set it on fire

This holiday season was unlike any other I have had.... possibly the best I have ever had.

I was in a small car accident on Christmas eve and ended up in the back of a cop car on the way to Canmore.
Rethinking what we are calling Christmas... give this little piece from CS Lewis a thought:

...In the middle of winter when fogs and rains most abound they have a great festival which they call Exmas and for fifty days they prepare for it in the fashion I shall describe. First of all, every citizen is obliged to send to each of his friends and relations a square piece of hard paper stamped with a picture, which in their speech is called an Exmas-card. But the pictures represent birds sitting on branches, or trees with a dark green prickly leaf, or else men in such garments as the Niatirbians believe that their ancestors wore two hundred years ago riding in coaches such as their ancestors used, or houses with snow on their roofs...

...But when the day of the festival comes, then most of the citizens, being exhausted with the Rush, lie in bed till noon. But in the evening they eat five times as much supper as on other days and, crowning themselves with crowns of paper, they become intoxicated. And on the day after Exmas they are very grave, being internally disordered by the supper and the drinking and reckoning how much they have spent on gifts and on the wine. For wine is so dear among the Niatirbians that a man must swallow the worth of a talent before he is well intoxicated...

...But what Hecataeus says, that Exmas and Crissmas are the same, is not credible. For first, the pictures which are stamped on the Exmas-cards have nothing to do with the sacred story which the priests tell about Crissmas. And secondly, the most part of the Niatirbians, not believing the religion of the few, nevertheless send the gifts and cards and participate in the Rush and drink, wearing paper caps. But it is not likely that men, even being barbarians, should suffer so many and great things in honour of a god they do not believe in...


I decided that I didn't need much of anything this Christmas and ended up with some nice surprises.
The best part of it all was working (at the Seed still) on Christmas day. Immense joy and genuine cheer was certainly spread.


Here is lovely Laura and I. I nice picture I would say.



until next year...

blessings.

Heavier Boots.

The eyes are the groin of the head.

on friendship

And he answered, saying:
your friend is your needs answered.
He is your field which you sow with love and reap with thanksgiving.
And he is your board and your fireside.
For you come to him with your hunger,
and you seek him for peace.

And when he is silent your heart ceases not to listen to his heart;
For without words, in friendship, all thoughts, all desires,
all expectations are born and shared, with joy that is unacclaimed.
When you part from your friend you grieve not;
For that which you love most in him may be clearer in his absence, as
the mountain to the climber is clearer from the plain.

And let your best be for your friend.
If he must know the ebb of your tide,
let him know its flood also.

you will rise

Good day

Have you seen this movie yet? I would absolutely recommend it. I knew it would ignite the escapist spirit it me, and perhaps it will find one in you as well. One of the most honest and testing films I have ever seen.

The great Sean Penn making this one.

There is pleasure in the pathless woods,
There is rapture on the lonely shore,
There is a society where none intrudes,
By the deep sea, and the music in its roar;
I love not man the less, but nature more.
-Lord Byron

thanks.

man of the hour

You will certainly be missed Matt.

what I know of you

There is a time

...a time for everything, and everything on earth has its special season.
There is a time to be born and a time to die.
There is a time to plant and a time to pull up plants.
There is a time to kill and a time to heal.
There is a time to destroy and a time to build.
There is a time to cry and a time to laugh.
There is a time to be sad and a time to dance.
There is a time to throw away stones and a time to gather them.
There is a time to hug and a time not to hug.
There is a time to look for something and time to stop looking for it.
There is a time to keep things and time to throw things away.
There is a time to tear apart and a time to sew together.
There is a time to be silent and a time to speak.
There is a time to love and time to hate.
There is a time for war and a time for peace.


much love.

ageless beauty

Hello

Recently it seems as though a lot of people are getting older and reaching some pretty important stages in their life.



Here is the darling Karis. She has gone from quirky grade nine fashionista to the girl who fell in love and is moving to Scotland.



And miss Daniela. She turned the big two zero and I couldnt be prouder of the girl.

Its that season. I'll let you know when I have a milestone to report.
love and love

sow it in

An Irish Blessing once from Ciara

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.



lets just fall in love already

what new mystery is this?

