Today was a little different at work because a number of active participants were at the doctor or went to this Seniors' Club in the area. I still did my yoga/exercise with the people that were there and then we went into the smaller room for word finds! I thought they would really like them, partly because my mother-in-law Blanche likes them, but it was too hard for most of them. A few people did really enjoy it and one gentleman who normally does not take part in activities stayed until the very end and then wanted to take it with him to finish it. So I feel like I might have at least given some people some enjoyment.
After work, we had lunch and then saw a song and dance recital in one of the poorest townships in Cape Town. This area has an unemployment rate of 78%. The recital was at a recreation center and consisted of 5 boys and 5 girls. The first act was traditional tribal music, dancing and singing and the second act was more modern music. They were all very talented. Their musical director said that he had a choir of about 45 kids and chose these 10 for the smaller group because he thought they had special talent.
After dinner, a man from an organization called "Healing of Memories" came to talk to us at the volunteer house. It is an organization that was formed after the apartheid government went out of power to deal with the emotional issues of victims of apartheid. In the organization's view, victims include people of all races. He said that many white people suffered during the apartheid era because they were punished if they spoke up against apartheid. White males had to serve 2 years in the South African army enforcing apartheid and if they refused to serve they could be sent to jail. I imagine there were a lot of young white men who did not believe in apartheid or the violence that was required to enforce it and yet served their time in the army because they did not want to go to jail. The guilt and shame they must be suffering because of things they had to do to others is probably pretty overwhelming. The "Healing of Memories" organization conducts workshops to give people a safe place to talk about their experiences and in that way helps them to begin to heal.
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