Our ACE in South Africa group stayed in a hostel in Greenpoint, Cape Town for the duration of our 3-week trip. We never really spent much time at the hostel, just eating the occasional meals and sleeping. Ironically, the name of the hostel was Never @ Home. However, as the trip progressed, other members of my group and I became close with a particular hostel worker. He joined in on our post-dinner games, late-night chats, and always enthusiastically greeted us on either our way out to the gym in the morning or upon returning from the day’s work. I looked forward to chatting with him and quickly saw him as a friend.
Reflecting on the trip on the plane ride home and the following days, I realized my interactions and friendship with this hostel worker embodied the purpose of ACE and our work in Cape Town. Most of the conversations I had with him detailed our work with the children and schools because that filled up most of our days. One of the main issues our partners identified hurting their efforts and their communities was a lack of informed knowledge. The world tends to have a very negative outlook on Cape Town and the townships specifically, believing they are unwelcoming and dangerous. I, too, possessed this uninformed belief before this experience. Seeing firsthand, I noted how warm and welcoming the community was to outsiders who were there to interact with the community positively. Through conversations and spreading my firsthand experience, like the ones with the hostel worker, we can help change the perception of the townships that perpetuates their current situation.
The people and friendships from this experience are the things that will truly stick with me the most in the coming years and for the rest of my life. Coming in, I was challenged by the idea of bonding and relating to people so different from me. What could a hostel worker from South Africa and I possibly have in common? The answer: we are all humans, filled with love, care, and passion. Whether bonding over XXXTENTACION with the children or aspirations of professional sports with the coaches Masi and Lulu (pictured in photo), it was beyond easy to socialize and relate.
I struggled with understanding how I, a singular person, could help make any meaningful impact. What I have come to learn throughout this experience is that simple human connection and the recognition of other people as valued and seen go the longest way. These little things – conversing with homeless people while serving them a meal or hugging a child goodbye – can make a world a difference in somebody’s life. Although I will probably never speak to or see him again, our conversations and friendship will stay with me forever, and I like to think that he will remember all of us from ACE, and that was the purpose of our work.