Developing Fine Motor Skills

Yesterday I spent about 30 minutes with Keira picking up little pieces of paper and putting them in an envelope and then taking turns dumping them all out again in each others hands, that was a long half hour!  Keira did not grow tired of this activity but of course my mind wandered. . . I thought about how this kind of repetition is the way she learns best at this age and that it is important for her fine motor control, and  her patience as well as mine.  But I also though about how so many things in our lives at the moment are the same way.  Our Sunday discussion group for instance; things are going really well but when I think of what we are trying to achieve it will take a long time, a lot of character growth in each individual and a lot of patience with each other and the journey.  Slowly we will learn how to put one foot in front of the other, crossing boundaries and comfort zones, making this a worthy priority  in our lives because we are saying yes to Jesus and his heart for all people and how He wants to change our lives and perspectives, not just a cool group  of people to meet with each week.

My patience is also being challenged at the home front.  Every evening  small children come to my gate and yell, " KEERA!!" And promptly Keira jumps up and says " My friends are calling me Mommy, They want to play with me"  But playing usually ends up in little tiffs that lead to " Keera's Mother! Keera's Mother, she won't share the bike. . ." or some other catastrophic occurrence.
Don't get me wrong I love the kids and we have little girls on the street now which is fun to have Keira play with girls ( dancing, gymnastics, dolls, riding bikes etc. vs. violent soccer games and Keira just watching older boys play or fix their bikes.)  It can be a bit challenging to go from 2 children to 8.
But I think I am being stretched more and more to love out of Jesus' love and not my own, To love beyond my own ability.

Check Jordan's new do! I think she likes it.

 

 Cami, Keira, Kamu and Jordan

 

Kamu, Thabiso, Cami and Keira, enjoying story time by Thabiso

The journey continues...

The journey continues...

As we started 2010 we had to look back on last year and see where we have come from. At the beginning of 2009 there were just a few friends dreaming of drawing a diverse group of people together to talk, learn and engage with the struggle of racial reconciliation in our country.

It has been amazing to see what God has done through these weekly discussion meetings of honesty and learning. By reflecting on the journey we are on we get to see what God is doing and how we can continue to grow.

We end the the year with a braai (BBQ), with the hope of celebrating together. We had some fun but we also defaulted into the places and groups that we were most comfortable.

We took some time to start this year by debriefing the braai.

Here's what we learned and expressed to each other...a testament to God growing us together and through the interaction with each other.

We learned about how we do food differently, how we socialize differently, interact differently and relax differently... and that when we don't understand these differences...our tendency is to assume the worst of the other and withdraw to our comfort zones and thus segregation.

Here are some things we learned and discovered through reflecting together:
- We are dissatisfied with segregation
- We want more unity
- We desire more togetherness and understanding
- We are realizing out own part in it
- We were able to be honest and share our short comings
- We were able to apologise to each other
- We are gaining an awareness of our differences
- We are working on our assumptions
- We are realizing our need to move out of our comfort zones
- We see the need for initiative with each other

We learned a lot from a braai, about each other, cultures and ways of doing things.

Now we have to ask:
How do we build something together?
What ways can we respect and celebrate each others cultures?
How do we need to compromise and create something new?

It is an art, a journey, a creative exercise....it is building the Kingdom of God.

Chimamanda Adichie: The danger of a single story | Video on TED.com

A great speach on how we need to listen to many stories to get the whole story and how damaging just hearing a single story is...very helpful

Chimamanda Adichie: The danger of a single story | Video on TED.com