2/18/2014

Hello everyone!

Sorry I haven't posted since 'Nam. I totally suck at this blogging thing. So much has been going on I've been completely zonked by the end of the day. All I can say is that it is going great on my side of the world. I've been learning all sorts of new things including some words in Afrikaans, none of which I remember or am actually saying correctly. I've become trained in for belaying, first aid, and life coaching which is all pretty sweet. We've also been doing a lot of mountain hikes, archery, tomahawking (old school hatchet throwing), african drumming, and a whole bunch of swimming. 

We. Eat. So. Much. Chicken. 

We've had a run in with baboons coming into camp trying to snag some grub. One managed to run off with a head of lettuce... Must be watching his figure. Later when we were talking with the baboon monitors I learned the dieting baboon was named Merlin, he's 16 years old, has lost most of his teeth, and he is the alpha in the troop. Those guys are huge though for real! It was pretty cool to experience. While Merlin and his monkey friend were busy raiding camp you could see the rest of the troop up on the mountain watching. A few were chillen on a big rock not too far up from camp and you could see a baby baboon walking around and having his hair cleaned, he was super tiny so he was adorable. 

During first aid training we learned about all the obvious first aid stuff, but we also had to learn about all the creepy crawleys that you can find around camp including some crazy venomous snakes like the puff adder and the cape cobra. One bite from one of those guys and you'll be a goner in about an hour.... So that's reassuring.

That one is the cape cobra

,

This guy is a puff adder

Pretty nasty, eh?

I should be getting my camera cord pretty soon so I'll be able to upload some legit pictures for you all to gawk over. In the meantime here are some low quality pictures from my iPad for you to see...

 It has been HOT lately, especially when there is no wind, I've been loading on the SPF in hopes to defend my ginger skin from the killer rays, unfortunately it hasn't worked so well in my favor. I've sprouted more freckles than I can count and my hair is beginning to turn white in some places. I have complete faith that once I'm home I'll bounce right back to my pale self in no time, but for that short amount of time I will be tanner than all of you Minnesotans and I will be sure to let you know every chance I get. 

Some bad news though......... I've started picking up their slang. I CAN'T HELP IT! I haven't started sounding funny or anything, but I've started using phrases that I've heard nonstop since I've been over here. For example.... This is so embarrassing... 

Instead of saying "the truck" it is now comfortably called "the bakke" (pronounced bucky)

A BBQ  is no longer a BBQ but rather a "braai" 

Instead of replying to something with a phrase like "oh really?!" I now say "is it?!"

And instead of saying "that sucks" or "that's too bad" or "bummer" it's perfectly normal to just say "shame"

Don't worry though I've gotten my revenge as my roommates now use the word "like" a lot. Which is enough for me! 

Thanks to modern technology I've been able to Skype and FaceTime with my friends and family almost daily. It's really helpful otherwise I would be tragically homesick and feel like I was totally on another planet. The good news that I haven't been homesick and cried yet.. So that's cool because it's totally got me shocked. I'm a big baby. Strangely enough after two months I already feel at home. My roommates feel like siblings and it's fun having them to laugh and banter with. 

I miss my dog Fargo though. Like a lot. More than most people... No offense guys. If you have a dog you understand. So I can't wait to see him most of all. 

I still miss all of you and can't wait to see you all in 10 1/2 more months! Time flies, hey? 

Xo.

Skype me if you feel like it! KronkMcSpanky 

1/27/2014

Hey guys!

I spent my weekend hosting my first camp with another intern, Tarryn. It was a lot of fun but not overwhelming for us because we totally lucked out and got a group that had been coming for quite some time now and one of the leaders was actually a former intern here at Rockland's. The main leader was Janet, if you don't remember she was the woman I stayed with in Fish Hoek for a few days, who is also a trustee and has been around for 25 years. So it's safe to says that this camp knew the ropes quite well. Sunday I got locked in the bathroom. I got out of the shower to find that the door handle broke from inside the door and we had to drill out the window. I felt like I was escaping from prison so it was pretty cool. It gave us all a good laugh.

We've continued our training and start programming this week which means that we will lead campers in assorted activities throughout the day like the climbing wall, drumming, the initiatives course, archery, tomahawking, etc. Today we went out with the campers to the initiatives course and watch as they worked together to complete all of the obstacles together. Tonight we took them up the mountain trail for a night hike. It went pretty well. Only one camper twisted her ankle but aside from that it was a good time. I saw a few different spiders and some hissing cockroaches (at least I think that's what they were).

On an ending note I found ketchup! If you know my family you should know that ketchup may as we'll be its own food group. I finally spotted it at the grocery store and actually dropped to my knees and hugged the bottle of ketchup. Tarryn was with me and she stood there looking at me like I was completely insane and kept telling me to get off the ground. Eventually, I got up.... But only to sprint to the check out counter. All around it has been a pretty good week!

Xo

I think I figured out how to add photos!

1/20/2014

Hello everyone!

I apologize for my lack of posting. I've been keeping myself busy with getting settled, meeting the other interns, and starting training.

The first week of training went really well. I met the other interns, Tarryn, Christine, Charnel, Simon, and Matthew, who I also with be sharing a house with over the next year. We're all relatively close in age, but this is the first time I've been one of the older ones out of the group. I share a room with Tarryn and Charnel, Simon and Matthew shard a room, and Christine has her own because it's her second year at Rocklands. Our house overlooks the ocean and it equipped with two bathrooms, a kitchen, living room, and three bedrooms. It's very comfortable.

We've spent a lot of time training so far. This last week we spent learning knots and rock climbing which I think I've got a knack for as it has been coming pretty easy to me. What hasn't come all that easily is trying to get my sleep schedule on track. Being 8 hours ahead has proven to be pretty difficult. I find myself dozing off during the day and waking up at strange hours at night, but it will sort itself out.

The other interns are from Cape Town so they get to go home on thief days off, and I am totally jealous of that. This last weekend I kept myself busy when everyone went home. Friday, I went into Simon's Town and walked around for a bit, then had dinner at a place by the beach. I had calamari that was stuffed with shrimp and it was so good I'm drooling thinking about it. Saturday, I went downtown with some friends I know from Africa Jam and had a good night with them. Unfortunately I dropped my phone in a toilet and it has decided that it's finally had enough of my shenanigans and went to iPhone heaven... Luckily I still have my iPad, so I'm not completely unplugged.

The view here is breath taking. I can't even give it the credit it deserves. It's like living in a dream world. However, my favorite part is the stars at night. They're so big and bright it's hypnotizing. I've said it a million times, but I really do wish I could take pictures with my eyes so I could share the world the way I see it.

Though night is my favorite time it is also a dreaded part of the day because it brings home sickness to surface. I didn't feel it much at first, but after three weeks it's starting to sneak up on me every now and then. It really doesn't bother me too much, really, I knew it was going to happen eventually... It's only natural Honestly though, when I wake up mornings after being homesick I feel downright ridiculous for being all somber when I get to wake up to such an amazing place, not the mention how many people would be more than happy to be in my position (especially the ones freezing in the blizzards back home).

I really do love it here. I don't ever want to leave! Luckily, I don't have to for another 11 months. I'll  try to post some pictures I've taken so you can see (if you haven't already on my Facebook) if I could ever figure out this stupid blog thing... We'll see. Anyway, that's all for now because I'm pretty tired. I'll try to be better about posting!

Until later!

Maggie
Xo

Africa Jam Camp

Well here we are on day 3 of Africa Jam camp and it has been going great! A lot of positive energy from the campers and staff has made being tired in the morning well worth it. We have teens here from a number of townships, and by the end of day 1 everyone has already started making new friends. All of us staff have divided up into different tasks varying from life guarding, counseling, fun squad, clean up crew, patrol, etc. I started camp as a life guard but was quickly recruited as a member of the fun squad for the week. Our job is to lead the campers in activities throughout the day and make sure energy levels stay high and everyone is getting involved.

The first day we welcomed the campers as they got off the buses and got them all checked in. Later on we had to divide the campers into teams that they will be on the rest of the week. We led them in a bunch of games and dancing after they had all arrived. At night we had evening worship followed by small group devotions and then snack. The first night the fun squad put on a show similar to Comedy Sportz (improv entertainment) and the campers took really well to it. By the end of the night we were all ready for bed.

Day two we started with breakfast and I say with a group of girls around the ages of 13-16. They showed me pictures of themselves and friends and filled me in on who the "cute boys" at camp were. I also shared pictures of my family and friends with them. PJ and Donny now have a growing fan club here in Cape Town.... Big surprise there. After breakfast we meet in the chapel area for a large group bible study kind of deal where the camp theme "Enlarge My Territory" was introduced and one of the leaders, Mr. X, gave a small sermon. Then we broke off into small groups and discussed in depth what we had just learned about.

