260612, A little more Reading Hut progress...!

This morning I got word that the men finally started thatching today and that they'll work very fast and will need more thatch by the end of the day.  So I went out to try and find someone with a bakkie that would be willing to help with the transport.  (It is rather difficult to find anyone, most people's cars are actually broken or they are just not interested in helping- even if they get paid)  

Anyway, Jesus was on my side today and I picked up Thobile and Ninti along the road (on their way to the backpackers, but then agreeing to help me load thatch) and then we saw a guy with a bakkie standing by the backpackers.  He was willing to help, for a fee of course, but we could leave immediately for Mama Gloria's house where she was busy tying the last of the bundles together...

Mama Gloria at work with one of the last bundles.

Securing a load to the bakkie.  

We could only fit 20 bundles and the guys had to go back for another 10 after this load..

The ever loyal and faithful Lucy, passing on small bundles to the thatch-man.  I was very happy to see her there when we arrived.  She was there out of her own accord and I know she helps me without even expecting to get paid...  She makes sure that everything goes right for me.  Her brother Joseph was also there to check that everything goes well and her other brother Roy (my builder) is also always ready to organize help for me when I give him a call.

Another person on the inside has the job of pulling through  the twine with a big wooden needle and tightening the thatch from that side.

The roof poles from the inside, hopefully the last time I see them without thatch...

Lucy, no lazy hair on her head and working with a big smile on her face.  God bless these people!  Everyone worked hard today...  

200612, Reading Hut, slow progress

This week, at least I've got some thatch on the roof already...

The two naughty dogs, Aquila and Brandy.

They've been following me when I go for walks lately, which is nice cause it makes me feel very safe, 

but today they almost killed a little lamb.  Not good..

200612, Gqubeni

This is how you transport thatch if you can't afford a truck

Gqubeni, a beautiful and peaceful village, about 30km from Coffee Bay.

In this village there are no water or sewerage systems (not a single tap). People carry their water in buckets from the Umtata river that flows nearby.  It's a bit of a muddy river...

René

René, my little Afrikaans friend who I was teaching in the beginning of the year. 

170612, Portraits of two tatas

The Headman of Mawotsheni

Joseph, brother of Roy (my builder) and Lucy (my good friend)

Joseph is going to start the first step of my thatching tomorrow.

160612, A baby is born

This morning around 5am I woke up from someone knocking on my caravan window.  My friendly night security guard was there to tell me that I have a visitor.  I wondered if someone was going mad but it turned out to be the husband of one of my Xhosa friends.  He walked all the way from their house on White Clay side, looking for me because I promised his wife that I would take her to the hospital when it was time for her baby to come. It was time.

(It’s very hard for the people round here to get to the hospital, taxis normally charge R500 to Zithulele, 50km away – a lot of money if you don’t have any and in the night time it’s practically impossible to find a taxi)

I got up, hurriedly got dressed and off we went.  We were almost at their house when we got a call saying that she had just given birth to the baby.  We arrived there and it was still pitch dark outside, and on the footpath I could hardly see where I was going. 

Inside the house it was dark except for a lone candle standing on the edge of the bed.  I walked past two mamas but couldn’t recognise them in the dark.  Only later did I see that I knew one of them, one of the bead mamas.   My friend was sitting, hunched up on a blanket on the floor, covered only by a blanket hanging over her shoulders. She was still very much in pain.  The little baby was lying on the floor between her legs.

Now I’ve never given birth or witnessed anything apart from our Pekingese dog giving birth many years ago and really have no idea what’s supposed to happen.  It was difficult for me with my limited Xhosa skills, to figure out if the other people around me knew anything more than I did.   Except that they've probably all had babies before.  But there seemed to be a slight serious mood around that could’ve been worry or uncertainty, it was hard to tell.  My beautiful brave friend looked exhausted sitting there on the hard floor with the baby boy covered in blood, just lying there. 

I reckoned something needed to happen but not sure what so I phoned my dear nursing friend Ester in Cape Town and woke her too from her early sleep.  She shed some light about the situation of the after-birth that needed to come out and the basics about how to handle the situation. The mamas disinfected a blade in some boiling water and cut the umbilical chord and wrapped the baby in a towel.

