cultures, groups, and issues. That got me thinking about the different connotations that come along with building a bridge. I see bridge building as moving toward getting over something because that is what bridges imply, crossing over the otherwise uncrossable. I wonder, however, if getting over issues is the right way to go about things? When building a bridge are we trying to get over something or are we moving toward acceptance and on with life?

Another interesting conversation today was on the topic of fear of success. Spiwo does a lot of work in the community that is centered around exposing people to a different world than what they currently live in. He said that his biggest challenge in empowering people to overcome their fear of success. I thought that this was an interesting thought that isn't solely common to South Africa. Often people find it easier to accept where they are at in life because it is much harder to be something truly great. I also think that the fear of success partly comes from the fear of others reaction to that success. It's almost like, because someone is successful they have to then explain themselves or they loose credibility with their original peers. It's almost like we are culturally conditioned to fear success.

Kennith provided another unique and essential perspective as well. He does work for the Institute of Justice and Reconciliation. This institute works toward healing the emotional and psychological wounds of apartheid. They work toward having intra- and inter-community dialogue to facilitate relationship building. Apartheid torn South Africa apart. What started out as people fighting against a system of oppression, turned into people fighting against other people. Now, Kennith works with people to building their community back up again- a community that has people in it who's family members were killed by the people down the street. He works with them to create one attitude toward growth and progress. Through unity the communities can being the healing process.

I have also noticed that skin color plays into identity a lot here. I know that skin color is a big part of identity regardless of what country that I am in, but I have just never noticed the amount before. Today, I have a clearer understanding. I think that Edwin put in best when when he said that your skin color is not a disability. I really like that philosophy. Our beliefs, who we are, our identities, are not disabilities.

The interconnectedness and unity really hit home today through our lectures. I am also continuing to see the theme of balance everyday. People are essentially made up of memories of the past, realities of the present, and possibilities of the future. How then do you balance these three aspects of humanity? How do we learn to remember the past and apply that to what the reality is but still remain optimistic about the hope for the future?

I did also learn some really interesting lessons on leadership that are helping me grow. Spiwo used a metaphor with giants and dwarfs to illustrate what leadership is. He said that we have giants and we have dwarfs, and the goal of leadership is to make giants out of dwarfs. However, you can't do that without walking with the dwarfs first. (Think about it...its really cool!)

That's all that my mind can take of random ramblings for today. Let me know if none of this makes sense, or if you want me to elaborate on anything. I'd be more than happy to. I am having a great time in Cape Town. I cherish this time with my study abroad family. Every night we sit around our computers and blog having really intellectual conversations about beliefs, life, and what we are learning here. I love having all of these unique opinions and perspectives.

With that...ciao!