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| The lowvelt is in bloom! |
As Christmas approaches, I still don't have my Australian visa. I've been fighting discouragement, because its been such a long process and its still not finished. I'm constantly discovering that there's forms that I still need to sign, scan and send in. We're hoping and praying that it'll be submitted to the Australian department of immigration before Christmas and that I'll hear whether or not I have my visa by New Year's Eve. When I applied to do my Discipleship Training School last August, the whole application process went by so fast. I think that part of the reason behind that was because I carry a Dutch passport, which means that I don't need to apply for a visa. Getting this visa is a really hurdle for me, but God's timing is perfect and it can be quite difficult sometimes trusting that He'll bring it in at the right time. I know He will.
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| Two warthog mums and their babies |
I must say that being down in South Africa during the summer definitely means that I'm seeing and experiencing the beauty of a hot, wet lowvelt. The rain comes down in torrents, when it does rain, and the sun sends down bolts of heat when the rain isn't falling. When the rain started, everything turned green. Also I've seen a lot of really interesting animals and insects. There's been spiders, pray mantis, dung beetles and a whole host of other creatures coming out. Having grown up in Uganda, these creatures don't bother me, but I just don't like the idea of getting stung by a scorpion, bitten by a spider or having caterpillar hairs in my fingers. I've had caterpillar hairs in my fingers has happened since I've been down here and it wasn't a very pleasant experience as I had to resort to using a knife and tape to scrape and pull all the hairs out. It was an experience I definitely won't forget in a hurry and a lesson well learnt. Don't go sticking your hands into jars, even if you can see what's at the bottom.
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| Hannah, the chef |
Hannah's been back a few days now and is already working as one of the cooks at the place she used to work before she left for France. She's really enjoying catching up with a number of the staff, who are good friends of hers. She's been wearing her Le Cordon Bleu uniform to work, but only the cooking jacket thingy (I have no idea what the professional term for the chef's jacket is) and has spiced it up nicely (i.e. not wearing the trousers or the cap that's part of the uniform but her own stuff). She loves what she does and its great seeing some of the beautiful pieces of 'art' that she cooks up. She'd send photos of what she's cooked back to us at home. World, be warned, Hannah's food is as beautiful as it is tasty.
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| Caterpillar on the loose |
Caleb's finished grade eight, last week, with wonderful results (we got his report card last Monday). He passed all his subjects, including the core subjects (Africaans, English and maths) with flying colours. He decided that failure isn't an option, especially for the core subjects, which if he failed he'd have to redo the year and he did not like the prospect of doing that. For me, it was astonishing to see his dedication to passing this grade. He'd been up at five in the morning, sometimes before that, to study for tests and exams, and he would spend hours, in the evening, working on assignment that were due. We're all so proud of him and what he's been able to achieve since he moved down here with my mum last year.
Do stay posted for more news on what's going on in the little town of Hoedspruit and in my life!