I didn’t want to impose too much on the mamas and still didn’t know if they actually knew what was supposed to happen next, but eventually got my friend to lie down on some blankets on the floor, trying to push out the after-birth.

She was still a bit tense though and after a while said that we should rather go to the clinic.  So, painfully she wrapped herself in some blankets and we helped her walk very slowly to the car.  One of the mamas came with and after the first clinic was closed, we continued to the second.  I tried my best to miss as many potholes as possible.

On arrival there was no-one to be found in the clinic so we had to get the security guard try and get hold of someone.  Eventually two very sweet nurses came out from somewhere, still in their pajamas. In the meantime the after-birth had come out and from there on it was all under control and the nurses did their job. 

It was almost 10 when we left the clinic and for the rest of the day everything felt a bit surreal.  I’m glad all worked out relatively smooth and that mom and baby is okay.  I hope they got some good sleep the rest of the day!   I know I am going to sleep well tonight.

150612, Friday. Teaching Thobile.

 I really enjoy teaching Thobile cause it’s like a whole process of discovery for us both.  Figuring out how and what exactly to teach him and finding the balance between teaching him to be disciplined and also giving him freedom to find his own way in doing things.  I think some days we totally get there. It’s like the possibilities are endless with him, there are so many things to teach him and he is so ready for learning and sucking up all information coming his way.

More often than not we get all excited about the possibilities of the future that God offers us.  It is nice to find someone who mutually believes that God has a special plan for each of us…

He started typing on the computer this week and I must say it’s been going very well, but I do think we should be careful about too much too soon with that.  There are still some basic writing things that need to be practised before we let our brains in the hands of the computer.  We must first learn to think for ourselves before we let things over to the computers…  We just need to keep our sessions balanced.

Ninti has decided to be absent from school this week because he is doing a building job somewhere.  I enjoy Ninti when he’s here, his challenges are rather unique and he struggles but doesn’t give up.  We have special times together.

Also Seth is a wonderful kid with an imagination as huge as the milky way and I love all the time we get to spend together.  Also a blessing to know the rest of his family, I really appreciate his mother’s prayers.  There is strength in her faith that is hard to find.  

110612, PATIENCE

PATIENCE.  Is what God taught me in the last year. It was a hard one but I think I finally learnt the lesson that I cannot rush things around here.  I must trust God that all will happen in His time. 

If I don’t, trouble keeps on taking place.  I trust people that I never should’ve.  I’ve learnt the hard way here in Coffee Bay, that you can really only trust God and no man. 

But there are a few exceptions as you come to know with welcome relief.  And when you do, you realize that you always knew who these people were, even since the beginning.  And that is important, to know whom you can trust.  To know who your brothers are.  These people become your family.  I thank God for such people.

Another thing.  Yesterday was Sunday and I pretty much stayed in bed all day.  My friend Danica who came to visit for a week from Cape Town, left the morning back on the bus and I went nowhere.  It’s been extremely windy over here and I’ve been tired from the tent flapping around all night.  I slept most of the morning, didn’t realize how exhausted I was, not used to so many nights out in the week either. 

Somewhere in the early afternoon the dogs were barking and I was hoping it’s not anyone for me.  Turned out to be Nobulele and her friend.  I knew there was only one thing they wanted:  to borrow money.  Since it has become an issue for me lately that people want to borrow money from me and everytime it’s  the same people and now they are even bringing the rest of the family as well when they need money. 

I decided to be strong and say no even though I wasn’t sure what was the right thing to do.  I just didn’t like the attitude, the way they just expected it from me, and when I said I don’t have money for them, she insisted that I go and have a look, like she didn’t believe me.  Well, I had a bit of money, which I’m keeping for petrol (Coffee Bay has been without petrol now since last Wednesday at least, we’re hoping to get petrol tomorrow) and whatever I may need.  Nothing I wanted to give away and since I’ve been learning the lesson that when you give your little finger everybody knows what happens after that, I kept to my word.

