What a Day!

Yesterday was an hilarious crazy day in my life here, and I'd like to take a moment to share.
My morning started around 9am when I rose from my luxurious slumber. Had a cup of coffee and an egg, then got ready for church. So far so good.
The church service is supposed to start around 10 and so that's about when I leave the house. While walking up the road I get a call from my friend Parusi, who has seen me from behind. I am very thankful she is going to the same church that day...it means I won't have to sit alone. So we arrive late, but you can't exactly "slip in" because the door is in the front. But nonetheless, we walk in and take a seat. The church is held in a local school, so rather than pews we're sitting in desks, wide enough for two people to sit on, no backs. Very comfortable. We sing a few songs, but I don't have a song book, so I just do my best. I think in the course of the service there were approximately 3 sermons. Sunday school was pretty much a sermon, then came the real sermon, then another guy got up and appeared to be reiterating all that had just been said. There were also 20 minutes of announcements, and at the end, a 15 minute lecture about being on time to church in order to show respect to God. Oops. Only about 15% of all the speaking I really understood, which is actually an improvement.
So the service is longer than usual, and I don't get home till after 1. I immediately go to the kitchen to start preparing for our July 4th cookout. My responsibility is chips, salsa, and guac. So I go to make tortillas and discover we barely have any flour or shortening, and have no milk. Darn. So I look up a non-milk recipe for tortillas and try to make do. The tortillas are gross, but I have to make them into chips anyways, because there's no redo having used all the flour already. Then I go to make salsa. I pull out the produce I bought the day before to discover I only have 4 tomatoes, a kind of imperative ingredient in salsa. So I make the salsa with the ingredients I have, only I decide to put in 2 small hot peppers, making the salsa scorch the inside of your mouth. Sigh.
In the meantime, a neighbor's 9 year old daughter has come over just to hang out. I give her a soda, but am busy in the kitchen, so she eventually gravitates there. She helps me squash the avocados, which is nice I must say. The problem is, she's also peeping around in all the cabinets and occasionally leaving the kitchen to peep in other places. She gets some nice chocolate out of the fridge and eats it (and gives me some to eat as well). So the kitchen is a wreck with nasty dry tortilla/chip crumbs everywhere, all my chips are burning in the oven, and the salsa is virtually inedible.
So I try to get ready to go to soccer at 4. I pack bags with the stuff for the cookout, and the child is still roaming around, now counting up the Uno cards. When I'm about ready to kick her out, I notice that she has made a little "goodie bag" for herself. In a little ziplock bag she has places 3 little powdered drink packets, a sheet of paper, two (imported) Bic pencils, and a nice inky red pen from the US. Both the pencils and pen had been retrieved from my room, at least I think so. I look at her questioningly about the bag, and she looks a little embarrassed. She's a sweet kid and wasn't being sly about it, so as a compromise I take out the nice pen and one pencil, leaving her with the rest. She also borrows two books, but does finally leave.
Then my taxi is late picking me up. All my usual rides are gone, so I end up just waiting for 20 minutes for the taxi. I finally get to soccer, a highlight of the week for me, and after about 15 minutes in goal, I have to go inside because I have horrendous stomach cramps. So I spend most of the next hour in the bathroom. Meanwhile, my friend Kelly has added a load of tomatoes to the salsa, which has dumbed it down a bit, but still leaving it quite hot.
So then we decide to head over to the location of the July 4th cookout. Though an American party, we head over Tanzanian style. In one Land Cruiser we have 4 adults, 5 kids, lots of food, and a water cooler. Please don't ask questions about car seats and seat belts.
The cookout was great. We didn't really cookout, but we had pretzel dogs, potato salad, cabbage salad, my chips and salsa, watermelon, fresh lemonade, festive cupcakes, and smores. We sat around the campfire, sang songs, and told stories. Was great American style fun and a great way to celebrate the 4th. Their neighbors also had a huge fire and it was popping loudly with about 7 foot flames. The popping sounded a bit like fireworks, so we all felt it was very appropriate.
When I finally got home, I decided my final celebratory activity would be watching an episode of West Wing. Then in my exhaustion, I fell into bed with the decision not to go to work the next day, but instead have an actual day off. Good decision.

