thank you for your prayers! i am feeling much better. still a bit stuffy and congested, but much better. my sinus was killing me this morning before church, but i said no satan! you will not let me have a bad day. so i went and it eased as the day went on. church was good today. these people worship with such passion. after church we took tony, the man who is the pastor of the church and runs bcc now, and his family out to lunch. he has the most adorable 10 month old girl. she sat in my lap on the way to lunch and feel fast asleep. it was great. and then she opened up and had quite the personality. he and his wife have a house on the same property as the orphanage and next week we will each lunch with them in their home. it was so good to be with them today.
i can't believe it has only been a week. it seems much longer. but at the same time it doesn't. this week we go on the safari which should be fun. i am also excited to spend some more time with the girls in the sewing class the next few days. again, thank you for your prayers and encouragement. i do not know if i will be able to get pictures up while i am here. we have not been able to so far. we will keep trying.
peace and love.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Saturday, June 9, 2007
and so it goes...
well, unfortunately, i have become somewhat sick. breathing in all the nasty air and dirt has really aggrevated my sinus an allegeries so i am super congested right now. i stayed behind today and did not go to the center which is no fun. it was our first day that we get to spend all day with the orphans because they are not in school. i know it all happens for a reason and i want to get better. so i please ask for your prayers for my health and the heath of my teammates. we are all tired and fatigued and satan is definately using that to try to get us down.
the past few days have been good and exhausting. being in africa is a big adjustment. more than i think we realize. i have spent sometime with the children in the school which has been fun. different than i expected, but still good to be there. yesterday was our first day off, but it really did not end up being a day off. we went to one of the slums with a group traveling through to see another school that buckner supports. that was definately heavy to see. one thing that got me was a small boy was among other kids from the slums looking through the gate into the school. he was brave enough to run a little ways into the school area and he grabbed my hand. so i slowly walked him back to the door. it is so hard to resist to be with those kids outside of the school because there is just so much need. after the slum, we went to the masaai market at the village market. both my teammates got a little overwhelmed with the bargaining, but i kind of enjoyed it. my strategy was to say a price and stick with it. one man followed me around the market and insisted that i buy this one thing. it was definately a humorous and interesting experience.
one thing that has been shocking to us is the stigma here about america. even the kids are taught so they can get to america. there is a mindset that if we can just get to america, all our problems would be gone. please pray that we can encourage these people that God has them in africa for a reason, and that america is not what they think it is. they were shocked when we told me that poor, homeless people live in america.
well i guess that is all for now. thank you for your prayers and support. peace and love
p.s. dad, victor from world connex says hello. he is here on another vision trip and his group will be on the safari with us next week.
the past few days have been good and exhausting. being in africa is a big adjustment. more than i think we realize. i have spent sometime with the children in the school which has been fun. different than i expected, but still good to be there. yesterday was our first day off, but it really did not end up being a day off. we went to one of the slums with a group traveling through to see another school that buckner supports. that was definately heavy to see. one thing that got me was a small boy was among other kids from the slums looking through the gate into the school. he was brave enough to run a little ways into the school area and he grabbed my hand. so i slowly walked him back to the door. it is so hard to resist to be with those kids outside of the school because there is just so much need. after the slum, we went to the masaai market at the village market. both my teammates got a little overwhelmed with the bargaining, but i kind of enjoyed it. my strategy was to say a price and stick with it. one man followed me around the market and insisted that i buy this one thing. it was definately a humorous and interesting experience.
one thing that has been shocking to us is the stigma here about america. even the kids are taught so they can get to america. there is a mindset that if we can just get to america, all our problems would be gone. please pray that we can encourage these people that God has them in africa for a reason, and that america is not what they think it is. they were shocked when we told me that poor, homeless people live in america.
well i guess that is all for now. thank you for your prayers and support. peace and love
p.s. dad, victor from world connex says hello. he is here on another vision trip and his group will be on the safari with us next week.
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
change of pace
i did not expect to run into so many emotions right at the beginning. there is one thing for sure. when you come to africa, you will be humbled. not because of the poverty and situation, but because of the faith of the people. we are no where near understanding who God is like the people do here. i have come across so many people who have blown my little bitty trip out of the water.
first, the place we are staying is a place for missionaries to come and take a break basically. we have met some of the most amazing people. we usually eat breakfast and lunch here every day and the meals are at a certain time. you join with people at tables, so it is like a big family. i came to africa thinking what i was doing was more than just a "short term mission" or a pointless little trip that makes you feel good about yourself. before we knew it, we were talking to a girl my age who has been living in the slums for 9 months and has amazing stories. we then met a girl who worked in southern sudan for about a year. then, best of all, we met the most kind-spirited older woman yesterday. she has been living in africa for 34 years! and she highly recommends it. after her parents died, people began to give her money to go to africa and she did not think that being there (or here rather) would last longer. she has been here ever since she came. we also met another woman who has been working in southern sudan. just amazing.