Here again,

So there is a community in Philadelphia called the Simple Way. I first heard about them when I read the book Irresistible Revolution. Lately the more I look into this community, I see the extent of their work and the mass of people involved. I want to let you in on this book, Irresistible Revolution. Another world is possible. Written by a man named Shane Claiborne, it is all about a revolution of love in this world, first shown to us by Jesus. What we remember about Jesus is his love. He did things that no one else would go near, he touched the people who others gawked at, and he didn't think of his impact. His love for them was not a conscious, I am going to shake the world kind of action, it is just what made the most sense to him. One of the parts that really stuck out to me was Shane's words on one church. To me it goes so deep into the ideas of exclusiveness and having to fit into a box; the fact that we all believe in the same God, yet feel the need to separate ourselves. Shane quotes a pastor saying

“We’ve got to unite ourselves as one body. Because Jesus is coming back, and he’s coming back for a bride not a harem."

If you haven't read it, I really think that you should. I have read books before that leave me feeling like I need to change my actions and world view, but I have never finished a book and understood tangible ways to do so.

Someone to watch who is very connected in the Simple Way community, with great things to say.

stir it up in our hearts

zing

Hi there,

A lot of people are at camp.. and most people have Facebook. This entry comes from me, in Calgary, on my page that will be viewed no where near as much as Facebook. That is not the point, this is just my little spot.

I had such a good weekend. Just felt refreshing.

I really enjoyed this movie. It's called Once. Have you seen it yet?


I spent time with this one. She shines.

I am listening to and thoroughly enjoying the new Wilco CD 'Sky Blue Sky'. Also, the new Feist has been burrowing nicely in the strings of my heart.

Alright, this too. A prayer by Archbishop Oscar Romero.

It helps, now and then, to step back and take a long view.
The kingdom is not only beyond our efforts, it is even beyond our vision.
We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is God’s work.
Nothing we do is complete, which is a way of saying that the Kingdom always lies beyond us.
No statement says all that could be said.
No prayer fully expresses our faith.
No confession brings perfection.
No pastoral visit brings wholeness.
No program accomplishes the Church’s mission.
No set of goals and objectives includes everything.
This is what we are about.
We plant the seeds that one day will grow.
We water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise.
We lay foundations that will need further development.
We provide yeast that produces far beyond our capabilities.
We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that.
This enables us to do something, and to do it very well.
It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord’s grace to enter and do the rest.
We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.
We are workers, not master builders; ministers, not messiahs.
We are prophets of a future not our own.


Uplifting.

back at it

So I am home.

Home and working. I have started a position at the Mustard Seed. My offical title is Visitors Services Support Worker. I work in the main center where people come in off the streets. I work at the door, in the dining room, and as close as I can with anyone who needs a hand. This is exciting.

I really enjoy this picture, Daniela first showed it to me.


I am currently loving the Rosie Thomas cd "These Friends of Mine"

And I just read that:

One of the ironies of courage and why we prize it so highly, is that we find it easier to be brave for someone else than we do for ourselves alone .

There's no believing in God...We either know God, or we don't.

Those come from a book set in India called Shantaram.

Keep well, and feel free to drop by the Seed. Bring yourself, or a bag of old clothes, or some willing working hands.

Kgotso.

one by one hidden up my sleeve

Good day.

Nicole and Ciara here!

I won't write much because I can't post many pictures and I don't want anyone falling asleep whilst reading my blog. I will just tell you that we are very safe and having way to much fun. We have seen the London sites, we went to an amazing play called The Woman in Black, and we found the best pub last night. We have explored markets of all kind, yesterday we went to the biggest market I have ever seen in my life. We have experienced hostel life and tomorrow morning we are flying to Ireland.

I am home home on the 23rd, and miss Ciara arrives on the 26th.

This one... Ciara and I went to a modern art museum. Really cool place, but as you can see.. very modern. I totally get this picture.. but it is probably way over your heads.

This one... Ciara and I went to a massive market yesterday and we wanted to stop and eat some cherries. We sat on this wagon. Then some guys, you can see them in the back ground, thought it would be funny to wheel us over to the pub where they were sitting. They were strange and old so we left. But at the time, as we were coasting over, hilarious.

Ok and this one.. Me and Ciara are really good at taking pictures of just our heads. We try to make sure your really have no idea where we are, we avoid all possible scenery. But I have heard that some of you just like to see the faces.. to know that the loved ones are ok.

love and thanks

we miss you like we miss you

open window

Hello,

Today was my last day in Africa. I can't really believe it. There have been times here where it felt so very long, but today I didn't feel like four months had passed. I am very glad because today just felt like an ordinary day and the younger kids didn't know that we were leaving.

Here are some pictures from the week.

Haha. This is me with Rachel and Meagan in some traditional wear. Ladies in red.


Here I am with the lovely Tankiso.


This is me with Louis and Gaelyns family. They are the wonderful fruit market pair.



And this is Regina and I with our matching cheeks.


Today we were the honorary guests at a school concert and if I could thank you all the way they have thanked us you would be in awe. We listenned to beautiful choirs, saw some really fun dancing and ate a traditional meal.

I do want to thank all of you who have been reading! Your emails and comments and ears to listen mean so much to me, and really keep me going.

I fly out of Johannesburg tommorow night and then I am meeting up with Ciara in London on June 6th. You will probably hear from me before I am home on the 23rd, but we are spending a few weeks around London and Ireland. I am so excited to see that girl.

I must go and finish packing and vat vat.

much love, for the last time from South Africa!
kgotso.

beautiful are the feet...

Dumela

I just wanted to ask you,


This is Rachel. She is one of the girls I am living with right now. Last week she visited a man in the village and prayed with him. He went completely blind a few months ago and we are doing what we can (praying) to change that. Please if you read this, take a minute and help us out.

Kgotso.

ignite your bones

Good evening on my end,

I decided it was time to write in here. I am actually procrastinating at the moment, so this is the perfect spot to spend some time.

It is really very cold here right now and it has been for a few weeks now. We have seen snow on the mountains. I spent my week up there completely bundled in blankets, and head scarfs.. I fit right in with the village ladies.

Let me just show you a few things

Here is a picture of my Kindergarten and Grade one class. This shot was during a game of Head and Shoulders.

This is me with a lot of the village ladies. We had a big gathering and then they all had quite the time dressing me up as a Lesotho woman.


Here is my preschool class! I am standing in the back with the three ladies that work with us, and then Meagan and Rachel.

On Friday of last week we traveled to another school in Qwa Qwa to do a presentation on AIDS. Can you spot the white girl?

And here I am with Taryn during our latest experiments with henna.

It is my last week here in South Africa. We are going up the mountain daily, and working at the school as well. I am excited for a few special dinner plans I have this week, and then Saturday is my full day in Jo-berg before I fly out. I am not the greatest at formal, deep hearted goodbyes, mostly because I don't want to show my emotions. I have no idea what will happen on the day I have to leave all of these kids.

For now I need to go so I can plan the primary school activities for this week, or maybe I will jump straight into my multi-layered bed. Thank you for reading.

Love and Love
Kgotso

namaste

Hello Again,

I am back from the mountain for this weekend and then I am off on Monday to live up there again for the week. First of all I must share with you my baking escapades. (Assuming you already know that usually I am no where near successful with my creations). Last week I baked some simple chocolate chip cookies, expecting them to be a flop. But they really weren't and I was able to give them to a family helps with the Ministry. Then I went back to visit them a few days later, and the cookies had been completely devoured. I promise this is rare. Then the mother asked me if I could bake her some more. She insisted on paying me, but I told her I would make her three times as many as before, and she just needs to pay in fruit. (They run a fruit market). So this morning I baked about 70 cookies for this family, and I promise you it is such a pleasure.

Moving on... these past two weeks on the mountain. Again I am so happy to have these Canadian girls visiting, they make for such a great last couple of weeks here. The weather has been less than great, the wind blows like crazy at night, and the temperature is dropping. I am going to whip up as many toques as I can this week to give through-out the village. The stars are in abundance though, lots of kids are coming to the care center, and teaching at the school is still so much fun. The power goes out every once and a while though and we had a flush your own (pour water through) toilet for most of our stay.

Some Highlights,

I know some of you have been awaiting a shot of Bernard, so here we are. I look a little cheesy and he looks a little queasy?


This picture is taken outside of our Hall at the care center. We had a village gathering where about 40 families picked up food parcels with lots of soup, spices, veggies and other non-perishables.


