It feels good to be back in Cape
Town after excursion. It was fun to explore Johannesburg and was amazing to
witness the wildlife in Kruger, but it is nice to be settled in again at the
house. I found myself thinking on the plane back that we were almost "home."
Cape Town has become a second home for me.
Before we left for excursion, Allie,
Jenna, Emily, Katrina and I were able to work on our activist project. We have
been volunteering with the Firefighters Football Club, a local soccer club for
boys in Khayelitsha. We've helped out at their practices and raised money tobuy them water bottles and sponsor their tournaments.
The Saturday before excursion we
spent the day helping out at their U11 tournament, and it was a BLAST! The sun
was shining, it was a beautiful day out, and the park was buzzing with all
different clubs from the Cape area. The boys were pumped up and ready to
play.
We were able to bring a huge jug of
water for the boys, as well as breakfast, lunch, and snacks, which was good
because almost none of them brought any water or food with them for the
day-long tournament. The boys devoured the breakfast and fruit we brought! It
was gone within minutes. I can't imagine playing in the sun all day without any
water or without eating anything, but this is an everyday thing for them.
I'm realizing now how lucky I was
growing up to have so much support from my parents. I'm thinking back to the
countless hours my mom and dad spent driving me to swim meets, how many meets
they sat through for hours on end to watch me swim a few minute-long races, and
the stocked lunch box full of snacks and Gatorades they always sent me off
with. I know as a pre-teen I would have no clue how to get myself to a
tournament and pack food for myself. I was babied.
This just shows how much the boys
truly love the game. Most of them walk to practice after school, without any
water or anything to eat. Their parents rarely come to games; many parents have
to work or can't even afford transport to the field. Soccer is not just an
after-school activity or extracurricular. They live for soccer. These boys
aren't sitting on their couches after school watching TV, they are out with
their friends kicking the ball around the field. No wonder the team is so
INCREDIBLY talented! For being so young, the boys have so much skill. I
definitely underestimated their ability. In their games, it was just one header
after another and they are so good at passing.
We couldn't make to the next day of
the tournament because we were flying to Jo'burg, but later on
Sunday we learned that the Firefighters won the entire tournament! I was
beaming when I found out. I'm so excited to continue working with the club.
Next step is getting all the players individual water bottles!
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