Fearless…or something like it.

I was told today that I was fearless.  I’ve never thought of myself in that way, because I definitely have areas of fear; but my attitude towards fear is…. ‘get over it’. (Sorry, if thats not the mushy-gushy sensitive approach.) Yes, there are things that make me nervous in life (crocs and sharks) but if given the opportunity I would dive in a shark cage or take a boat ride in a croc infested river….oh, already did that.  

Anyways, I haven’t bungee jumped or sky-dived (yet) but I have canopy glided (I think thats what you call it) in both Brasil and South Africa.  It was such a blast, and zip cording throughout the mountains and trees was so beautiful and breathtaking. If you ever have the chance to do it, I highly recommend it….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Soooo, here’s the question: what have you done that is fearless??? What would you like to do, but fear has kept you from doing it???

Cape Town…apparently

Out of pure boredom the other day, I took a fb quiz entitled, “Where should you be living?”  Here was my result:

The quiz wasn’t too far off…I completely love Cape Town and could see myself living there.  Sooooo, here’s the question of the day.  If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you choose to live????

Drugs, Alcohol, Dagga, and Cigarettes

If that doesn’t grab you attention, I don’t know what will.  For the past 2 weeks, these topics have been my focal point.  You might be wondering, why… and I don’t judge you if you do.  While I am here at Thrive Africa, I’ve been helping out with Leadership Summit, a program their mission uses to reach thousands of kids in South Africa.  (please go to their website if you would like more information)

I am helping to write a new curriculum, which will bring awareness to the many issues these kids are facing on a daily basis.  My topic?  Drugs, Alcohol, Dagga (marijuana) and cigarettes.  We wanted to get insight into what they actually know about these topics, so I went to the schools and sat down to talk with them.  It was an eye-opening experience.  Many of these teens (ages 14-17) are taught absolutely nothing about drugs or the effects they can have.  These teens were literally begging us to give them more information. They are hungry to know, as their knowledge is limited to what they learn from other kids.  

As we sat down with them, they shared stories about themselves, their families, their friends, and other teens they know.  They opened up about the struggles they are facing, and not knowing how to overcome them.  They talked about teen pregnancy, rape, AIDS, and drugs.  Stories that would bring you to tears… 

After my day at the schools, I have finished writing the curriculum book, and now we will be working toward the editing process. It’s been awesome being able to contribute to the progress Leadership Summit is making in these teenagers lives’ (even in a small way).

Here are some pics of us talking with the teens: 

Lion Cub Day!

I went with the team yesterday to the Lion Park.  It was one of their free day activities, so I decided to join them.  We had so much fun!  I got to pet, play with, and hold 3 lion cubs and were they ever so cute.

(To see a slideshow of more pictures click here)

Chegei

First and foremost I must thank everyone for all your prayers during these past 2 days.  I know that I’ve been covered, and I must say it was the easiest road trip I’ve ever had (and that’s saying a lot driving here in Africa!).  I left Sunday morning at 6:30 am and arrived in Harrismith around 2:30 pm Monday afternoon.  I stayed overnight in Lobatse, a town located right at the border of Botswana and South Africa, on Sunday night.  I woke up early Monday morning to finish the 2nd leg of my trip.  I think this was the 1st time I’ve driven so far alone, which was quite the accomplishment for me  I thought I would end this blog with some fun facts from the trip:

Total Distance in Kilometers traveled: 1667 K

Total Hours Spent Driving: 10 hours (1st day) + 7 hours (2nd day) = 17 hours

Total Amount for Petrol Spent in Botswana (Pula): P1028.85 = (US$158.28)

Total Amount for Petrol Spent in South Africa (Rand): R583.12 = (US$77.75)

Total Amount for Tolls in South Africa (Rand): R149.90 = (US$20)

Total Number of Donkeys/Cows/Goats Seen in Botswana: Too many to even bother counting

***I had a couple of photo moments, but since I was on a mission I didn’t stop to take any (sorry, mom)…but they do deserve mention:

1.  Coming out of Maun, I saw the hugest male Kudo I have ever seen in my life on the side of the road.  It was just standing there staring at me, and I debated long and hard about stopping to take a picture of him, knowing that I probably wouldn’t see one that large again.  In the end, my indecisiveness won out, and I just kept driving.

2.  Right after the Kudo sighting I saw a “Racing Stripes” moment.  My nephew brought that movie when they came to visit, so I had just finished watching it days before.  The scene I saw reminded me so much of a scene from the movie.  On one side of a fence was a zebra and on the other were 3 horses.  They were all facing each other, in what could only be described as being deep in conversation.  It was too cute!  Once again, I thought of backing up to take a photo, but again….nope! ( Watch the movie if you want a visual image. )

S.A.

We are finally here!!! After a gruelling 10 hour drive down to Gaborone…then another 5 hours to Johannesburg, we made it here at noon today. What was the first thing we did you might be asking? MCDONALDS! We (the Walker family and I) headed for McDonalds to eat at the restaurant of our forefathers. hehehehe (OK, that is pushing it a bit, but after a year one gets sentimental about home food.)

It is so good to be back in a big city…full of people, cars, malls, and everything else! I feel like I’m home again! Tonight we are going to go watch a movie at a movie theater, eat Japanese food, and finally relax.

It’s great to be on vacation!!!!