Supposedly you are supposed to drive on the left side of the road here. This is arguable. I typically find that on the main road from my house into town, the safest place to drive is down the middle of the road, thereby avoiding pedestrians, pikipikis (motorcycles), and bicycles with massive loads of sticks, coal, or occasionally poultry
Take special care on rainy days. In order to avoid puddles, the bicycles and pikipikis will randomly swerve in front of your car.
Be aware of bicyclists carrying long pieces of lumber. You won’t necessarily see this until the lumber is about to go through your windshield.
Large buses hurdle down the exact center road at extreme speeds. Move as far over as you can without hitting anyone and pray.
Honk early and often. The horn is a useful tool, especially if you drive a “small” and “silent” Rav4. The honk lets people know you are there. Occasionally when you honk, a bicyclist will actually move over. But this comes with a warning attached: they might turn their head to look at you and in doing so swerve directly in front of you.
When preparing to make a right hand turn, check to make sure you are not in fact being passed on the right by a pikipiki. This can cause problems.
DO NOT assume that when you are passing a vehicle you will not in fact be passed as well. This includes passing large vehicles on narrow roads, it can always happen. So I would like you all take a moment to picture yourself attempting to pass a slow bus in town only to realize that you are in fact being passed by a daladala (15 passenger van used for public transportation) on a narrow road with oncoming traffic. Experience the joy and terror.
Demonstrate extra caution at the town’s roundabout. Rules vary, and pedestrians sometimes ignore the whole situation.
So I've been experimenting the last few days. After reading an article about a man who gave up multi-tasking for one month, I decided that it would probably be a good example to follow. It seems lately my mind is completely chaotic. I can't focus on any one thing for any period of time. While reading an orthography sketch I'm Skyping with a friend, picking at my fingernails, and possibly playing minesweeper. At home I talk on the phone, clean my room, and again, most likely play minesweeper. This is not an effective way to live. So, the last 3 days I've been trying to do just one thing at a time, or at least strongly suppress my multi-tasking tendencies. Here is what I've discovered: For the most part, I find that I'm happier, because I'm actually able to get things done. By focusing on just one thing, the time actually goes quite a bit faster. I find that I enjoy the things I'm doing more. I actually get more out of a phone conversation when all I'm doing is talking, rather than talking and cleaning my room. I'm also learning that doing one thing at a time requires planning. If I can't do all of these things at the same time, I have to give myself the time to do each of the things individually. I also am more aware of just how out of control this habit has gone. I want to be clear: most of my multi-tasking is not mandatory, its voluntary. So why has this bad habit become more and more noticeable in my life? My best guess is that I've been using it as an avoidance technique. If I feel like I suck at my job, at least I can suck at it while chatting with a friend. But then if I spend time at work, I need to be productive at home, so when I should just chat to a friend, I then feel obligated to simultaneously cook or clean. And so the cycle continues. I only recently considered that if I actually focused on things, maybe I wouldn't do such a terrible job of them. Revolutionary, I know. Anyways, just more musings. I think my little experiment has been good for me, and I plan to continue it for a good while. Feel free to ask me how it's going! On the Peninsula
Well I got a little lecture today, a nice and needed one, but a challenge nonetheless. I sat down at chai time next to one of our translators, an older pastor. He's one of the best, always a smile on his face and a real heart for the Lord. Well, he asked me if my Swahili had gotten better or worse since I left language school. I told him quite truthfully that it had gotten worse and he asked why. I responded that I am embarrassed/ashamed to speak Swahili because my Swahili is so bad. He told me that I shouldn't be embarrassed and then told me a story about two little boys, one who was shy/embarrassed. Quite honestly I didn't understand the story (he spoke quietly and in Swahili), but I got the message that being shy is bad. He told me that I would never get anywhere that way, that I needed to be willing to speak and make mistakes, and that if I did, God would bless me.