After small groups we headed to the gym to play circle scavenger which is a game where the teams they were divided into the day before all send up different representatives to compete in different tasks. Walking into the gym I had a camper pull me aside to ask if she could speak with me. As I walked outside with her I was expecting her to ask me something simple, perhaps about what home for me was like, but when we got outside she opened with, "Do you fear death?"

It took me back for a moment and I stood there thinking to myself, how can I possibly come up with the right answer? Do I fear death? She stood there looking at me to say something and after a few moments I finally tried to explain how I thought that each person has their own interpretation of the "correct" answer to that question but as an end result I don't think that people really fear death but rather what they will miss when they are gone. So maybe it isn't dying that is feared but the fear instead is not living. We carried on talking on a nearby rock for nearly an hour and a half. She told me about the things that's were troubling her back home, personal battles she has faced and defeated along with those that she is still fighting with. She spoke about how important it was to her to get an education, talked about her friends, and how she feels misunderstood by her peers. Near the end of our conversation I realized I didn't even know this girls name. It left me completely amazed that this perfect stranger confided in me and looked to me for the right answer. After I learned her name we spoke for a few more minutes and she ran off to join her friends during free time. It only occurred to me after she left that we had been sitting in direct sunlight and I wasn't wearing sunscreen.... Sunburn well worth it.

Later in the day I met with Vyan, she and her husband are directors of Rockland's Centre and I will be working for them over the next year. We drove to a home down the way with another family, who will also be working here at Rockland's, to meet with a woman named Susan. After a short visit we hiked back to camp and Vyan also showed me how to identify porcupine droppings! After evening worship the staff put on a talent show which was really a variety of skits to entertain the campers. After that we had snack ad sent the campers off to bed. By the end of day two my body was sore from constant movement and sunburn and I was totally ready to crash.

Each night at evening chapel is an amazing experience. Their ways of worship are very different from church back home. Here it is all singing and dancing and it is completely consuming. Looking around the room at evening chapel is very moving. Watching as everyone puts their entire soul into worshiping is really something. Every night we have a different speaker who comes into camp and preaches to the campers with a sermon that is relevant to the expanding your territory theme.

The first we had a man, Pastor Kennedy, who came and gave a very moving sermon and personalized t so well that everyone in the room felt that they could relate. He told us the story of Jabez and how he prayed to God to help him enlarge his territory   He went on to tell us of all the things he has lost; a child, his job, his money, his car, his phone, everything had been taken from him except his faith. He spoke how he held on to God and how he has been given new opportunities that have been changing the way he lives and how he is expanding his territory.

The second night we had a woman speaker names Dominique Adams. Dominique began her sermon in a more playful way by having the campers imagine there was a machine that you could put anything into and have it become enlarged. She then spoke of her own personal struggles that started at a young age with physical abuse which later became sexual abuse. She spoke about her failed suicide attempt and how she was admitted into the hospital on suicide watch for a few months after. Then about how she had fallen in love, only to lose him to cancer. Then again how she fell in love with the man she is now happily married to and started a family, but then fell I'll during her pregnancy and was bed ridden for 7months and lost half her body weight. She encouraged the camp to see that when everything seems to be going horribly wrong that by continuing to worship and looking to God it will all turn out right and she is now blessed with two sons. She closed in a song that all of the campers seemed to know and ended her sermon on a very powerful note.

Africa Jam camp so far has been incredible and I am very fortunate to be a part of it. There is so much joy and music that it brings out a light in everyone and it is super contagious. I swear everyone here can sing and dance. It's like a country of Beyoncé's. As I get to know more and more campers and staff here I've found that we really aren't that different but we just have different battles to face. I've been in this country for 5 days and I already feel I am at home here. Don't get me wrong I know where my roots are and I miss my friends and family more than anything, but I can already feel myself growing into a person that I am more proud to be. Not to mention that I am physically sore from all the activity I've been doing. At this rate I can't wait to see what I can make of this experience.

Keep checking back! Xo
Maggie

P.S. You may all want to punch me for saying this considering I'm in 80 degree weather...... But I also miss wearing my oversized sweaters, leggings, and smart wools.

1/1/2014

Happy New Year! New Years for me was great. I got into Cape Town about an hour before midnight and met up with the group of Africa Jammers at a sweet little place a few blocks from the hotel. We met some pretty righteous people, many who were dressed in costumes, and it seemed like a second Halloween. I also got my first South African number.. so even after 33 hours of traveling I was still looking pretty human!

