John now has two homes and his heart is split between the two

As I write this last blog post, the fact that my semester in Cape Town is truly over finally sunk in. The first couple of days it felt as if I came back just to visit for the weekend, and I was going to return to my newfound home. It’s crazy to believe that a couple weeks ago I was thousands of miles away from where I stand today. You know that saying, “home is where the heart it”? 4 months later and countless of amazing experiences have shown me I now have two homes. My heart is split between my life and my family in CT and all of the moments and experiences I’ll never forget in Cape Town. In the journey to South Africa, I learned so much not only about SA, or the USA but also about myself; where I’ve been, how I’ve lived and where I’m going.

In a way, I was lucky that as soon as I came home I dove right into my internship and kept busy. I needed to keep my mind occupied just so I wouldn’t have the time to miss it as much. There are still days in which all that I want is to sit in Rondebosch Common and let all the beauty of Table Mountain and Cape Town soak in one more time. My time there was nothing short of beautiful and mesmerizing and my biggest worry was assimilating back to “reality.” I came home and nothing really seemed to have changed. I was scared that all that I went through, all the knowledge I gained and all the personal growth I experienced in SA would have been lost or stayed behind when I came back. That was foolish of me to think. Cape town is one of those places that will always remain with you. Like I said, I now have two home and I’m glad I was fortunate enough to take part of this adventure.

Rondebosch Commons with Table Mountain in background.

John's enjoying all the things he can afford to do

As we were driving along route 62 and I was on my way to having one of the best weekends I’ve had this semester, I realized how fortunate I was to experience some of the wonderful things South Africa has to offer. This weekend I went on the Garden Route tour and had some amazing encounters with both wildlife and locals. We rode elephants, fed lemurs, heard the story of a 70-year-old store owner, walked with lions and even petted a cheetah. After I came back home I remembered a conversation I had with people in my activist project about the numerous attractions in Cape Town. He told me how many of the people that live in Cape Town haven’t even seen half of it and probably never would. They haven’t hiked Table Mountain, been to Robben Island or even taken the drive out to Cape Point. For us, it is easy to come to places like these and do all of the touristy things simply because that’s our goal is the see and get to know the place and we have the means to do so. People whom are born in townships and don’t have sufficient funds can go their whole life without doing the things Cape Town is known for.  It saddens me to think people can life around such beauty but are not able to experience it because they don’t have enough money for transportation or entrance to some places. At the same time it makes me feel 10x more fortunate to experience Cape Town and I feel like I have to enjoy it for myself and for those who can’t.

John learning beyond history books

After a weeklong emotional roller coaster, I’m glad to be home! This past week we had the pleasure of going to numerous museums and locations that critical to South Africa’s history. Many of the students who study abroad in Cape Town don’t really get the whole historical aspect of South Africa, that’s why I consider myself very fortunate to have had the chance to go to Johannesburg and be a part of this program. There were several moments during this week that I will take with me for the rest of my life. One of them was at the Sharpeville Memorial where we met Alice whom was our tour guide for the day. It was absolutely amazing getting to hear her story during the troubling times South Africa was undergoing. We had learned about the Sharpeville massacre in class but there is something special about hearing it straight from the source. Every word she said you could tell it came from the heart. She welcomed us into her community with open arms and graced us with all of her knowledge. I always saw the massacre as something horrific from the past, something that happened many years ago buried along with years of history. Listening to her made me understand so much more of what was actually going on. So many details you wont find in a history book. We got the privileged to hear first hand information that people in years to come wont have access to. 

John (far left) looks on as Alice recalls the horror of the Sharpeville Massacre

Another moment that struck me during this trip was at the Boys and Girls Club in Soweto. We often focus on the negative aspects of our everyday lives. We get stressed out over all we have to accomplish in a day and forget to take a minute to just live in the moment, and that’s exactly what I did there. I was amazing at how loving and welcoming everyone was at that center, always willing to help and constantly trying to place a smile on your face. While being there I forgot where I was or any commitments I had to take care of. I was totally engrossed by all the joy around me. Not only did I learn to take time to live in the now, but also how little it takes to be happy. I think as a society we always have some sort goal or endpoint in mind and it isn’t until we reach those goals that we think we will be in complete bliss. This week I found out that that is all false. By looking at the kids’ faces I learned that it’s all the little things that bring us the most joy. Making other people happy in turn makes me happy. I think I’m finally beginning to understand the sense of Ubuntu and I’m excited to carry on with my life with that kind of mentality. 

John finding hope in story of working for change

Before coming here, my definition of poverty was much father from the reality. I think I’ve been very fortunate in the sense that I’ve never had to worry about where my next meal is coming from nor have to drop out of school to get a job to help support my family. It wasn’t until I got here that I found out what it truly meant to live in poverty. After seeing the conditions people live in I wondered how people manage to stop the vicious cycle and how they can ultimately get out of the townships and that state of poverty. Every way I looked at it, there was some sort of barrier that made it nearly impossible. It wasn’t until class that I found such an inspiring character that exemplified all of the qualities needed to break the poverty cycle. There was a guest speaker during our class and he told us how he managed to start an organization that allowed him to get out of the township as well as finding a positive outlet to the youth in his community. His dance program, Happy Feet, allows the youth of his community to spend time with likeminded students and not give in to the many negative and detrimental possibilities they have access to. As soon as the students get out of school, they go to the dance studio where they remain most of the day. They get their homework done there as well as practice their dance, and twice a week they get home cooked meals. I think stories like that need to be broadcasted throughout the many different townships in order to inspire some of the residents. It would allow them to have something to look up to and maybe give them a way to better their community as well as give them a way out of poverty.  

