so much history!

over the past few days we have done a lot of toursity things which has been good but can get a little monotonous at times. on monday we went to the slave lodge which was very powerful. it went through the entire history of how slaves were brought over to south africa (very similar to the US), treated as unequals, freed but not really free and what it is like for people of color today. there was also an exhibit on the american slave trade and the civil rights movement which i really wasn't expecting to see in south africa. in one room it was filled with confederate flags, a kkk costume, etc which was really unsettling and i think was used as a shock factor. it made me realize how much we downplay that era in america and i never really understood just how evil and scary that time period was. i really appreciated this musueum because it made me reflect a lot on race in our society and in SA and what it means to be white and to be a person of color. in one of the rooms there was a long wall with different quotes that just really hit me and inspired me:
"NOTHING IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN HUMAN THINKING."
"NEVER DOUBT WHAT A FEW COMMITTED HUMAN BEINGS CAN DO TO CHANGE THE WORLD."
"JOY IN SPITE OF EVERYTHING."
on monday we also visited the cape of good hope which was a historical site...kinda boring if you ask me so not much to write about. the next day, tuesday we visted several Afrikaaner sites which gave everyone mixed feelings. it was hard for us because it was the afrikaaners who started and enforced the apartheid movement and here we are looking at sculptures and monuments that embraced that culture. our tour guide, mervin, who is coloured, told us that we need to remember the importance of understanding all aspects of apartheid, so we do not repeat it again. for mervin, it was very hard for him to visit these monuments at first and not many coloureds or blacks would ever want to set foot next to them. the white afrikaaners believed that they were God's chosen people and God told them they were better than all other races (reminds you a lot of hitler huh?). what i dont understand is why is it that all these white people seem to think they are better than everyone else?! i mean seriously, what got these ideas into their heads?? i've really been struggling with that lately and really been trying not to be bitter about it. but its hard. the second monument we went to was a sculpture of a woman on top of the world with a bible and broken chains symbolizing freedom from oppression. oddly enough, the french who were here (who later became afrikaaners) actually felt they were oppressed. i just really dont get it. but after that confusing day it got a lot better. i went out with my host sister sherenice, our neighbor stephanie and sherenice's cousin to this huge mall. we walked around for awhile and then went to see the very american movie "material girls." lol oh my gosh, i can see why so many people outside the US have bad impressions of americans. but it was still fun and i love hanging out with my sister! this morning, wednesday, i woke up at 5:30am for devotions with the family. whoa, was that early! lol i didnt know any of the songs and was trying to croak through them all with my sleepy voice but it was still enjoyable. and the prayer that uncle desmond said was just beautiful. i feel so blessed to be in a family that has such a strong connection with Christ!! i feel like part of the reason i am with them is to minister to their daughter, sherry, so please pray for our relationship and her being open to me teaching her what i know. today we went to several historical churches: the first was the dutch reformed church which gave the theological justification for apartheid and was the leader in bringing it into the government. interesting fact: the church was built by masons and so there was A LOT of hidden masonry symbols in the church (and the masonry is satanic i believe... i dont really understand the masons so if anyone has any info on it please email me because i would like to know what the significance is of it and what in the world it even is). the second church was the anglican church, which desmond tutu was the first black archbishop at! it was so beautiful and was also home to the black madonna (again, if anyone has any info on this as well, i am very curious as to why it is called the black madonna and what its significance is). lastly, we went to the slave church which was much smaller than the other two but really humbling. tonight i am going shopping with my host mom and sister, yay! however, i seriously gotta start doing my readings and homework... it has been so hard cuz sherry (sherenice) is always in my room hanging out and talking with me and i would MUCH rather do that than homework :( so... haha, let's hope i can start gettin it done soon! love, melissa