Volunteering in a township and with street kids

Jared and I have been volunteering with two projects for awhile now, Work for Love and MyLife. Work for Love operates in a township outside Cape Town called Masiphlumelele and offers a wellness healing clinic each week. The clinic offers massage, homeopathy, tarot card readings, shiatsu and energy work and hypnosis. It's free of charge and mostly used by women in the township. Jared and I have been doing mini-sessions with them doing energy work and hypnosis with coaching. Jared has a background in counseling and therapy which has helped out a lot as the women have told us all about their problems and asked advice. There are social workers available to these women, but I don't know to what extent to how easily they are to get to.

One young woman came to us a few weeks ago and she has a young son. She came to Cape Town on her own, her family is all in the Eastern Cape in a rural area and so she doesn't have support in how to raise a child. The consequence has been that she doesn't know what to do with her son who is acting out since his father left and isn't interested in being a part of his life (a very common thing here). Her son hits her and screams and beats up other kids. Out of frustration she then beats her son (also a common thing). But if she learned some parenting skills and how to deal with her son's anger it would be a lot easier on both her and her son. Being away from her family though, she doesn't appear to have that support though.

Most of the women worry a lot. Some have a hard time sleeping at night due to worry. They worry about being unemployed, their partners being unemployed, bills, getting enough food to eat. So we help them ground and connect to themselves more and give them some suggestions in dealing with their worry through energy work and hypnosis.

Another project we've been involved with is with street kids in town through MyLife. They are mostly 18+. We have been doing healing with some of them to help deal with past trauma, and man do these kids have a lot of trauma. Some grew up orphans on the streets, addicted to tic (meth), mandrax or alcohol, have been in gangs, killed or raped people, been in and out of jail for theft, murder, attempted murder, been abused themselves and had violence directed at them. They have a lot of regret, guilt, shame, anger, and sadness. They also have a lot of potential. This project has helped several former street kids become chefs, sommeliers, and get jobs in the film industry among others. Their vision is to build an eco-village where street kids go to be rehabilitated and trained in life skills and as leaders.

Working with these kids and adults has been really great. Not having had a lot of different therapies they are more open to what we have to offer. They are also very eager to move on in their lives and this makes a big difference.

What has been amazing working in the township and with the street kids is to see that no matter what someone's past has been, or what their cultural upbringing is, is that they struggle with the same issues that privileged people both from South Africa and the western world struggle with (in our experience). It's all the same. It seems that everyone has the same issues no matter where they have been. Everyone wants to be accepted and loved for who they are and to live a purposeful life. And everyone struggles with guilt, shame, rage and sadness from their past.

We are so blessed to be in South Africa at this pivotal turning point in its history. This country has such potential and is attracting people from around the world to help in the shift. How cool to be a part of it.