Officially the worst blogger ever!!!!

My apologies to those of you who have noticed the absense of blog posts, it is so easy to carry on with the busy day-to-day life and let these things slide! Each day is so busy and full of challenges both mental and physical that I find it hard to document the goings on without writing a novel! Plus without a particular inspiration to start with (as in previous entries) it's much easier to just let time pass and collapse into bed each night without attempting a post.

Anyway, excuses excuses! In short, life here is good. I have been doing the school run each day with our 3 eldest boys, and more recently including a previous resident of VoH, a 7 year old girl. It is never dull, quite apart from the kids picking the music and boogying along on the journey, there are usually a few extra pick-ups / errands added so every day is different! I also do a morning activity with the rest of the children at the unit (such as finger painting and song and dance time) along with my fellow volunteer and room-mate Fran. She arrived just over a month ago and we've become good friends, which is bloomin lucky considering most days our schedules are almost identical! So anyway, combine the mornings taking care of the children here with the big weekly shop for the unit, afternoon kids club on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and you've got a pretty packed week!

Of course this goes nowhere near explaining all the intricacies of working for a charity like Thembalitsha, or in a place like Village of Hope. There are ongoing issues with the children's medication, with their behaviour, trying to place them back with their families and for those who have already left we continue to monitor how they are doing back at home. Obviously I can't go into any detail without breaching confidentiality, plus I'd be here forever if I wanted to do it any justice and then I'd never get any work done! And anyway, that's just the children. The future of the Village of Hope will hopefully include projects which will benefit local youths and adults too, such as agricultural training, alcohol and drug rehabilitation - the dreams and visions of those who live and work here could expand this centre into a real beacon for Grabouw. It's just that pesky thing called funding, and the support of the local government, businesses and other NGO's that are needed to push things forward. Suffice to say it's complicated, and while I would love to delve deeper and understand more about how things run here (both in terms of the municipality and the inner workings of the charity) I know that my place is to do the more basic essential day-to-day jobs so that those already in the know can spend their time on more important matters. Besides, as they say, 'This is Africa', and as soon as you think you've solved one puzzle, the rules change, the goalposts move and although you may not be back to square one, you know you're not really on solid ground either.

P.S - Oh and some people have asked about the nickname 'Bandit' - it doesn't mean I've resorted to a life of crime to help fund VoH! I've simply had lots of fun helping with the wood chipping, and helping Arry fix the chainsaw, so between the old scar on my cheek and the chippers brand name 'Brush Bandit', the boys have come up with the latest new name for me :)