HAYLEE MATECKO

Today was another travel day – we’ve been traveling so much recently! We packed up, had breakfast at Hippo Hollow, then we were on our way. For lunch, Maureen, Spencer F, Peter, and I all ate together and heard some great stories about Peter’s high school life. It was fun, because I got a chance to learn more about the people I’ve been surrounded by on this trip. I really admire all of the laughs I’ve heard (and am thankful for the laughs I’ve had) these past two weeks. I think you can tell a lot about a person from their laugh, because it reflects their personality. I especially admire people who have a goofy laugh but don’t hide it; they are who they are and that’s a beautiful thing. The amount of laughs I’ve had so far are countless; from “Haylee Goes to Africa: A Children’s Book”, to me being the butt of every joke, these Aggies have taught me quite a bit about how to laugh at myself. It makes life much more enjoyable.

 

The rest of the drive went from good to bad and back/forth, only because the sun’s intensity increased in different parts. The heat became borderline unbearable at points, but I enjoyed the company. The drive from the Swazi border was the worst part, heat-wise… It was beautiful outside, but crazy hot inside. We were on dirt roads so we had to close the windows, and the bus was insanely hot and dead silent. Once we got to Schewula, it was so great outside! The view from the mountain top was incredible, and it was a beautiful area. We went on a village hike shortly after we arrived, and got to see an actual homestead. It was a great learning experience, but felt very invasive. 35 white people gawking at these people in their home just made me feel kind of bad. We kept walking and saw lots of sugar cane, which was beautiful the way it moved in the wind. While the guys played a soccer game, the girls hung on the sides with the kids (it was kind of sexist, but I also didn’t mind being with the sweet kids). I sat with two sweet girls, Kanyes and Nkoso. They were sisters, and they had a great fascination for my American sunglasses and jewelry. Kanyes sang me a song which was beautiful, but I have absolutely no idea what she was saying. I wish I had a video of the moment, but I know I’ll always remember the tune.

 

Once it got dark, we went outside with Dr. Flint to look at the stars. They were breathtaking. I mean seriously. I have never seen and probably never will see stars so incredible. You could see the Milky Way across the horizon, and two other galaxies in the distance. The stars were so bright, twinkling and all different colors. I even saw a few shooting stars! It was freezing cold, the exact opposite of earlier that day, but I didn’t want to move. The stars were so incredible that I was afraid if I even blinked I’d miss something. Even just looking up, I felt like I couldn’t see it all. There was no way. People started getting very deep and it was cool to have thoughtful conversations with everyone about the universe. It’s such a mind blowing concept that none of our minds can really comprehend, and we all have that in common. Nobody actually knows. At one point, Channing said “I wish someone would just tell us what’s out there,” but literally nobody can. Thinking about all of that really makes a person ponder the depths of their soul and what they believe. It makes a person think a lot about God; for some, it’s about the beauty He’s created, and for others it’s a question of existence. Most of the thoughts I had while looking at those stars make no sense. The beauty of that intricacy of stars in itself, let alone as a tiny fraction of the universe is just mind boggling. My human capacity doesn’t allow me to truly understand any of it. I can gaze, hypothesize, ponder, but I can’t truly know. And in a way, that’s okay. This trip has really given me an opportunity to relinquish control and to just take life as it is. So instead of trying to figure out what all of it meant, I just enjoyed it. I took it all in, and it was beautiful.