All Good Things

Hello! Just in case anyone checks this for updates on Chris, I’ll give you a whirlwind. In the 2+ weeks I’ve been here, all his staples and stitches have come out, he’s moved out of the rehab hospital and back into his home, and he gets stronger every day. Physically his progress is noticeable and fairly quick; cognitively it will be a much longer road. Sometimes he’s completely with-it and we can have the same types of conversations we used to before the accidents. Other times he doesn’t remember that he and his family are moving back to Alaska and can’t understand why they would do that. Things are less clear when he’s tired, and it’s difficult for him to sleep, so that’s a double-edged sword. He’s started taking sleeping medication, which helps but has never done much for Chris as he’s naturally a very very light sleeper. We push for relaxing days, early nights, and naps in the afternoon.

In the meantime, the rest of us are playing with Holden and trying to tie up all loose ends that come with moving away from a home they’ve built over the past 4 years. This includes not only canceling cable and closing gym memberships, but also saying goodbye to dear friends, to the woman who helps keep the house, and the children they’ve connected with through a big-brother big-sister type organization over here. It has become very clear to me how involved Lisa, Chris and Holden have been in their community, and the outpouring of support from all over the world speaks volumes to their generous natures and magnetic personalities. Thanks so much to everyone!

I’ll include a few photos from these past weeks. A couple days ago Andrew, Chris’ brother, arrived to join the crew so that’s who the new face is.

Back in South Africa

Despite my best intentions to keep this blog going throughout the past year, grad school proved all-encompassing and my spare time was spent sleeping, enjoying friends and, shockingly, traveling! Weddings in Boston, Boise, Dallas and Denver; adventures to the mountains and the coast of Oregon; family reunions in Alaska, Alabama and California. Maybe some day I’ll detail some highlights here (there were many!), but for now, my current journey.

I’m back in Cape Town with my sister and her family, which is bittersweet. I love being here and getting to see this family I hold so dear, but the trip was prompted by misfortune. At the end of October, my brother-in-law Chris was in a terrible scooter accident, which had him in Intensive Care for weeks. It was very much a life or death situation, and we’re so thankful he survived! Just a week ago he was transferred to a rehab hospital, where they are doing physical and occupational therapy for broken bones in his leg, clavicle and face, as well as a traumatic brain injury. Meanwhile, my sister Lisa is running the house and preparing to move her family home, taking care of her 1.5 year old son Holden, all while 5 months pregnant. The two of them are such inspirational role models, with different but equal challenges; it’s an honor to get to help however I can.

Chris can speak, eat, and now even stand on his own (for brief periods), and his long term memory is solid. He has trouble with vision, occasional confusion, and his short term memory is less reliable. He has many of the same characteristics we all know and love, as well as new traits we will continue to learn about and understand. Thankfully, his good friend Chris K. and his wife Cyndy moved to Cape Town last summer, and they have been unbelievably supportive and wonderful for Chris, Lisa and Holden. My dad and Chris’ dad flew over from Anchorage right after the accident; Dave stayed a couple weeks and my dad just left a couple hours after I arrived. They too were instrumental in getting Lisa’s family through the beginning of the ordeal. Another college friend of Chris’ came as well, Pilar, and again the support was appreciated and much needed. A big thanks to all of them!! I hope I can continue where you left off.

I look forward to the coming weeks with both intimidation and optimism. I know Chris’ recovery will be a long and challenging road for both him and his family, and I have every faith that they are up to the task. Just tonight we celebrated the great improvements made thus far, and toasted the journey ahead with a round of mocktails. Love and support from around the world have been flowing in, and are felt and appreciated. Cheers!

Home again, home again…

Jiggity jig! Although my African adventure ended only 3 months ago, it feels worlds away. I have some reminders that it in fact happened (like this growing-out blonde hair, and my short stint of fame with the internship director for having worked somewhere with Desmond Tutu in the name), but the intensity of school quickly erased the calm pace of life to which I’d grown accustomed. I have continued to travel and grow, and maybe best of all, I have continued to learn from my experiences abroad and to share that knowledge with others.

I intended to write a post on the struggles of an international NGO, part II, with a focus on the strain that comes when an organization doesn’t have a strategic plan. However, this quarter I took a class on the subject, and realized how common it is for nonprofits to be lacking in this area, and that the issues that arise are the same across international lines. The struggle that binds!

