The Restory Retreat Centre

On our recent outing into deepest Johannesburg (see  Tasting adventure ) George felt like trying on some hats and sunglasses at a quaint African market. Maybe it was the invigorating Afro-Jazz music in the air that prompted this impromptu shopping spree. Or maybe it was simply his incomparable ability to be amazed at just about anything that meets his gaze. It reminded me of the words of one of our favourite poets, Mary Oliver: Instruction for living a life: Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it. Matilda

Eylene at four years old (left) and at thirty (right). Not much that's changed. And yet. Eylene turned thirty yesterday. To celebrate the occasion, we went on an adventure, not unlike Winnie the Pooh and his friends when they went in search of the North Pole. We, a party of ten, however, went searching for the Neighbourgoods Market  in downtown Johannesburg.        We took the Gautrain, which is South Africa's only super modern express train. It runs between Pretoria and Johannesburg and we are very proud of it as the stations are kept neat and clean and one can pretend you are travelling abroad somewhere in a first world country.        Stepping off the train and following a myriad of cell phone gps's and hard copy maps, we set of to walk the 750 m to the market through an area we would normally not venture into. I felt excited by this, and sensed it in Eylene also, as we walked into the stomach of this vast African city, the sun ho...

I won’t say it is my favourite place on a late Saturday afternoon – a huge supermarket in one of the Johannesburg suburbs. Earlier in the day I attended The Jesuit Institute’s development day for spiritual directors and prayer guides in Auckland Park. While being there Matilda sent me a text and asked that I get a few things for the family gathering on Sunday. Now, who am I to resist the love of my life? As is often the case buying groceries, you somehow get temporary companions walking with you up and down the aisles. Total strangers in sync loading their trolleys or baskets. He did not exactly fall into the category of one of my grocery travel companions, although we were in the same store at the same time. His route was too haphazard to qualify. Using his grocery trolley as a walker, he shuffled bent over from shelf to shelf, putting everything on his list - nowhere to be seen - on the little seat of the trolley. He would cross your path at the bread stands, disappear...