Where You are Today

Some of my teammates and I were able to share with students at the Bible Institute of South Africa last week Friday. While waiting for a friend to finish in a meeting earlier in the week, I came across an old magazine with an article by Bishop T. D. Jakes and this is what he said:

“The greatest reason for searching for God is that when we find Him we find ourselves. We find the answer to the question: Who am I really (because how will I know if I am successful if I don’t know what I was created to be)?

The Bible doesn’t talk about the prodigal son finding God; it says he came to himself. Isn’t that the real journey, to come to yourself? To wake up and discover why you had to go through what you had to go through to get where you are today?”

As difficult as it is, and this is still a lesson I continue to learn, it just seems like the hard and challenging times in life are really those points where my character is truly refined, and God shows that His hand is still at work within my life and that He continues to be faithful.

Why am I Here?

This morning we were challenged by Melanie, a girl who finished up the first Track this past March. I was so touched by her words and the work that she is currently doing with human trafficking in Johannesburg. Human trafficking is a huge problem in South Africa (as was also the case in Costa Rica) and it is only expected to get worse with the 2010 World Cup of Soccer coming to the country. She challenged us in a number of different areas, but the most important for me was to figure out why we are here and to hold on to that when things get really tough, which is a guarantee.

Why am I here? I have a burden for women’s and children’s rights (specifically coming from my time in Turkey). When I found out about Voice for the Voiceless, it felt like a good match and I applied for the Track, not knowing about YWAM or what DTS all involved. I don’t want to limit what that burden brings about. I want this time, no matter where I end up and what I do, to be intentional about living a missional lifestyle. My heart breaks in a small portion to the amount God’s heart breaks and I cling to my tears (which flow a lot around here, just ask my teammates) as the way to keep it real and raw in my life.

Electricity

We are in the process of working out the kinks of living 'in community' in the Track house (not a YWAM base or a church or a hut. . .). We were only here about 2 days when we quickly figured out the electricity system. The thought was that maybe the bill had not been paid, as we were without power. Nope, that's not how it works in South Africa. Here's what you do: you go down to the local grocery store and purchase "power". You take the receipt home and enter the code which then tells you how much power you purchased. The meter (as displayed below) counts down and lets you know when you should go out and buy more. And yes, it is a Siemens product!

I Have to Change the Way I Think Today

Continuing from where I left off yesterday: I don't know why I'm continually surprised at how God works in my life, especially to teach me. I learned SO much working with the different indigenous tribes in Panama. And I also know that, had I been given the choice, I would not have picked it as the project to work on. But at the end of the day, it was exactly the project I needed, with specific people that I needed to meet.

In coming to South Africa and working through debrief, I was able to reflect back on the entire summer, but especially in working with the tribes. And I continued to wonder when Canadian Native peoples might find reconciliation with the white people who just took over, and, in many cases, did so in the name of religion. Which brings us back to the blog from yesterday. Maybe it's time to stopping apologizing and praying for things to just be fixed - and start to look within ourselves. I have to change the way I think today. I cannot point the finger and say that the blame belongs somewhere else until I examine myself first. What do I need to change inside myself and the way I think so that reconciliation can be found? I am truly sorry for the past, but my responsibility is in today. And today is where I have to start the change inside of me.

It Starts With Me

The Track officially started yesterday. We are down to 13 girls, plus leaders (which includes one married couple, so we do have 1 guy along!) - ready to conquer the world and fight injustice with our cameras! Until Christmas, our time in South Africa will focus on photography and being able to get out and make connections with the people in our community and surrounding area. It's been a good week of relaxing and also getting a feel of our neighborhood. Many of us attended a nearby church last Sunday and it was so interesting to hear the pastor speak about the politics within the country. And how people apologize for the past and they pray for others to change, but at the end of the day, there's still so much division. His message: "I have to change the way I think today." Simple, and yet entirely profound. If I want peace in the world, I need to have peace inside of me first. If I want love in my community, I need to have love in my life. If I want to see this world changed, then that change really does begin within me. And it must permeate my being. That no matter where I am, no matter who I'm with, that it's my inhaling & exhaling. . .it's me.

