More Fun Facts

Some more fun facts on life here:

Lately the government has gone around the city (and apparently the country; I heard it was the same in Arusha) and "X"ed out any sign or billboard that violates some law or code or something.... I don't know what the requirements are supposed to be, but literally 99.9% of the signs and billboards in the city now have a big red X painted over them.  Signs for restaurants, for stores, for advertisements.... basically anything that is not attached to a building itself. A very random thing for the government to all of a sudden be enforcing.... Pretty sure there are plenty of other problems they can be dealing with.  Also pretty sure that a city full of billboards with huge red X's painted over them looks worse than a city full of signs that "don't comply with code".

The handicap parking sign in front of a local bar here :)  No drinking and driving, what?!

This is the size of a head of lettuce here.  Little tiny balls of iceberg lettuce.... pretty much all that's available for salads.  (and each leaf in turn needs to be soaked in dish-soap or bleach to adequately clean it.... makes for a lot of work to have salad).  Oh, how I miss spinach salads....

This is a gecko with a huge cockroach in its mouth.  This was on the wall of a restaurant I was eating in (yes, one of the "nice" restaurants here, you can imagine what's in the kitchen...) When I saw it on the wall I had to get a picture; it was pretty unbelievable.  The gecko just stopped and stared at me when I pulled out my camera and took the pic, all while the roach was squirming in its mouth.  Grossss.....

Arriving Here

This was my first view of Tanzania from the airplane when I flew back here after Christmas.  This was only my second time to fly into Tanzania, and the first time I flew in I had never before been to Tanzania (I'd been to other African countries before this summer but never Tanzania).  Returning this time brought tears to my eyes.  Looking down at this land that is full of so many riches- riches in spirit and riches in joy, while at the same time full of such poverty- real suffering caused by real poverty.... I couldn't help but cry with tears of gladness as I returned back home to where God has called me.  Looking down and knowing that this land, this country, these people- these were my people, my land, my country....  This is where God has called me.  I felt such honor and such privilege in knowing that He has chosen to call me HERE.  To such a beautiful country and such a beautiful people.  People whom Jesus was referring to when He said:

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." -Matthew 5:3

and:

"He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; He seats them with princes and has them inherit a throne of honor." -1 Samuel 2:8


Seeing it from a birds-eye view seemed to bring the "bigger picture" into greater clarity.  Thank you, Lord.  So much.  Thank you for calling me HERE.

And I couldn't help but have a heart swelled with pride as I went through THIS line at the airport. :-)

Updates

I woke up this morning with a very distinct and unusual "cozy" feeling.... like, "This is Home."  (partly prob. just b/c I'd slept really well- which is a major blessing! sleep has been getting better and better for me here- and I really just wanted to stay in bed longer, ha)  But it was a great feeling.... After having to come back here from being in the States and "re-adjust" again, it was great to have that feeling of "home" again here.

School has been going GREAT this semester .... I'm very much "into the swing of things" with the curriculum, my students, my classes.... and it's making teaching very enjoyable!  I feel like 1st semester was spent mainly learning how to teach art, learning my students, learning my curriculum, etc. etc. and this semester things are just flowing a lot more naturally and it is making it very enjoyable.  Our school uses a British curriculum from Cambridge so my Grade 10-12 students have to go through very intense exam requirements (they have to produce a LOT of artwork) that they are currently in the process of.  It took me a while to figure out the requirements/expectations/etc. but now that we've (myself and the students) kind of "arrived" there, it's really a blessing to watch my students grow and flourish in their artwork.  I look forward to continuing to push them this semester and to see the beautiful work that they produce!  It's also been a real blessing being able to enjoy the *Art* aspect of my job a little more lately.... I've been digging deeper in my studies of it as I'm having to push my students more and have even been able to spend some time producing artwork myself.

My camera broke when I was home so I had to leave it at Best Buy to be repaired (it was thankfully still under warranty!), and I'm having it brought back here soon (with my roommate Kate, who unfortunately has still been at home in Ohio from Christmas-time b/c she contracted pneumonia when she was home :(  she's on the mend and hopefully coming back here soon....).  Anyway, once my camera is back I'll be able to update here with more pictures.  I spent the day before Christmas break volunteering at an orphanage (our school donated Christmas gifts to them and a few of us teachers delivered them and played with the children for the day).... it was such a blessing- I can't wait to post pics here!  Last week I also went back to William's Village to volunteer with the children and will do so again tomorrow morning.... again, such a wonderful time.  (William is the head cleaner at our school that I've talked about here.... his wife Stella is still doing fine with her pregnancy; please continue to keep her in your prayers, though).

Here's a picture (taken on my iphone; at least I still have that!) of a couple of the precious children I fell in love with last Saturday:

I can't wait to go squeeze those little babies again tomorrow morning! :)

Tonight is also WYLdLife (Young Life's middle school ministry at our school).... Will be lots of fun hanging out with my middle school students and furthering my relationships with them!  Young Life really knows how to have fun with kids and show them the LOVE that Christ has for them.... I'm so thankful to be part of their ministry here!

