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Published: November 23rd 2009
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Hello,
This blog is a bit of a combination of photos. It starts with last Sunday when I officially became a member of Hope Church and then after the service was baptized! I am very thankful that my friend Andrea came to take photos. The baptism was wonderful, the water was a bit cold but it was not too bad. In the end after I was baptized I realized I had to jump out of the water without a ladder. I wasn’t concerned that I wouldn’t make it out but I was wearing baggy shorts and I was really praying that they would come out with me! All ended up well and I am so glad that I made the decision to get baptized with this church family that means so much to me. Directly after church I left for the game reserve which you can read about in my Umfolozi blogs. After the game reserve I arrived home and had 45 minutes to put together my slide show for the Rotary Presentation I had that night. Yes I know it was not good preparation on my part but the speech I wrote in the car ended up working
out extremely well. I usually improvise most of my speeches anyways so I figured I was ready! I gave a speech on what it really means to be an Ambassadorial Scholar. I talked about the changes in our personal lives that Rotary may not see as well as the impact we have on others that also may be unknown to Rotarians. I gave this speech in light of the recent cuts of other Rotary Foundation scholarships in hopes that Rotarians will begin to think more about what being an Ambassadorial scholar really means to us and our community.
After the speech I had to head back to Durban for a party my supervisor was giving at her place. I was not particularly looking forward to this party since I was tired, it was pouring rain and I knew I would not know anyone, but it turned out to be a great event. The party was the final night of a program for NGOs that had received grants from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. I thought it was going to be just local NGOs but it turned out to be NGOs from around the world. I talked to a
women’s economic group I read a lot about in India as well as an informal labor group from Latin America. I even tried to network in Spanish! I left that party at about 10 with a large container of vegetable briyani leftovers thanks to my supervisor. I don’t think you will be very surprised to hear that Friday morning I woke up at 11 am!
Later on Friday evening on my way out of the grocery store I witnessed an unfortunately South African event. As I drove up to stop sign I saw some people outside the car next to me. My first thought was hijacking but the people looked very calm so I dismissed it until I saw a young man pull an older man out of the car and attempt to take the car. I immediately pulled away and saw in my rear view mirror that the men were both fighting in the street. I was very shaken and had no idea what to do. Police are not exactly thought of with high regards here, I don’t even think I know the phone number. If something happens to me at home I call our private security agency
to take the law into their own hands. Thankfully I saw a security vehicle turning towards the car as I drove away. I mentioned to a friend of mine what I had witnessed and later that night received a couple calls from friends making sure I was okay. One was from a friend who had himself been hijacked in the past.
On Saturday a group of us went out north of the city for a year end braai at our friend Ivy’s house. We had a wonderful time eating and playing soccer on the beach and then finished the night with a drink at a local bar. Now I am just waiting for approval for my proposal, getting myself organized and working on some small part time statistics work. I am not planning on having a thanksgiving dinner this week, instead I am going to go work at the hospital and really remember what I am thankful for! I hope you all have a wonderful holiday!
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