On the way home

 

So right now I am in the Dulles airport in Washington D.C,. and I am sitting here remembering the day and wondering how time flew by so fast. The first five months went by so slow but when January hit, everything seemed to speed up. I cannot believe that my nine months are up and that I am on my way home. Come with me as I reminisce on my trip home.

So my trip started Saturday afternoon at 4:00p at the Kilimanjaro International Airport. The flight from Kilimanjaro airport to Addis Abbaba was comfortable and uneventful. Now the flight from Addis to Washington was something totally different. It all started after we had dinner, I watched a movie because I couldn’t fall asleep and thought that maybe it would lull me to sleep. I was wrong, I stayed awake through most of that flight and what was worse is that my head and stomach were hurting. Towards the end of the flight I ended up making myself sick in the bathroom and thank God it was at the end. I remember that on the flight from Washington to Addis had been relatively calm and non-eventful but this time it was the toughest flight I have ever been on. There was a point when I couldn't even look at the movie screen I was so nauseous. What I did enjoy about this flight was the night view I got of Rome. At that moment, I was listening to Bon Jovi’s Greatest Hits album and it was the perfect soundtrack to the scene before me. I do not know what it was but listening to “Its my life” while watching Paris at night, just felt right. I never would have guessed I would turn out to be a Bon Jovi fan. Rome and the song “Its my life” by Bon Jovi will forever go together in my mind. I see going to Rome, as statement of my desire to live in the now and enjoy life and I am sure some romantics are horrified by this statement. I enjoy traveling and I love going to new places. I am only young once and I want to enjoy the world right now that I am young. The song “Its My Life” clearly expresses my feelings,"Its my life, its now or never, I ain’t going to live forever, I just want to live while I am alive”. So, I know that was not the last time I saw Rome. My parents encouraged me to go to Tanzania because they thought it would kill the travel bug in me but it did nothing more than feed it. Education is so important but who says you cant do both? Who says you cant educate yourself and at the same time explore the world. I want to do volunteer work for the rest of my life but I also want to explore and meet new cultures and their people. I do not want to be stuck in Northwest Arkansas for the rest of my life with 10 kids, right now. That can come later.  Anyways, Finally, we got to Washington at 8:00 am this morning, Sunday.

Now today Sunday, has been the longest day of my life. I arrived Washington at 8:00 am EDT and after I got checked in, Jordan and I took some time to explore the airport a bit. Afterwards, we had some Subway and Starbucks and it was the most delicious meal I have had in a long time. I think all the excitement about being in America made it taste so good.The fun could not go on for ever and before I knew, it was time for me to go to my gate and wait to board. It was 10 minutes until time to board, when they announced that our flight would be delayed until 2p and I was frustrated but relieved that it had not been cancelled. That feeling was short lived, after 30 minutes, they announced that the flight had been cancelled. Well, you can imagine the chaos, a whole plane full of people trying to get to Chicago. They put me on a waiting list and I waited until two planes had left and by then it was 2p. I went to talk to the customer service reps again and they informed me that I would be able to leave on a direct flight to Tulsa. I was so relieved because at first the rep had told me that they wouldn't have anything until Monday night. You can imagine my feelings, I was in  a city I didn’t know and they kept giving me bad news, I was to say the least, freaking out. So when the rep told me she would get me on a direct flight to Tulsa, I was so happy I almost cried. God truly took care of me today. I am tired because I have been traveling since yesterday but I am glad that God has brought me safely thus far. Right now the weather is starting to change from sunny to rainy and I just hope that this doesn’t mean anymore delay for me. I am ready to go home but now I am peaceful because I know God has everything under control and nothing happens without him knowing. Everything happens for a reason and today I learned a valuable lesson in patience. Waiting on the Lord is not easy but in the end it is rewarding.

The Last Volunteer Day

 

Yesterday was my last day working as a volunteer and I have to say it was a great day. I am not leaving until next Saturday but my last official working day was yesterday. Unfortunately, all of the kids were sick. They were all coughing and just not feeling their best, so the directors decided that the kids would stay home and rest. Which was a great idea, one of the boys didn’t wake up until almost nine and it did him a lot of good to get that extra rest.

After breakfast, their morning started.They had a easy and relaxed morning. We played with a flannel board and Bible story cut-outs. I even had a mini Bible study with the oldest. It was a nice just hanging out with the kids doing crafts. It was a great start for a awesome day.At first, I had a hard time enjoying myself because the kids were so tired and sick but when they started having fun and so did I.

After an easy non-straining morning we had lunch and then all the kids went to the clinic. After they came back they took a short nap and then it was time for Jordan and my activities.

Jordan and I planned a afternoon of Sabbath fun. It is not easy to find Sabbath appropriate activities to do with the children other than a walk. When I was kid, I used to love going on walks with my sister and brother. We loved exploring and just seeing what we could find. I still like going on nature walks when I am back home. I guess when you are in charge and you have to go for a walk every Sabbath, it kind of loses its appeal. To say the less Sabbath afternoon walks are something I dread and one way or another, it was always Jordan and I who got stuck on walk duty. Well, I decided we were going to do something special on our last Sabbath afternoon. Jordan came up with the idea of a thankfulness hand. We drew their hands and then they wrote things they are thankful for in the fingers. My idea was to act out Noah’s Ark. I have wanted to do face painting with them and today I was finally able to. We ended up just doing face painting and no acting, but it was still a lot of fun. They enjoyed themselves with the hands craft and the paint.

The Sun’s!

Yes, She was a Christmas tree

So the my last day working was one of the best I have had here, beside the fact that most of them were sick. It was nice because for about an hour, during the activities they forgot that they were not feeling good and just had fun. The good thing is that I still have one week left with them and I am going to enjoy it to the fullest. I plan on making the most of the time I have left.

Critters

 

The list of critters the children have brought me is never ending. From chameleons, to worms that look like half of a termite, to baby birds, to awesome looking praying manthis. The list is varied but none surprised me more than what they brought me Friday.

 

Jacki and the snake

Jacki the youngest girl brought me on a stick a dead garden snake. Working with children is not for the faint-hearted and one should be prepared for the constant surprises but that day my heart gave a little skip. At first, I thought it was alive but my kids assured me that it was dead. After close inspection, I saw that the head had been smashed by some sort of object, most likely a rock. Rocks are everywhere and they would be my choice of weapon if I ever encountered  a snake. Though, I don’t know why anyone would kill a harmless garden snake. Nevertheless, here was this snake and the kids were obviously enthralled by it. They even wanted to bring it inside, to which I strongly objected. At play time they wanted to continue playing with it, but after awhile Jordan, the other volunteer, told them to leave it alone.This encounter with this snake made me remember the other times when the kids had brought me critters.

 

 

 

Erick and his pet bird

Two weeks ago Erick, the eldest boy brought me a baby bird. According to Erick, he had caught the bird and was now going to keep it as a pet, for a little bit at least. He attached a piece of string to its foot to keep it from flying away. It was the cutest thing and I just could not believe he had actually caught it. Erick took it to the playground and everyone got to play with it. After a while, they let it go and I was relieved because they wanted to feed it rice and later I found out that supposedly kills them. So it would have suffered a terrible fate had we kept it.

 

 

Isaya and the stange worm

A couple of months ago, a tree behind our house fell down and the reason this tree had died was because these worms had basically eaten it away. There were a gazillion of holes in the tree and a bunch of white worms that looked like termites. I am not a scientist so I have no idea what these little critters are. When the kids heard that the tree had fallen down and that there were worms in it, of course they ran to investigate and they brought me back one so I could see it. Isaya is a 7 year-old boy, and of course he loves crawling critters. He was brave enough to carry it to me so I could see it. The one that he brought was near death I think, because there was this liquid coming out of its bottom. Later, it was eaten by the village dog, George Bush who we call Bushie. It was a sad fate but at least I got some pictures before it was eaten.

 

The Praying Manthis and I

We had just gotten back from a walk when I spotted something on the village statue. To my surprise it was a praying manthis. Now, I do not know what you think of manthis’ but I find them pretty fierce looking. These are the only bugs that I am scared of. Of course, this is silly because they cant sting you or bite you, but I once saw a video about  what they could do to other bugs and it terrified me, I have been deadly scared of them since. I know its silly but I still felt my hart stop when I saw this little critter. The only manthis’ I had seen were brown but this one was multi-colored. It was beautifull. All I can say is that the african manthis is so much cooler than the  American one and this comes from a girl that is scared of them. But don’t take my word take a look and compare.

So it seems the kids and I have something in common, we love critters. It was so much fun experiencing these animals with them. Learning about God’s creation with them was an experience that I thoroughly enjoyed. I thank God for nature and all the wonders he has made.I will always have this memories and I cant wait until we get to heaven to experience them again with the kids. All the wonders we will see together. I really cant wait, and maybe you will find me playing in the dirt with a praying manthis.

