Happy Mother's Day
Our thanks to all of you who sent your condolences to Dan and I this week upon the event of becoming the parents of a teenager. We ushered in this new era in our lives on Jessica's 13th birthday last Saturday! Aren't we MUCH too young to be the parents of a teenager?! We celebrated the event by spending a day at "the biggest mall in the Southern Hemisphere" in Durban, where we shopped, ate, and saw an Imax film. Jessica also conquered "the Rock", which claims to be the world's highest freestanding, indoor climbing rock, standing over ---- stories high! We still marvel at the fact that a mere 1/2 hour drive can take us from the poorest valleys in South Africa, to the materialistic world of shopping and entertainment. On the drive to the mall, we pass traditional mud rondavels, corrugated metal shanty towns, and also huge villas. We often wonder how long we would have to live here before we could flip between those two worlds and not feel the stinging guilt that reminds us that although we may live and work with the poor right now, we are actually among the wealthy.
Workwise, this week has been much the same as ever. I have been helping several young adults from the community write business plans for the small businesses they dream of starting. It is quite common here to speak to a young Zulu person and find that they are trying to start a business of some kind. Since there are literally almost no jobs in the rural areas (over 70% unemployment!), the young people have lost hope in being employed by others and their only alternative is to start small business initiatives of their own. The young adults I've worked with are motivated and ambitious, and want desperately to stay within their communities, and yet they feel the burden of financial responsibility. Most of them have no parents, aging grandparents, and younger siblings who look to them for help. One young man (Mkhonzo) is incredibly talented with a sewing machine, and designs and sews his family's clothes. He is currently in our Craft Program here at GGA, and is learning some business management and marketing skills. He would like to open his own shop one day. One young lady (Talent) dreams of opening a youth drop-in centre complete with a library and computers. She believes this will keep the valley kids "out of trouble", and give them a place to do homework. She loves literature and poetry and would like to share that passion with younger children. I also wrote a business plan for a group of young people who want to start a bakery.
It's neat to work with South African's who are the hope for the next generation. I love hearing about their dreams and encouraging them to set their goals high and not give up. They will have to be persistent. It's a challenge to set up a small business even in Canada, but imagine doing it when you have a limited education, no access to computers or internet, no capital to buy supplies, no contacts, and your target market has absolutely no disposable income! And yet, they really wouldn't benefit from being given a handout to start their business, because it would take away the process that will make them strong and proud of their accomplishments. Hopefully we can provide help and encouragement to move them to the next step.
This is once again our "work weekend", and our tasks are to clean the communal areas, pick up garbage, wash the vehicle, and sand the wooden desks that will be refinished and used in the training room. Hopefully we'll get most of that done today so that we can enjoy a more peaceful Mother's Day. We had a real cold snap again early this week, and I was awfully tempted to go out and buy a heater for our house. But, it would have to be a kerosene heater, since the electrical wiring wouldn't support an electric heater, and we only have 6 weeks left in our little house! So, we just put on an extra layer of clothes, and drank a lot of hot tea. Yesterday it began to warm up again, and today we are back up to 25 degrees...much better!
Happy Mother's Day to all of you out there! Whether you're an exhausted mom of a newborn whom you wake up to feed each night, or the mommy of a pre-schooler who asks "WHY?" at least 450 times a day, or the mom of a teenager who causes you sleepless nights, you are an amazing woman! God bless you.
Special hugs and kisses to you, Mom Taubensee...you are our prayer warrior, our inspiration, our encourager, and the best Grandma that ever lived! We love you dearly and miss you every day. A special tribute as well to my own mom, who went to live in heaven over 15 years ago. I still hear her voice in my thoughts and know that she is cheering me on! I was blessed to know her for 21 years.
Cathy
Workwise, this week has been much the same as ever. I have been helping several young adults from the community write business plans for the small businesses they dream of starting. It is quite common here to speak to a young Zulu person and find that they are trying to start a business of some kind. Since there are literally almost no jobs in the rural areas (over 70% unemployment!), the young people have lost hope in being employed by others and their only alternative is to start small business initiatives of their own. The young adults I've worked with are motivated and ambitious, and want desperately to stay within their communities, and yet they feel the burden of financial responsibility. Most of them have no parents, aging grandparents, and younger siblings who look to them for help. One young man (Mkhonzo) is incredibly talented with a sewing machine, and designs and sews his family's clothes. He is currently in our Craft Program here at GGA, and is learning some business management and marketing skills. He would like to open his own shop one day. One young lady (Talent) dreams of opening a youth drop-in centre complete with a library and computers. She believes this will keep the valley kids "out of trouble", and give them a place to do homework. She loves literature and poetry and would like to share that passion with younger children. I also wrote a business plan for a group of young people who want to start a bakery.
It's neat to work with South African's who are the hope for the next generation. I love hearing about their dreams and encouraging them to set their goals high and not give up. They will have to be persistent. It's a challenge to set up a small business even in Canada, but imagine doing it when you have a limited education, no access to computers or internet, no capital to buy supplies, no contacts, and your target market has absolutely no disposable income! And yet, they really wouldn't benefit from being given a handout to start their business, because it would take away the process that will make them strong and proud of their accomplishments. Hopefully we can provide help and encouragement to move them to the next step.
This is once again our "work weekend", and our tasks are to clean the communal areas, pick up garbage, wash the vehicle, and sand the wooden desks that will be refinished and used in the training room. Hopefully we'll get most of that done today so that we can enjoy a more peaceful Mother's Day. We had a real cold snap again early this week, and I was awfully tempted to go out and buy a heater for our house. But, it would have to be a kerosene heater, since the electrical wiring wouldn't support an electric heater, and we only have 6 weeks left in our little house! So, we just put on an extra layer of clothes, and drank a lot of hot tea. Yesterday it began to warm up again, and today we are back up to 25 degrees...much better!
Happy Mother's Day to all of you out there! Whether you're an exhausted mom of a newborn whom you wake up to feed each night, or the mommy of a pre-schooler who asks "WHY?" at least 450 times a day, or the mom of a teenager who causes you sleepless nights, you are an amazing woman! God bless you.
Special hugs and kisses to you, Mom Taubensee...you are our prayer warrior, our inspiration, our encourager, and the best Grandma that ever lived! We love you dearly and miss you every day. A special tribute as well to my own mom, who went to live in heaven over 15 years ago. I still hear her voice in my thoughts and know that she is cheering me on! I was blessed to know her for 21 years.
Cathy
posted by Stay Well at
11:31 p.m.
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