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September 2011

Every time I attend a surgical mission, there is a person whose journey just steals my heart. There have been over 350 children that have arrived for screening to see who will be accepted for surgery. Out of them 180 were finally scheduled for surgery. This is always the saddest part, those who have to wait another year, it's eats a whole in everyone’s heart to know that not everyone can be helped.

There is a little teddy journey that unfolded on this mystical island of Madagascar during the past week. Jade my daughter of 6 left South Africa bearing gifts of little Cuddly “Bush Babies” that were given to her by Woolworths to hand out to each of the children receiving corrective cleft surgery through Operation Smile, close to 200 of them. I will never forget a few weeks ago when she arrived back from school, I said to her, “Jade, go and see what is in your room”, she dropped her bags an ran off, this was followed by silence for about 5 minutes as she struggled to open the 2 large brown boxes. Then – yes, chaos broke out.

I think this is one of those debates that will rage on forever. It has recently been fueled by some sport Doctors voicing an opinion that shoes don’t really matter, they are all the same. Then on the other side the manufacturers saying something different, athletes giving their bit and then of course there is the barefoot brigade with their view. So what is the answer, who knows? My feeling is that it boils down to the individual, but largely influence by the level that you are running at and most importantly terrain that you are running over.

So often we go to great lengths and massive cost to travel to a far away land to see something special that will leave a lasting memory and inspire one with its beauty. I too have been bitten by this bug. Often we tend to over look the beauty that sits right where we are, the scenario is much like the cow that always pushes its head through the fence to eat the grass that looks more appetising on the other side.

The ocean has been pounding the Cape coast most of the week, huge 6 meter swells have crashed into the shore line, in a way it's so majestic, but also terrifying. I can sit and watch it for hours, but there is another side that scares me, brings back memories of how merciless one feels out there bobbing in a small craft in a raging storm – there is nothing so scary. It was just this that was the cause of the Seli 1 running aground nearly two years ago one stormy Cape Night – but this night has come back to haunt us.

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