Molly now making conscious decisions

Molly's farewell to Sister Castle

Re-entry into the United States hasn't been hard just different. I feel different about every decision I make and I finally feel like I have thought behind my decisions and I am able to really make conscious decisions. I no longer care about the little things that stressed me out as much before. I have been sharing my experience only with close friends because I don't want to just talk about the surface things and rather the deep emotional things I learned while away. I loved my experience and although happy to be home I am so thankful of my trip.

Molly looking forward to bringing what she learned home

As my trip is coming to an end I have been catching myself reflecting on my experiences while I have been here and actually picking up journaling a bit. In class this past week we discussed our different experiences by walking to different sides of the room based on our feelings on certain topics. When we were asked if we had trouble with culture shock when we first arrived. I initially walked to the side of not having trouble with culture shock but after thinking about it now I am really do not think I thought about that question fully. I thought back to my first two weeks here during orientation when we traveled around and especially the day that we went to the townships. I remember being in utter disbelief that day of the number of people that were living in informal housing and just the conditions of living. I then continued to drive through the townships every day for my internship and it never became less disheartening. I am glad in a weird way that I have experienced all of this and seen it because now going back home I will never forget it. I think that it will make me more aware of the poverty in the United States as well as making me more motivated to do more to help. I do think I will experience some culture shock going home and not being in this environment anymore but I am excited for all of the new things I am aware of and going to do

Molly shared with her parents so much of what she's learned

Molly introduces her parents (Hugh & Joan) to
Sister Castle at Tafelsig Clinic

This week has been one of my favorites and I know I say that a lot but I think everything resonated with me this week while my parents were visiting. Showing them my knowledge on the history and politics as well as the current events going on in the country really impressed them. It was nice to be able to teach them and be knowledgeable about this place that I have been living in for three months. I was even able to direct a cab driver a few towns over which I was proud of. After my parents went on the township tour they had the same initial reaction as me where they were just dumbfounded with the amount and the level of poverty in South Africa. It was nice to have them understand what I have been going through and to see the place that I work in for themselves. My mom also had the reaction that I had where her first response wanting to help as much as possible. The question is where to start. What I have learned from my activist project and from working in a township is that every little thing can help and can make a difference. I have loved working with the people in Manenberg and Mitchells Plain and will really miss the people that I have met here. I was lucky to show my parents all of this and to explain to them what I have learned on my trip.

Molly coming to better understand the history of South African

 Reflections on Johannesburg:

While in Johannesburg I really feel as though my knowledge about the history of South Africa came full circle. Going to Soweto and Sharpeville and the museums and exhibits while there really brought together what we have been learning in class about all of the uprisings and massacres that took place during apartheid. It was shocking looking at the photographs especially in the museum at Soweto looking at the young students who were killed while peacefully protesting. This protest was in response to the Afrikaans Medium Decree of 1974 where Afrikaans was made the language in which the schools would teach. This was only a natural response for students to be infuriated with the fact that the government was making learning almost impossible for them as it is and now making a language not native to the students the medium of teaching.

Abu, the young man who shared the story
of his grandfather's death  the
Sharpeville Massacre

Also speaking to the young man who helped tour us around Sharpeville and learning that his grandfather was one of the men that was killed in the massacre. When we visited the graves and I saw the grave of a twelve-year-old child lying in the dirt I was horrified with how someone could shoot this poor kid that most likely was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. The woman who was touring us broke down at the cemetery being that most of her family including her children were buried in that very cemetery all due to apartheid violence. My heart went out to her and seeing this really makes you realize what it was like to live in that time. I was with Sister Castle today and she was explaining that they were never allowed to go to the nice beaches like Camps Bay and Clifton during apartheid. Although it is the beach and not a massacre this is still so appalling to me because it is something so simple that I would never think to appreciate being allowed to go to any beach I walk into.

