Week Two: Commserve + Physical Theatre

Heyy folks –

Sorry I didn’t write yesterday, I was kind of busy last night so I wasn’t able to update the blog. I threw some pictures on Facebook, though, as a consolation – hope that was enough to quell your desires for at least twenty-four hours.

This past week has been really awesome and busyish. Since I’m an IB1, I don’t have an incredible amount of homework or anything, but I’m still trying to keep up a heavy extracurricular schedule. Plus, I’m socializing a bit more because I realize my workload isn’t monstrous yet. Which then entails that I start my homework a little later. But it’s all good.

The highlights of this week were definitely my commserve outings. I got my first preference for community service – it’s a program called “Ward 8” where I go with a few other students to the abandoned children’s hospital in town and take some of the kids out to the park so they can get some sun and basically escape from their rooms. It was really fun and rewarding in a lot of aspects, but at the same time there was a certain blanket of gravitas over the whole outing. The children are pretty severely mentally and physically disabled, and the hospital isn’t the most comfortable place (of course). We walked into the ward and the place was packed, the nurses were all very busy, and they still weren’t able to get to everything. I remember thinking when we took them back to the hospital, “Home sweet home… god, that’s shit.” I tried to imagine being in that same room, day after day, for my entire life. But at the same time, I feel awesome when I’m able to take the kids out of the hospital, even if it is just one day a week, to get some fresh air.

I also felt a little guilty that I got picked for Ward 8, considering that there were only four spots and most everybody requested it. I know I shouldn’t feel guilty, but... I dunno. I got my first choice for commserve but many others didn’t even get their third choice. I think something about the system was a little janky.
But I’m very grateful to have this commserve and know that I’ll make the best of it.

Also this week was Mpaka commserve. Mpaka is a refugee camp in Swaziland with kids of all ages, and twice a term they all get in a bus and come down to Waterford for a day of activities, sports, and fun. I was so stoked to see the bus pull in and see all the kids run off into the school… it reminded me a lot of babysitting for Meeting, but with about ten times as many kids. Considering that I just adore playing with kids, this was the perfect commserve. We spent the better part of 4 hours outside, and a common game seemed to evolve – get on Eli’s shoulder’s and have him run around. Pretty standard, no? I had a lot of fun but was beyond exhausted by the end.

So I really hope that I’m able to continue with multiple commserve opportunities beyond my weekly-allocated slot, because that was one of my primary motivating factors in coming here. Fingers crossed!

We had our first rehearsal for our physical theatre production this week (did I mention before that I got in?). Basically, the show is being written collaboratively by the actors and the director (a student), centered around the idea of rhythm and the theme of lies. So about half of the rehearsal was about body rhythm, making rhythmic use of everyday objects, etc.. very STOMP, very fun. The second half, then, was a near-existential conversation about lies, the nature of lies, the meaning of lies, and how lies have played out in our lives. We all sat in the drama room and discussed for nearly two hours how to define a lie, if lying is always morally wrong, and such. The discussion was intriguing and compelling, and I really hope we’re able to have more like it in the future. I got the sense that it was very UWC.

I just want to mention once more that I’m having a great time – more than the academic aspect, I’m really enjoying the extracurriculars and the service, staying up in hostel and talking to people till one in the morning (another factor in my lack of sleep, perhaps), and the like.

Oh, and I guess the academics are pretty cool too :)

Final note – I didn’t get bid on for the boy auction.. but if it’s any consolation, only four of the ten or so boys were bid on, and the highest bid was for twenty emalangeni (~three dollars). Lawl. Anyways, SRC has decided to make things even more awkward for the bachelors, and if offering all the people who haven’t been bid on for live auction tomorrow. Woo?

Hope all is well at home, wherever your home may be. I hear Gabby wants toast? Me too, Gabby. Me too.

Sala kahle, love y’all

Eli