“All for Them” by Ryan Baker

Earlier this week we traveled back to the township of Sir Lowry’s Pass, located on the outskirts of Cape Town, South Africa for more service learning experience. On this particular day, we volunteered at the Community Center in Sir Lowry’s Pass so that we could play with the children and take some of the burden off of the three women who work with the over 120 kids. This blog is a dedication to the children of Sir Lowry’s Pass and others in similar situations around the globe. It is with great pleasure that I write about the many methods one can use to connect, play, and interact with the children of Sir Lowry’s Pass. Without further hesitation…

The Top 10 Ways to Have a Great Time with Children of South Africa

• Play, sing, hum, whistle or make any other audible noise with the tune of “Baby” by Justin Bieber and you will instantly be surrounded by upwards of 20 children all singing along and dancing.
• Play touch rugby. The boys of the township can be seen playing this modified form of rugby at nearly every time of day. Be forewarned however: Be prepared to sweat as you will play for at least 30 minutes. These kids just don’t tire.
• Make beaded bracelets and/or necklaces. I’m not going to pretend to be an expert on the subject because let’s face it, I’m not, but I think I made over 20 bracelets in the half hour I worked at this table. Oh, and there was a constant line of at least five kids at all times waiting for their turn.
• Face Paint. The kids love painting on their faces, but particularly enjoy painting on yours.
• Walk around with a child on your shoulders. Pretty hard to say no when there’s a cute little boy staring you in the eyes, with his hand pointing to the sky and whispering the word, “Up”.
• Paint Fingernails. Let’s look at the facts here: Girls love getting their nails done regardless of where they live. I think it’s genetic.
• Play “Little Sally Walker” or any other dancing game.
• Let the kids play with your hair. This one is pretty labor intensive (end sarcasm) so it can be a favorite after you’ve been running around for hours and just need a five or ten minute break.
• Play soccer. It seems to be very popular, especially with the FIFA World Cup coming up in the next two weeks.
• Bubbles. What kid doesn’t have a blast blowing bubbles? Enough said.