11/25/2010

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. By far.

It has been a bit of a culture shock today to meet people, greet them with "Happy Thanksgiving", and hear virtually nothing in return. Obviously, South Africa needs me, if only to teach them about this eating contest every November. Maybe next year I'll write a grant for some turkey and stuffing. At least a can of cranberry sauce.

I had a great day today; I took a day trip to Richard's Bay with a couple other volunteers, exploring a mall (this is a big deal when your nearest shop has goats living in it) and reveling in being American.

Some things are different about the malls in South Africa; for one, you have to pay to use the restroom. (Yeah...I know). It's not much - R2, or about fifteen cents back home - and when I saw flush toilets and sinks with running water to wash your hands as wastefully as your heart desires, I had to smile, step back and wonder how my standards have changed so drastically in a few months. To be thankful - even willing to pay! - for a real bathroom experience again, on Thanksgiving Day, made me wonder about other things of which I'm thankful.

1) I'm thankful to live in a village where being (somewhat) socially awkward is misconstrued as being culturally unaware. I'm really going to miss this back Stateside.
2) I'm thankful for my wonderful learners, the staff, educators, and community of which I am becoming a part of, here in South Africa. It is for them I'm here, and I do my best everyday not to forget it.
3) I'm thankful for Stoney Ginger Beer; it's the strongest soda I've ever had, like drinking ginger concentrate. There are many, many foods I will never miss about South Africa. This is not one of them.
4) I'm thankful for the fact that, even in the most rural stretches of the world, there are still stunningly beautiful women. This speaks for itself.
5) I'm thankful for all my loved ones. The emails / letters/ phone calls keep me through, and sane, more than you realize.
6) I'm thankful for the occasional night occasional night when the shaky power goes out. On those nights I can see the stars clearer than ever.

About three weeks ago, I started volunteering at a local HIV clinic in a neighboring village with another volunteer. Men, women, even children from surrounding villages - often with no means of transport - come here for testing, medication, and counseling on life with a chronic illness. Nervous patients wait for blood tests to learn if they've contracted the disease; others, some visibly ravaged by the effects, wait for hours for free ARV medication supplied from the government to prolong and improve their quality of life. In the ongoing struggle with this devastating epidemic ravaging Southern Africa, these are the front lines: a small, rural clinic resembling a middle school portable on the side of a pothole strewn tar road, run entirely by volunteers, government donations, and faith.

Each day before the clinic opens at 8, the people gather in a semicircle of broken plastic lawn chairs, and sing hymns of praise that are among the most poignantly beautiful songs I have ever heard, a glimpse of the immediacy of human life. Seemingly they have no connection to one another but tribal ancestry and modern ailment. Yet for a few moments each Monday and Wednesday, they sing together, for one another, and - though I do not know the words - I hear no despair in their voices. They smile. They laugh. They still remain human beings. They face mountains I can hardly imagine, and still they climb. Ever hopeful, ever thankful.

Enjoy today, your food, your homes, your loved ones - wherever they are and wherever you are. Always keep learning. Always be thankful.

Power's going out soon. Time for some much needed star gazin'.

-Ryan