Birthday Week!
One afternoon, Anthea, Ineke, and I traveled to a spot to get the best view of a mountain named "Sleeping Beauty." It looks like a woman sleeping; her face is so detailed you can even see her eyelashes, which are actually two indigenous trees standing next to each other. It was beautiful to see and reflect on what nature can create. It's important to take care of the environment. I want the next generation to be able to see all the beautiful places I've been to, like this mountain. Sleeping Beauty reminded me of the mountain in the movie 'Moana' it looked like she could come to life, as she did in the movie and just like the movie she will turn to ash and stone if we don't protect her - her beauty will disappear, and her existence will be questioned by future generations.
After Sleeping Beauty and rehearsal, Anthea and I went out to sit on the dock and eat fish and chips. It was delicious! I love fish, it's one of my favorite foods to eat, and very popular in South Africa. The dock is one of Anthea's favorite spots, so it was very special that she was sharing her space with me. The view of the river was so pretty, and it was a nice, quiet spot.
Sunday, I attended a stress management workshop, which isn't something new to me; was about mental health and how that affects your life and wellbeing. Still, the workshop was different because I was with a group of much older people, 33+. Usually, when I am talking about and listening to experiences, it is with people my age. The workshop was led by Carole Spiers, who travels across the world doing these workshops for free. The way the workshop was led was more conversational than formal. We talked to each other and broke down what caused our stress, why, and how we manage it. I used to believe a little stress is good for you, but what that actually is is pressure, not stress. It changed my perspective on how I live and work. I feel I now know how to be more gentle with myself and work more efficiently because I am no longer pushing myself constantly to my max. Doing a reflection on myself helped, and hearing other people's stories- even though they were older and some experiences were much more different than the lifestyle I live, I felt safer, and less scared about how I felt when I get overloaded with workload or other tasks.
I had a long Easter weekend, Friday through Monday, where I got to nap and bake! (Two of my favorite hobbies). I had three Birthdays to celebrate on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday! Sunday and Monday were my neighbors' birthdays, and Saturday was my best friend's birthday! Again, being seven hours ahead was a difficult challenge. It's my least favorite part about being here, but we still were able to text, and it sounded like she had an amazing birthday with her family. On Saturday, I made a lemon cake with my own strawberry icing recipe! It turned out so cute and everyone loved the frosting, so on Monday I made chocolate cupcakes with the same strawberry icing. My friends came over to help me decorate the cupcakes and taste test the dessert before I sent it off to my neighbor's house. After baking, I sat in their living room and got to work filling their couch with balloons. For a lot of people in Melkhoutfontein, birthdays are quite celebrations, so this year I wanted to make their days as special as possible. Saturday evening, we listened to our other neighbor play songs with a guitar I brought over. He was very talented, and the songs he sang were so fun. The rest of the weekend was spent playing with the balloons and card games. I'm definitely going to miss these nights, but I am so grateful for all the wonderful memories I get to play back in my head when I am missing my new family.
.jpg)
Comments
Post a Comment