Having coffee at The Book Lounge
First of all, to become an intern for Modjaji Books, and this may be totally and completely obvious, you have to get to Cape Town. For me this was a huge deal. It meant saving up a year of barista, busser and hostess money, saying goodbye to my closely knit family, and being the furthest away from home I had ever been. So yes, I was a bit scared as I boarded my flight from San Diego, California, a flight that would take nearly 40 hours during which I would eat way too many airplane peanuts and pick at my already obliterated fingernails.
CIEE, the program I came here with, picked me up from the airport and dropped me off in front of my new home in the middle of the bustling city of Cape Town: an apartment complex on Adderley Street. There, I met the other student interns whom I would be living with for the next two months. Though I was the only one interning for Modjaji Books, everyone welcomed me with warm smiles. We got to know each other that night over coffee and South African food (I highly recommend trying koesisters, which are like doughnuts but even better) and I am happy to say that in my short time spent here, I have made some great friends that I hope to keep in touch with for years to come.
That first night I landed in Cape Town, Colleen Higgs, founder of Modjaji Books and my soon-to-be boss, invited me to a book launch. I did not yet know my way around the city, but after a jittery uber ride and a run through the rain (in a sundress – please take my advice and restrain from wearing a sundress in the dead of winter here), I finally found my way to the Cavendish Exclusive Books. The store was warmly lit and filled with laughter and friendly conversation, hands holding wine glasses while others reached for slices of pizza. I met Colleen for the first time that night and was greeted with a hug and a seat across from hers. I was quickly introduced to her daughter, Kate, and a few of her friends. That night, we listened to Joan Metelerkamp read poetry from Making Way, and as I listened to her soothing voice, I looked around at Colleen, Kate, and everyone there and couldn’t help but feel that I had just entered into a world in which I belonged, a world in which I had been searching for without even realizing it until that moment.
View from Colleen’s kitchen table
I started work shortly after that. I had always imagined that being an intern meant plopping down in some gray cubicle, fetching lattes, and answering phone calls. Luckily, this somewhat confining imagery I had was washed away the minute I stepped foot in Colleen’s home (which doubles as a workspace). I was welcomed by her dog and given a seat at the kitchen table overlooking a garden in full bloom. So much better than a cubicle. Since my first visit here, I have taken to the lovely routine of making myself a cup of coffee and listening to the birds chirp each morning before I begin my work. Sometimes, when I glance outside, I can spot Colleen’s cat sunbathing on the roof.
My first task at Modjaji was to compose a newsletter. Now, this is a daunting task for someone like me who is probably the least tech-savvy of all the social media influencers and Tik-Tokers of my generation. This being said, with the help of Aimee-Claire, a former intern for Modaji, I was able to learn how to gain information on recent Modjaji news through Facebook and other social media platforms. I was also taught to use MailChimp, a platform that we use to send out newsletters to our subscribers. With Aimee-Claire and Colleen’s help, I was able to compose my first newsletter and send it out on MailChimp. The next step was to post my work on the Modjaji website. In order to do this, I had to learn how to use WordPress. At first, I struggled with yet another application that was completely new to me, but I soon caught on and was able to get the newsletter up on the Modjaji website. I cannot explain to you the sense of accomplishment I felt after completing this first task. Colleen congratulated me with a high five and I believe I left her house that day with an extra skip in my step.
With a heavy heart, I feel as though I must warn you of the one and only thing that has happened to become quite a nuisance in my schedule here: load shedding. Honestly, being the USA-born and raised girl I am, I was completely unaware of load shedding. In fact, the first time I experienced it I didn’t even know it was happening. I was at the Clay Cafe with some of my fellow intern friends (highly recommend this place by the way) when I noticed the entirety of the establishment was lit by candles. I honestly thought this was done on purpose like the owners were trying to set the mood or something. About halfway through painting my clay mug, however, all the lights turned on at once and I was shocked to find that my artwork, which looked almost good in the candle-lit room, did not look so great anymore under the new, much brighter, lighting. I heard everyone in the cafe sigh, “Thank god, load sheddings over. Now we can finally see properly and order something besides untoasted bread.” Since that day, I have experienced load shedding quite often. It always happens when I’m sitting down to do work and then, almost on cue, the lights shut off. Luckily, Colleen’s home is filled with natural light so I have never had to work completely in the dark.
What is nice about interning for Colleen is that most of the work I do is online. This means that I am able to come work at her house three times a week and complete the rest of my work from home. Depending on how long my work takes, I usually have the time to explore Cape Town after my tasks have been completed. This means I can work, then hike Lion’s Head for sunset or lay on the beach and read a book in the evenings. There is so much to do and see here in Cape Town. My advice is to work hard and then reward yourself with a trip to the farmers market or a late afternoon walk to the chocolate cafe.
Chapman’s Peak and Cape Point
The next task I was given was to proofread a new coming title for Modjaji, Chinongwa by Lucy Mushita. I was honored to be trusted with such an important task. It turns out proofreading is hard. Aside from looking over my younger sister’s school papers, I really did not have any experience in the area. Proofreading Chinongwa taught me two very important things: first of all, UK/South African English is very different from US English and secondly, I found that proofreading gets easier with time and practice. I found that by the end of the book, I had adjusted to Mushita’s writing style and could go about the process more smoothly than when I first started. What also helped a lot was that Colleen sat down with me to go over some of my corrections; she taught me what could be left in and the things I was right to cross out. This time one-on-one with her gave me further confidence and allowed me to learn even more about what this process looked like.
Other tasks I have completed include tidying up Modjaji’s website, where I worked on the backend of its WordPress site. I also sent out an invitation for an upcoming gallery opening we are having, which was done through MailChimp. It took me a little bit, but now I am finally getting the hang of these applications, which had seemed so daunting to me only just a month ago.
Work aside, Colleen is a wonderful ray of sunshine and I am so happy to have interned for her. I know in just a few weeks I will be back in California, wishing I was back sitting at her kitchen table, reading, writing, birdwatching, and sipping coffee. I will always remember these moments here at work – which do not really feel like work at all because I enjoy it so much – and times spent with Colleen walking her dog through wildflowers and gardens, finding myself facing the sky, admiring the trees with their thick bark and branches that stretch like fingers toward the South African sun.
Boulders Beach and Aquila Safari