Week 3 - “It’s been two long years now, since the top of the world came crashing down, & I’m getting it back on the road now…”

Maybe it’s because I heard/read three sermons about it or maybe it’s a memory of a couple Septembers back, but I found myself thinking a lot about this week’s gospel reading from Luke 15. The parable of the week is the Shepherd who left the herd of 99 to find the one that was missing. The lesson was immediately reiterated with the tale of the woman who lost one of her ten silver coins, and when she finally found it, she was so excited that she threw a party. The story carries a powerful message of God’s love and reminds us that every single one of us, as humans, is valuable – valuable enough to track down at any expense, in the name of love. Valuable enough to celebrate in our own right for our own individual faith, even with 99 other sheep or 9 other coins.

Now, I’m going to let my geek flag fly here and tell you what this honestly reminds me of… Even though I haven’t seen it in a long time, I can’t help but think of the third Star Trek movie, The Search for Spock. I may be a little rusty on the details, but I remember the important stuff. A short while after Spock died to save them (which actually occurred in movie 2 - The Wrath of Khan), Kirk & co. learn that Spock might be alive and they steal a ship to go get him, risking their live and their careers in the process. At first, Spock doesn’t get it because, as he says, “The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.” He initially neglects to take love and friendship into the equation, obviously. It makes for a great story on screen, but if you’ve ever seen the parable play out in real life, it’s even more amazing. After all, who wouldn’t everything for someone more beloved than any thing?

I’m not writing all of this because I lost something; I know exactly where my house keys are and am as confident as I can be that I’m where I need to be right now on my own journey. Still, this parable is as relevant to me as ever…and makes me think about my own life…Nine silver coins isn’t a bad haul to have, nor is herding 99 sheep around the great green pasture circuit for a living, but even with 99 sheep and the greenest pastures your heart could desire, God might call your shepherding self to leave behind the herd you’ve know for the chance to hear what’s baa-baaa-baa-ing in some unknown woods, half a world away… in a gorgeous city between the mountains and the sea – where I can now say I’ve been for three weeks!

A few hours after posting my last blog, I made my first visit to the UCT campus. It’s a beautiful campus on a mountainside, and last Thursday evening, it was the place to be to hear Alice Walker speak! She seemed to cover a little bit of everything, and did not hesitate to make her feelings know; she is not President Zuma’s biggest fan. Looking back, the line that stuck out the most to me was when she spoke on leadership; I cannot remember her exact words, but she firmly believes that there is a leader inside each one of us, a Jiminy Cricket conscience voice, waiting for its chance to shine (although, her way of wording this didn’t mention any Disney characters). It was an evening to remember… oh, and did I mention that is was in Jameson Memorial Hall – a big old building in the center of campus with a bunch of white columns and stone steps in the front? Yeah, it reminded of another Memorial Hall back home with the Blue Hens.

Saturday, I continued on my quest to explore. With my fellow Cape Town YASCers, Amanda and Emily, I rode the cable car up to the top of Table Mountain and if you’ve checked back to my picture link from the last blog post, you’ll notice it’s rather gorgeous up there. Also, while we were there, Venus (yeah, the planet) made a quick cameo before darting behind the moon. I may watch rather large quantities of science fiction, but I’m no astronomer. Still, I think it’s a safe bet to assume that Venus doesn’t do that too often, but three young Episcopal missionary ladies probably don’t show up on the top of Table Mountain on a regular basis either.

When we were finished with checking out the beautiful mountaintop views, we went down to Camps Bay to see the views from one of Cape Town’s most beautiful beaches (The mountains behind me are called the Twelve Disciples… although you can't see them all, I think there are more than twelve of them). The water was freezing when we stuck our feet in, but it was worth it.

Most days though, I’m not sightseeing. My placement has me working most of my days in the ASF office. I’m still orienting to this new position and taking everything in; for as many new things as there are to learn, I’m still amazed by the familiarity of it all – the ways in which I see it resembling my own experiences in campus ministry from trying to organize committees of over-scheduled students (I’ll admit I was one, too) to making sure everything comes together for The Event. For now, I’ve been proofreading, writing reports, planning a presentation, and mailing out registration forms and information about the upcoming chaplains’ retreat.

I enjoy the work; the only thing I don’t like too much is commuting. The trains are OK, now, but the taxis are an entity to themselves. Every morning, I leave the train station and walk to the taxi stop by the KFC (Yeah, they have those here, haha). I ask which taxi’s going to Zonnebloom (it’s a different taxi in a different spot everyday), and hop on. Now, see, taxi’s are a bit different here. When I board, I hop in a van with other people going my way. The van doesn’t leave until it’s got ten people on board or twenty minutes have passed; at least, this is the “rule.” Today, I waited half an hour and there were only seven… but hey, I got here and spent R5 (> $1 in the process). In the grand scheme of life and public transportation, this is still considered a victory. In the event of any confusion in finding the right taxi, my thick foreign accent works to my advantage to identify me clearly as “Confused Foreigner.”
I’m also continuing to get more involved with Ansoc at UCT and should have some stories about that for next week’s post, but these are my musings for this Thursday. Thanks & blessings again to the wonderful family, friends, and churches that have supported my presence here and to you, whoever you may be, taking the time to read this.


Songs: The Long Way Around by the Dixie Chicks, Tattoo by Jordin Sparks, & Pride (In the Name of Love) by U2
Books: finished The Help by Kathryn Stockett (and highly recommend it OR if you’ve already read and loved this book, I encourage you to check out Anne Moody’s autobiography Coming of Age in Mississippi) & am starting The Mind of South Africa by Allister Sparks
Movie: Cry Freedom