second, yesterday was our first full day at the orphanage. we focused our time in the tech center where girls are learning to sew with peddle machines. they are girls around my age who did not make into secondary school or cannot go to secondary school. some are mothers. all but one come in from the slum surrounding the orphanage and they are amazing. at first they were shy, but then they asked me to play soccer and handball with them on their break. it was so much fun. then after we came in, the immediately brought me to their station and taught me how to sew. it was amazing. i made two different skirts in a cm instead of inches. the community here is amazing. the love each other with everything. at the end of the day the girls proceed to clean like i have never seen before. they are such good stewards of what they have been given. they worked together so well. after the clean, the sing a few praises and pray. it just blows me away. everything is so christ centered. they need God desperately.
the love the workers at the orphanage have for these children is amazing. they give up so much to show love to these children. we have no idea how to love like these people. they are the ones who need to be teaching us. i never expected to come to africa and be the one who is being served, but that is truly the case. our driver is this amazing africa man who is so generous and kind. he takes on different routes all the time to show us the different parts of africa. and by the way, mom, your greatest challenge in coming to this place would be riding in the car. i am pretty sure you would have to wear a blindfold. the staff here where we are staying are all africans and they serve us every meal. i was taught to sew yesterday by amazing girls. really, how did i ever deserve this?
i am still trying to process what i see everyday. going from the orphanage to the slums to the city can be overwhelming at times. there is just so much going on and such poverty. they hard thing is that this is normal for them. i see these tiny shacks and trash and children, but this is all normal for them. it is life. part of that does not need to be changed. my prayer now is how can i even help this place? this is all they know. well there are so many other things to share, but i believe this is all for now. i will write again soon.
peace and love.
first, the place we are staying is a place for missionaries to come and take a break basically. we have met some of the most amazing people. we usually eat breakfast and lunch here every day and the meals are at a certain time. you join with people at tables, so it is like a big family. i came to africa thinking what i was doing was more than just a "short term mission" or a pointless little trip that makes you feel good about yourself. before we knew it, we were talking to a girl my age who has been living in the slums for 9 months and has amazing stories. we then met a girl who worked in southern sudan for about a year. then, best of all, we met the most kind-spirited older woman yesterday. she has been living in africa for 34 years! and she highly recommends it. after her parents died, people began to give her money to go to africa and she did not think that being there (or here rather) would last longer. she has been here ever since she came. we also met another woman who has been working in southern sudan. just amazing.
second, yesterday was our first full day at the orphanage. we focused our time in the tech center where girls are learning to sew with peddle machines. they are girls around my age who did not make into secondary school or cannot go to secondary school. some are mothers. all but one come in from the slum surrounding the orphanage and they are amazing. at first they were shy, but then they asked me to play soccer and handball with them on their break. it was so much fun. then after we came in, the immediately brought me to their station and taught me how to sew. it was amazing. i made two different skirts in a cm instead of inches. the community here is amazing. the love each other with everything. at the end of the day the girls proceed to clean like i have never seen before. they are such good stewards of what they have been given. they worked together so well. after the clean, the sing a few praises and pray. it just blows me away. everything is so christ centered. they need God desperately.
the love the workers at the orphanage have for these children is amazing. they give up so much to show love to these children. we have no idea how to love like these people. they are the ones who need to be teaching us. i never expected to come to africa and be the one who is being served, but that is truly the case. our driver is this amazing africa man who is so generous and kind. he takes on different routes all the time to show us the different parts of africa. and by the way, mom, your greatest challenge in coming to this place would be riding in the car. i am pretty sure you would have to wear a blindfold. the staff here where we are staying are all africans and they serve us every meal. i was taught to sew yesterday by amazing girls. really, how did i ever deserve this?
i am still trying to process what i see everyday. going from the orphanage to the slums to the city can be overwhelming at times. there is just so much going on and such poverty. they hard thing is that this is normal for them. i see these tiny shacks and trash and children, but this is all normal for them. it is life. part of that does not need to be changed. my prayer now is how can i even help this place? this is all they know. well there are so many other things to share, but i believe this is all for now. i will write again soon.
peace and love.
