South American .. Really?

Do I look south american to you... nope, didn't think so! For some reason the trader joe's check out lady seemed to think so. Perhaps she didn't hear me correctly when I said "South Africa". Or perhaps she thought, as many other americans do, I might add, that it would be too ridiculous that South Africa could even BE a country, and that I must be terribly mistaken. And so, she fills in the gap and says :"Do you eat turkey in South America?"

I smile, and say:"no, we don't".

Why 2 Spoons?

So glad you asked!

The words "two spoons" have been on Jono and my lips quite a bit recently, since we decided to name our semi-non-existent production company just that : 2 spoons productions. We have had a couple of enquiries of late pertaining to videos, and have decided to have a  go at having our own little production house, but this is besides the point.

Why two spoons?

Jono and I met in Kalk Bay, South Africa, which is a beautiful suburb south east of Cape Town. It has a strong british fisherman's town atmosphere to it, with cobble stone roads, being right on the oceanside and steep slopes leading up to the Table Mountain range. It's beautiful! The architecture of the buildings takes you back to the turn of the 20th century and brings nostalgic thoughts to mind - even though you haven't even live din that time!

We went to a small video production school a few feet away from the ocean. I tried not to pay much attention to Jono at first, as I did not want to be distracted by boys whilst at school, however, our friendship started to grow, and we started spending more and more time together.

We found that evenings were the best time to chat, and we always seemed to be hungry around that time. So, we would ravage the kitchen in search of something tasty to eat. It always came down to breakfast cereal... All Bran cereal.

Now, when it comes to eating cereal, you gotta have the right spoon. You know, the kind that has just the right balance and weight when you hold it in your hand. 

Being at a type of boarding school, the cutlery was extremely jumbled and none of it matched... EXCEPT for two spoons that were a set. These spoons were perfect - the right weight, shape and form.

Jono and I would seek out these spoons every night as we sat and talked about random things deep into the night. These spoons became a symbol of our friendship and growing love for one another.

Jono would later "take" these spoons from Media Village and use them in his proposal to me.. an incredible story that will be blogged about someday..

These spoons now hang framed in our kitchen - a constant reminder of how faithful God was in bringing us together and blessing us with such sweet memories.

And now, these spoons have contributed to the name of our new baby: the little production company. A passion we have shared since first meeting. 

I wonder: "In what ways these spoons will continue to be woven into our story?"

FUEL!

WEll, for those of you that don't know, Jono (my husband) is the youth director at Kingsfield Church. 

Every wednesday night we have youth group, namely FUEL.

I can remember my first wednesday night at Fuel. I was petrified. I was so intimidated by all the high school students, and didn't even know where to start in building friendships with them. This culture, this american culture, had been so familiar to me all my life being exposed to American film & television. But once I was faced with it in a tangible way, I didn't know how to bridge the gap.

I remember Kelly Pike (now Kelly Hooker) being the most friendly and really doing her best to make me feel welcome. I remember calling Camyron Carmen, and being very aware of the fact that I was pronouncing Aubree's name as ORE_bree, and not AWWW_bree. 

I remember Carrie organizing root beer floats as a welcome gesture to me. Which, as soon as I took one sip of "Root Beer", I wished I hadn't! Sorry Carrie, I appreciate the gesture though! very thoughtful.

It's amazing to me how God has worked in my own heart, and given me tools to reach out to these students. I LOVE THEM!

During my recent visit to South Africa I became so aware of how much I missed them and of all the things I hope for their future. 

We have seen great things through this youth group & church, and have shared many tough times together. I am so grateful for the people God has brought into our life. Once again, I realize the beauty of the Church.

Here are some pics to showcase a little bit of FUEL:

ps, I tried to add more pictures, but can't figure this blog thing out, and I don't know why this font is underlined right now either. If Frank and Carrie knew about the blog, I would just ask them, but I can't. bummer.

How did they know??

Yesterday , during our staff meeting, Norman and Frank start harrassing me for not having a blog (even though I DO have one now!).
Here's the shocker: Norman says :"Why don't you start one secretly and not tell anyone?"
I couldn't believe it! How did he know? I questioned Jono later, but he said that he had not leaked one bit of information..

I plan to get to the bottom of this... without blowing my cover hopefully!

Don't tell Frank..

So,

After many months of persistent, persuasive tactics of Frank Sanchez, Carrie Allen and others, I've decided to start a blog.

My plan/reasoning:

1. To give this a go as long as it intrigues me

2. To post as many posts as possible before Frank finds out.

3. Perhaps this is good way of staying in touch with friends from SA and other marvelous places around the world.

So, here we go.. I've taken the plunge!