Musoma Soccer Insanity

While the eyes of the world were riveted on the games of the World Cup, here in Musoma we had another soccer game with high stakes and emotions: the Weupe Stars versus Wabongo. You’ve never heard of these teams? Let me give a brief history:

Every Sunday, a group of us get together for a friendly soccer match, mostly missionaries. This is low-key soccer with plenty of breaks. Some are quite good, others not so much, but we all have a good time playing. Even I have learned to love the sport again after so many years away (haven’t played since high school). I also discovered that I play exactly the same way as I did when I was 10, aggressively and with minimal skill. This means every Sunday I get injured in some way (anyone who wants to send shin guards, knee pads, or cleats you are very welcome).

Anyways, getting to the main point, some of our Tanzanian colleagues at the office had been giving Michael, a missionary here, endless amounts of grief about how we would get whooped in a game versus the Tanzanians. So Michael decided we should take them on, and we did. The date was set for the big game.

The week preceding the match was filled with trash talk and hilarity. One of the translators informed me that if I was in goal, he would score 10 goals against me.

Last Friday the day of the big game arrived; you could smell the excitement in the air at the office. During chai time our team even had a secret strategy planning meeting complete with a chart of the field. At 3:30, we all headed over to the field (aka Michael’s front yard, which he has actually done up very nicely. It’s probably the nicest pitch in Musoma). It was beautifully mowed with center line, penalty boxes and everything.

Everyone from the office came out for the game, wives and kids too. Mama Vanessa, Alison, and Rukia all painted their faces half white and half black, or at least they tried to (see pictures below), in order to demonstrate their support of both teams. Kelly made signs out of a box for the 2 teams "Wabongo" and "Weusi Stars." Others made signs of support as well. Mama Sophia (who works for Michael and Kelly) made horns from a papaya tree and stuck leaves in her hair. Kateti, our partnership officer, was our self-appointed referee. He had a whistle as well as a yellow card and red card in his pocket.

To begin the game, we lined up and entered the field. The ref invited up the special guest (our team leader’s wife, Chris) to start off the game. She said a few words and greeted us all. Then the real insanity ensued.

The game was crazy, partly because people I usually see in work clothes were wearing athletic gear, or the Tanzanian version of it in some cases. Please look at the pics below for an amazing jogging suit as well as the purple pants/sweater vest combo. I played in goal the whole time wore goalie gloves, which I loved. The Weupe Stars scored 3 pretty quickly, but after that it was a pretty even match. Wabongo had much better ball handling skills over all, but we still held our own. As goalie, yes I did let a few in, but I stopped way more than I let through. The crowd was wildly impressed (partly because I was also the only girl on the field). I did smack quite a few away, sometimes one after another. One of the translators told me I was very “kali” (fierce). And that was even before I dramatically threw my body between his foot and the ball when he was about to score. Scared him a bit I think. But I must say, even today I’ve had people at the office coming up to me and telling me what a good keeper I am. I’ve earned some new respect here, as well as bruises on my knees.J

Anyways, toward the end Wabongo totally dominated and our defense couldn't hold them off. Still, the game ended a 5-5 draw, and I think everyone was really satisfied with that. So, all said and done, it was a lot of fun, and I think did a lot for good old team spirit, all the way around. Chris presented both teams with a trophy cup (some kind of glass wrapped in foil) and there's a pic of everyone "holding" it. I almost blacked out from the stench when everyone raised their arms to get a hand on it.

Now that was a fantastic day, probably one of the best I remember here. Everyone was really happy, and I'm actually still smiling about it 3 days later. I think one fun game like that does more for team unity than endless hours of “team building” activities. And yes, there has indeed been talk of a rematch.

