Living in the Moment

Julie Platt
Sep 16, 2014
3 min read

So I am one month into my internship with Grassroot Soccer, and so far (beside me not updating my blog enough) everything has been going amazining. Everday walking to work though the company gardens, I get to see table mountain, and coming home I get to see the exact same view, but it never looks the same. There is always something I am noticing that I have never seen before, or sometimes I let my eyes linger a little longer than I did the day before on a point in the sky.

Everday I see something different on my walk home, yet it is the same walk I do twice a day. I am open to seeing things from different angles and viewpoint. That is the mindset, I have been adopting here in Cape Town. I am open to reexamining

my own views on what I consider to be the "truth" where ever I go. This whole month, I have seen the most beautiful sun sets, run along cliffs that overlook the water, and visited some of the most speculator viewpoints in the world. See the pictures!!!

However, by far the most meaningful experiences I have had are at the Football for Hope Center when I get the chance to work with the Coaches.

Every Friday, my awesome boss Stephan lets me spend the day with the coaches who work at the site in Khayelitshi Fridays are the days when all the Skillz UP and Coach Development courses take place (which is what I am working on). In Khay, the coaches are taking part in Junior Achievements Youth Enterprise Development Programme.

This is an international program that teaches about youth entrepreneurship and challenges its students to create their own sustainable business plans. So far my favorite in the Khay group is all the female carwashing group. They are working really hard, and have a market niche. Check out their website if you would like to learn more about this program. http://www.jasa.org.za/

I love getting the chance to spend time with the Coaches, listen to their stories, and learn about their future goals. During the week, at HQ ( that is what we call the South African Headquarters) I work on assisting the program interns on everything that is coach development, from career guidance, to tracking coaches, to working on social media and external opportunities with organizations like the British Premier League, Laureus, and Harambee. I truly love this position because I know that I am having a direct impact on a coaches life after they leave GRS. (Check out the new coach dev. board...

Most importantly though, I am helping to empower young amazing people to believe they have a future which is what I am most passionate about in life.

Last weekend, I got the chance to go to my first HIV Counseling & Testing Event with Skillz Girls. This is an event that celebrates the end of a Skillz Street Intervention led by the GRS Coaches over a nine week period. At the end of the nine weeks, all the young girls get tested for HIV/AIDS/celebrate their accomplishments and play soccer. Spending the day with these amazing young brave women reinforced just how important empowering young women is for developmental goals.