This morning I was nearly robbed… by a monkey! Haha, I had just finished breakfast and walked around the corner into the kitchen when I caught the little thief red handed. He had come in easily through the window since doors and windows here never have screens, just metal bars to keep the people out but, of course, that doesn’t stop the monkeys. When I walked in, he scurried out the window between the burglar guards and up the nearest tree while the rest of the troop snooped around the yard. Indeed, this is Africa.

There is so much diversity here. It’s a world where apparent contrasts are commonplace. Within 40 minutes of the house where I stay there are 3 malls that each contains a movie theater, bowling, mini golf and more stores than I care to count. In that same driving radius there are countless townships where people are living with virtually nothing, staying in shacks, and functioning without roads, cars or power. I have seen school buildings here that rival anything our American tax dollars can build, complete with technologically equipped classrooms and swimming pools. And then there is the school that I’ve gotten involved in where many of the kids come with no lunch and the free lunch that the school provides consists of just donated bread with some sort of spread. Many kids miss days or weeks of school at the end of each month because money for transport to the school has simply run out at home. This is Africa.

Yesterday was a national holiday in South Africa. National Youth Day commemorates the students who were killed in the Soweto uprising that protested the apartheid government of the old South Africa. Many community events are held on this day and yesterday I joined some of the young guys in the community for a soccer tournament held at a soccer field near the church. It was a great day for me because I had fun playing soccer, but more importantly I was able to reconnect with a lot of people that I had built relationships with 3 years ago. Soccer is their life and so much a part of their world that I found it the most natural avenue to connect with them. These are kids and teens that I have thought about and prayed for from time to time over the past 3 years and seeing them again brought a lot of joy to my heart. I saw Ayanda- he is in grade 11 now, and just as I remember him, he seems mature for his age. He is still walking with the Lord and involved in a local church. Lungisani saw me from across the soccer field and started yelling my name till I stopped what I was doing and came over. He is searching now as much as ever and trying to find something in life that will bring significance. Luthando is attending university and planning to study law. He seems to be serious about his faith but still not very grounded in his knowledge of the Truth. Bambalani isn’t a little kid with a shy smile anymore. He has grown so much I didn’t recognize him. Only in grade 9, he’s already playing soccer with the adults and matching them in size. Mandlenkosi, Su, Sphelele, Malusi, Luke, Sabelo and Cebi were all there- young men who, in just a few short years, prepared or not, will be the leaders of their homes, their communities and their churches. When I look at these teens and young men I think to myself, “This is Africa, and this is why I am here.”