(1) We stopped to talk with a young black man who watched our car while we were on the beach. He has been working with another man for four years watching cars in a small lot. About 10 cars might park here when the weather is nice. From the lot, people can walk down a few steps to a beautiful beach on the Indian Ocean.
When we asked about his day he said that it was a good day because the weather improved and people came to park in the lot, so he would be able to eat! There is no set charge, or even any requirement to pay him. He watches the cars and some give him a few Rand. 14 Rand= $1
He told us that he was very young when Apartheid ended but he has heard stories about what life was like before it ended. He thinks life here is better now, but everything is very expensive. When Jane asked if he was happy living in South Africa, he said that he had never been anywhere else so he doesn't know if he would be happier in another place.
He asked, "How do you define the word, "success"?
Then he told us he is Christian and he reads his Bible every day and prays, but seldom goes to church. He thinks success is doing some good for others each day and feeling at peace with your life when you go to bed each night.
He also asked, "Which man will enter the Kingdom of God?"
... A man who earns a million dollars a month and gives half of it to the needy, or a man who prays and reads his Bible and goes to church often.
How would you have responded?
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(2) Walking back from viewing the African Penguins, we stopped to get a coke. The owner of a very nice seaside house had transformed the lower level patio into a shady spot where tourists could get an ice cream or a drink. Jane asked the black clerk if the house was his house. Just the thought that he might be the owner made him laugh. Then he told us that someday his dream is to have such a fine house as this.
How far away is his dream?
It seems that his dream cannot be realized without a revolution in expectations. How could a black parent tell a child that he/she can be whatever they want to be when the everyday reality of black service and labor provides such a powerful message to their children for what they should expect in life. This division has been entrenched in their society so long that it is simply accepted.