So I almost cried, but didn't. Language has been such a frustration to me, and I realize now that others have noticed, which then becomes even more embarrassing. He was trying to challenge and encourage me, but you know that feeling when you realize that others see your weakness as clearly as you do?And then I fight the battle of comparison, looking at others and seeing how wonderfully they speak Swahili and start up conversations with strangers. So today I just felt exposed. Then I went back into my office and studied Swahili for an hour to make myself feel better. We'll see how long that lasts. So please be praying for this my friends. I'm not sure the next steps to take to improve my Swahili, and lately seem to utterly lack the gumption and bravery to do so. Pray for creativity, boldness, and small encouragements. !!Now, For Your Amusement!!! A sign from a guest house I stayed at in Nairobi. A little vowel can make a BIG difference
Happy News! I have a beautiful new nephew named Owen! He is a beautiful kid, and every new picture I see makes me want to find the soonest flight home. Both mother and son are well and adjusting to this new and ever so slightly different life. Sad News A couple weeks ago I got news that my grandmother went to be with Jesus, following her husband who left us in March. This has been a difficult time for my family and a hard time for me to be away. Maymay and Papa both knew the Lord and are resting and rejoicing now as they haven't for years. Maymay had Alzheimer's and hadn't been truly with us for many years. I am so glad I was able to spend time with them both at Christmas, and I have no regrets about things left unsaid. Praise the Lord! Internet Access! This week I finally got a modem so I'll now have internet at home! And man, have I been blazing through it. I have only had internet at the office up til now, which has been fine except that it has made phone calls exceptionally difficult because of the lack of Skype. I've just been using my cell phone, which has been running up costs, especially with all the family stuff that's been going on. Getting things done up in Musoma can be a real challenge, so I am extraordinarily content to have more internet time and am looking forward to many phone calls with friends in the near future. A Week of Planning Meetings This week I have been in Dar es Salaam for branch-wide strategy planning meetings. They seem to have invited all of the big-wigs and new people. It's been a good week, but long meetings and LOTS of meetings, talking, arguments, discussion, strong personalities, and more. I've learned a lot, and even put my two cents in every now and then. Good week. Right now I'm just tired and ready to go back though. The best part has been catching up with friends Crystal, Marie and Jo. And its also been nice getting beef that tastes more like beef than beef flavored gum; something I've really grown to appreciate!
Well I’ve spent a considerable portion of my time here attempting to learn Swahili. Though it is considered an easier language to learn, it is still a new language full of new challenges. Whenever you are learning a local language but also participating in expatriate community life, certain words from the learned language make it into everyday speech, no matter what language you are speaking. I would like to take a moment to introduce two of those words to you, as I am apt to use them in phone conversations and emails.
Karibu! (kah-‘ree-bu) The nearest translation of this word is “welcome” but here it has a much broader usage. For example, when someone knocks at your door, enters your home, car, or office, you say “karibu.” To invite someone to take a seat, you say “karibu kiti” (welcome to the chair). To invite someone over to your home, you say “Karibu kwetu.” When someone says thank you, you answer “karibu.” You can also use it as an affirmative answer to a request. For example, if someone asks if they can borrow something, you can simply answer “karibu.” I love this word and use it with an inordinate amount of frequency.
Pole! (‘po-ley) This means something like “sorry.” Its uses are seemingly endless. When someone trips, you say “pole”. It’s a word of sympathy, whether you just sneezed or a family member just died. If anyone ever says anything bad or sad that has happened, the correct response is “pole.” If I get in someone’s way at the office, I can say “pole.” When someone’s sick or has just returned from a long trip, it’s the same. I have become completely addicted to this word, because it always seems terribly appropriate.
So there’s your Swahili lesson for the day. Karibu!
Here she is: the promised fun post! (Just about a month later than originally intended.) A few weeks ago I went with several co-workers on my very first safari to the Serengeti. Incredible! The pictures really tell most of the story and honestly they don’t even begin to capture how amazing it was. The landscape is as vast as I had always imagined and the animals so close and incredible. Some highlights of the day: Birds! The driver, my friend and co-worker Dave, is an avid bird watcher. My sister gave me the book “Birds of East Africa” for Christmas, and I am now starting to keep track of all the birds I see. Dave has good eyes to find the birds and can usually name the bird family immediately. This is then followed by a frantic search through the book in an attempt to identify the bird before it flies away. Some we got pictures of, some we didn’t. The birds here are unreal to me; the variety and colors amaze me. What a creative God we serve! I never imagined birds being a focus of a safari, but with Dave there, they certainly are. At one point, he cried out “Bird emergency!” and quickly shifted into reverse so we could get a better look at a bird we had nearly missed seeing. That might just be me in a year or two… A Leopard! Though none of us got a picture to prove it, we did indeed see a leopard. He was lazily perched in a tree about 50ft away from our car. Dave spotted him first, and we all sat in shock. Then during our frantic scramble for binoculars and cameras, the leopard slowly stretched and descended from the tree. One of our crew got a picture where you can kind of see his tail if you know what you’re looking for. Nonetheless, we saw him, and people go on many safaris and can’t ever say that. Crazy Roads! We are now in the middle of rainy season here (even as I write it’s pouring outside). This means that some of the roads in the Serengeti weren’t exactly smooth and friendly. We had a few close calls in the Land Cruiser, sliding around on the slick roads, sometimes a foot deep in mud. As a passenger in the back with no responsibility for our safety, I felt like a kid on a roller coaster and had the time of my life. Near the end of the day, one bump came out of nowhere and I think I hit the roof. Great fun!
