Sunday, March 9, 2014

Farewell, Sweet Africa

Well, the time has finally come for me to leave this beautiful continent. This afternoon I fly with my Mom across The Strait of Gibralter from Morocco to Paris.

I'm nervous.
What will I do without the passion and vibrance cultured by an intensity only offered by the African sun?  This is the only place where I've seen that such passion can be a negative and turn people against each other with a conviction I'd never before experienced. But such a raw and eclectic existence is such a source of beauty as well, and allows me to appreciate the intoxicating radiance in imperfection and the ability it has to illuminate unseen beauty in darkness.
But the time has come to return home, and although I do not know if my feet will ever again touch the red soil of the land I've grown to love so well, Africa will remain a part of me as I leave an aged piece of my heart behind in the place that taught me more about humanity in two years than I'd learned in a lifetime.



Here is my completed list of Absolute Truths, though this may change once I arrive home and things I've been taking for granted are brought to light:
*Always carry a litter bag and tissue paper.
*Clothes and baby life forms are much stronger, and much more resilient than given credit for.
* Keep your word, always.
*Be on time, always.
*Your community is a living organism. Pay attention to it.
*No matter how much of something there is, it's always enough to share.
*My heart is also your heart.
*Life is finite. Be kind. Be patient.


As I end this blog and begin a new chapter of my journey, I'd like to thank all of the friends, family and neighbors who shaped and changed my life over the past two years. You taught me life, you taught me death, you taught me patience, kindness, forgiveness, and hope. The list is too long and my nerves too shattered to name everyone in one fell swoop.  I will be seeing some of you within the coming weeks, and have left too many of you for the foreseeable future, but know that I love and cherish you all more than I have the words to express.


Stay well until we meet again.
Love Always,

Goitsimang/Pebetse/Alyssa.