And it is already August. In a few days it will be a month since I returned from my trip to France with my parents. We had an incredible time with all of the wine, cheese, chateaux, and hugs promised, and I am now more determined than ever to learn French and live for some time in a cottage in the French countryside, with my garden, animals, and charming French husband :) Probably not surprisingly, it has been somewhat difficult to adjust back to my slightly less glamorous life in SA, an adjustment which was not helped by the departure of my two good friends Jess and Tim, who both reached the end of their time here and headed back to the States at the end of July. How that year went by so fast I will never know, but I do know that my service would have in no way been the same without them, and I can’t wait to see what they go on to do, and have Mtuba dance party reunions once I am back that side.
However, thanks to the continued support from my friends and family at home, other PCVs, Lorrie and Jason (Californian-Mpilonhleans who will be here until December) and my other co-workers, and the unique and wonderful people of my host family and community, in short, most of the things that I love about being here, the show does indeed go on. And I am not without things to keep me busy. The youth club is still going strong, and with the end of the year already in our sights, Mark and I are working to set up several camps and activities for the youth and community for the end of November/beginning of December. There is also much to be done with gardening, as I travel to a different high school each week to help them start their gardens and deliver tools and seedlings. My supervisor, Sne, and I are also working on setting up a training for some of the home-based carers and eventually helping them to start some community gardens as well. Additionally, I am very happy to report that we were finally able to deliver the donated books from the Saint Joseph High School book drive to the junior and senior primaries in my village two weeks ago, with the two high schools to soon follow.
Its’ been pretty cold here, and while I have not gotten SNOW like some other Volunteers, I am definitely ready for longer and warmers days to arrive, which will also give me more time and motivation to fit in a run at the end of the day, something which still proves to be one of my favorite activities here. I am still reading a lot and have decided to try my hand at guitar-playing as well :) The next few months are looking to be busier than ever so I don’t have any trips planned for now, although a weekend away at my birthday might be in order, hopefully with some visits from other Volunteers sprinkled in in the meantime.
As always there is a lot that I have left out, but there are some more events and details outlined in another album of photos I put up, covering from January to Early July of this year. France photos to come soon! I’m still missing everyone at home and love hearing from you when you have the time :) As my months here shrink down, the joy at seeing you all again is the one constant in my thoughts about the future.
As always, sending tons of love and wishing you all the health and happiness that you can have in your lives!
Stay well,
Claire
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