The day I left, Lisa, Chris and Holden all took me to the airport on a sunny Cape Town afternoon. 32 hours later, I landed in Portland. I flew home to Oregon on Emirates Air via Dubai, and was astounded at the new technology on planes! Not only were there hundreds of movies and music channels, there were 3 cameras outside of the plane for our viewing pleasure, you could call other seats or even down to earth (just $5/minute), and they even had a Harry Potter ceiling! When they wanted us to sleep, the plane was a dark and starry night, and they slowly woke us up with the best fake-sunrise I’ve ever seen. I know all this because, with so many movie options, how was I supposed to sleep??! Dubai’s airport was shiny and gold all over, and the city was unfortunately blurry through the sun-protected windows. This, combined with a little sleep deprivation, only added to the mystique. Maybe next time…

 

As I flew over a night-dark Africa, I reflected on my time spent halfway around the world. The smiling orphans in Chiri, the comfortable home Erin and Jeff had made for themselves at Lalmba, the mud of Ethiopia, the stark contrast of wealthy neighborhoods and townships in Cape Town, the dedicated staff at the DTHF, the quest for equality slowing progressing in South Africa, and the wonderful love of family in Lisa and Chris’ swank apartment. What wonders to behold. Somewhere over Zambia I looked down, and noticed fires burning every so often in the vast countryside. In each of those villages and homes lived people who were just as happy as I’ve ever been and ever want to be. And though their daily lives are hugely different from my own, it is our similarities that connect us. Thank you, world, for your welcoming character and generous spirit; this humble traveler is in your debt.

Cape Point National Park

Bontebok. Dassies. Ostrich. Baboons. Egyptian ducks. Giant grasshoppers. These are the animals we saw this past weekend, out at Cape Point National Park. Lisa, Chris, Holden and I packed up enough food for about seven weeks and drove down to the southern tip of the western cape, to check out Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope. The park “cabin” we stayed at was super nice, with an indoor fireplace, an outdoor stone “braai” and a tire swing with a view!

Most of our time was spent either preparing or eating food, but we also found time for some hiking. We started at the Cape of Good Hope, where the Atlantic meets the Indian Ocean. The point was named to describe the positive breakthrough this sailing route created, and Vasco da Gama was the first to turn this corner and sail from Europe to India in 1497.

From there we hiked east to Cape Point to check out the lighthouse. The baboons beat us to the punch, but they were kind enough to share the trail.

The weather was gorgeous all weekend, so it was easy for us to take advantage of our wildlife opportunities.  It seems both everyone and everything was outside enjoying the sun! We had to hike to see some of the wildlife, but both the bontebok and grasshoppers were just outside our door.  The antelope were bigger, but only slightly.  Gross.

I guess love is in the air this spring, as could be seen with both the ostriches and the humans. Matches made in heaven!

Tomorrow I head home – I sure will miss this country, but even more so my sweet Lisa, Chris, and Holden!! Thank you times a million for the wonderful experience.

Long Walks to Freedom

Sorry for the long post, but it was another big day! Chris and I started climbing Table Mountain around 7:30am and made it up the 1050m peak in under an hour. I was exhausted! Chris wanted to go faster. Good pair! The trail was comprised primarily of large stones set as rough steps, and took us through Platteklip Gorge, a little trail between towering cliffs on either side. Once we got to the switchbacks (where barbed wire marks the trail to ensure hikers don’t veer) the mountain rock was dripping water, slowly oozing it out like a supersaturated sponge. Once we reached the tabletop, the views were spectacular. We could see the coast about as far south as it goes, and even the cloud grouping in the distance that marks Antarctica! We hung out for a bit at the summit, jumping between boulders and balancing on walls, before taking the gondola back down to the base. It was a great trip, and completely warranted the feast of freshly baked pastries we enjoyed when we got home. Thanks Chris!

Next I hopped on a ferry to Robben Island, which has been a Dutch prison, a leper colony (leaving 1500 people buried there who died from the disease), a military stronghold, and again a prison during the apartheid, famous for housing many prominent activists and future political leaders. Among these was Nelson Mandela, who was on the island for 18 of his 27 total years of imprisonment, before becoming the first black President of South Africa. Today the island is open for tours given by ex-inmates, and houses a school, post office, shop, and church. As a prison, Robben Island was notorious for treating inmates badly, and for many years they didn’t have beds to sleep in, just two thin mats to cushion them from the cold, hard cement floors. The prisoners’ days started with breakfast at 7:30 (which varied depending on race – coloreds and Asians were given more meat, and bread twice a day, while blacks only got a powder that turned to a starchy substance when mixed with water. No whites were sentenced to Robben Island), then hard labor outside until 4:30pm with a short break for lunch. Prisoners serving life sentences were forced to work at the quarry all day. Unlike other quarries, here they had to break up the rock with picks and shovels, or sometimes their hands; they weren’t given gloves or sunglasses, and the bright light from the limestone caused permanent damage to the eyesight of everyone who worked there; often they’d move piles of rock from point A to point B, only to move it back to point A the next day. The inmates would sneak to a cave in the back to escape the elements, or to hold secret Parliament. They called it “the university” and they would write things in the sand for others to read later; the motto was “each one teach one.”

