In Between

In between….three months until I return home and I sit here in an awkward space. My roles and responsibilities as coordinator of the Leth’ithemba Drop-In Centre continue to dominate my daily life, but now there is a subtle change brewing. This past Wednesday at the after-school program we provide, I suddenly felt a strange sensation. I am not the centre of the whirlwind of decision-making and activity as I have been since we opened the drop-in center 6 months ago. The flurry of mini crises and changing plans which I had fielded for more than 6 months has dissipated. Instead, the program components of improving English skills and assisting with homework, recreation, nutritious meal and spiritual guidance were hesitantly falling into place. The Youth Leaders scurried around organizing the 6-12 year olds that we serve into juniors (grades 1-3) and seniors (grades 4-7), herding them into the appropriate classroom. From the beginning, we have been fortunate to have attracted 5 enthusiastic teenage volunteers who have a heart for the smaller children that struggle to some extent like they do in the township. They yell to each other in Zulu and soon have the children singing and chanting as they wait for Elize to explain today’s English lesson to two volunteer teachers and three new older Youth Leaders who would assist them in the activity. Each child is given a magazine and scissors to cut out pictures of anything that had to do with cultivating, preparing or eating of mealie-meal, the staple food in their diet. In subsequent weeks we will label the pictures with English words and do vocabulary exercises. It is absolutely critical that our children get the English remediation necessary in order to succeed in school by the fourth grade when all lessons are conducted in English…..nobody came to me for instructions, advice. What was happening? The on-site coordinator, Delisile, and program coordinator, Elize, my host mother whom I reside with, have essentially taken over the responsibilities that I had assumed for the past 6 months. They huddle together sorting out the recipe of the bean, meat and vegetable soup the three volunteer cooks were in the midst of preparing. Were there enough donated apples for the head count of 65 kids today? And what about the little girl whom we have observed is having vision trouble? Eye disease? Elize knows an eye doctor in town. Would he help her?

I sit in a plastic molded chair with the autumn sun on my back outside the classroom door during the 1:30-2:30 recreation period. Alternating my time, I enjoy watching the soccer game that became much more enthusiastic as one of the new Youth Leaders joined in the competition…..we must get a air pump for our cheap half-deflated soccer balls, I think. Likewise, the netball game (something like basketball) that girls enjoy had everyone squealing with laughter as the other two new Youth Leaders joined in the action. Inside the classroom next to where I sit, the smaller children are playing with the donations of stuffed toys we received from the Bethal church community. The children we serve are starved for comforting touch. They cuddle and play with the stuffed toys so intensely that I have to smile.

Peace Corps training emphasize the need to make our projects sustainable. My goal has always been to help prepare, train and recruit community volunteers who would be ready to take over my roles and responsibilities when I left. Now that this is successfully happening, I feel sad. I suppose this is natural, sort of an empty nest syndrome? My time in South Africa is limited. Seeing the drop-in centre thrive is very rewarding. But it does remind me that a big part of my heart is embedded in the birth of this project, the people, the frustrating fits and starts. It will be difficult to leave. It will be difficult to say good-bye.