This is a photo of all of us girls when we went on a hike down a gorge. Beside me is Rachel then Meagan then Taryn. Behind us you can see some of the city Qwa Qwa.


This Tankiso in his One-Piece Red Suit, with me, wishing I had mine!


Here I am with the lovely Sito,(who we have totally potty trained!)We are doing our daily dance training.



And here I am reading to some of the kids in the village.
They go to the primary school we teach at, but I absolutely love hanging out with these ones. They totally remind me of the kids from Hook, or the island kids from Lord of the Flies. I was watching a village soccer game this week and all of a sudden the 6 and 7 year old girls came out of this little grass cave with fish tins and broken glass pieces filled with cheesy poofs. They threw me a surprise birthday party. I really could not stop laughing.

I should go, I have tons of phone calls to make, errands to run. That's a joke. But I will go find my place in the kitchen.
Only two weeks left here. Kind of crazy I think.

thank you for reading
mounds of love

Live and let live.

Hello

Today is such a beautiful day, I have walked and walked and walked and completely procrastinated anything of importance. Kind of nice.

Two sisters from Steinbach have come to join us for this month and they are such a blast. I am really looking forward to this time with them, it is a treat to have some fellow Canadians along.

We are leaving to live on the mountain tomorrow, for about three weeks. This is going to be great. What a way to finish off my time here. I will be able to use Internet in two weeks or so, and then at the end of this month I am off. I need to really milk these next few weeks. You know, become even closer with everyone on the mountain, pour out way more love than I thought I had in me... then pack up and take off. Scary.

This picture is with the lovely Enny. She lives on the mountain and volunteers as a main caregiver for us. On this day the ladies showed me how to make all the foods we feed the kids. My new favorite food is pumpkin!


And on this day we all became cats. A very good activity with the kids, some even went so far to lick our legs??


I must go mail and pack and bake and pack. Thank you again and again for reading and for the support that keeps me going.

Speak with you now

love and love and love

a mountain like you said to be

'Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you' I have chosen you for one another...Friendship is not a reward for our discrimination and good taste in finding one another out. It is the instrument by which God reveals to each the beauties of all others. They are no greater than the beauties of a thousand other men; by Friendship God opens our eyes to them. They are, like all beauties, derived from Him, and then, in a good Friendship, increased by Him through the Friendship itself, so that it is His instrument for creating as well as revealing.
-CS Lewis



'Those who have nothing can share nothing; those who are going nowhere can have no fellow travelers.'

Kgotso

so dam lucky...

yeah...

pinch me later for the horrible pun. The other day we visited a dam. Dams here are like lakes, not huge structures for water to pass through.

(I needed to put rocks in my pockets)

A fairly empty house today; some people are at the airport, and some are busy being soul mates. So Hylein and I watched Love Actually. Perfect Actually. Laurie has gone home and two Canadian girls will arrive tomorrow. This week we studied reptiles and discussed emotions at the primary school.

Here is Tshidiso with his fish puppet.

If you think to think of it, I am staying over in Lesotho tomorrow night. It needs to run smoothly. We are staying for the night so that when we cross back over into South Africa my visa will be extended.

love you, but my book is calling me.

never in the wrong time or place

Greetings,

I am back from the mountain, and I have managed to get the sniffles. People tell me that I get sick fast, but I must say that this is the first time in three months of being in Africa. Not so bad. This trip to the mountain was quite different than the last; the weather was cold and rainy for the most part, but I absolutely have some experiences to share. Laurie, the women who completely fits my vision of an All-American mom was with us. And she was totally that, a lively mother figure.


This is me and her on the game-drive. (I know it is a very cheesy picture with the wind blowing and what not)


We are still busy working at the primary school in the village, and it is still so much fun for me. This week we did lessons of families.

This picture shows me with some of the kids in the classroom. It is fairly mandatory that they wear their uniforms, with some exception.


And this one is during one of our crafts with them.


I set my frog free last week and so this week I found a new class pet. I heard him about a kilometre away and could not ignore the noise. Some kids were treating him horribly, like nothing I have seen before and I wanted to go and snatch him from them. I found him hidden behind a bush, shaking and in rough shape. I brought him back to the care centre, bathed him, fed him, and tried to get him to some health before I would loose him.