Sunday, June 3, 2007
babump...babump...babump
I'm in Africa!!
we made it safely last night. The Lord really blessed us with smooth and enjoyable travel. I set next to a wee little Scottish man on the ride for london to nairobi. he was quite the character and had quite a bit of alcohol. did you know that bristish airways gives you free alcohol?! this man used that service for sure. he was going to drill for oil in uganda. not exactly doing much good for uganda, but he did keep me entertained. the whole africa thing did not really hit last night because it was dark and i couldn't really see anything. today we went church at the orphanage center and it was quite a treat! on the way there is when the whole africa thing hit. i don't really want to say much about it now because i am still trying to process everything that i have seen. here are a few observations: africans make intense eye contact...a good kind of intense, i heard justin timberlake in the place i ate lunch at today...quite unexpected, a golf course, pot holes make driving alot more exciting, an old african woman introduced herself at church today my giving me a great hug....and lets just say that africans should be teaching us the bible...period.
the place we are staying is very nice. all muzungus (white hommies). we have showers and sleep under mesquito nets. there is a computer here so i will be able to write on the blog alot. we will have much free time at night because it is too dangerous to be out after dark (although the crazy take risks spirit inside of me wants to...but it won't happen). my teammates are great and we all bring a certain spark to the team. i am so excited about the next month. i played soccer with some of the boys after church and that was quite fun. one boy just told me what to do. "you, go to that goal!" "sorry, wipe you face" (this was after the ball hit me in the face...haha.) and he constantly reminded me that "you-zero, me-three" because he was winnning.
i love it here already. i find myself wanting to be african because i just want to roam the streets and talk to these people. everyone i see, i want to stop and know their story. they are just genuine people and what i see is normal for them. well this is all for now. i will write again after we have spent some more time with the children.
peace and love
p.s. the title of the blog was for you sarah...you think the crazy three speed bumps at belmont were interesting...you would be saying babump quite a bit here
we made it safely last night. The Lord really blessed us with smooth and enjoyable travel. I set next to a wee little Scottish man on the ride for london to nairobi. he was quite the character and had quite a bit of alcohol. did you know that bristish airways gives you free alcohol?! this man used that service for sure. he was going to drill for oil in uganda. not exactly doing much good for uganda, but he did keep me entertained. the whole africa thing did not really hit last night because it was dark and i couldn't really see anything. today we went church at the orphanage center and it was quite a treat! on the way there is when the whole africa thing hit. i don't really want to say much about it now because i am still trying to process everything that i have seen. here are a few observations: africans make intense eye contact...a good kind of intense, i heard justin timberlake in the place i ate lunch at today...quite unexpected, a golf course, pot holes make driving alot more exciting, an old african woman introduced herself at church today my giving me a great hug....and lets just say that africans should be teaching us the bible...period.
the place we are staying is very nice. all muzungus (white hommies). we have showers and sleep under mesquito nets. there is a computer here so i will be able to write on the blog alot. we will have much free time at night because it is too dangerous to be out after dark (although the crazy take risks spirit inside of me wants to...but it won't happen). my teammates are great and we all bring a certain spark to the team. i am so excited about the next month. i played soccer with some of the boys after church and that was quite fun. one boy just told me what to do. "you, go to that goal!" "sorry, wipe you face" (this was after the ball hit me in the face...haha.) and he constantly reminded me that "you-zero, me-three" because he was winnning.
i love it here already. i find myself wanting to be african because i just want to roam the streets and talk to these people. everyone i see, i want to stop and know their story. they are just genuine people and what i see is normal for them. well this is all for now. i will write again after we have spent some more time with the children.
peace and love
p.s. the title of the blog was for you sarah...you think the crazy three speed bumps at belmont were interesting...you would be saying babump quite a bit here
Monday, May 14, 2007
friends are friends, not food...or is it fish?
This year I have met so many wonderful people and I would like to show some of my favorite pictures of my favorite people. This blog is really feeding my withdrawl more than anything. All these people you see in these pictures are absolutely amazing and I love them to death. It starts off with some of my favorite group "family" pictures and then the rest are random and mostly funny.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
oh...the experiences
So the post is a random assortment of pictures that reflect on some of the great memories of my freshman year. They are in no particular order. here we go...
I had lots of tea parties
had one of the best birthday's I have ever had
made a new family
really...actually...saw and experienced the snow
blessed with the most amazing best friends
spend lots and lots of time on the quad
got a tattoo
fall was amazing and beautiful
saw some amazing shows...
and many many more memories. I never thought I could fall in love with a place so much. The Lord had blessed me immensely. I cannot wait to go back for another year of....
Saturday, May 12, 2007
The Beginning of a New Era...or maybe just a new summer
Well, as you can see below this used to be my Old Testament blog for class. It is now turned into my Africa/maybe ongoing blog. We will see. I am so excited about Africa. It is still surreal that I am going. The Lord has blessed me abundantly and I am continually overwhelmed by His grace. I already miss Belmont sooo much. I never thought I would fall in love with my school so much. I have met the most amazing people that I love to death and that love me just as much, if not more. It is so different that home though. I like home, but it is hard being away from Belmont. Who knows what is in store for me when I get back from Africa? I am curious to see where the Lord leads me in Africa and afterward. Well I am trying to think of my top 25 or so memories from my first year of college. Hopefully I will get that posted soon. ok that is all for now.
peace and love
peace and love
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