untitled…
well my son, well I’ve been waiting for you so long… well I can see that you’re in pain, and I know that that there’s something wrong. I know that you’ve been angry ; I know that you’ve seen hate. But you’ve gotta dig deep to the heaven above; you sit down learn and create . You gotta lose all that anger; lose all that hate. Ain’t gonna work no more. I wish the world was run by LOVE and absolutely nothing more. I lay down all my pain, I’m getting rid of my hate
Before I forget…
Fifteen years ago… sometime in September, the future wife and I started dating. We spent a good couple of hours reminiscing about it the other night. Trying to hash out how it happened, when it happened, and which other potential loves might have stopped it from happening. Even though I have an awful memory, I can still remember the first time I saw her. I immediately had a crush on her… and it wasn’t long before I loved her. I know… it’s cheesy, mushy even; but I constantly have to remind myself of what a good woman she is, how much we have been through and that is has been no cake walk. I always jokingly tell her that she couldn’t help herself about choosing me… I was so smooth and cool that there was no way she could pass me up. The truth lies more in that I would have been crushed if she had not chosen me to be with her, and I certainly wouldn’t be the man I am today.
I didn’t know there were penguins in Africa…
Mada and the penguins It’s true (Wikipedia say so), there are penguins in Africa. There’s Madeleine up there hanging out with them. I don’t want to sound ignorant, but I never knew there were penguins in Africa. And I watch the Discovery channel. A lot. But this isn’t about the penguins. It’s about people I love that are in Africa, and the one I truly love wanting to go to Africa.
Carter, Madeleine, Jen and Dave are all in Africa right now. That blows my mind. Mostly because I imagine I might never get to see the things they are seeing. But it mostly makes me happy, because I know what an adventure they are having. Along with the adventure comes a deep love for people and an understanding of what is still not right with this world.
The day before we left Cape Town, we drove to the Cape of Good Hope where we saw wild baboons with babies on their back, a couple of ostrich, cape zebra and a huge whale out in the Atlantic. Earlier in the day the kids swam with wild African penguins at Boulder Beach near Simon’s Town. By the end of the day we were high from the sheer joy of it all. I have pictures, but no time to post.
We keep running into a lovely couple from San Francisco–Dave and Antonia–we were seated on the same section of the plane coming from New York. It feels nice to see a familiar face, and we laugh each time at the coincidence.
It’s so beautiful here in the Winelands, but a tiny bit sad. “I feel bad that only black people are cleaning and helping us,” Madeleine said. “No white people.” I feel the same, trying to unravel in my mind the complicated story of class and race in this country. Black or white, everyone we have met here has welcomed us with kindness and grace. We feel the blessing of warmth and the weight of histories not that different from our own as Americans.
From JenLemen.com
Back here in the states, Jen’s African adventure has re-stoked the wife’s lifelong dream of going to Africa. Amazingly enough, an opportunity has come along for her to go to Sierra Leone as part of a church outreach ministry and work at a child rescue center. She approached me about it without any hope of me actually agreeing to it, but you know, I don’t want to be the guy that kills his wife’s one lifelong dream. I’m really excited for her. It’s mind blowing really, to think she will be a world away. I’m sure the experience will be good for both of us. I hope everything falls in place, and if it does, she’ll be heading for Africa come September.
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