John worrys what comes next for kids leaving hospital

Working in a pediatric orthopaedic hospital never has dull moment. If I’m not in the OR watching a surgery, I’m in the ward playing with and entertaining the kids. This past week I’ve began to notice a large amount of empty beds in the boy’s ward and I realized some of my favorite kids had gone home. I wasn’t quite sure how to feel about that. Most people would just be happy to realize the kids were well enough to go home, don’t get me wrong, so was I but there is much more to the story. The majority of the patients are Maitland Cottage come from some of the worst townships and home situations. Some of the kids don’t know when their next meal is coming from or are faced with alcoholism and difficult situations at home. It’s selfish of me to want to keep them at the hospital just to ensure their well-being when all they want to do is go home to their loved ones. I’m happy they went home, but even though I just met the kids, it still worry about their well-being.

John couldn't be happier

There’s not doubt that I’m madly in love with this place. I think it was evident from my first blog post that I could see myself living here on a permanent basis. Everyday I find a new reason to love this place more and more. If it wasn’t for the essays and blog posts I would think I’m one of the greatest vacations I’ve ever taken. My internship doesn’t even feel like work. I love being there and experiencing all that comes behind the scenes of a hospital. This week I was fortunate enough to scrub into the surgery. After weeks of just watching from a couple feet away, I was finally able to get right in and actually interact with the patient. One of the surgeons had to leave and he looks at me and says, “Would you mind helping out, I’m not going to be able to stay the whole surgery.” As eager as I was to jump right in, I had to tell him I have ABSOLUTELY no training and have no idea what to do. He just told me to scrub in and I would simply assist with holding tools and doing small tasks the attending surgeon needed help with. As I was watching my hands in preparation, I felt like one of the doctors in those movies and shows I love to watch.  I got a small glimpse into what my job is going to be like down the line and I couldn’t be happier about it!

John's eager to share what he's learned about Human Rights

This weekend I found myself pleasantly surprised by a group of remarkable individuals. Before making our way to the Goedgedacht Farm, we stopped in town to pick up the rest of the people that were going to take part in our weekend workshop. As they were getting on the bus, one by one, I had no idea what to expect. No one was talking much and I was just hoping the whole weekend wasn’t going to be a drag. Within the first couple of hours I realized that I was in for a great experience. It amazed me how so many people of such different background can come together and spend days just talking about something their so passionate about. They were eager to learn more about human rights and share their experiences as well as growing from the interactions with them.  Not only was I amazed by their passion, but about how young they were. Some of the people there were only in high school. When I was in high school, I would have never participated in such a program. After hearing all of their stories and all of the changes they want to make in their communities I realized I must do my part as well. I’m going to take all of what I learned this weekend and with help from the manual hold a human rights workshop of my own with some of my 8^th, 10^th and 12^th grade students. In my opinion it’s imperative that we start talking about human rights at an early age in order to have a conscious and active community. I can’t wait to see how it’ll work out and see if my student will appreciate it as much as I appreciated this human rights training for social cohesion. 

John learned so much from his loving and welcoming homestay family

Going into the home stay weekend I had no idea what to expect.  After seeing Khayelitsha, Langa and other townships I thought our home stay was going to take place in a location like that. Since our “family” wasn’t going to be home until much later than everyone else’s, we walked around and dropped off some of the other students at their homes for the weekend. After seeing a few of the houses, I figured the house I was going to stay in was going to be similar to them but I was mistaken. Not only did they have a beautiful home, but they also owned another house in ocean view, which they rented off. The Bowman’s were definitely not what I was expecting. Aside from having an amazing home – which in some ways was better than mine at home – they had two bright kids, Darren and Caitlin, whom were full of love and lots of energy.  That’s one of the many things I loved about the Ocean View community, the everlasting energy and laughter. We were fortunate enough to spend sometime at the daycare center in town. Since I was the only guy there, all of the boys at the daycare used me as their personal jungle.

John as a personal jungle gym for kids at daycare

Within moments of meeting, you could tell how loving and welcoming the whole family was. They were genuinely interested in our lives and made sure we were comfortable the whole time. We talked about politics, parenting, the economy and even about the hopes and dreams they have as a family. In the short amount of time that I spent there, I developed a bond with them that I’ll have with me all the time. Darren, their son, said he wanted me to stay with them the whole 3 months of the program. When I told him I wish I could but I had classes and an internship to attend he asked if I could put him in my suitcase and bring him with me.

During class, I remember Chantel mentioned that people from the community have begun to choose to live in Ocean View and started purchasing houses there. I couldn’t wrap my head around why anyone would choose to stay in a place that would remind them of such troubling times in their history. While speaking to the Bowman’s, I gained so much insight in the matter. They didn’t see it as a place that filled with bad memories or dark times. For them, it was their home and what they knew. That’s where their community persevered and made it through the rough times.  It brought them closer and together they can get through everything. My host family was one of the many families that are now buying their houses there and are choosing to raise their 2 beautiful kids there.  There is so much I learned from being with them for a mere 4 days and this experience is one I’ll have with me for the rest of my life. I know I have a South African family and they gained an American family.