Jo’burg has been challenging so far. We have been taking barely warm sponge baths in a freezing cold bathroom for the past three days, dealing with a testy alarm system which has gone off several times and have been without any transport. The shower situation has been fixed as we found a working shower next to one of the classrooms on the campus and this weekend we had a few people who drove us around which was really generous. The alarm system is still a pain, though. Tonight as Mike (a fellow here with me) and I were running we were talking about how we felt about being here so far and we both agreed that we loved it despite the challenges we’ve had so far. I feel that I will be really helpful to the school and community here and I am excited about everything I will learn and bring home.

Saturday we went with two teachers from the LEAP3 school named Oral and Thabila to visit a hospice in the Alexandra township near the school. We spent some time with the women who have been caring for AIDS and cancer patients. These were a really amazing group of people who have been working at this clinic since March without any stipend and still remain committed to the work. I was touched by the idea that someone who lives in one of the “worst” townships in South Africa would work for free to help others. This really challenged my idea of charity as I have always (shamefully) thought of it as something you do when your own cup has been filled to an adequate level. We only spent a bit of time there, but I really want to go back as much as possible during the next 3 weeks.

On Sunday Stacy, a life orientation teacher at LEAP3, picked us up and took us to Lion Park where we saw some animals. It really wasn’t my thing and I found the whole experience to be a little strange, but it was nice to get out of the house. Afterwards we sat in the park and had a braai (a South African BBQ).

Today was our first day of school at LEAP3. All of the students returned from their winter holiday break today so the day started with a community meeting in the barn. Besides being absolutely freezing, it was a great experience. The entire meeting was led by two grade 11 students who started the meeting by asking students to share important feelings and realizations from their break. Some students had been in Cape Town with the LEAP1 and 2 schools and other had gone to the zoo. When the student running the session felt that the students who were sharing were focusing too much on surface experiences, he encouraged his classmates to share some of the struggles they experienced. This opened up some rich dialogue among the students. The only time I heard any faculty speak was to share their experiences and never to redirect or prompt. This is definitely something I will bring back to my own classroom.

Later, we started our work on planning the upcoming workshops and outreach efforts we will be doing with teachers at LEAP3 and other schools in the Alexandra township.

Oh yeah, and I almost forgot to mention my acquisition of a South African Snuggie. Totally awesome and super warm!