Deep down, I knew that a day that included a sick kid, a sick dog and a sick self, (not to mention pouring rain and mud) would make for a challenging set of circumstances. I wasn't wrong.
We all get those days, regardless of where we live, but I feel like these no good, very bad days come more often and are more demoralizing here than they would be in the bubble of comfort I used to call home. As a friend and I were discussing just last week, the margin between a great day and a day which is an epic fail is very narrow here.
Even after being here for almost 2 years, I still struggle with cross-cultural living. I still feel like a fat, ignorant, clueless and insensitive mzungu (foreigner). One reason for this is that I'm reminded that I'm a foreigner every day by the people around me, sometimes multiple times, just in case I forget. Some days I'm able to laugh it off. Other days, like today, I can't.
Today's installment of The Idiot Mzungu:
* When I moved here, I knew that there was such a thing as Tanzanian time. I knew that people were not digital-watch-punctual and that being on time just doesn't happen. What I didn't realize was that not only are people frequently late...they are also frequently early. It's still the same concept: time is not important in this culture. But it really messes with me when someone is an hour and a half early for an appointment. And of course, there's no apology for this - it is what it is. How in the world can you plan your day when someone could easily be two hours early or late? My type-A planning self cannot handle this.
* No matter how many Swahili words I know, I'm still not going to know what in the world people are saying. I know the word for "flour" (unga) and I know the word for "soap" (sabuni) but never in the world would I think that unga ya sabuni is an actual thing until our gardener is standing in front of me, asking for it. I stand there, frozen like a deer in head lights. Does he mean flour and soap? Soap flour? What is soap flour? He stands there, pity in his eyes for the ignorant mzungu. Finally, by process of elimination, I determine that he actually wants soap powder. This mirrored a painful conversation that I had with the woman who cooks for me several weeks ago. I knew the words for "oil" and "water" but had no idea that vegetable oil is actually referred to as oil water.
* I'm never, ever going to get the indirectness of this culture. If you want something, ask for it! If you are sick and you need money for the doctor, please just tell me. I'm happy to help. I'm clueless enough trying to read Western non-verbal communication. If you're expecting me to understand that when you say some vague words and gestures, you are really asking me for help, it's just not happening. On the opposite extreme, I'm continually taken aback at how total strangers can be super direct, as in the case recently where the guy I buy my groceries from told me that I should give him a present of a football before I move back to America. Um, why exactly should I do this? Oh, right - it's because I'm a super rich American that can just shower Tanzanians with gifts at every opportunity. My bad.
* There are so many other things I could go into: the tiny nature of shopping carts, meaning I either buy for only a day or two or look like the giant, ridiculous consumer that I am (today they needed to call up some extra help when the mzungu and her overflowing cart of groceries - big order! came through), the recent experience I had in the mall when I received a marriage proposal from a Masai that I had never met before, the frequency of strangers coming up to me and touching me and starting up conversations. I seriously feel like a zoo animal sometimes. (On a side note, a friend was telling me how when her friend lived in India, her kids would be photographed every single time they were out....thankfully it's not that bad!)
Tomorrow is a new day, one in which I will have new reserves of patience, humility, grace, and love for my host culture (or maybe the day after tomorrow). And one day, I'll look back on all these experiences that have grown me and shaped me and realize that they were preparing me for something in the future that I can't even imagine right now. Truly, none of these no good, very bad days is wasted.
If nothing else, I'm comic relief for hundreds of people in Dar es Salaam....
Monday, May 11, 2015
Monday, April 13, 2015
Duka Adventures
Last week, I decided to get some vegetables at the local duka (roadside stand). My list included: tomatoes, carrots, onions, peppers and bananas.
I usually visit a more Western-style store, called Mbezi Fresh, for my produce even though shopping at the duka is quite a bit cheaper. This, my favorite grocery store in Dar, was new at the end of the last school year. It appeals to me because it has a wide variety of choices, contains produce and dry goods in one spot (almost unheard-of here), requires less need for Swahili and, because the store is completely inside and in a more climate-controlled environment, I do find the quality better and that the veggies last longer in the fridge (longer=days instead of hours).
It is funny to me how much I love Mbezi Fresh because it's still a Tanzanian store with assorted challenges. By U.S. standards, it is tiny (NJ friends, it's probably half the size of Food Basics, if even). The power frequently goes out, which means that the clerks sometimes end up writing receipts by hand (which takes forever). Certain items stop selling at random, then re-appear. I have tried to train my children not to become dependent on a specific brand of anything! A lot of the time, they don't have proper change. The baggers are never sure what to do with the fact that I bring my own cloth bags. Nonetheless, I love Mbezi Fresh.
But Mbezi isn't super close to our house and requires a certain level of fearlessness in its small and chaotic parking lot (particularly in the rain), so I decided to stay local on that day. From past experience, I knew that it was unlikely that one spot would have everything on my list, but I also knew that there were 3 vegetable stands on my chosen path.
Duka #1: Hamna shida (no problems) on the tomatoes, and it was a good price. I'm never sure exactly what the cost per pound or kilogram is at the duka, because they sell them in a "sado" (which is a small, white plastic bucket that used to contain Sadolin paint...I'm choosing not to dwell on this possibility of lead poisoning for too long). I would estimate that it's around 5 pounds or so, for about $4 U.S. Depending on your shopkeeper and how friendly they are, they generally make the Sado overflowing (and they are usually pretty scrupulous about sorting through and giving you only good tomatoes). All tomatoes here are "Roma" and one of the best parts about living here are their year-round availability.
I was happy with my tomato purchase - first try! - but unfortunately, there were no carrots, onions, peppers or bananas at this duka.
Duka #2: The pepper and carrot situation was bleak at this location, and although I would have liked to purchase more, I only managed to get 2 carrots and 4 peppers. Unfortunately, the price for the carrots was significantly higher than usual. Generally it is around 250-300 shillings per carrot. That day, it was 500 shillings...and these carrots were not particularly large. I tried to negotiate in Swahili, expressing outrage over the price and asking why it was so high. His matter-of-fact response: Bei panda. Prices climbed.
To keep things in perspective, a 500 shilling carrot is only around 25 cents at the current exchange rate, and the difference between 250 and 500 shillings is less than 15 cents. We're not talking break-the-bank levels. However, the issue is not the price itself, but I absolutely hate feeling like I'm being taken advantage of. Have prices, in fact, climbed, or does he see a white person and assume that I can pay? That's another point in Mbezi Fresh's favor: the price is the price, foreigners or Tanzanians.
Although I probably should have just walked away, I am still set in my Western ways where efficiency is king, I needed the carrots and he knew it. I sucked it up and paid the 1000 shillings. I will add that the carrots here are really good and fresh. I do miss pre-peeled, pre-cut "baby" carrots because it's a lot more work to peel and chop your own, but they are light years tastier here.
The other reason I decided to buy them is because I've learned an important lesson here: if you see it and you need it, BUY IT. It's never going to get cheaper or easier than right then and I have never regretted this philosophy, despite being a less-decisive shopper in the West.
Unfortunately, Duka #2 didn't have bananas or onions.
Duka #3: had apparently not received a lot of inventory since my last trek to this area. There were a couple of extremely over-ripe bananas hanging on a string and some rotting tomatoes. Even from the street, I could tell this was not going to happen, and I didn't even stop.
Final result: 60% of the items on my list and feeling ripped off. Back to Mbezi Fresh!!
I usually visit a more Western-style store, called Mbezi Fresh, for my produce even though shopping at the duka is quite a bit cheaper. This, my favorite grocery store in Dar, was new at the end of the last school year. It appeals to me because it has a wide variety of choices, contains produce and dry goods in one spot (almost unheard-of here), requires less need for Swahili and, because the store is completely inside and in a more climate-controlled environment, I do find the quality better and that the veggies last longer in the fridge (longer=days instead of hours).
It is funny to me how much I love Mbezi Fresh because it's still a Tanzanian store with assorted challenges. By U.S. standards, it is tiny (NJ friends, it's probably half the size of Food Basics, if even). The power frequently goes out, which means that the clerks sometimes end up writing receipts by hand (which takes forever). Certain items stop selling at random, then re-appear. I have tried to train my children not to become dependent on a specific brand of anything! A lot of the time, they don't have proper change. The baggers are never sure what to do with the fact that I bring my own cloth bags. Nonetheless, I love Mbezi Fresh.
But Mbezi isn't super close to our house and requires a certain level of fearlessness in its small and chaotic parking lot (particularly in the rain), so I decided to stay local on that day. From past experience, I knew that it was unlikely that one spot would have everything on my list, but I also knew that there were 3 vegetable stands on my chosen path.
Duka #1: Hamna shida (no problems) on the tomatoes, and it was a good price. I'm never sure exactly what the cost per pound or kilogram is at the duka, because they sell them in a "sado" (which is a small, white plastic bucket that used to contain Sadolin paint...I'm choosing not to dwell on this possibility of lead poisoning for too long). I would estimate that it's around 5 pounds or so, for about $4 U.S. Depending on your shopkeeper and how friendly they are, they generally make the Sado overflowing (and they are usually pretty scrupulous about sorting through and giving you only good tomatoes). All tomatoes here are "Roma" and one of the best parts about living here are their year-round availability.
I was happy with my tomato purchase - first try! - but unfortunately, there were no carrots, onions, peppers or bananas at this duka.
Duka #2: The pepper and carrot situation was bleak at this location, and although I would have liked to purchase more, I only managed to get 2 carrots and 4 peppers. Unfortunately, the price for the carrots was significantly higher than usual. Generally it is around 250-300 shillings per carrot. That day, it was 500 shillings...and these carrots were not particularly large. I tried to negotiate in Swahili, expressing outrage over the price and asking why it was so high. His matter-of-fact response: Bei panda. Prices climbed.
To keep things in perspective, a 500 shilling carrot is only around 25 cents at the current exchange rate, and the difference between 250 and 500 shillings is less than 15 cents. We're not talking break-the-bank levels. However, the issue is not the price itself, but I absolutely hate feeling like I'm being taken advantage of. Have prices, in fact, climbed, or does he see a white person and assume that I can pay? That's another point in Mbezi Fresh's favor: the price is the price, foreigners or Tanzanians.
Although I probably should have just walked away, I am still set in my Western ways where efficiency is king, I needed the carrots and he knew it. I sucked it up and paid the 1000 shillings. I will add that the carrots here are really good and fresh. I do miss pre-peeled, pre-cut "baby" carrots because it's a lot more work to peel and chop your own, but they are light years tastier here.
The other reason I decided to buy them is because I've learned an important lesson here: if you see it and you need it, BUY IT. It's never going to get cheaper or easier than right then and I have never regretted this philosophy, despite being a less-decisive shopper in the West.
Unfortunately, Duka #2 didn't have bananas or onions.
Duka #3: had apparently not received a lot of inventory since my last trek to this area. There were a couple of extremely over-ripe bananas hanging on a string and some rotting tomatoes. Even from the street, I could tell this was not going to happen, and I didn't even stop.
Final result: 60% of the items on my list and feeling ripped off. Back to Mbezi Fresh!!
Friday, April 10, 2015
Terror
From Dictionary.com: "Terror
(noun): 1) intense, sharp, overmastering fear: to be frantic with terror....2)
an instance or cause of intense fear or anxiety; quality of causing
terror...4) violence or threats of violence used for intimidation or
coercion;terrorism.”
In the wake of Al-Shabaabs's attack last week on Garissa University in Kenya, there has been a WhatsApp message circulating around Dar that reads:
"This is a very serious warning from UNDP Dar! