Hello everyone! Glad to hear everyone was okay after Hurricane Irene. Hope you all have power again and are getting back to a normal routine. The hurricane must have been pretty extreme because news and radio stations here were reporting it like crazy. Lots of prayers have been going your way this weekend!

I think I am 80% over my cold/flu I have had over the last few weeks which is great news! I hadn’t been feeling well at all so it is such a relief to have energy again and be able to taste food! (Well, sometimes I am glad I can taste the food!) Still having a few problems sleeping with the noise and waking up itching at times but besides all that things are going great! I am in full swing with volunteer stuff and hanging out with kids in the neighborhood so down time is hard to come by sometimes!

Had a really fun and full weekend! On Friday we took all the Ocean View youth and the Ubuntu boys to Hillsong to see Team Impact. Basically, they were these huge muscle guys that broke apart cinder blocks with their forearms, tore phonebooks in half, broke steal baseball bats, you know stuff the average American do, haha. They actually were Americans (one was from Myrtle Beach!), and some of the girls were loving the huge muscles and accents despite them being in their 40’s. The kids were fired up after seeing these guys in action and it was so cool how they listened intently to these guys testimonies. During some of the songs , I felt like a kid again jumping around near the stage. It got a little bit dangerous though and I decided it was best not to join in the chaos. South Africans don’t really have any regard for others when you are in the space they want to be in, so after I got knocked around a few times I was glad to get out of the craziness. On the ride to and from Hillsong from Ocean View, we rode in this van/bus thing. We all squeezed in. There were 11 of us total in my van. Our driver was a little big dodgy but we all had loads of fun. He had NO idea how to get us to Hillsong, blared the music like we were in a night club, and even pulled over so he could get out and pee off the side of the road. When we rolled up, the youth group was loud and proud that we had arrived, oh the joys of being a teenager.  But ya, Friday was a lot of fun and Team Impact definitely impacted a lot of lives while they were here in Cape Town.

On Saturday, we were back at Hillsong again for an event called Sisterhood. Women of all ages and colors come together for this event to worship, relax, and be empowered. Especially in communities like Ocean View, women do almost everything for their families. Many families do not have males to help at all and it can be such a tough environment, particularly for single mothers. A few great messages came from Sisterhood. 1.) Be yourself and love yourself. Particularly in the white culture, people are really into how they look and compare themselves to others. We all want to be the best looking, have the best figure, be the best at something. The truth is, God created you exactly how he wanted to, so what is the point in wasting time comparing yourself to others or trying to be perfect? Being healthy is one thing but too many girls today put way too much emphasis on looks and weight and having that burden isn’t the way to live. 2.) Be the change you want to see in the world. Simple enough. If you are passionate about a particular issue – do something about it. One lady made up a cupcake program. She goes to schools and all the kids have a cupcake and they all celebrate and have one big birthday party. She teaches the kids how special they are (since a lot are not getting this attention at home). The program is so simple, she likes kids and she likes to bake, and she is changing lives from it. There is so much crazy stuff going on in this world, from human trafficking to starvation, if we all contributed a little bit, think about how much we could all do together. 3.) The biggest message for everyone, especially these ladies, was “Making Excuses.” We all have our pasts and we all have our stories. I have heard so many painful stories of people here as well as people in America. From deaths of loved ones, to abuse and neglect, rape, you name it, it has happened. There is so much hurt, but making excuses won’t get you anywhere. Sometimes bad things happen so you can learn from it and rely on God more than ever. I also believe that you can make a bad thing into something good. If you have gone through something before, you can help others that are going through the same thing. What an impact you can make! “Tell your story for his glory.” Perseverance makes you stronger. Life is short and excuses only waste time.

On Saturday night I saw Johnny Clegg in concert with some friends. The music was really cool. He sounded a bit like Sting with an African-y Dave Matthews type twist to it. He had a great voice and on top of that – he danced like nobody’s business – even for like a 65 year old. I don’t know how he didn’t tear a hammy!  Back when apartheid was still in South Africa there were 3 types of white people. Some who were 100% for it, some who didn’t necessarily agree or disagree – just wanted peace, and some who were extremist. Johnny Clegg was an extremist. He became a part of the zulu culture (south African tribe basically) and wrote music with both English and zulu lyrics in order to help get equal rights. He totally emerged himself into the Zulu culture and learned the language as well the dances and everything. Interestingly enough, his only audience for awhile were people from his college and zulu townships. Since he had both types of lyrics – English speaking radio stations wouldn’t let his songs on the radio and Zulu speaking radio stations wouldn’t let his songs on the radio. However, England played a few of his hits on the radio (Go Brits!) and that’s how became so famous. Most Americans have never heard of him, but all the South Africans have, so I got some props for going to the concert.

On Sunday, we went to Hillsong yet again for regular church. The story of Jesus feeding the 5000 was told. Jesus was entrusted with only five loaves of bread and two fish yet he turned that offering into a blessing that fed the whole crowd. A quote that is profound reads this: “I know how many seeds are in an apple, but I don’t know how many apples are in a seed.” Two of my favorite people (I won’t say names) have given such generous contributions to the Ubuntu program and I know that that money will  exceed any expectation they ever had for it.

Monday’s are going to be a cool day for my health volunteer stuff because I will be able to see more of the clinical side of things. I shadowed Amy, a nurse at living hope. Nursing is tough work, from keeping medications straight to all their other responsibilities – I have so much respect for all the nurses I know! Since most of the people at the clinic have both HIV and TB they have to take like 15 pills every few hours, kid you not. This Monday was pretty low-key for me but the rest of the Monday’s I will be able to help out with in-home visits and things like that. I can already tell that I have grown so much. The first week when I went to an HIV support group I was freaked out (I know it sounds bad) but I definitely have become more comfortable when I am in situations like that.

One of my favorite little guys, 4 year old Zuun, has a tumor in his head. I only found out when it looked like a huge boogar was coming out of his ear and he told me, otherwise he acts like a normal little boy. I don’t know how bad it is or any details but he has to go to the hospital at some point (not sure why it doesn’t seem more urgent) to get it taken care of. Be praying for him though!

I can’t believe it is almost already September! I know it is super hot over there, but I can’t wait for more days in the 70’s! Hope you all are having a great start to the week! Love and miss everybody!

Oh by the way I forgot to put Sarah and Casey's blog information, visit: http://www.looklistenlove.com/