A journey from Cape Town to Cajun Country

Home is where the heart is, and for one South African native, the heart lives on in Eunice.
“Even with all the towns we have lived in, we still call Eunice home,” said Jenny Hewett Smith, author of “A Land Far Away.”
“Eunice families are so inviting. They visit around the kitchen table and cook and eat together. The bond is really strong. People don’t visit a whole lot in their homes (in other parts of the country). They just go to restaurants instead.”
“We made some of our very best friends there, and we remain friends with them 20 years on. We really had a good time when we lived in Eunice. Our children grew up there.”
Born and raised in South Africa by her parents, Pastor Jerry and wife Loretta Hewett, the author spent her childhood traveling around that region as her father pioneered churches, often building them from the ground up. Her parents toured the United States in 1992, and while visiting New Orleans, the pastor was offered and accepted a position at a church in the city.
“South Africa was going through changes when we lived there,” Smith said. “Crime and violence were high. We had burglar bars on our windows. Many people also owned dogs to help protect their property. Johannesburg was called the crime capital of the world.”
“Things (goods) were expensive, and unemployment was high.”
In 1993, Smith, her husband Derick and eldest daughter Shana, who was 2-years-old at the time, made their big move to what she calls the Land of Milk and Honey, and joined her parents in New Orleans.
“When we got off the plane, we had two suitcases each,” Smith said. “I was drinking from the water fountain in the airport, and a woman was surprised I was drinking out of the fountain.”
“I looked around and people were walking around with giant cups of Coke. (Back in Africa) Those containers were big enough for six people to drink from. You have to get used to it.”
As they started over in their new country, the family soon realized there were many other adjustments to be made, including being able to close the windows on their home and enjoy the climate control of air conditioning. Other orientations included the entertaining, the serious and some that even affected the palate.
“When we moved here, we went to Walmart,” Smith said. “A store where you could buy a gun, lipstick, medicine, pajamas and steak for dinner -- it was amazing. Things were very inexpensive compared to what we paid in Africa.”
“The food also tastes so different. There is lots more sugar in food here. A piece of bread tasted like a piece of cake.”
For Smith, even a trip to a restaurant to get a bite meant changing her order from “I’d like chips with tomato sauce” to “I’d like french fries and ketchup.”
“We didn’t have fire ants in Africa either,” Smith said. “I learned the hard way about them.”
“The main difference about living here is not having to live in fear, not having to be hyper-vigilant. We have that safe feeling here. It’s very amazing.”
As the family became more acclimated with life in America, Smith began to put pen to paper about the struggles and successes they had as they transitioned from life in South Africa to life in South Louisiana.
“If you have never experienced life in another country, don’t take life here for granted,” she said. “I started writing A Land Far Away for my kids. I wanted them to know the struggles of living in Africa and coming to another country. I wanted them to be grateful for growing up here.”
“The book took on a life of its own. People are encouraged by the stories of the things we went through. I want readers to realize that everyone has bad days. Some people imagine being stuck in a situation forever, but everything eventually changes. Anyone who needs encouragement would benefit from reading the book.”
Smith and her family and her parents eventually moved to Eunice in 1993, and her father went to work at Abundant Life Assembly of God.
“We really enjoyed living in Eunice,” Smith said. “The book is filled with memories from Eunice. We made long-time friendships while we were there, and some of our friends from Eunice are even coming to visit us soon.”
While living in Eunice, Smith learned to cook jambalaya and gumbo, and the family often visits the area, especially when hurricanes make a turn for the state of Alabama.
“We lived all over Eunice,” Smith said. “We pass by the all houses we used to live in when we come there.”
After moving from the area in 2000, the Smiths lived in Amarillo, Texas and Pensacola, Fla. The family currently resides in Daphne, Ala. where Smith works part-time and writes and her husband is employed as a chemical manager at Baker Hughes. Her parents and eldest daughter Shana, who recently married, live nearby. Youngest daughter Jade, 21, still lives at home.
“My daughters are 21 and 23 now,” she said. “My children grew up with a sense of safety in an environment with no fears and anxiety. They have had amazing opportunities to attend college, find jobs and even change their minds (about a career).”
“There is work to be found. It was a struggle in South Africa to find a job.”
While living in Eunice, Smith found an outlet for her creativity as a pianist in local churches, but now writing serves as her release. Her other book, “The Seagull Called Me Home”, a fiction based on her life in Africa, and the current one are available at www.jennyhewettsmith.com, and the author is also working on her next book titled “Lessons My Dogs Taught Me About God.”