I think it goes without saying that I LOVE Easter and not just because of the incredible chocolates, delicious peeps and cash from the hunt. I love our traditions and I love my family but more importantly, I love how the focus of this holiday is more on Christ than on the Easter bunny. I love how I am annually rocked in a new way when I consider the sacrifice Jesus made for me. I was quite worried that I would be terribly sad this Easter, being away from my family, but God surprised me again and blessed me with an amazing Resurrection Day. He reminded me that Easter is amazing because of Jesus, not because of my family traditions and He will be with me wherever I go so Easters will always be wonderful.
My friends Judith, Lisa and Lisa's boyfriend Chris who was visiting, had planned what turned out to be my most memorable Spring break. Judith drove us all through the most intense rainstorm I've ever seen to her apartment in Nelspruit, South Africa.
After inventing the game "dodge plane," getting seriously lost in the middle of nowhere, and attending a Good Friday service with Chris Tomlin's long lost brother as the worship leader, we were ready for the next leg of our trip. We took a bus to Johannesburg and then flew to Cape Town and arrived in the famous town on Saturday night. After checking into our hostel, the three girls were pooped but Chris insisted we start seeing the town so we went to the famous Waterfront which turned out to be a local hot spot, and feasted on KFC. (FYI, KFC is a huge hit over here- way bigger than in the States. Who knew Africans would love the Colonel so much?) The pink line traces the different legs of our trip.
Lisa studied in Cape Town for a semester two years ago and had friends in town who gave us directions to their church. I was imagining Lisa's "friends" to be young girls but one of her friends is the minister of the Presbyterian church we arrived at. (I was very confused when we showed up and he was wearing a collar like a priest. "Is Lisa secretly Catholic?" I wondered...earlier that week I had dreamt that Lisa was secretly a mormon which only added to my confusion. For the record, despite my confusion, Lisa is a Christian.) We took our seats in the pews and looking around, we realized we were the only ones under the age of 60 except for the minister and his wife and there was not a single black person in the congregation. Are we really in Africa?? I asked myself that questions many times while in Cape Town- it did not feel like the Africa I know. (This was the first side of Africa that Chris saw so he was convinced that the whole "poverty in Africa" line was a giant hoax and was about to tell his friends to stop sending money. Then he visited Maputo...) Due to South Africa's major electricity crisis, the country often has power outages and for the duration of the service, we worshiped with only natural lighting. (One of my quirks is that I hate neon lighting and love natural lighting so I was thrilled) We all had a good laugh when matches couldn't be found to light the candles so the minister asked if there were any smokers and a man walked to the front with his lighter. I just can't picture that happening in the States, especially in California where smokers are ostracized.The sermon was a great one entitled "5 Things the Cross Offers." Let me share these 5 things quickly:
(1) Hope which overcomes doubt.
(2) Grace and Forgiveness which overcomes our failures.
(3) Courage which overcomes our fears.
(4) Life which overcomes death.
(5) Purpose which overcomes emptiness.
After the service the minister and his wife invited us to their home for a traditional South African braai (pronounced bry and is a bbq). A Brazilian man recently told me that Americans get antsy if you visit their home for longer than 2 hours and I tried to deny this at first but then realized it is kind of true. We however stayed with this
amazing family for about 5 hours and would have stayed longer if we didn't have a concert to sneak into. I missed my little nephew terribly as I played with their three year old son who gave us a lesson in how to play cricket. He was a riot and I still got to experience the traditional egg hunt as he ran around looking for chocolate eggs. Kristin (the minister's wife) lent us bathing suits (Chris excluded) since it was scorching hot and their ice-cold pool felt amazing. We enjoyed wonderful conversation, an amazing feast and fantastic fellowship and left their home grinning. I don't know if you ever do this, but sometimes I meet people and think, "I would like to be more like that person." I thought that about Kristin because she was so hospitable and made us feel like we were family after only a few hours together. The following are our "family photos."
After leaving our new friends, we headed to the Kirstenbosch gardens where they have concerts on Sundays at sunset. We got a little lost heading to the gardens
(noticing a pattern) but were able to stop by the University of Cape Town which is one of thee only campuses that might be more beautiful than Westmont. In the picture we are on the steps of the school which is set against an amazing backdrop of mountains with a view of the whole city. Since we were late to the gardens, we didn't buy tickets to the concert since it was almost over but still went through the gardens. As we walked along, we heard what Lisa described as "spooky, Opera music" and hurried along to investigate. We turned
a corner and stumbled upon a HUGE grassy hill, covered in picnic blankets with a full orchestra playing incredible music. (just that one song was spooky) Lisa and Chris convinced the guard to let us in for the last 10 minutes but then it turned out the orchestra decided to play for another hour and half. Please remember that I come from a sports family- we don't do things like orchestras and operas or ballets, so I had never heard an orchestra live. Wow. I have never heard such beautiful music before and I literally cried. We maneuvered our way to the very front and were close enough to hear the musicians turn their pages. I was blown away and sat in awe and wonder. Please take note of the conductor's incredible, plaid pants.
I finally understood the analogy I had just read by C.S. Lewis in his "Weight of Glory" about the beauty of music. He mentions that when listening to beautiful music, we have a longing to be a part of the music, not just listen to it. I felt this desire from myself and from the entire crowd as we were mesmerized by the beautiful songs- it wasn't enough to listen. At the end, people were clapping along with the song and even dancing- mind you, this was an orchestra we were listening to. Lewis says in such moments when there is an inexplicable feeling of intense longing, a longing to be a part of the beauty, that beauty is acting as a messenger for God.
" For a few minutes we have had the illusion of belonging to that world. Now we wake to find that it is no such thing. We have been mere spectators. Beauty has smiled, but not to welcome us; her face was turned in our direction, but not to see us..We pine. The sense that in this universe we are treated as strangers, the longing to be acknowledged, to meet with some response, to bridge some chasm that yawns between us and reality, is part of our inconsolable secret. The promise of glory becomes highly relevant to our deep desire. For glory means good report with God, acceptance by God, response, acknowledgement, and welcome into the heart of things. The door on which we have been knocking all our lives will open at last."
Indeed, as I sat, spellbound listening to the orchestra in one of the most beautiful settings with the sun sinking behind the mountains, I heard the message from beauty- there is more, this is only a taste, one day you will experience this beauty more fully. It was so fitting that I experienced this intense longing to be with Jesus on the day that He made it possible.
1 comment:
Katie Louise, This is your best blog yet. I wanted to be there with you; everything sounds amazing! Yes, He is risen indeed!
Love, Aunt Letty
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