A day in Usa

Last week I went to Usa River which is a town about 20 mins from Havilah. First, I went in the bus which they call the Dulle Dulle and boy was it exciting. While I was waiting for the Dulle Dulle, I meet this lady and her cousin and had a nice talk. The man was telling me how he believes that Tanzania isn’t progressing because the government is corrupt. He said that Tanzania people should be very rich because off all the minerals it has but that the government is corrupt and thus all the money stays with them and doesn’t reach the people. I asked him why he thought the government charged for education and he said that they are trying to keep as much money for themselves and because they are trying to keep the people ignorant. I had noticed how poor Tanzania is and that very few children are able to get an education, but what kind of leaders would purposely keep their people ignorant? I can see how it would benefit a government for the people to remain ignorant, but what kind of leaders would do that? Obviously I did not believe all this man said because I learned in college not to just rely on one source but to see look at many and see what they all have in common and to also use what you know. I know that this country has a social security and that says a lot. It shoes that the government does care. I am still not sure what the truth is because after all I have only been here for a month and well I haven’t done any research. But seeing all these kids not having an education is starting to put a passion in my heart. My parents have always told me how important education is and well seeing this lack of education because of lack of funds in my mind is ridiculous. Basic education shouldn’t have a price and this is something that the Tanzanian government should understand. How is a country supposed to prosper if the citizens are not educated? Still besides the fact that Tanzania is a poor country the people are so friendly. I will not walk past a person without them saying hi to me and welcoming to Tanzania. Its like they see this thorn bush but instead of focusing on the thorns they focus on the roses. There is a flower her in Tanzania that is beautiful but if you try to pick it, you will either get pocked or the flower falls apart. The people of Tanzania have ignored the sting that you feel and focus on caring for the flower. This is something that I will try to learn from these people.
Anyways, back to my day in Usa. I bought some phone credit from my friend Amani that has a convenient store and then waited for the Dulle Dulle. It arrived some 30 minutes later and then I was on my way. Dulle Dulles are the cheapest way to travel here in Usa, they cost less than 50 cents and even thought they cram you in there like sardines it is a fun ride. The reason that I decided to go to Usa is because I wanted to experience Tanzania. When I first got here, my boss said that if I really wanted to experience Tanzania, then I just had to get on the Dulle Dulla and just go and that is exactly what I did. I walked around Usa and bought some hair products and after I was done looking I started my trek back home. I saw so many things in Usa that were pretty. I saw a two creeks and gorgeous flowers and met some people. Here in Tanzania people stop me and just start asking me questions, like where I am from and what I am doing here. Usually, I would be cautious about all the questions and I still am because I never tell them where I live but I have come to see that they are just being friendly and trying to make me feel welcome. I have meet so many more people in the month that I have been here than a year in the states. The people are just so welcoming and kind. If you look lost or you are just standing alone they go out of their way to help you and welcome you. I love Tazania! Anyways, on the way back I decided to take a motorcycle taxi and boy was it fun! At least until the motorcycle got a flat tire. I told the man that I was going to give him 2,000 which is about $1USD and I ended up giving up all of it to him because I felt bad. He wasn’t going to be able to work for the rest of the day. I didn’t have any more with me or else I would have given it to him. But riding it was so much fun and even Mount Meru looked prettier. I had always wanted a motorcycle and now that I got to ride one I really want one! The guy looked really bummed that he had a flat but he said that if I went to down to Usa again that he would teach how to ride it and I was like “Yeah”. I’m totally going to go and learn. Motorcycles are so awesome and there seem to so many motorcycles here than cars. It cost 500 to go on the Dulle Dulle but the bikes are so much more fun!!

Ngurdoto Lodge

So this past Monday we took the kids to the Ngurdoto Lodge, a lodge right down the street from us, to go swimming. At this lodge there are two pools, a kiddie pool and the “big pool” as the kids call it. All the kids like going into the big pool even though most cannot swim. So what Mrs. Debbie, my boss, did was to make the kids take turns with one of the adults. I got the privilege of being one of the adults to take the kids into the “big pool”. It was so much fun watching the kids practice their strokes and hold them up as they swam on their backs. Some were even adventurous enough to go under water with me. They had so much fun and so did I. I was even able to squeeze in a few races with Maddy, Mrs. Debbie’s daughter. We all had so much fun at the pool, just relaxing and enjoying the sun. It was nice to feel the warm weather after all the cold weather we have had. It started getting cold again but hopefully it warms up. Right now we are supposed to be having the dry, hot season but it seems to be arriving late this year. Anyways, after about two hours of swimming we all went home and to the kids delight, had floats.
Most had not had a float and asked us so many questions about the floats. I did not think you could ask so many questions about floats but they had many. Of course, we did not mind answering their questions because it was so fun to see their excitement. I had never had a float with orange soda but it sure was good. It is my opinion that everything goes good with ice cream, especially soda. It was a fun day and the kids were so tired from their day out that they fell asleep almost immediately after worship. It was a good day.

