Preface

Aaaaah, Cape Town!!
The beautiful coastal city nestled at the foot of magnificent Table Mountain. From the luxurious beaches of Camps Bay to the hustle and bustle of the busy township life of Kayelitsha, Cape Town is full of spirit and energy. It is also not a coincidence that Cape Town is known as the Mother City, since thousands of children, over the years, have made the streets of Cape Town their home. Under the covering of Table Mountain, they flock to her for different reasons but come together and learn how to survive and make a living on the streets of downtown Cape Town.
Who would have thought, a short, white, American kid from the small southern town of Cookeville, Tennessee, would end up in Cape Town, South Africa working with street kids! But, it happened. And in the time I have spent here I have had experiences of all sorts that have definitely engraved themselves into my memory in a way that I will never forget.
Most of my experiences are happy, exciting, fun and joyful but there are definitely also the sad, heart breaking and scary ones too.
But, all of these together have given me a life experience that I could not have bought at the most expensive of universities. I would not trade ANY of them for anything! This book is just a quick glimpse of my experiences and my life under the Table.

When thinking about writing it I really struggled with what angle to take. I wanted to give a good picture of the different aspects of street kids’ lives. I wondered, should I tell it in chronological order, should I group it in different types of events, or should I just tell short little stories? I didn’t come to any conclusions so it is kind of a mixture of all of the above. I hope you enjoy it and maybe even get something out of it.

(Most of the names are changed, or not mentioned, to protect the identity of the kids.)