When I toured Lamontville Town Ship I visited a Roman Catholic Church and took a picture of one of the paintings on the wall. They had pictures of the life of Christ with Jesus and his disciples as Africans. The whole sanctuary was painted in turquise and black with these brightly painted pictures of the life of Christ on the walls. It was a very joyful presentation of the gospel.
Then I met some school girls who were outside their school. They were not in class because a teacher's strike had shortened the day. So I had the opportunity to talk to them for about 20 minutes. In many ways, this chance meeting was one of the highlights of the trip for me. We really talked.
These 7th graders were fascinated when they realized that I was from the U.S. They told me that they were studying other countries in school. The first thing they asked was about the life expectancy in the US and then they asked if we have HIV. Then we got into this frank conversation about how it is possible to stop HIV but people have to talk about it. They were so eager to talk about it.
They asked about my bracelet which I got from Beads for Life to support women in Uganda who have HIV. We talked about how the ladies made these bracelets out of magazine paper. They asked me how much the bracelet cost and when I told them what it would be in Rands they were amazed at the price. And then I told them the big truth of this whoel trip - the difference in the value of currency and standard of living is what separates us. And I tried to explain that the bracelet which was affordable to me had changed the lives of these ladies who could now pay for their food and buy their own homes. But that was not because I was so rich but because the transfer of income was so much in my favor. It was a big lesson for such a short encounter, but I did not want them to feel so overwhelmed.
But really that has been the lesson of this trip for me. Everywhere you go people are selling African crafts that are made out of our trash. Colored telephone wire is turned into baskets. A man on the beach does sand sculture which is real art and he begs for coins. He is not homeless just an average man with a gift for art. Stones are carved into sculpture. Wood is carved into trinkets. It is all cheap for us.
I bought a few things at the grocery store yesterday and the bill was 35 Rands. Rands run 7 to a dollar so it cost me $5. The great disparity in economic realities is stunning and affects everything.
Then the girls asked if I knew Byonce and I laughed. They asked if I knew Will Smith. They asked if I had met Oprah. Oprah is huge in Africa. There are only a few channels on the television unless you spend a lot on a major dish package. Oprah is on every night at 10 p.m. which must a live feed because she is on at 4 at home. They so wanted me to know someone important and kept asking me about African Americnas they admired. Then I told them that I had gone to hear Desmund Tutu when he spoke at a church in Boston, and I told them he was a great hero to me. They seemed pleased.
When I waved goodbye, one girl told me to say hello to Will Smith.
They also took the time to write their names out because I told them I would put their picture on my website so that people in the US could see them -
Alizwa Mjungula, Lerato Maloyi (She wanted to be remembered as "Princess" because she told me that Americans could never remember her name.) Mitchell Mtombela, Sthembile Nyuswa, Phindile Sicongwane, Snenulanula Mzwilini, Sizakele Nkosi, Zanele Dladla.
Something about this encounter really touched me.
Susan
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