Anyway they just kept on sitting there and looking sad until I didn’t want to sit there anymore and stood up for some fresh air and then told them once again that I don’t have money for them, trying to explain that I can’t just hand out money every day when someone asks me, I just got ripped of twice in one month, plus they always say they’re borrowing money from me and then never returning it.  I don’t mind borrowing money even if I don’t get it back, but when people start to make a habit out of it I just don’t like it.  Even though I know the Bible says that that if someone asks you, you mustn’t refuse…

Today I walked to the other side and when I was leaving Margaret came, together with Lucy and she said she wants to do a job for me, fixing my thatch bundles.  And together with Lucy, the three of us agreed that she is going to do it and we’ll talk again about how much I’m going to pay her.  I completely trust both Lucy and Margaret and I’m not even worried that they won’t charge me a fair price.  In fact I won’t be surprised if they charge me so little that in the end I feel like giving them a little bonus.

(Mama Margaret happens to be one of my most special older bead mamas, who lives on the other side of my rondavel hill.  The other day when I took Danica to the rondavel, she came past and looked at the roof and agreed it wasn’t a very good job that was done there with the smaller poles.  It just so happened then that it was her very own son who did the job for me.  He came back soon after and finished the job.  And I had a nice talk with him.  We can’t let the good youth get corrupted.

I also spoke to Mama Gloria last week and she is going to cut grass for me, together with some of her other mamas, I guess.  I hope someday I can join them and take pictures of them doing it!  Yes! I just had the idea that I would love to put their pictures up in the Reading Hut!! So we can remember the good people who built it…

Collected some more nice driftwood pieces from the beach today.  Seems like after the bad weather there are quite a lot at the moment.  I felt like I had to take advantage.  I’m still not sure what I’m going to use them all for, but got the idea today that they will look beautiful in a Bonsai bowl…  So I got a new dream today that went with my idea for eventually doing pottery..!

I want to make special bowls out of the clay, plant Bonsais in them and make them extra special with the driftwood..  I really hope that I’ll have the space for that some day…  My community craft centre idea will have to realize! 

Psalm 37:1-4

Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity, for they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.  Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and feed on His faithfulness.  Delight yourself also in the Lord and He shall give you the desires of your heart.  

090612, Fun times with Danica...

070612, Thursday, Who can you trust?

Been cheated big time again.  I’m a bit stunned by this situation.  I never saw it coming.  Trusted someone again that I really shouldn’t have. A white guy this time and he was way more sneaky than the Xhosa guy who stole my money the previous time. 

I should really learn to trust my initial instincts about a person a bit more from now on.  Since I haven’t had that much help with what I’m doing so far, I thought, great, perhaps since he's offering, this guy can help make my life a little easier, but was I wrong...  Turns out all the stories he told me right from the beginning were all lies.  There was never any truck and there was never any place he was going to get all the thatch from.  Con-artist of note.  I really don’t understand the reasoning behind it from his side, cause Coffee Bay is a very small place and I’m not going to keep quiet about it.  I would've appreciated if someone had warned me before the time.

All I can say is God forgive this person for he doesn’t know what he’s doing.

I paid him for 120 bundles of thatch and all I have now is about 50 bundles (half of that looks like old thatch from last year and it’s too short- so not sure how much of that I can even use) plus the money I gave him for transport is also gone and he didn’t even pay the guy who transported it in the end… He promises that he’s trying to get my money back, but he was making promises right from the start, so no ways that I’m believing any of that again.

 It is sad that some people just take advantage of another person and think that they can just get away with it, because she is a girl and on her own or whatever.  It is foolishness to think that God doesn’t see what you are doing…

030612, Sunday, Waiting for the thatch

 I was expecting the thatch to be there before Thursday, but everyday something has gone wrong, from the truck’s brakes that broke, then the guy who’s organising it for me got tickbite fever and today the road is apparently too wet and muddy to drive on.  I really didn’t think it rained that much last night.  The soil didn’t even get wet.

Anyway, I wonder what the next excuse might be.  Or maybe I get pleasantly surprised and it actually gets here today still.  Just gotta keep the faith.