The Journey Inward

I got up and out relatively early to do my grocery shopping and was thrilled to find two loungers and a table on promotion at Makro (Costco-like). I was wheeling them through the crowded store quite gently. Three parking lot attendees helped me load them into my tiny Toyota Starlet and I was able to unwedge them on my own at home and get them set up. I’m looking forward to reading out there. The weather has been gorgeous, even with the regular passing storms.

After all my errands were done, I went for a hike at a reserve that is a 4 minute drive from my house. I had good sneakers on and it was 3:45, so I figured I was in good form to do the 10K hike. I wasn’t long into the walk when I began to see these…

I was texting with my friend and he was googling and using AI to figure out what I was in the midst of. AI came back with rhino and he gave me tactics of what to do if confronted. On the one hand, I felt pretty comfortable rhinos weren’t living 2K from my house, but on the other hand, it’s not like the States here with safety. At home, either we or the rhinos would be enclosed. There would be signs everywhere about what to do and not do. We’d have signed waivers and we’d be suing if something went awry.

Not so here in South Africa! No signs, no waivers. You know what animals live here. We don’t have to remind you. Walk at your own risk, enjoy the day and may the odds be ever in your favor. It’s pretty chill like that here.

I saw some pretty flora and fauna along the way, which was rugged and found me scrambling up and down boulders and large rocks. It was a beautiful day with perfect hiking weather and the trail signs were clear. This one bike sign made me laugh and wonder why this sign out of all the possible warning to post! I also didn’t see another single soul on the hike until the last 10 minutes.

Then I came upon this…

A whole trail of poop! If it wasn’t a rhino, then what?!?!? The coils and form were apparently indicative of rhino or elephant, but the mystery ended (I think?) when I rounded a corner and ran straight into these massive animals.

I was pretty sure they were cows, but holy moly the horns! I figured they were docile, but again, the horns!!! I stood very still for a minute or so deciding how to proceed. While contemplating, I witness this sweetness…

I decided to walk around the trail through the brush to get past. They didn’t seem interested in me at all. Feeling pretty badass, I continued on. Just then some kind of wild cat ran across the path just ahead. I kept thinking that I was always so bad about bears at home, forgetting which you get big and loud for and which you freeze for, so this was no worse. I was also dictating texts and singing, the latter of which would definitely send anything in earshot running!

At mile 6 I rolled my ankle again and that spot on my foot hurt, but nothing like last time and I was fine to continue. Then I got a bit lost and had to backtrack and by now it was 5:45, so I was moving with haste to exit before dark!

Today was a fun day at work and the kids were busy with their written projects on force and motion and their cardboard arcade games. There were some little petty things amongst staff today and I was reminded that it is very possible to have the same shit in a new place! I spoke to KD while I walked at lunch and we spoke of training and her swimming and math and it felt nice to not talk about how I was in Africa!

I came home earlier than I have been from work (I’ve been working 11-12 hour days most days as I settle in and clean out and organize my crazy storage closet) to have a mesh unit installed upstairs because the wifi doesn’t travel well. It turns out I’ll need three because the concrete walls are so thick!!

While Paul worked and we chatted, I made my first meal in my brand new pressure cooker/slow cooker/insta pot/you name it machine. I made chili with some unusual bean and even lentil choices and with minced beef and this really yummy chili sauce I got at the market on Saturday. It was easy to use and the house smelled amazing. I would typically put chili on in the morning and come home to it at the end of the day, house smelling amazing, but this took 20 minutes!! So now I have a working stove, oven and this bad boy!

Had some sad news from a friend today and got to speak to him tonight to hear his grief. His young nephew and wife lost their little baby. He is a new grandpa so the grief was even stronger.

I’m reading Trevor Noah’s book and I really recommend it, but here are a few quotes that I thought were really compelling and require more conversation amongst people.

“People love to say, “Give a man a fish, and he’ll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he’ll eat for a lifetime.” What they don’t say is, “And it would be nice if you gave him a fishing rod.” That’s the part of the analogy that’s missing….you need someone from the privileged world to come to you and say, “Okay, here’s what you need and here’s how it works.” Talent alone would have gotten me nowhere Andrew giving me the CD writer. People say, “Oh, that’s a handout.” No. I will have to work to profit by it. But I don’t stand a chance without it.“

“[Some] boys were in a uniquely messed-up situation when apartheid ended. IT is one thing to be born in the hood and know that you will never leave the hood. But [some] has been shown the world outside. [The family] have done okay. They have a house. They sent him to a decent school, maybe he’s even matriculated. He has been given more potential, but has not been given more opportunity. He has been given awareness of the world that is out there, but he has not been given the means to reach it.”

“One of the first things I learned in the hood is that there is a very fine line between civilian and criminal. We like to believe we live in a world of good guys and bad guys, and in the suburbs it’s easy to believe that, because getting to know a career criminal in the suburbs is a difficult thing. But then you go to the hood and you see there are so many shades in between….It’s the mom buying some food that fell off the back of a truck to feed her family, all the way up to the gangs selling military grade weapons and hardware. The hood made me realize that crime succeeds because crime does the one thing the government doesn’t: crime cares. Crime is grass roots.”

Leaving off with this funny bit by Trevor Noah on The Daily Show.

Okay, off for a home gym workout and then shower and bed.