South African Journey

Christmas in South Africa was quite different that the past 22 Christmas’s I have experienced. Just about every previous Christmas I have experienced I haven’t been able to wear shorts and a t-shirt. There have been a few that involved snow on Christmas and most have been cold. This time around was quite different. There was no need for a winter jacket or gloves, just a fan and lots of water to stay cool and hydrated. I spent the Christmas holiday with a local Pastor and his family near Krugarsdorp, which is a town about 20 minutes away from downtown Johannesburg. We spent much of our time together enjoying laughs and stories. The family time was great to learn more about each other’s traditions. We didn’t make it to a Christmas Eve service due to some work that was being done at the house going long. Christmas morning we attended a Christmas Day service (3 hours long). The service was awesome! I didn’t mind the length at all…we sang some familiar Christmas tunes and even if they weren’t in English I knew what song it was. After church we went to the Vaal, south of Jo’burg, and spent the afternoon cooking out and enjoying each others company. The weather was so nice, mid 80’s with a breeze, very few clouds; a little different than the snow that was falling back home at this time!