Teams lining up before the game

Mama Sophia in cheer gear

Adoring Fans

Happy Goalie

Referee Kateti

Dunno who these people are, but they wanted to watch

Samson and his mad ball skills

One happy Futakamba

Getting ready for the game

Chris and Tirzah practicing their cheers

Wanse in shorts

Head in the game

Our white/black cheer squad

The Mgeni Maalum presents the trophy

The Shared Victory

My Month in Bullet Points

So I kept holding off on writing a post, for what reason I do not know, and now the month of June is almost gone. That truly is amazing, for it has been quite a month. So I'll just pick out some "lights" (both high and low) from the past month.

• Training sessions with our translators: At the beginning of these sessions, I was quite literally in a cold sweat. Full blown freaking out nearing on anxiety attacks. Yet as the month has proceeded, it's gotten worlds better, thanks to God alone, for I am fully certain it has nothing to do with me. I've started to really enjoy teaching, and I feel like my Swahili is slowly improving, at least to the point where most basic communication isn't traumatizing. Praise the Lord!
• Earlier this month, around the time of my freak-out sessions, I was struggling with the fact that I didn't feel any hope, and I also saw people around me struggling with this same thing. One morning, I was lead to read the first few verses of Romans 5: that suffering leads to perseverance, perseverance to character, and character to hope. I've never considered anything I've faced as worthy of the title "suffering," but I decided that I was in pain, so I would count it. I also realized that I wanted the hope first, in the midst of the suffering, but I see that God builds our character through the suffering and persevering. When we go through it, and trust God with the results, that's when we have true hope. I also looked at Hebrews 12, where we are told that the discipline of God is proof of his love. If he didn't discipline, it wouldn't be love. And it says that discipline is painful, but that it doesn't last forever. For the first time in my life I think, I really felt like God was saying to me, "Ellen, I love you enough to put you through this. And trust me, the work I'm doing in you is worth it." So now the new fight is to view the pain in my life as evidence of God's amazing love for me.
• I've been working through a prayer journal that goes through the names of God and invited you to pray using those names. I've done things like this before, but in this case, a friend of mine wrote a prayer for me at the beginning of each week in the journal. Every Monday I look forward to reading what she has prayed for me. What a great way to start the week.
• I teach several guys at the office English, and my favorite word to make them say is "rarely." Tanzanians have difficulty distinguishing l and r and don't use that first vowel much either. I seriously want to record there attempts for when I need a good laugh.
• Alias and Lost and Doctor Who: aka my evening entertainment in the month of June
• My first experience with amoeba. Yes, I had an amoeba living in me and was well aware of the fact. I got to experience a local clinic, where you bring your personal "sample" in a matchbox to the lab. I walked in, gave the man my matchbox, he took a little blood (malaria test), and 45 minutes later learned I had amoeba. And let me tell you, that antibiotic is strong. I don't think I got out of bed for 24 hours.
• After having amoeba all weekend, I returned from work early in Monday to find our househelp wearing only my blanket while her clothes were drying. I said nothing, but went right to bed.
• I baked oatmeal bread for the first time, little sketchy, but turned out pretty yummy

Well, that's my month in a series of bullet points, and I'll add a couple pics, so it can be my month in bullet points and pictures, though the pics are older than that. Oh well. Happy June!

With great friends on a big rock


Cooked a pumpkin for the first time. Made roasted pumpkin, roasted pumpkin seeds, steamed pumpkin, and a rather unorthodox pumpkin soup. Yum.

Tips for Driving in Musoma

1. 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
2. Take special care on rainy days. In order to avoid puddles, the bicycles and pikipikis will randomly swerve in front of your car.
3. 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.
4. Large buses hurdle down the exact center road at extreme speeds. Move as far over as you can without hitting anyone and pray.
5. 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.
6. 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.
7. 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.
8. Demonstrate extra caution at the town’s roundabout. Rules vary, and pedestrians sometimes ignore the whole situation.
9. Start your car with a prayer every time.
10. Have fun and enjoy the insanity!

Oh, and enjoy this video of my roomie driving in Musoma
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxAbhi8LsQw&feature=related

OK, so this isn't actually in Musoma, but going to a village and trying to make sure we get through. Fun though.

Doing One Thing At A Time

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

A Little Lecture

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

Tidbits

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!