So...I'm back in America. Not sure whether to put a smiley face with that sentence or not. Reason? Mixed feelings. So glad to see family and be 'home'. But *really* missing Africa and all that it contains. It had become my home the last month. My heart longs for it again. Before I go on any further, I'll share some pictures.
Being thankful. If facebook asked me what was on my mind today, that is what I would say. Giving thanks. The Bible tells us to give thanks to the Lord (Ps. 118:1), to magnify Him with thanksgiving (Ps. 69:30) and also to give thanks in all circumstances (1 Thess. 5:18). I’ve been trying quite hard to have a spirit of thanksgiving, especially in this season in which the Lord has called me to be out of my comfort zone, away from anything familiar, and relying on Him for everything. I’ll share the mental list I began making the other day…
I’m thankful for staying in this hotel in Ambo. There’s a showerhead you can stand under instead of like the guest house where it was a hand held device. It’s also nice to share the bathroom with just one other person, instead of 7. I’m thankful for that.
I’m thankful for Immodium AD, and the wisdom God gave man to make such a pill. I’m also thankful for Costco and their provision of a 400 ct. pack of Immodium. At first I thought buying that was a bit ridiculous, and when I brought only 200 of those pills with me on my trip, I still thought it. Now…I am thankful I brought 200, as I have used it every day and have dealt it out to team members as well.
I’m thankful for toilets that flush, and that I haven’t had any incidents where I would need to use the hole in the ground (aka toilet) at the school at Ambo. This area of thankfulness coincides with the one above.
I’m thankful for a heart that is broken over what I have seen. I would be concerned if I wasn’t moved, touched, or changed by my time here.
I’m thankful for our translators. They not only tell the children/street boys what I am saying, but I also get an idea of what the heck the kids are trying to tell me. I’m thankful for their availability and how quickly they come the moment we flag one of them down or yelp out their name. I’m also thankful that they have become my good friends.
I’m thankful that I remembered to turn the hot water heater on today. When I forgot to turn it on the other night and didn’t get to shower, I’m thankful I learned my lesson and things were different today.
I’m thankful for the team I have been ministering with the last month. While it’s true that there have been times they have gotten on my nerves or annoyed the stink out of me (which I believe is normal when you spend 24/7 with people for a whole month), overall it has been a joy to be on a team where we have one purpose and the same heart for being here. And we’ve laughed a lot. Always thankful for laughter.
I’m thankful that absence absolutely makes the heart grow fonder, and the love for my family has grown even deeper since I’ve been away from them. After seeing so many people who have no family, not even someone to love them, care for them, or a home to ‘go home’ to…I am so very thankful that I have all of the above.
I’m thankful for wet wipes, hand sanitizer and soap. Enough said.
I’m thankful that my dream of coming to Africa has come true.
My birthday was this past Sunday, and it just so happened that I was in Africa to celebrate :-). It ended up being a great day, save for the getting older part. Since it was a Sunday, we went to a church service, and instead of our usual church (which actually had an English service), we went to the church of a man who works for African Leadership. The service was entirely in Amharic and lasted over 2 hours. Thankfully I had one of our translators, Surafel, sitting next to me, and every once and awhile he would whisper what the pastor was saying. We then went to lunch at our team’s favorite restaurant in Addis, called Island Breeze. It’s our favorite because their pizza actually looks and tastes like pizza.
After lunch, we went to the home of Tadeus, another one of our translators, for a coffee ceremony his mother had for our team. A coffee ceremony here in Ethiopia consist of trays of popcorn passed around, lit incense, and small cups of very strong coffee with only sugar added. We sit and drink, laugh, and cough (the incense is quite strong). His mom had a candle too and everyone sang Happy Birthday and I got to blow out the candle before we left!
We then went back to our guest house for the night. The power was out, so Elizabeth, Jeremiah, Eric, Derrek, Nati and I played Uno (the only game at the house) by flashlight. Dinner was made at the house, so we had homemade soup and rice. The other team members had decorated the dining room with Happy Birthday plates, banner, and party hats to wear. We ate dinner by candlelight and they had actually found a real chocolate cake for my birthday (this is a big deal because we had some ‘cake’ on another day…and it tasted nothing like cake). They had candles and sang to me, and they had also gotten sparklers, so those were lit during the singing. Thankfully nothing caught on fire. The team wrote me a birthday letter which was also read by candlelight, and one of our translators, Surafel, had bought me a jewelry box and necklace for a present. Elizabeth also bought me a pedicure the day before as my birthday gift. We found a legit spa in Addis over the weekend, so as a treat some of the team members had massages, but considering my feet were funk nasty, I opted for the pedicure. And one of the best presents was from Emma. My phone hasn’t worked since we flew into Dubai, so for my gift, Emma let me use her phone to call my mom…I was beyond excited! With the time difference (we are 8 hours ahead of Chicago), I missed my mom the first try, but did manage to catch her at night, and was able to talk with her for almost 20 minutes. What a great gift!
I had an amazing birthday and while it was definitely weird not being at home, it was a birthday I will never forget, although I do try to forget my age…but being in Ethiopia helps. It’s the year 2001 here, so technically I am 8 years younger here than I am in America. Whenever the school kids ask me how old I am, I tell them my Ethiopian age…sounds much better than the real one! ;-)