Today was totally awesome. I woke up at 9:30 for breakfast and then I was able to video chat with some of my friends back home who were still celebrating the new year. It looked like they were having as much fun as I did the night before (remember I am 8 hours ahead). After I talked to my friends I tried to nap but that completely failed because Cinderella was on tv. As I watched it I quickly realized that I don't ever remember seeing the entire movie and was confused by the last chunk of the movie. I'll have to watch it another time.

After my attempted nap I met up with Billy Johnson, Julie Nielson (Billy's girlfriend), Marnie Carlson,  Kristi Youngdahl, and Grady St. Dennis to go to Camps Bay beach. It was packed with people enjoying the 80 degree weather. While we were waiting for Kristi and Julie to get water outside of the Pick n Pay (grocery store) some nutty old lady came up to me, Marnie, Billy, and Grady as we were applying sunscreen. We thought that maybe she wanted some as well because she kept holding out her arm and waving it around but then suddenly this woman grabs my arm and leaned in to try and kiss my girls! I jumped away quickly, because I mean this lady could have at least bought me dinner first, and she carried on walking down the street. The four of us stood there for a couple minutes processing what just happened, then we had a good laugh about it.

Once we got down to the beach we found a nice spot and caught some rays. The beach was packed with people and the tide was bringing in some huge waves so we went down for a swim to cool off. In the water there was maybe hundreds of people and they all started to clap their hands and began singing a song that everyone seemed to know so I would guess that it may be an anthem of some sort. It was one of the most fun things I've ever seen. As the waves crashed to the shore everyone was playing in the water and the children would run up and splash and we would return with splashes back to them. As one of the bigger waves came in I had every intention of running further up shore so I wouldn't be taken out by it but some local guys noticed my hesitation and picked me up and carried me closer to the swell and we were all taken out. It was pretty fun.

Later in the day we saw a girl around the age of a high schooler be carried up to the lifeguard building and she didn't appear to be conscious. We are unsure of what happened but soon we were being told to move back and before we knew it a helicopter was flying in to be landed right where we were on the beach! I had never seen such a thing. As it was landing sand and towels were flying everywhere. Eventually they got the girl into the helicopter and I'm unsure of what happened after that. We took that as our cue to leave and came back to the hotel. I went up to my room and laid down to nap again but ended up sleeping until midnight.

Tomorrow we will make our way to Africa Jam camp which is held at Rocklands Centre where I will also be working for the next year. I'm excited to see the new campers and reunite with the old. I'll keep you updated through out camp, but for now it's back to bed.

Much love! Xo

Maggie

Happy New Year!

Well, the day has finally arrived! I've said my goodbyes, packed my life into a suitcase, gone through the tedious visa application process, and done my best to prepare myself for the great year that lies ahead. I have so many thanks to give I don't know where to begin. My family, for starters, has been absolutely wonderful, family friends have shown such love, and my friends have made my last few months simply perfect.

I've had the best time living with my grandparents the last couple months (though I was rarely home except to shower, eat, and nap). It was great hearing stories from their youth and their travel stories.

My brothers have had nothing but encouraging words for me along the way. For those of you who don't know... Donny and I were at St. Cloud together and when I transferred to North Dakota I was lucky enough to be with PJ! This will be the longest I've spent away from either of them and that will be tough.

My parents have been wonderful. They have been at my side the entire way supporting me 100% and that couldn't have been easy! My dad has spent so much time making sure that everything works out in the smoothest way possible and I can't thank him enough for all of his help. My mom has held it together far better than I had ever expected, even when I had let my nerves get the best of me. It's very reassuring to know that I have two of the best people looking out and taking care of me. I love you guys!

To everyone who has donated to help support making my dreams a reality (with words of advice, prayers, and those who donated money to help fund my trip)... I honestly will never be able to thank you enough for the love you have shown me. Thank you thank you THANK YOU!

All of my friends that have spent time with me these last couple months... You have no idea how much it has all meant to me. Whether we spent just a few minutes together or a few days it really meant so much to me to be surrounded by people I love. I made so many new friendships in such a short time and strengthened many old ones. You all better skype me or I'm going to drop kick you upon my return.

I know that I haven't had too much to write about (and I'm really not much of a writer anyway) but the wait is over and it's all starting to unravel. I'll land in Cape Town around 9:40pm (8 hours ahead of Central time) and then I will meet up with the Africa Jam 2014 group! From there my true journey will begin and I expect it to be a year of lessons, memories, and great friendship. Keep following and I'll keep you posted! Happy New Year!!!