Mandela was one of these prisoners. He was kept in B section – solitary confinement. The cells here were smaller than the island’s dog kennels. They had no toilets, just buckets. They did have a small cement yard where they could play tennis or volleyball, and they would sneak messages to other cellblocks hidden inside of tennis balls. It was here Mandela began his book, A Long Walk to Freedom, which was smuggled out with a fellow inmate to a publisher in London. It is remarkable to think that even after 27 years of being locked up, Mandela forgave those who imprisoned him, and lead the country through the beginnings of the reparations between races at the end of apartheid. Inspiring, indeed.

Super Sabado Sensacional!

What a day! I woke up early for some yoga with Taryn, then Lisa, Chris, Holden and I set off for a day of fun. We started with a visit to the market in the Bo-Kaap (which means Upper Cape), a vibrant and colorful neighborhood in Cape Town. This area is home to a large Muslim population, and the call to prayer I heard was the first since Ethiopia. The majority of the people who live here are “colored” people, which is South Africa’s way to basically say mixed race. We enjoyed visiting the “cultural and heritage gateway” (according to their pamphlet) and left the market with some sour candied apricot and pineapple achat – yummy!

Next we drove out to Gugulethu to visit Pumza, a friend of Lisa’s from DTHF who also recently had a baby. Anan, Pumza’s daughter, is beautiful! She and Holden got along right away, and Pumza’s mother taught Lisa how to tie Holden to her back with just a wrap or towel. While in the township we went by Mzoli’s and Chris showed me around. Holy cow! This place has freshly butchered meats that you buy by the pound, and they give you in a big bowl. Then you take it through a hallway to the braai (grill) where they prepare your food. From there you walk through a passage to the outdoor tented seating area, decked out with picnic tables, 2 djs and a tv showing today’s soccer game – it was a block party to end all! BYO starches and beverages and you could easily spend all day here (but maybe not by the braai – in health policy we were worried about a single small cooking fire inside, try multiple indoor wood-burning grills!). On the way out of Gugs we passed a cell tower cleverly disguised as a tree, and once again South Africa has pleasantly surprised me.

From there we drove out to Franschhoek, where many of the local wineries were involved in a festival, meaning special tasting deals and live music. First we stopped at Hillcrest Berry Orchards for delicious scones, cheeses and jellies, and then it was off to Rickety Bridge Winery. Sadly, we just missed the kiddy rides on a vintage Dodge truck, but the atmosphere and beautiful weather made up for it.

Finally we ended the day at Spier, a winery in Stellenbosch with a buffet dinner and musical show at the restaurant. This place is amazing! For starters, the food was off the hook. I had plate after plate of traditional South African dishes, including springbok, pop (a grits-like starch), bobotie (South African national dish), and seriously the best creamed spinach I’ve ever even heard of. Then came desserts – good night! Our seating was in a large outdoor tent with two stages, but they also have tree house tables and private lounge tents scattered throughout the grounds. The show was a mixture of a solo guitar act, traditional Xhosa and Zulu song and dance, and even a finale performance of Freshlyground/Shakira’s world cup song Waka Waka. To top it all off, they even painted our faces. If you know me well, you’ll know that this place was PERFECT for me!!

The Event

This week the Desmond Tutu HIV Foundation had the fundraiser I’ve working on, and it was a complete success! Pieter-Dirk Uys, South Africa’s most recognizable political satirist and drag queen (and member of the DTHF board), donated the opening night of his latest show to the organization. The theater donated their staff for the evening, as well as a beautiful studio where we hosted the post-show reception, which was generously sponsored; the caterers came in well under par meaning program printing was also covered; wine and flowers were given in-kind. All of this adds up to pure profits, a fundraiser’s dream!

Although it was a fairly simple event from our standpoint, there were still details needing attention, and it all came back to me like riding a bike (never thought I’d say it, but thank you Peter Poulos!!). It went without a hitch – the house was full, the food delicious, the energy was high, the audience loved it. Aside from raising money for the foundation, the show also raised awareness about HIV/AIDS (especially when Uys made an announcement about our services during the show), as well as positive hype about the organization. The DTHF isn’t nearly as well-known in the community as it should be, so the social marketing provided by the event was priceless. Even the Premier attended! The performance itself was also fantastic (at least, the part I understood – half the show was in Afrikaans), and made the audience reflect as well as laugh. I was fortunate enough to speak with Uys after the show; he told me about instructive theater programs he’s worked on with UCLA and I told him about UO’s troupe Rehearsals for Life – both use theater to break down barriers and make taboo subjects somehow ok to discuss. That’s the magic of theater, being able to illicit strong emotional responses without the resentment and anger political debates can carry. He said “I like to offend my audience, but only once!”

The evening was fun, and it’s a relief to see my efforts of these past four weeks come to fruition. I’m certainly glad to be done sending e-mails and worrying about signage, but sad to realize that all that’s left is to write up a report. Summer’s winding down, which means school’s coming. Soon I’ll be studying for exams instead of planning parties ending with cream puffs. Guess I’d better stock up on these life desserts while I still can!