Jon's Scar

Chapter 4: What Jon Wrote

Chapter 4: What Jon wrote.

         Dave was sitting in front of the PC, looking at the translation from Afrikaans to English. He would copy and paste the translation into the word processor and then adjust the sentences to flow easy in English. After a while it was evident what Jon wrote down:

         “My Dad was from the Isle of Orkney, that is where my last name “Drever” comes from. As a young man, he went to Oxford to study medicine. He was not a religious man, but felt an urge to help those in need, and what better place was there than going to South Africa to work in the local missionary hospital in the small town of Umtata in the Transkei.”

         “That is where he met my Mom, who was a nurse at the hospital. She was born and raised in South Africa and was from South African Dutch decent, but, completely trilingual, being able to speak Afrikaans, English and Xhoza. It was her ability to speak Xhoza that started the relationship, as she would do the rounds with my Dad in order to translate the local language to him. They fell in love, married at the local seminary in Umtata and shortly afterwards I was born. My Mom was very religious.”

        “My Mom had a very difficult labor. In the end my Dad, who was the surgeon, had to do a cesarean to deliver me. That was when he discovered the reason for the problem. She had cancer, completely undetected by the ultrasound she took before the delivery. He was torn, because he knew he had to remove her fertility parts, but he couldn't. After the delivery, my Mom told him it was ok, he should just take it out. She would rather live, and be there for me, than take her chances and end up leaving my Dad a single parent.”

         “It was facing my Mom's mortality that shocked my Dad into religion. He never paid religion much attention, but looking at how calm my Mom was through all of this, he decided there must be more to religion than what he thought. Apparently they had long discussions, and in the process, my Dad grew faith, up to the point that he decided to give up medicine, and pursue ministry.”

         “My Mom's sister, hated South Africa and all the bad politics and struggle, so she left to study in the USA after high school. She ended up at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, studying Economics, and then did a Master's in Accounting. She moved to Grand Rapids and started her own small accounting firm working from her house. Since my Aunt said my parents could stay with her while my Dad attended seminary, we moved in with her when I was about five years old. I attended school right here, up to grade the 5thh grade, when we moved back to the Transkei. My Dad took up the Pastor's position in the church right next to the hospital he used to work at. My Mom home schooled me for grades 6 to 8, and placed special emphasis on teaching me Afrikaans, and some Xhoza.”

        “My parents decided it would be better for me to attend high school back here in the States, so I ended up living with Aunt Nina again and being enrolled as a freshman in August, little more than 1 year ago. The arrangement was that I would spend Christmas holidays and the summers with my parents back in Umtata. Therefore, the first Christmas I was sent off to my parents, in my freshman year. It was a very short holiday, only about two weeks, but, I fitted right back into my parents routine, not missing a beat. It was Christmas morning, after opening our presents, that my parents went to church to do the preparations for the 11 o'clock service. They would be there very early, and then would step up to the altar, dropped to their knees and pray for the upcoming service. I would accompany them, but sit in the pew, waiting for them. After this ceremony, we would usually go back home, where my Mom would serve us crumpets and tea, before we would head back to church. I was impatient that morning, because I really liked my Mom's crumpets and couldn't wait, so, I was a bit upset that we had to do this and I made my feelings known.”