Going to the Kruger was also an amazing experience that I feel very lucky to have had at such a young age. Most people have this trip on their bucket list and I was able to do it and see such amazing wildlife and I am so thankful for that

Molly reflecting on her actions and decisions

I really have just been appreciating being in South Africa more and more over the past few weeks and still feel like I am on the greatest journey in my life. I have had so many experiences here that will teach me things that will follow me for life and I cannot be more thankful for that. I think class this week really made me think about my actions and reflect. The talk about distractions seemed congruent with me for the discussions we have been having about values. Reflecting on my values was challenging for me because I had to really think and face my day to day actions and decisions instead of just forgetting about them. Having distractions like phones and computers and things are so common especially in our generation. I watched a video this past semester talking about phones and the amount of time we spend on twitter, Instagram, and Facebook instead of interacting and we have thousands of Facebook friends but those relationships aren't real and we aren't really connecting with people. I have always had the pet peeve where if someone is on their phone at dinner or if my boyfriend is on his phone when we are together I cannot stand it and I always make a point to ask them to stop. I do check my phone and computer more than I should because it is the culture we live in but what I have been reconsidering is, will I miss out on anything by not checking it? Is there anything on there that is more important than taking in the world around me? These are questions that I am going to continue to reflect on. 

Molly on a journey of discovery

This week it really hit me that we only have a little over a month left of our trip. I had been kind of counting down not because I wanted to leave just because I wanted to see everyone at home however, after this past weekend I have no desire to leave...ever. We went scuba diving all weekend and I just had a few moments where I thought to myself how beautiful this world is here in Cape Town and how lucky I am to be here and be experiencing all of the things I am. When you are 8 meters under water just looking at all of the amazing life in the ocean it is really just the most peaceful and serene minutes. I wish I could dive a hundred more times while here but obviously with the cost and the time we have, that is just not possible. When we were driving back from the beach listening to Jeremy Loops and looking out at the shore I just could have sat there forever and just thought. I love those moments where all of the stress in the world is gone and you can just really take in everything you are doing. I also realized this weekend that I really don't know who I want to be in this world and I am kind of excited to figure that out. I just want to find more out about myself and my passions especially after finding a new passion this weekend.

Molly feeling like this is home

So this past week has been one of my favorite weeks on the program and it definitely had a little bit to do with the fact that my boyfriend was visiting from the states. It was really amazing to show around someone who has never been to a place like South Africa, although I don't think there is a place that is like here. I am finally really feeling like this is my home and that I am super comfortable with the area. I loved being able to share it with someone else and going to my favorite places and doing crazy activities together. His favorite part of the week and mine as well was the safari we went on. It was just crazy to be so close to the animals and not at a zoo. It makes me so excited for Kruger. We also did some activities with the rest of the house which he loved being able to meet everyone. I was glad to get away a little this week and be with just Greg instead of the normal fifteen other girls. I think I really learned this week while showing him around and explaining my experience to him was how much I've learned and grown since I've been here. He really noticed it how passionate I am about everything I am doing here and how affected I have been by witnessing the poverty and quality of life of so many people here. 

 

Lion at Aquila Game Reserve

My other favorite part of the week was going to my ballet class which I talked about in my last blog but I am so excited to continue to work with the children in the coming weeks and I just hope to be able to let the kids have fun and enjoy themselves for an hour with us every week.

Molly learning and growing through interactions with others

So the past two weeks have been a mix of emotions for me but also probably my favorite part of the trip so far. Just today Sam and I started our dance class as a part of our activist project in Manenberg. I was really nervous going into this because everyone that we would explain our project to would say that Manenberg is too dangerous for us to be going to. However, I was very passionate about this project because I really wanted to make an impact on children's lives even if it was just giving them a fun activity for a few hours. After today I really see that I am doing that here. The shining faces and excitement on the kids faces when we walked through the door was reward enough. It was definitely tough to calm them down at first but once we got going I was so impressed with the way they handled themselves. We had an age range from two years old to twenty one years old which was so cool for us to have such a variety. I worked with a lot of the older kids on ballet technique while Sam did the more fun activities but at the end of the class when we handed out the shoes that were donated for the children it was really amazing seeing the look on their faces. I cannot wait to continue with this project and really look forward to seeing what more we can do for the kids. I am so grateful that I have this opportunity to work with them because not only are we trying to help them but they are helping me learn and grow and that is what I am looking for in Cape Town, to find out about myself and to grow as a person. I can't wait to have our recital at the end of the class and to be able to share our journey with others but I really do hope we get close with these kids, I already was asked to take about 10 pictures on the first day, and to be able to provide what they are looking for in this class.