When we arrived in South Africa with our
suitcases at the end of last September, we started in Grabouw – following riots,
rampant HIV, TB and youth unemployment. Grabouw was challenging, striking and cold, high up in the mountains. But we let our heart get attached to
Grabouw.
We then headed to the other side of the
Cape and found ourselves in Paarl. A town that spreads down the valley
supporting much agricultural activity. Since early October we have lifted up
our heads to Paarl Mountain in quiet awe.
This mountain is made of granite and is, we are told, the second largest
rock of its kind after Ayers Rock in Australia.
We have noticed it, looked at
it, studied it, tried to draw it. It was months before we began to find a way
to climb it. Eventually in early April we found a route and, then found a
circuit that took us half way up the mountain and down again. It was a
challenging uphill climb of very steep gradients that had our heart pumping
hard. We got used to our lovely circuit. It became our friend. It became
comfortable, manageable. Early one particular morning we tried to hit up the
higher trail, but after a while we turned back, a little defeated by the challenge
of it.
But last week we did it. We went to the
very top and were breathless not just with the climb but also with the views
and the perspectives. We could see the whole of Paarl Valley, the mountains
that surround on every side and a clear view as far as Table Mountain in Cape
Town. The Paarl Mountain that has eyed us up every day and kept us in our place,
was finally put in its place, at least in our mind. We now look up and wink at
it each day. “We did you”
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| Paarl mts |
In every programme
we run we talk about potential. Even last Saturday morning in a gangster
controlled, 80% drug abuse rate amongst youth kind of a community, we talked to
the youth about potential. Human potential is the great unexplored ocean. There
is so much more to each of us than we even begin to realise.
The thing I also
realised again this week is that it doesn’t matter how much potential a person
has, it’s still a mountain climb to liberate that potential. I can look at my potential but stay down in
comfortable valley, I can venture up a few paths on the lower slopes and feel
good about it, I can even make a big climb into my potential, go further than
I’d imagined but then for fear or whatever reason, I can make my new ‘stretch
zone’ in to the new ‘comfort zone’.
Fulfilling my potential is always going to be a mountain climb.
Stretching and risking and some hard walking to find the rewarding vistas.
And I’m still left wondering what makes a
person decide to climb their mountain?
Do enjoy with me Erwin McManus TED talk on how everyone is an artist and
we are all works of art.
It’s end of term here. As I sit here in
this beautiful Western Cape morning in the middle of what South Africans call
winter, but we call either ‘hot summer’ or ‘mild autumn’ I am reflecting on the
fact that we are entering our final week
of work here. On Saturday we head up the Wild Coast for 2 weeks holidays before
returning to the UK, but by Friday this week our work is completed. When I say
‘complete’ of course I’m lying. The work is nowhere near complete. We’ve barely
started. But this chapter for Jane & I is complete.
Two years ago about this month, after
running a pivotal Leadership for Hope event for 400 people in Nairobi we were
confronted by the reality that the only way we could ever truly grow this work
to its potential was to come and live in Africa in order to establish working
‘hubs’ for both East and South Africa. So for the past two years we were either
planning or actually living in Kenya and South Africa, Nairobi and the Western
Cape. – roughly half the time in each.
Its been a mountain climb with extraordinary views, totally challenging
ascents and lots of courage and risks along the way.
As we left a restaurant this lunchtime a
young lady who I didn’t recognize behind the bar, held up her pen so I could see it and called out, “I’ve still got my pen”. She must have been on one of
our training programmes. So we stopped and asked her about the impact of the
training on her life.
In some small way we leave knowing that we have
helped release a little of the potential of a few thousand people and set up a
team here that will go on and reach many more thousands.
- TW
