18-year-old Busisiwe Phokane says her life changed for the better when she accepted the passing of her mom and opened up to her new parents at Carl Sithole which is now a place she calls home.
“On the 4th September 2015 my life took a drastic change after the death of my mother. All I knew was this lingering sadness that kept on building and building and building because of the deep pain of this great loss. Death is hard to understand, and one can never comprehend the void it leaves in one’s life. Death changes you.”
She says through the pain of loss, she reached a point where she had to adapt to a new environment. “My mother had taught me we live in a world that is constantly changing and to succeed we need a smart plan and the ability to adapt and adjust to the change but more importantly, one needs to prepare one’s self to succeed. It was at this stage I found myself in a home called The Salvation Army Carl Sithole Children’s Home.”
Busisiwe who is now in Grade 11 says it is not easy to deal with pain, “I am grateful that I was sent to a home that is based on Christian values. I was able to open up to the parents that I am now blessed with at Carl Sithole who are always there to support me.”
I felt a sense of belonging and found myself a safe space…
“I felt a sense of belonging and found myself a safe space. All my hopes and dreams were restored and a desire to be better and greater sits in my heart day by day. God did not only change my life for the better, He also blessed me with a family of brothers and sisters that I have around me. God didn’t stop there, He also blessed me with more than one parent that I can confide in, share my sorrows, worries and seek guidance whenever I am lost. I am so thankful to have them in my life. Without them I wouldn’t be where I am today. I thank them every day for what they do for me.”