2 in 1

I Can Now….

July 5, 2009

I can now…
1. Rock a baby to sleep
2. Do African dances while singing African hymns
3. Run in 3500 feet altitude
4. Cook soup, rice, French toast, from scratch
5. Start a corn cob fire with a rice sack and cook over it
6. Take a bucket bath
7. Have a very short conversation in Chichewa
8. Teach English and Math to Standard Three
9. Pick up six-year-olds with one hand
10. Climb trees
11. Beat 10 year old African boys at one on one football/soccer
12. Lose to five year olds in Duck, Duck Goose
13. Make small children who have never seen an Azungu before cry
14. Do laundry, dishes, baths, face and hand washing without running water
15. Do anything by candlelight
16. Memorize the order of all 66 during church services
16. Laugh at everything

I cannot….

Eat another cliff bar. Woof.

God is good and eternally faithful. Current Bible study: John 15:1-17 and the whole of Romans


Brushfire Fairytales
July 7, 2009

So today we woke and our world reeked of smoke. There was ash in the sky and dark clouds hovering over a field of tall grass I affectionately call “The Serengeti.” My favorite quiet time location had was up in flames.

Apparently, a few small children had started a small fire in the field so they could catch the frantic mice that had been smoked out. As we walked past, they clamored to show us their pockets full of protein. We all feigned delight in their spoils, but suffocated rodents are not really our passion. Needless to say, there was a pep in out step as we escapted their deadly little show and tell.

The fire steadily consumed the field with no 911 or red engines to rescue it. By dusk, the majority of the field was gone and left me with a new challenge: find a new spot for quiet time that does not consist of burned vegetation, black ash, and dead mice.

But hey, at least we all got a little extra protein in our diet that night.

P.S. I wrote this in one of our 4 hour 15 minute church services, but that’s another tale for another day. Until my next adventure (tentatively titled “The Chief Let Us Use His Hole”).

Current Bible reading: Philippians. My favorite book.