Jessica Thompson: January 2012 Archives

-Accept the Process.

- TIA (This is Africa)

-Do you know what a JOB is???

- This is the youngest weave I've ever seen.

- If you're chasing a leopard why do you have a boner?

-My favorite song is pocket jazz.

- I'm going to keep chasing that sunset.

- I'm going to be careful about who I tell about Africa, because they're going to try to picture it and they're e probably going to picture it wrong. It was probably a thousand times more beautiful than they can imagine.

- I'm a lightweight but I can still drink.

- I don't do walking.

- I'm going to kick it.

- Youth Studies majors I see a child.

-We will be reunited soon enough as if no time has passed.

- B.R.E.A.T.H.E

- I'm grown!

* More to Come Soon

As I sit here on the last plane back to St.Paul all I can think about is one challenge, probably the most difficult challenge I was faced while on this trip. On our first day in Deflt as we walked backed from the hospital which was very emotional a man asked me do I have any good news for him. I was stuck. I did not know how to respond. I wanted to say that we had gifts for him and his family, but we didn't. Then I thought about saying that tomorrow would be a better day, but I didn't know that for sure. A person walking with me answered for me and said no. This stuck with me the entire trip and when I reflect on the situation now I had a lot of good things to tell him. I should have said that I am here to learn from you and your community about Ubuntu, forgiveness, and resiliency so that I can take it back to the U. S. so we can try to become a more open and caring society like South Africa. I should have invited the man to walk with me so he could tell me his story, but I can't go back. I have to forgive myself for being so self-centered, learn from the experience, and move on. This is one of the many lessons I learned from the MaT staff. You cannot live in the "what if's". Instead you have to learn from every experience and move on.

As my last days in SA come to an end I have been thinking about what I will do when I come home. During circle Nate made a comment about how the majority of the people on this trip will not change. In their minds and hearts, they will have changed, but their actions will stay the same. This scares me because in my mind and heart, I know that I have changed but will my actions show differently. Will I come home and go right back to my same ways? Will I get a case of amnesia and forget? I can say that I will not go back the same way I came, and I will not forget, but this means nothing. Actions speak louder than words. Only time will tell if I live up to what I say. One thing I do know is that I will never stop trying to be a person of my word.