Recently in Mary Taylor Category

Waking up this morning I had a strange feeling running through my thoughts. I was trying to figure out what this country has done to me, and I can't put a finger on what it is exactly...but I know it's profound and strong. I found myself reflecting on how my experience has been here, and in light of the huge braai (American BBQ x 10) we had last night I realized it is the people here that have carved their own space in my heart. The beauty of South Africa, and its sense of Ubuntu is revealing itself more and more as my departure date looms in the (very) near future. At our braai last night we had visitors from all walks of life. Nate's friends (who were white) intermingling with our diverse group, and about 12 of the MaAfrika staff ranging from ages 20-65 and were Coloured, Xhosa, and anything else. People from every class, race, age, and gender were together celebrating nothing other than the beauty of life and good spirits. That community feeling, the sense of humanity was raw and untouched. I loved the fact that even though we had only met these people a handful of times yet we enjoyed each other's company like no other, and that our goodbyes were only "see you soon's" with a big hug and a kiss on the cheek.

During many conversations I was asked when I would be going back home to the states and I always solemnly replied, "On Saturday..." with a frown. I noticed that every time I had this conversation the next question would be, "Well are you coming back?"My reply is always that I have no choice but to come back. I knew who I was before I came to South Africa but my experiences here have illuminated who I thought I was, allowed me to challenge it, and have made me a better person because of it. On New Years, as we were celebrating with the locals on Long Street, I made a resolution for the future and promise to myself that I will come back to this astoundingly wonderful place. And I do not break promises.

Last night, a woman part of the MaAfrika Tikkun health department and I talked about what she has learned from us being here. We always talk about the wonderful things we as a group have learned and what we have been given, but Doreen opened my eyes to a different side. She explained that we have given so much to the people we have come in contact with simply by being here. She said that we motivate her, we motivate the kids that we met and we motivate all of the people in the townships that we visited - just by being there. It made me seriously question what really needs to happen in order to induce 'change'. She also stated that a big part about her work is that education is everything. I agreed wholeheartedly, and became proud of myself in that moment for everything I have accomplished in my life. I was appreciative of my privileges, and where they have led me.

While on the brink of going home to the states, I am trying to figure out how to describe South Africa and how my experience has been to those who are inquiring. Well family, that is close to impossible because no words, pictures, videos, or journal entries can properly depict the beauty and wonder that is South Africa. It is the untold feeling that I have had the privilege to experience. It is the history and remembrance of then, versus now. It is the hope and faith in forgiveness that is healing the Rainbow Nation. It is the music that echoes through the valleys of Table Mountain. It is the food that is made and given without asking. It is the fact that the people here live like humans, and don't change for anything - or anyone.

It is all of this, but so so so much more.

These past few days have been incredibly reflective for me on a subject that I don't usually talk about - my race and what it means to be mixed while in the context of South Africa. Knowing that there is a group of people here classified as a race and culture on their own only because of the fact that they are "mixed-race" is definitely interesting to me, because I am. These instances have made me realize that when visiting another country the people see you, and all of you. No matter what walls you might have put up to the world, no one can see that.

On Saturday, our group went down the street to hang-out and have a braai (bbq) at Charles' house - someone who Interstudy officially calls a "student mentor" but who we call a great friend. One of his friends was over there and through conversation we eventually came onto the topic of race. He asked what I was (a common question) and I asked him to guess. Puerto Rican, Columbian, Moroccan were his first tries. After explaining that I was a rainbow of Black, White, and Native American, he asked in response: "soo, are you coloured?" It was my understanding that Coloured means that you are mixed within Africa (meaning mixed with White Afrikaans and whatever else), so hearing this statement from an educated mid-twenty year old puzzled me a bit. That part of the conversation ended quickly, but was nothing in comparison to what I experienced this evening.

Going out to a family sit down restaurant with a small group from our community is nothing out of the ordinary. Stepping in the door we quickly picked up on the strong Native American theme; complete with pictures of tee-pees, Natives with spears and bow and arrows in their hands, and a place-mat explaining the "story" of Spur's restaurant. From my course work here I've learned that there are no Native Americans in South Africa...so this was different to start with. This was actually a two hour long experience with a lot of details, but basically we were made into an extreme spectacle because we are American. But what realllly hit me hard was when the manager who hopped into our conversation when he realized we were American, told me directly that I looked coloured and that I was from Cape Town. Simple observation on his part and not a big deal, it just caught me off guard. A little while later he brought over his staff from around him to me and kept pointing directly at me and talking about how I looked coloured. I know that everyone is different in different contexts, but this is one of the first instances where I have been blatantly pointed out for my race as a whole, not for its separate pieces.

So my identity struggle carries on! Learning and reflecting more and more each day. But one thing can be sure, I am going home with a heart full of experiences that have challenged me and allowed me to think critically about my world as a whole - and for that, I am truly grateful.

Smiling, laughing, trusting.
we came in as beats,
now forming a heavy melody.

Pat pat pat
as we play our own tune
rhythms reflecting our blueprints

each beat so unique from the rest
aligned on the staff
a portrayal of harmonic diversity

beauty found in the dances response
non-stopping rhythm reflected throughout
the children's laughter and innocence

20 days the Hands were gently placed
cautiously over the stretched hide
recreating stories through sound

no beat is its own
we are all one
This is the beat of our drum.

WOW what a day it has been! When we heard the news yesterday in class that our rain-checked visit to the top of Table Mountain was moved to this morning, it created an insane amount of excitement and anxiety for all of us. We braced ourselves and traveled up an EXTREMELY STEEP mountain peak via cable car with a crazy rotating floor. I was sooo excited to get to the top! The view was absolutely astounding. So it's not surprising why there were ads everywhere around the site asking to vote for it to be one of the 7 world wonders. I took a seat and used my beautiful surroundings as a vice to allow me to just "be". The reflection was very much needed; these past two days have been extremely trying - emotionally, physically and mentally.