This is Patata. I named him that, after sweet potatoes. He is a very small puppy, who loves to eat tuna and pasta. I only had him for a few days but I tried in those days to nurse him back to some state of wellness. A very cute and loyal pup he is.


We were able to go back to the Shack church in town. As always, it was such a moving experience. The voices are something that cannot be forgotten. I will try and get some video up. Something to note though: I have found here that there are certain things that I cannot capture on camera or in film. I was thinking today that Africa is like that in many ways. The pictures I can get are things that you can picture; the skies, the singing and some of the people though, you seriously just have to be there. (Sorry).

This is Laurie and I with Stompy, the pastor of the Shack church.


At the care-center this week our theme was dinosaurs. One day we made costumes with them, turned out quite well.

This is the adorable Tshidiso.


Today was the first funeral I have ever been to. It is strange that my first one is in Africa, where funerals are a celebratory event, not a time for mourning. There was a girl in the village that died last week, so this Friday the parties began. What happens is her family needs to throw a large party. People do not come with food to comfort them; they come expecting food and drink. The family needs to pay to have a grave prepared, rental of a huge tent, and then the food. They need to sacrifice a cow so the skin can go in the grave; they need to kill a sheep for the gravediggers to eat, and then provide enough food for all the guests. Keep in mind this extremely costly event is a responsibility for what can be an extremely poor family. What we saw today was the parade of about 50 people singing and hiking down to the grave site.

This picture shows the house of the family, with the large tent for the party goers to stay over in.



Also this week, I had another terrifying bug experience, I sorted through over 500 cans of non-perishables, and one of the ladies we work with gave me some beautiful fabrics. The bug experience was last night, this time it was a huge, green, half spider half grasshopper with wings, that was lurking over my bed. I couldn't’t handle it so I moved my mattress into Laurie’s room. The cans I sorted were donations that we received and will distribute in the village. The best part though, I managed to salvage a few cans of creamed corn to indulge in! And the fabric, Martha was wearing a green looking head wrap and I asked her where she bought it. The next day she gave it to me with a matching skirt!

And one more photo. This is one of the only ways to capture the feeling in these surroundings.



love Nicole

because you shine

Demela,

I wanted to write today.
Some news: A wonderful lady from the States has joined us for a couple of weeks. Again, an American that represents the country in a such a positive, super hard to criticize way. Also, we started working at the school in the village every day and I am having such a great time doing it. To actually stand in front of a class, write on a board, pre-make lesson plans, I know I could do it for the rest of my life. One more thing, we are going to stay on the mountain for a week or so starting this weekend so I thought I would write a little something before another secluded adventure.

But here are some recent photos for you your viewing pleasure.

yes yes, I know I am not looking, but this one is good shot of the kids at their desks.


and this one... maybe you can imagine how much I loved standing at this chalkboard, with a classroom full of kids.


ah, and here, my wonderful little ones staying warm for the winter.


After Sunday here I will be off the Internet for a bit, so email before then if you need, otherwise I will speak with you now. (saying 'now' in South Africa means that I will speak with you any time between 2 minutes from now to 2 months)

love and love and love

Happy Easter!

It has been a while since I have filled you all in, but I thought I would wait until today so I could mention the week. I ventured into a new country, treated myself with tea, and we celebrated Easter all week with kids on the mountain. I got to do tons of crafts, and even play gym teacher!

Let's let the photos do the talking.

We went into Lesotho this week for a bbq inside of a cave. Lesotho is a very small country that is surrounded by South Africa. It is completely third world, very traditional villages inside. There were huge caves to see, a wall of purple rock, and the most intricate, beautiful trees.





The older kids that live in the village are on Holidays this week so we ran a program with them. Each day we did some stories, some music, some physical exercise and then crafts. On Thursday we decorated eggs with everyone. The ladies thought I was crazy, first off for coloring food when it could be eaten, and then for blowing the yokes through a small hole?





My kids are still doing well, they are learning lots. This week we are starting a unit on musical instruments and a lady from the US is coming. Here are the wee ones with their evil teacher making them write N n hundreds of times.



In other news, my favorite accessory in the house, a great shot of some kids outside, and I warned you... I treated everything with tea. No shame.







I hope you still love me after that last one...

Now go, and enjoy the eggs, the hams, and the Jesus.

much love