WARNING!!! This post is more reflective, thoughtful, and slightly more depressing than those prior. No funny anecdotes here, just some real life stuff I’m struggling with and working through as I adjust to things here.It was written on one of my rougher days, and for this reason I have refrained from posting it, but have now decided to go for it anyways. I'll try to post something delightfully light and humorous within the next few days to make up for it.
Before I left for Tanzania, a good friend and former missionary told me that overseas, I would encounter the sin in my life more powerfully than I ever had before. She was right.
I can’t name exactly what it is that brings out the sin or makes me so much more aware of it. Maybe it’s the sense of lostness, the transition. Maybe it’s all the new people, being slammed into a new culture and language. Maybe it’s the overwhelming sense of incompetency I daily encounter. I don’t know. But I do know that every day it seems like a new sin, not an “oops I made a mistake” sin, but a deep character issue sin, is staring me in the face, hovering over my bed, waiting for me to wake up in the morning.
Satan can use sin to accuse and the Holy Spirit can reveal sin to convict us and lead us to repentance for the purpose of sanctification. I know that I’m forgiven, but what I can’t get over is how miserable the sin seems to make everything in the present. Separating the accusation from the call to repentance is a challenge. I know that Satan is working to use these revelations to my detriment. And quite honestly, some days he wins. Some days I end so despising myself- my words, my actions, my attitudes- that I want to give up completely. I don’t even want to be around myself, so why would God or anyone else ever choose to be around me if they really had the choice?
Here are some of the questions, thoughts and lies that I daily encounter:I can’t do it. I’m stupid and lazy. Why am I constantly so cranky? Why are other people morally so much better than I am? Why am I here? Is there even an ounce of compassion in my body? Will I ever be somewhat emotionally stable again, or is that a distant dream? Why am I here if I can’t do anything useful? I am not a nice person. I should give up talking completely, because inevitably I something rude or stupid, or something I just generally regret later.
All of those statements and questions have truth in them, whether or not they are actually true. And from the beginning, Satan has used truth, and then twisted it to serve his own purposes.
One of the problems is that these questions and lies can quickly lead to self-pity, an eternal battle of mine. Self-pity is tightly bound to pride, arrogance, envy, and selfishness. Most of those make it on the “top worst sins” lists in the Bible; all of them are highly apparent in my daily life. So then I cycle back to this overwhelming realization of how deep the sin is.
My answer? I have none, except that God is merciful and gracious and sent his one and only Son to die in payment for my sin. He will bring the work he has begun in me to completion. He remains faithful, even when I am faithless. He is with me. He loves me. He is a good Father, and will not give me a snake when I ask for a fish.
A wonderful friend sent me some words that I am clinging to, believing, if not always feeling, that they are true:“I have faith, not just in you, but in your Father who loves you, the Holy Spirit who is sanctifying you and in the Son who has redeemed you for His purposes.”
"Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion, and to you shall vows be performed.
O you who hear prayer, to you shall all flesh come.
When iniquities prevail against me, you atone for our transgressions.
Blessed is the one you choose and bring near, to dwell in your courts! We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, the holiness of your temple!"
So here I am, livin' the dream in Musoma TZ. Days are good, days are rough, and in this blog you see a little of all of it. Just me as I stumble along, doing my best to serve Jesus in a small town in East Africa. Would love to hear your comments about what I write, all helping me feel a bit more connected with the world I left behind. Mbarikiwe!
