Bring on the cold!!

Since we arrived here in January we've been told that the rainy season end in September and then it's the beginning of the dry season and cooler weather. Needless to say that when the heat and humidity of the hot season began in April and then the humidity stayed through the rainy season of August, we were really looking forward to the start of the dry season and cooler temps.But no one told us about October. October is hot, humid and just plain miserable. It's exactly like April and May....

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The wail

"Someone just died," B said as he came into the house after class. Of course my immediate sarcastic response was "What you're psychic now?"But as I stepped outside I could hear wailing, the intense cry when someone dies. There is no other way to describe it. It is a wail. Deep pain, sorrow, tears and sobbing all coming out in a single sound. It's intense, surreal and heart-wrenching. A lady came out of a compound literally 20 yards away. She was being held up by another lady as her body...

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Why?

I've been reading the Psalms lately..mostly because I have felt attacked, discouraged, and just plain icky (yes that is a real feeling).Spiritual warfare is not something that most of us recognize because in the states most of the time it's just little stuff Satan uses, like too many commitments, impatience, or sickness to pull us away from God. But since I started this journey to follow God to Africa I've been attacked. I'm not talking about little things. I'm talking about mentally ill...

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Shoes....how I miss you!

I know this is completely superficial...and you probably will think I'm a very bad missionary....but I have comes to terms with this so you must also.I miss my shoes....I had so many at one time....now I have six...3 flip flops, 2 Keen sandals, and tennis shoes. Boring I know...Do you remember these?? I do...I miss the way they feel on my feet...I miss the smell of new leather...I miss my feet hurting...

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First Times

I've had many first in my life. Some were exciting and I looked forward to, but others were things that I never wanted to experience. Last weekend was a weekend of firsts and a combination of things I've dreaded and things I've been looking forward to. But all the same, it was the best weekend I've had since we arrived at our new home!!Friday night...no power for the 4th time that day (on for a little...

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It's a GIRL!!!

Ok so it's a baby girl and we've named her Zelle. She is adorable and funny and quite loving. She was abandoned at a teammate's house and she knew that we'd been looking so she brought her by and we fell in love!! Ok here she is...But in all seriousness, some did abadon this adorable puppy and she's not like most of the African dogs. She is super friendly, playful and really likes people. So we didn't...

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Being flexible

So we’ve been in our city for a little over a month now and I had my first really bad week. It was one of those “Ugg I live in Africa” weeks not “Yay I live in Africa!”. I started to wonder if I would ever get used to all these little things that have not been normal for me in the past and all the things that are just done differently here.It’s been hard for me to get used to the color of the bottoms...

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Charades

Charades…this is a game that I have resorted to playing with people here.At orientation in VA, a guy came to talk to us about how best to learn a language. He said that we’d get frustrated and start pulling out words and phrases from any other language we might know in order to communicate. I had hoped this would mean I would pull out from the depths of my brain the French I so earnestly learned in high school. Unfortunately it has meant speaking Spanish (which I only know three words),...

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African life

We have been in our city for a little over a week now and I must apologize for not getting to this sooner. We have had a little difficulty getting internet in our house and have been busy with orientation and getting acquainted with the city. But I am determined to not let another week go by without updating my blog so keep checking!!It’s kinda surreal being here and I’m not sure I am fully grasping the extent of how long we will be here. B described it yesterday as still being in the...

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