Thank you all for your continued prayers and support!  Just wanted to add some quick updates here on life... Hoping you are all having a very blessed week! :-)

Dar Fun Facts

I realize I should update more with the fun facts of daily living here. Things have gotten so 'normal' to me that they hardly seem noteworthy anymore, but lately (esp. since being back in the US and seeing things "new" again) I've noticed many photo opp.'s that I should have documented and posted. So, I'm determined to update more with tidbits on life in Africa! For now, meet the mosquito zapper:


Looks like a tennis racket, but it actually electrocutes mosquitoes by zapping them dead when you strike them. It makes a snap/crackle/pop sound when it hits one and can be pretty fun. Also makes you feel pretty victorious over those sneaky things. Just one of the highlights of daily life here. :-)

Comfort

Mambo! So, I'm back in Dar: home sweet home. The above picture does a pretty good job describing my time at home in Dallas. Cheese is crazy expensive here and thus very rare, so being able to eat to my heart's content in cheese was by far one of the best things about being home. Really, it's all I wanted to do my first day home. :) So when I saw this billboard on I-35, I had to pull over for a pic.

My time at home was great.... it was really wonderful spending time with friends and family and very nice to relax some. I was able to spend good quality time with most of the people I wanted to, which I'm so thankful for, though it all still seemed too rushed since I was home for such a short period. Very thankful for the time I did have, though. I'm starting to realize now how weird it is (and hard) having your heart in two places. When I was in the States, I missed so many things about life in Africa- the simplicity, the friendliness of strangers, the time to be still and reflect... and now that I'm back here, I miss my friends and family more than I did before, since I was just able to spend such great time with them, and I miss a lot of the 'ease of living' in America. In a way, I feel like I'm having to go through the "transition phase" again now b/c I'm having to re-adjust to a lot of the hardships here that I'd gotten used to before I went back home.

And, speaking of those hardships.... my biggest take-away from my time in the States was on the *comfort* there. Life in America is very, very COMFORTABLE. Life in Africa is very, very UN-comfortable. In case you're envying the exotic places I get to visit and the daily adventures my life here holds (which yes, are all wonderful), please realize that daily living here is HARD. And it's not just "hard".... it's *uncomfortable*. It doesn't 'feel' good. It *feels* uncomfortable. Every day.

I was surprised by how much the comfort of things in America shocked me (since I've lived with them for 30 years). Every room is set to the temperature of one's choosing. Soft, cushy furniture abounds in any and every building you enter. Infinite choices of food and drink abound everywhere. Cars ride along smoothly on nicely paved roads. And the power is ALWAYS on. Oh yeah- hot water, too. And if any of these things aren't there- for even a moment- one has every 'right' to be angry or in a bad mood... because things 'should' always be this easy.... right?

Here in Africa- and in the majority of the world- having even one of those things listed above, if even just for a moment, is reason to jump for joy and praise heaven. Room temperatures are NOT set to one's choosing.... Here in Dar I sweat ALL day EVERY day, and so does EVERY other person in this city. All year long. It is crazy hot and humid and A/C here is very rare if not nonexistent (and the A/C here consists of window boxes in certain rooms, not the central cooling that homes in the states have). Power goes out for hours on end or days on end, several times a week (meaning no a/c OR fans)- with no prior warning. (although the power company actually let out a "power rationing" schedule last month.... which they stopped following and power outages have since been totally random). The customer is NOT always right here. Inconveniences abound EVERYwhere. My bathroom doesn't have any hot water. (though I'm not complaining b/c 90% of the time I only want a cold shower in this heat) There are a *very* small handful of places in this entire city with comfortable furniture that can be "lounged" in... and my roommate and I travel about an hour each weekend to get to the one coffee shop that does, just so that we can 'sit there' for a while. Food is cooked from scratched or you eat peanuts and popcorn bought on the side of the road (hence my lunch every day ;)). And these are descriptions of my life here, which is much easier and more 'comfortable' than the majority of Tanzanians (who don't have electricity or running water.... much less the ability to purchase a cappuccino).

I'm all for comfort- like I said, Laura and I go an hour across town most weekends just to sit in the one comfy A/C'ed coffee shop in the entire city. But what got to me in America is the sense of entitlement for these comforts. The expectation for them all. The fact that most people would complain so much if any one of these eases of life was taken from them even briefly. And on top of that, most people's goal is to work hard enough to retire so that their life can be even MORE comfortable. I'm not saying it's wrong to have or enjoy many of these comforts, but if they're expected and "can't be lived without".... it handicaps life from being lived to its fullest after a point.

Yes, life is hard here. Uncomfortable. Very uncomfortable, very often. But that doesn't mean life isn't GOOD. It is hard, but it is GOOD. Life is simple here. Relationships are experienced and enjoyed. Strangers strike up conversation with each other and enjoy life together. Food and wages are worked hard for, truly "earned", and simple things are never taken for granted. Opportunities to do things- including for others- aren't often turned down because they're 'uncomfortable'. Life doesn't always "feel" good here- in fact, it very rarely does- but in the end, that doesn't mean it isn't good.

So, today: don't be scared of a little discomfort (or even a lot).  When we go to such extreme lengths to keep all our comforts up (which most Americans do, knowingly or unknowingly), we surely miss MANY opportunities to serve and to love and to give and to be the hands and feet of Christ. Jesus was described as a "man of many sorrows".... He was "well acquainted with grief".... He owned only the clothes on his back.... He had "nowhere to lay his head". None of those descriptions of His life sound 'comfortable' to me. In fact, they sound pretty uncomfortable. Going to try to remember that here when I'm internally complaining about the heat or the pollution or the slow internet or the crazy traffic or the.... fill in the blank. ;)