10 Things I Hope to do Before I Complete Track

As Track officially starts today, here are 10 things I hope to do before it finishes:

1. Capture a killer sunrise
2. Swim with dolphins
3. Learn to travel lighter (literally & figuratively)
4. Sing & dance with African kids
5. Learn to scuba dive & surf
6. Be a part of my current community and be able to find ways to give back to that community
7. Do those things that I and others would consider totally “un-LaDawn”!
8. Discover what God has in store for me after Track, given all of my experiences
9. Keep making “10 Things I Never Dreamed I Would Experience in my Lifetime” Lists because I’m sure that I haven’t even skimmed the surface of possibility in this meager list!
10. Don’t look back – Live each day to the fullest – Have no regrets – Connect with people – Learn more about myself – Draw nearer to God

10 Things I Never Dreamed I Would Experience in my Lifetime

1. Visit indigenous tribes – not to mention that they were in Panama (including the Darien province)
2. Help to build and organize a website (www.errebache.com)
3. Crave potatoes: rice, rice & chicken, rice & beans, rice pudding. . .
4. Enter into a dangerous ghetto that police would not even enter 10 years ago to help with a meal program and play with the children
5. Share my life story with complete strangers
6. Sleep through 2 earthquakes (in a country that apparently does not experience them!)
7. Feed homeless persons under the direction of people who are completing their own drug rehab program
8. Live on or near active volcanoes
9. Experience Costa Rica’s raw beauty by ziplining and white water rafting
10. Wash the feet of refugees

10 Necessities to Survive Outreach (Panama/Costa Rica/South Africa)

1. iPod or MP3 player – it passes the time and provides a little space when people are driving you crazy
2. Mosquito Net and Spray – need I say more?
3. Anti-Itch Cream when the net and spray don’t work. It also helps for the bugs that you don’t feel biting, like fleas!
4. Inflatable Bed, unless you like getting extra close and personal with all those bugs!
5. Travel Blanket & Pillow – it’s COLD on those air-conditioned 18-hour bus rides to Costa Rica after dealing with Panama’s humidity.
6. Toilet Paper and if you decide to leave that behind, bring Change because you’ll be paying to pee.
7. Hand Sanitizer and/or Baby Wipes are also an important addition, especially combined with #5.
8. Quick-Dry Towel is very helpful when on the move as many times as we were.
9. Flashlight for many reasons: roommates go to bed early & you don’t want to trip over them; the sun sets pretty early & it’s hard to find your way back to your hut; outhouses usually don’t have light sources. . .
10. Fleece jacket – when you arrive during South Africa’s winter after coming from Central America’s summer and they tell you that it’s cold – IT’S COLD and your body needs to adjust to NOT sweating profusely 24-7!

Pack everything in Ziploc bags (forget the cheap knock-offs) and if possible, leave your sense of smell behind (or just don’t have one, like me!).

10 Things I Never Did Before Joining YWAM

1. Pay for laundry (and make it one of the first things I figure out in a new location)
2. Pay for internet (and make it the second thing I figure out in a new location)
3. Share a bedroom – with as many as 15 other roommates
4. Fall asleep listening to my iPod – that was the best purchase I made before leaving home, given all the roommates and needing my own space at times (even if it’s imaginary)
5. Use the bathroom stall for a brief moment of privacy to escape life
6. Throw toilet paper into the garbage can instead of down the toilet – and wonder about a country’s plumbing system
7. IF there’s a hot water tap, wonder if hot water will actually come out of it
8. Use a pool air mattress bed thingy as my actual bed (well, it was that or the hard concrete floor)
9. Talk about bodily functions with complete (YWAM) strangers
10. Drink milk from the carton and yogurt from the container, because who could be bothered with the extra dishes since it’s my own, as labeled in the fridge

10 Reasons that it’s better to be a Guy versus a Girl on DTS Outreach

I have decided to give you various "Top 10" Lists this week as I have reflected back on DTS/Outreach and look forward to the start of Track. Some are serious, some funny, some sarcastic - I will let you decide which is which! I begin with 10 Reasons that it's better to be a Guy versus a Girl on DTS Outreach - here goes:

There are usually less guys, so
1. They have more bedroom space to stretch out in
2. The guy/girl ratio is definitely in their favor
3. As is the norm for the entire planet, the line is always shorter for the bathroom
4. Bathroom, what bathroom? - guys can pee anywhere
5. If they decide to stop shaving, it's a new style or phase
6. The amount of toiletries is less, therefore their luggage weight is not usually of concern, and it's easier to lug around the airport
7. Toiletries - they have less of everything: shoes, clothes. . .
8. Their independence is not quite as limited as the girls in going out to explore, being out late, etc
9. They can legitimately ignore the honks, cat-calls and hissing since it's not directed to them anyway
10. They are expected to smell funky (which just takes us back to the toiletries!)

