After a year I am very happy to report that I am back in South Africa and have been welcomed back by all. For those of you who didn't know, I decided to pursue a Masters degree in Human Development and Food Security, a program which took me to Rome, Italy, the headquarters for Food Security and home to United Nations programs such as IFAD, WFP and FAO.
After a wonderful week spent in Cape Town to reacquaint myself with Gcinisizwe and meet some wonderful friends, new and old we then ventured east to Thembalethu. What an amazing thing to spend my birthday this year in Thembalethu, surrounded by friends and family. Birthdays are not normally celebrated in our area, Gcinisizwe and our son Sizwe had not actually had a birthday celebration until this year, who knew! I was really excited to celebrate and to share some very tasty cake with my friends. We enjoyed a night around the fire, and also packed the inside of my brother and sister-in-law's house where we sang and danced.
 |
20 or so of my closest friends squeeze into my
brother-in-law's shack to enjoy some cake!
|
 |
| Nozukane leads the group in glorious Xhosa singing! |
For those of you who were wondering where I am sleeping while in Thembalethu, it is this house below. In fact, this house used to belong to Calamine, Gcinisizwe's older brother, but sadly he passed away last year. With the house now empty Gcinisizwe took the opportunity to move in so that he could be closer to his other brother who lives next door. The house is not fancy, but it is dry and keeps us protected from the elements.
 |
| This is the house that I stay in while in Thembalethu. |
 |
| And our million dollar view! |
 |
| Sizwe's first birthday party!! He turned 8 this year. |
 |
Sizwe's first birthday cake ever! I didn't realize it was his first party until I placed
the cake in front of him, he had no idea what to do! I said blow! Ha ha ha. |
Our time in Thembalethu went really quickly, we were busy preparing a grant proposal that would create jobs and bring fresh food to Thembalethu. We also had a chance to meet some wonderful people from George whom I have been speaking with via Internet for years now. All in all it was a very productive time!
Awesome, Catherine!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on finishing your degree!
I bet that was an amazing experience for Sizwe and for all that shared his special day with him. I know some of my children had their very first birthday parties here with us and it was amazing to watch the excitement on their faces as the experienced birthday parties for the first time.
ReplyDelete