Our day began with Ronnie's morning arrival to work in the garden. This is the last time we'll see him. We gave him a couple sacks of outgrown clothes for his kids. We included some toys that won't make the trip back to the U.S. Because he couldn't manage it all on his bike, I took him home to Kayamandi. We took two photos today: one at our house and one at his.
An old friend Yeukai received our emailed Christmas letter yesterday and quickly wrote back saying that she's staying with her family in Somerset West for Christmas. This was a shock to us, as we had no idea her parents had moved from Zimbabwe to South Africa, let alone so close to Stellenbosch. I phoned her and we have made a plan to get together Sunday evening at Strand Beach.
Because our Christmas day (tomorrow) will be filled with a morning church service and afternoon travels to Glencairn, we chose to celebrate our family Christmas today. Summertime Christmas is a peculiar event for typically snow-bound northerners, because your Christmas signals are completely crossed. Even more so when you're far away from family and in a culture that doesn't celebrate Thanksgiving. Without the late-November holiday, without cold weather, without snow, without hectic planning for family gatherings, it doesn't seem like Christmas has arrived. Can this really be the right time to celebrate Christ's birth? Nevertheless, we enjoyed a nice family celebration on this Christmas Eve. We opened gifts this afternoon. Later, we made a braai with boerewors and steak. See lots of photos below.
--Matt