Settling In

We've had a few days in the Track house now and we're slowly settling in. We are still waiting for some furniture and other necessities, but it feels wonderful to have a home base. People are also exploring our community and heading out in various directions (Cape Town and other beach towns). I have laid low so far, battling a bad cold and just needing some down time. Since arriving in South Africa on September 6th (about 2 weeks), we've had 4 moves to 4 different locations (hostel, spa, retreat debrief and now the Track house) and it's a strange feeling to put the luggage away, even if just for a bit!

I've Turned into a Lefty

South Africa is one of those unique countries that drives on the left side of the road. It is SO weird! You have to remember to look both ways (and then again, just in case!). It is also interesting to note that people also walk on the left side of the sidewalk, and going up and down the stairs. At the end of the day, who knows what the correct side actually is. For right now, I've turned into a lefty!

Check Out My Eye!

Everyone sees me and asks, "What's up with the eye?" I don't know what happened but thought I would share this photo with you. Pretty cool, huh?

Goodbye to Many Dear Friends

It has been a week of goodbyes and other than a few people who are staying around to work for Voice for the Voiceless here in South Africa or adding a bit of a holiday before going home, only the Track people are left behind. So many wonderful friendships were formed - friendships that will last a lifetime! (Group picture thanks to Portia)


And now it's time to switch gears. Today is moving day to our home in South Africa. And I fully believe that it will feel like a home because of the tremendous amount of moving we've been doing in the last few months. I'm SO excited to pull everything out of my luggage and find places for everything in drawers!!

DTS Graduation

It is official - I have survived! I've got the certificate in my hand and am now officially known as a "YWAM-er" (like it or not). We had a great evening together, starting with worship and then Paul giving us his final thoughts. Each of the girls received a pink rose and the guys got a chocolate bar, along with some thoughts from a staff member.

The Interview is Traveling!

My Mom excitedly emailed me to let me know that she had woken up to my CHVN interview on our local station. So the word has spread back to Altona and Winkler and I was also able to connect it back to their website. I'm not sure how long their stories stay up, but check out "Altona Resident Having Experience of a Lifetime" on www.pembinavalleyonline.com (http://www.pembinavalleyonline.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12962&Itemid=311). Yikes, I may unknowingly be turning into a local celebrity!

Change

This week is a week of transition. Not always fun, but definitely needed. Life would be so boring without it. I'm trying to figure out how I've changed, grown, expanded my life bubble. And though I can't yet quite put my finger on it, I know my life has changed.

I was sitting outside this morning, enjoying the mountains and the cloud that surrounded them. When I looked up from my Bible 15 minutes later, the mountains were gone - totally enveloped in the cloud! I knew that they were still there and the fact that I couldn't see them didn't change their presence. Similarly, I know that there is change in my life, even though I may not be able to see it now. A different LaDawn from 6 months ago. A different LaDawn from yesterday.

Roadkill

Roadkill is common no matter where you travel. I'm sure that you're probably thinking that I've all but lost my mind talking about the subject, or figure that I really have nothing better to talk about. BUT, WHAT the roadkill actually is, changes where you are. Driving from the spa to Paarl, we enjoyed the scenic view of the Borland Mountains and baboon roadkill! O.k., so we saw a number of live ones yet too - baboons on the side of the road, just hanging. I guess I'm really in Africa!

Leaving Goudini Spa

Our week at Goudini Spa is quickly coming to an end. We have a final session tonight and then head out tomorrow for debrief in Paarl. I pulled out the good old camera (it had a holiday this week!) to catch both the sunrise (around 7 a.m., though I was ready at 5:45 a.m. - pictured below) and sunset (around 6 p.m.).

The next week will involve a lot of goodbyes and then we'll be formally starting the Track. I would really appreciate your thoughts and prayers in the next few weeks. It's been a hard summer with many good experiences, but still really tough. I am really missing home and all you wonderful family and friends! And I am really hoping for a strong start with the Track and the experiences of the next 3 months.

CHVN Interview #2

The internet connection is incredibly slow out here and I'm paying for the size of what I'm down- and uploading. I'm sorry if I was not able to connect with you early enough, but I had my 2nd interview with CHVN before leaving Panama and was notified that it aired Sept. 8, 4 p.m. and Sept. 9, 8 a.m. (Manitoba time). I will try my best to let you know ahead of time for my next interview, as they hope to track all my journeys. I did try to upload the MP3 file here so that you could listen to it, but I was not successful (if you have any suggestions, I would love to hear them).

Southern Hemisphere Math & Science

Today was a great day - at least for those of mathematically inclined! My math friend Cale and I celebrated 09-09-09 at 9:09 (and probably 9 seconds!). Yeah o.k., so we're totally math geeks - just let us enjoy it! Being in a new place, especially one in the southern hemisphere, has also brought out the scientist in me. As I walked back to my rondawel (a.k.a. the cement hut/building we're rooming in here) last night, I looked up and realized that for the first time in my life, there was no North Star! I need to do some research on the constellations from my now new southerly viewpoint. Gotta run and check out if the water actually does swirl down the drain opposite to what I'm used to!

Jetlag!!!!

Though sleep was interrupted on the flight over, I thought I did pretty good getting in a few hours. My 12 hour sleep into Sunday was obviously needed and I've been feeling pretty good. . .until this morning! I've been sleeping 8 or 9 hours at night this week, but at about 10:30 this morning, I hit the brick wall! A 7 hour time change is NOT very nice to one's system. I'm hoping that my short afternoon nap will help turn my internal clock over (and quickly!).

University of the Nations Conference

This week will be spent at a University of the Nations Conference. Today is registration and then we have various meetings and seminars throughout the week, until Saturday. We depart for final debrief on Sunday and have a few days together before people start returning home (other than the trackers and a few others who will stay on to work with Voice for the Voiceless here in South Africa). After "roughing it" (some may say that it was not quite that harsh, others will say it was much harsher) for 2 months, we are staying at the Goudini Spa this week! South Africa is coming out of winter, and with today's rain, it does feel down right chilly (I guess I was more acclimatized to Panama's humidity than I thought!!) - we are definitely waiting for the sun.

Welcome to South Africa

Just want to let you know that we've made it all safely to South Africa. It is wonderfully cold (who would have thought. . .Africa, cold?!?). I slept 12 hours and am feeling great after a shower. Talk to you soon!

South African Airways

Our 18 hour flight (including a fueling stop in Dakar, Africa) from Washington to Johannesburg across the Atlantic Ocean, plus the 2 hours from Johannesburg to Cape Town was proudly brought to us by South African Airways. They fed us meal after meal after meal (and they were pretty good) and we were welcomed with a little packet of socks, eye mask for sleeping and toothbrush & paste. We've traveled about 17,000 miles since leaving Kona and SAA has been one of the best! They brought me over the equator for the first time and to my 4th continent (N.A., Europe, Asia via Istanbul and now Africa).

Back to Western Society. . .if only for a few hours

We almost left Naomi behind in Panama (the ticket agent didn't want to let our New Zealand friend through), but we have all made it safe and sound to the U. S. of A. It is so funny what you get used to being in another country and culture, and you don't even realize it until you return. What, I can flush toilet paper down the toilet? What, there's hot water coming out of the hot water tap? What, the taxi has a meter and it works properly? What, I can speak directly to people in full sentences without a translator, si?

CHVN Interview

I did my second CHVN (95.1 FM out of Winnipeg) interview this morning regarding this grand journey of my life. I did not mention the first interview in my blog because I was waiting to hear when it would air, and was not notified in time. I hope to let you know this time around, but because of my travel, that may not happen in time (but I am receiving MP3 copies, if you want to hear them at some point). CHVN is online, so it does not matter where in the world you are, check them out at http://goldenweststreaming.com/chvn_player/index.html. Talk to you all from South Africa. . .adios!

Saying Goodbye to Central America

A few people have already left Panama, but the majority of our team is leaving Thursday and Friday. That means that there is a lot of laundry, packing and last minute shopping going on around here. I arrive in South Africa on Saturday and we are attending a week long conference for the first week of September. The second week will be debriefing and reconnecting with all of our teammates, most of who will be going home at that point. As with all of my travels, I'm not quite sure when I'll be able to reconnect, though I will try to be back as soon as possible. I am really hoping to touch base with you from South Africa more than I have from Panama and Costa Rica. A special shout out to all of you who are going back to school in the next few days, whether you are students or teachers - I'll be thinking of you!

Introducing Kamal

I had the distinct privilege of meeting the newest addition to Tulio & Norelia's family - they had a baby boy last week (August 26 - Tulio is my 4th friend to have a baby on this date, though all the other babies are girls) and named him Kamal Caleb. It was an adventure getting to and from the base where they are living (we paid 4 tolls on the way back and decided that we are going to try for The Amazing Race), but it was definitely worth it. I'm so glad that I was able to hold him for a bit and say our final goodbyes to Tulio.