After lunch at the café on top of the mountain we went to the V&A waterfront - a tourist-esque area with a lot of great shops. When I was in the V&A shopping center, I was fortunate enough to find out some of the stories of the venders that I went bought trinkets from; which is something that I have really really enjoyed. A group of us also went through the Two Oceans Aquarium - also located at the waterfront. It was sweet because the surrounding oceans are a mix between the Indian and Atlantic which creates some craaaazy wildlife. I am not a fan of fish, but I love aquariums and this one is definitely in my top 3. I touched all kinds of underwater plants, saw the biggest crab I have ever seen in my LIFE and hung out with some penguins.

I don't feel like an invading tourist anymore - it's a great feeling. I am incredibly comfortable here! (don't worry parents I AM coming home). Some people here will ask where I'm from and are always extremely friendly when I say I'm from the states, which is so welcoming. I love how our trip as been - little but necessary "touristy" excursions, and hard core social justice work other than that. I also know I am not by myself when I say that I miss our kids from MaAfrika Tikkun. We've only had 2 days with them and I can't wait until Monday when we get to see them again.

Have a great weekend everybody, I know we will! :)

-Mary

     We were greeted by a 9 am temperature of a high 38 degrees Celsius (close to 100 degrees Fahrenheit) today, we are warm - and when AC is hard to come by, the natural breezes are our best friend. Early day for service learning, we traveled out through one of the townships - the Delft community and into the wonderful lands of MaAfrika Tikkun. We were welcomed to MaAfrika Tikkun with a surprise dance that the children had been working on for three weeks. 10 boys and girls were coupled to perform a ballroom dance number for us! We were enthralled and astounded by their dancing abilities. The kid's ages ranged from around 5 to 13. After their dance the young girls were asked to sit down, and 10 girls from our group were paired up with the little gents. It was absolutely precious. Then we all joined together to engage in a community dance lesson. Some of the kids dance rhythm was much more developed than us college students.


     Not knowing any idea of what we were doing today after spending time with the youth, we set off in different vehicles and headed into the Delft Township. Greeted by stares, head nods and waves a somber but hopeful feeling is always evoked while entering these miles of metal shacks. Mind you - as unattractive as they are on the outside, there is a beauty that is evident and strung through the clothes lines, onto the childrens faces and through the one line of electricity going through each home. We were led by Anthea, a program director for MaT, and broke up into 2 groups. One went to visit a woman in her home who has diabetes, and the other group (the group we were in) strapped on face masks and went to visit a man who has been diagnosed with TB and is HIV positive. The nurse in MaAfrika Tikkun that caters to his needs explained to us that he has refused to take any medicine for the past few months so it was extremely hard for us to see this 36 year old lying there, practically skin and bones. Recently though he decided he wants to go to a clinic, so the nurses are trying to figure that out for him.


      After we gathered everyone up we went to the Delft community hospital. A small, but very lively place where hundreds of patients are taken care of daily. A woman gave us a tour of the whole facility, and naturally the stares came rampant at our group. Normal for us now, but still tends to catch us off guard. We walked through in a single file line through every unit not excluding the trauma unit. As we walked past it was hard to not notice a small puddle of blood on the floor. On a brighter note, if you looked at the faces of the nurses behind the desk all were happy to be able to work at such a great facility. You could feel the energy through the hard work and patience that they clearly have to face each day. We passed many units were there were at least fifty people waiting for their service. In a place where disease runs widespread it is necessary to take advantage of free health care. You could tell that most were grateful for the benefits they receive. Although this was a heavy place for us to visit, it shows hope for the Township of Delft.


     Getting back from the hospital we gathered in MaT's multipurpose room to attempt to debrief about everything we had seen throughout the day. Through the glitter in Anthea's eye you can see the passion she has developed for her work. She is such a strong woman, and inspiring none the less. She calmed our anxiety and nervousness with the relaxing tone of her voice speaking simple lessons that she has learned to a silent group of college students. We sat quietly, and tried to absorb everything that we possibly could. In the words of Anthea: all it takes is a simple Thank You to make someone's day better, you think you cannot come and do what I do but you can - you really can. The people I work with say you give me strength and I say no you have it all wrong - you give ME strength. You all are so strong for coming here already. Don't be scared to cry - talk about it, it is normal to be overwhelmed. I get up every day and I'm excited - you have to give your all every day even when you think it's the last shot and if you give up that could have been someone else's last shot. You do something good for someone, and they do something good for someone else and it keeps going and going.


     After we finished our debrief we decided to end our day at MaT with the youth. We spent the remainder of our time regaining our strength in the energy of the youth. We mingled with them all and took pictures, they really enjoyed taking pictures with our cameras. It was an opportunistic moment to see the world through their eyes. We took turns jump roping, dancing, kicking balls around, and enjoying a Popsicle, a brilliant way to end a very trying morning.

    
     Upon our arrival to our respective houses we quickly gathered our lunches and set out for another day of class. We were pleasantly surprised to find air conditioning in our intimate classroom. A brief discussion about Ubantu (I am who I am because of you), and a viewing of the film Amandla! (which means Power) is how our class time was spent.

We miss you all and hope that you're enjoying the cold weather :) we are all at least two shades darker! (Even Nate!) ;)


 This message has been brought to you by your mixed race roommates Mary and Megan  :)


 P.S. SHOUT OUT TO FELLOW FAMILY MEMBER ANTHONY FOR TURING 20 TODAY!!!!