After a long day of work, the three of us decided to visit the beach for the first time since our arrival. We went to a place called "boulders", named for all the large rocks along the shoreline. This picture is taken from atop one of the boulders I climbed. I spent about an hour exploring these rocks alone. It was such a therapeutic time for me to be alone with God in his beautiful creation. Through it I discovered that rocks are very random things. Think about it. What real purpose do they serve? There are big rocks, small rocks, pebbles. People use them to decorate gardens, to prop doors open, to weigh things down, and Jesus was hidden behind a rock until he exited the tomb after 3 days of death. For me, I think rocks are a reminder to play. I have so many memories as a child of climbing huge rocks with my dad. He was a big hiker and we'd always go out West to visit Wyoming and the Dakotas and Arizona. Each trip included climbing rocks, boulders, rock walls, and petrified wood. To me, rocks always remind me to play. Climbing the rocks of Cape Town, I remembered the innocent joy found in exploring God's creation. It was a really great afternoon for me.


This picture was taken at Pat's birthday dinner at the game reserve. Next to me is Melissa, my roommate from DC. Behind her is Pat, the birthday girl and our other roommate from Asheville. Next to Pat is Wendy from Trinidad, volunteering as Living Hope's journalist for the next 2 years. And behind me is Susie from Colorado Springs. She moves back to Colorado in a month. Susie is the one who settled us here in South Africa.

And now, my parting words to you: