Last night I was panicking a bit because it was 5pm and I still didn’t have a place to camp for the night. The place I’d planned to stop at had closed permanently and I couldn’t find anywhere open late on a Sunday. Fortunately, Ronel from Verberg Herberg returned my call and I arrived at my deep Karoo, far from civilization, dream spot just as the sun was setting.
Thank goodness for a pop-up tent. I was lighting a fire in no time and finally there they were: My stars! An entire galaxy of them. I can’t remember when last I saw the milky way and it made me feel so alive and at peace. It reminded me of my childhood when it was the norm to look up and to see so many stars. We live in such a disconnected, urbanised world. Apparently, during a blackout in the States a few years ago, the emergency services received an overwhelming number of calls from frightened people who reported seeing very strange phenomena in the skies. What they were seeing was the Milky Way for the very first time and didn’t know what it was. If not for the 911 line, they might have made a God out of this strange and scary, inexplicable and seemingly threatening, natural night light.
After a day so hot I named it “wtf Karoo hot”, I was sticky and sweaty and ready for a shower. Ronel told me that they use a donkey for their showers. A donkey. I couldn’t imagine what she meant. I was extremely nervous. Turns out a donkey is a barrel of water warmed with a fire for the shower’s hot water. That I could do. Learning as I go.
I had a very weird experience last night where I thought the owner of the campsite came to my tent in the darkness of the early morning hours and was speaking to me. It seemed very odd, so I asked her about it later in the day and she said it wasn’t her. That felt a bit creepy and made me feel a bit nervous about the camping. And to be honest, I feel as if I’m in a very bad magic mushroom journey right now. It’s been raining all day and I’ve been freezing, trying to work. Huge deadlines. I can’t make any excuses though because I’m truly the architect of my own misery. I have to just get the work done come rain or shine. And it’s rain, tons of it, as it turns out. In the semi-desert Karoo. And my tent got wet inside because I wasn’t paying attention and forgot to close the flap. I’m such an idiot newby at this camping story. But I’m learning. I made a hot water bottle out of an empty plastic water bottle that I bought for the roadtrip. And Ronel brought me soup and vetkoek for supper. They are incredible hosts. I asked for wood for a fire (optimistic as it turns out) and the wood arrived within half an hour.
Chris and Ronel are worried about me. With good reason I think. The wind is howling and my tent is not waterproof after all. I was so in love with my tent yesterday, but the honeymoon is over! So, this feels like a bad trip that just won’t end. And at home my town is on fire. I work for the University of Cape Town and keep hearing that the campus is gone. But, incredibly I have this family of friends who are on standby to fetch my “things I’ll save from the fire” if it looks like my home will burn. I feel proud to have manifested such loving and caring friends. I feel proud of them for being all that.
So today, Day 3, I’m having a bad trip. But this is life. It’s not always going to be sunshine and starry skies. Would I rather be at home right now? Hell yes! Groundhog day has its upside too. But being on my personal road moves me forward. Let’s see what tomorrow brings.