Sabbath

Have you ever seen those buses with kids chanting and singing songs? Well I was the adult in the bus trying to keep the kids quiet. : p On Sabbath we went to a church about 30 minutes from Havilah, the kids said it was out in the bush but it really was not but that did not kill their excitement. The kids were so excited that they were chanting and singing songs on the way there and back. I gave up trying to keep them quiet about halfway to the church. It was good for them to waste some of the energy they have, that way they would be quiet when we were in church. I had a good time in Church even though I did not understand, but it was exciting when I recognized some of the hymns they sang. I felt a swell of pride when they asked the kids to sing for the church. I didn’t teach them the songs that they sang but I felt so proud to see my kids singing in front of the church. I understood little of what the sermon was about but I did understand that it was a call to keep up on the outreach. It was a reminder of why I am here and what I came to do. What I really liked that this church does is that whenever the service ends they line up so they can say hi to each other. It was pretty cool and fun. But all good things to an end and thus sooner than later we time to go home and say goodbye to all the acquaintances we had meet. It was a typical Sabbath, we ate, the kids had their afternoon nap and then we went on a walk. I have to admit that I took a little cat nap, I felt so refreshed when I woke up. It was a good Sabbath, restful and calm.

The Trip to Havilah

The morning of August 18, 2010 was when my journey started. It began when I left my house early in the morning to drive to the Tulsa airport, about an hour and a half drive from my house. I boarded the plane at around 11 am and arrived past noon at Chicago. At Chicago was were my nerves were tried, I was supposed to unboard the airplane and board the other airplane in about 45 min. Needless to say I was not early, on the contrary I got to the gate after all of the other passengers had boarded. If it hadn’t been for a man that I meet while unboarding I probably would have missed my plane. The plane had

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

landed on one side of the airport and we boarded on the other side, I am not kidding. I was so relieved when I was on the plane and on my way to Washington. Thank God for the kind man that showed me the way to my gate. He was going to Addis Abba which were I was going to spend the night. I looked for him later but I never did see him after that. When I arrived to Washington I looked for Ethiopian Airlines. Keep in mind that I have never flown alone, so I know very little of how airports work. And add to that the fact that I always get lost. So I think I wandered around the Washington airport for about 30 minutes before I found someone who could help me find Ethiopian Airlines. You see the flights in the USA were through United Airlines but United was not going to take me to Africa. They only gave me the boarding tickets for my US flights. To get my International boarding tickets I had to find Ethiopian Airlines. It turned out that I had been walking in the opposite direction. Ethiopian Airlines was really close to the gate where I had dishoarded, I felt so sheepish. :l I spent the rest of my Wednesday afternoon there and I spent it frustrated because the airline charged me $60 because my carryon weighed more than 15 pounds. Who in the world weighs a carry-on? Apparently Ethiopian airlines does and they charge big bucks. Okay so maybe sixty dollars is not that much but for a Student Missionary who had a set amount that is supposed to last her for a whole year, it felt like a thousand bucks. I wish somebody would have told me I would have packed lighter. Besides charging me for my carry-on this airline was pretty cool. They feed me and gave me a blanket, socks, mask, and a tooth-brush which came in handy because I forgot my toothbrush in my carry-on. I woke up when the airplane landed and I thought we had arrived at Addis but it turned out that we had landed in Rome! I was so excited but the excitement faded away when I realized that we had to stay in the plane. So I can sadly say that all I have done in Rome is watch someone clean up and fuel an airplane. It was a long flight about 16 hours long. I think flight that long should be illegal I had a headache when I finally arrived to Addis. I arrived to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia the next day and boy was I confused. I got in the wrong line and when I was in the right line I understood very little of what went on. I finally understood that they were setting me up with a hotel. It was at Ethiopia where I got my first visa stamp. I was so excited! I slept very little that night, I asked for a wake-up call but I was so paranoid that maybe they didn’t know my room number or would forget me. Nothing like that happened. They feed us layover people dinner and breakfast and I discovered that I love Ethiopian food. It has a little spice to it which to a Mexican is delicious. So you know how I got kind of lost in the Washington airport well it was worse in Addis Abbaba, because I did not understand what people were saying and the signs were in their language. I found my way. We had a stop in Nairobi, Kenya but then we landed in Kilimanjaro Airport. By this time I was so relieved that all my airplane traveling was over. I was finally in Tanzania and I could not wait to meet my kids.