Day 0 of volunteering. This morning we were able to sleep in a bit and then set our sleepy selves outside at the table to eat our buffet breakfast – eggs, toast, porridge, cereals, teas, coffee. An impressive display. Orientation after breakfast defining Global Volunteers' guidelines, volunteer goals and our group goals. Olga gave us a Xhosa lesson and we all struggled to learn “Hello”, “How are you?”, “Where do you come from?” which we got to practice while on our walk through Malungeni. We met many people in the road, most very eager to say Molweni to us. Olga showed us the bakery, the school and we visited the vice chief during his lunch which he ate from a tray on his lap. His house was a welcome reprieve from the sun and he welcomed us as he sipped his tea and ate his bread. We walked back through the tall grass back to the main road where Tai and I skipped down the road holding hands with a boy with special needs. A special need to hold hands.
All of us were bushed at lunch and some of us sun kissed but we were able to enjoy a homemade stew and some leftover mutton. After lunch the community came to the house to welcome us. The local ladies dressed in skirts with hats or scarves on their heads sat in a line while the children huddled in a group. We sat together while the local women offered a prayer and songs of welcome. A few of the women struggling with English thanked us for being here and expressed their gratitude to us for teaching their children English. I felt overwhelmed by the importance these women assigned to the English education of their children and embarrassed at my negligence of understanding this priority before. We were entertained by groups of girls in skirts who showed off their moves holding sticks representing spears. Olga tried to get the boys who work in the garden to dance for us but they were too shy.
When the community went home we were later greeted by a couple of black steers that came into our yard (uninvited) to eat something tasty from the garden. Tai shooed one steer out like a pro and the other left not long after, right through the gate onto the road.
Message of the Day: “Life is short. In the meantime, Live Big, my friend, Live Big”. Denny Crain, Boston Legal.
By Abigail
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