"Table for One Please"

Days #65-69 (Wed-Sun)

Wednesday

No prison trips today so in the morning was office work which didn't involve much as there was a lot I could help with so after that in the afternoon I headed out for a walk in the amazing setting of the Stellenbosch vineyards!

It was an incredible place to explore. It was an 12km walk over hills, through lots of vineyards and around mini lakes/ponds. I was alone with my thoughts, a chance to take in God's amazing creation with the only noise being the ground beneath my feet.

Thursday

Well today the Prison went into an early lockdown which means prisoners receive there lunch at 11 then spend the rest of the day in there cells- this is due to a function going on so therefore lack of staff.

So no prison today.

However, the day was not lost as in the afternoon I drove over to Somerset West and joined the guys at Helderberg Academy with their training session in Lwandle. Have missed these guys and the boys in Lwandle. Really do enjoy the work with the Helderberg Academy.

Friday

Well friday mornings are free as there is no office work for me to do and we have no coaching in the morning so I woke up early, quick breakfast then headed for the door. I went into Stellenbosch, hired myself a bike and headed for Jonkershoek Nature Reserve.

The cycle to the reserve was fairly long and up as the reserve was apart of the surrounding mountains. But when I eventually reached the reserve it was well worth it and had a great cycle through the amazing scenery.

Friday afternoon I took another training session with the boys from Bellville.

Friday night Ully and Heide were out at friends for the evening so I decided to treat myself to a meal out. "Table for one please." I went to a well recommended grill house, best known for it's steaks and wine. As it was popular the place was full to the brim but they managed to sit me at the bar so I was happy. Great atmosphere, great service, amazing food. Started off with an incredible Italian Tomato Soup (best I've ever had) then moved on to the big daddy, a 300g Steak (Medium) with chips and some seasoned veggies. B-E-A-UTIFUL!

Saturday

Today was family day. Well in the prison it was anyway!

Myself and Ju Ju got up early and headed to Drakenstein Prison. We got there just in time...
It really did surprise me... In the fields where we usually play football there where four large tents (like circus tents) full of people. There was a lot of people, all of the prisoners from this department and all their families where there. Out of our boys only one of their families didn't turn up.

It was a great atmosphere. The sun was shinning, blue skies (little breeze but we will ignore that), the perfect day! Throughout the morning various bands of the prisoners played, there were dancers, drama acts... It really was a good day. There was also a big Braai as well so families could go and buy some food for them and there son and eat together, spend time together. It was really special to sit with these different families and just feel the joy there, there's only 1 family day a year so people were really happy. Especially our boys from the Hope Academy, it was just great to see them sit and chat to their families, eat together, drink together (soft drinks), laugh together...

The bands which played and the choir were really good, even with the wind the music delivered a great day of entertainment. I particularly enjoyed the dancers, they were good fun, everyone was laughing and rallying them on.

One moment particularly caught my attention... It was between one of the prisoners and his mum (or grandmother, hard to tell), they shared the longest hug I've ever seen. They just grasped each other and took in the moment, that hug had to last all year so they made it count (sure they do have visitors throughout the year but only one family day so they don't get to spend time like that). It really was a special moment in the midst of the business, joy and laughter to witness.

After that I headed into Stellenbosch to watch the Red Men take on the Blue Noses in the Merseyside derby. Found myself in a South Africa pub sitting next to a fellow liverpool fan. He was South african but his Granddad was originally from Liverpool so it was cool to chat with him and tell all about my travels and projects so far.

That night I drove into Somerset West for a Games Night with some of the people from the church, really was a fun evening!!

Sunday

I headed back to Somerset West and joined the church Urban Voice for their sunday service. Really do love this church, the worship is fantastic, the message clear and the people of really welcoming and friendly. Treat me like family, like i've been there for years.

After the service it was the meeting for next weekends camp which was good. I'm part of a great team so I'm really excited for the summer camp and the activities we've sorted out for the saturday!

After the meeting I was kindly invited to head round for a Braai at a family's house who go to the lifegroup I've been going to during my time here. It was cool to just chill and chat with my new South African lifegroup (Small Group). Enjoyed some good food and had some really good talks about God's calling in our lives which is really big on my mind at the moment especially being out here and also about whats going to happen at the end of the time which I found amazing as it made me realise how little I knew about it (the whole idea about just before christ returns).

Sunday evening I tagged along with Rahel and Beth to a Discipleship conference. The event was very busy and really challenging, I enjoyed to message and looking deeper into the idea of Discipleship which is such an important area for the church and christians.

God Bless.