Living Simply, or Simply Living?

June 6, 2013

Ennerdale and its surrounding towns are flat, bare and dirty. You can see for miles of brown dirt and a few patches of green trees. There are no shops, malls, bookstores, café’s, restaurants, parks, etc. There are only gas stations where we get our “petro” and a grocery store called “Shoprite.” It is far worse than I could’ve ever expected. It is far from the glamorous Johannesburg that everyone talks about. We don’t go into the city of Joburg. It is a 25 minute drive and we have no reason to go there because we have to be locked in our house by 6-7 each night. We can’t be out after dark. Our house has guard dogs that bark ALL night long. Nights are the scariest. It is most danergouse at night. I know I am safe because of the dogs and every door and window has bars on it. BUT I still do not feel safe when I can hear the people outside yelling, the cars screeching by and the dogs barking from all over. This is going to be a long 7 months. I am getting involved with the youth at the Salesian church up the road from my house. They meet every Friday night. Then I will sleep in and relax on the weekends. My roommates like to drink wine so we designated Saturday nights as our wine nights. On Sundays we go to Mass and have a big meal with the Salesians. I feel that if I keep a routine (which we all know that I love) time will pass.

It is most difficult though not having TV or internet access at my house. When we come home each week night, I have found other ways to stay occupied before I go to bed. At home I was used to running errands after school, meeting friends for drinks, having dinners out, using the internet for anything I pleased before I went to bed and TV if I felt like it. Now, I have all the time to myself to read my new books, write in my journal, write my blogs, and spend time sitting around our kitchen table chatting with my roommates about their life and cultures in Czech Republic and Canada. It’s not bad; it’s just different that I have been used to. I would go and come as I please; now I am not free to do anything I choose.

EXECPT on free weekends we can travel! The school has a summer break in 2 weeks. Chrissy, my Canadian roomie, has time off of her social work and we may use that week to travel to Cape Town or CouagerTown. I feel like if I don’t see some of the beauty and sites of South Africa, I may start to despise it because where I live is the worst place I’ve ever been or lived. The only thing that makes this town worthwhile is the children. The children are wonderful. They are smart and happy and smiling and laughing and loving all the time. It makes me wonder how children from that type environment can be so happy. It really makes me appreciate my home and where I leave in the States. If the children from the poorest homes in Africa can love their life each and every day, then I should too.