[redefined]

      [redefined] can we just talk about that for a moment? [redefined] is something that we do here at IES. It’s that moment that you realize something has changed forever. Like the first time you found money under your pillow after you lost your first tooth! It’s kinda like that- something awe-inspiring, life-changing, and journey altering. There have been lots of those moments on this trip I feel like for me. There have been so many moments of growth, frustration, and laughter that it’s hard to just pick one but if I had to narrow it down it would be last Saturday.

      When they said we were going up Table Mountain, I was petrified. Did I mention that I literally had peed my pants climbing the much smaller mountain, Lion’s Head, the weekend before? Anyway, I decided that I would just take the cableway up the mountain and enjoy a cup of joe at the top while everyone else hiked. Hah! That is so not what happened. If you know me at all, you know that I am not one to just sit on the sidelines and watch- that is terrible. So, I put on my letters and started up the mountain! Ten minutes in and I was already ready to come back down the mountain but the girls were not gonna let me quit. I struggle bussed all the way up Table Mountain stopping at least every fifteen minutes for a break! It was rough. But with a little encouragement and a lot of push, I made it to the top and enjoyed the best ostrich stew yet. It literally was so delicious!

      After Table Mountain, we came back to the apartment and immediately had to get ready to go to supposedly one of the biggest sporting events in South Africa at the time…a rugby game. I know, pretty anticlimactic but it was a great experience! I learned the game, got yelled at by a local, and got to eat peri-peri chips, who wouldn’t thoroughly enjoy that?! Overall, my Saturday got [redefined] in every aspect. The words table and mountain will never mean the same thing ever again in my book. They have been totally, completely 100% [redefined] in my life.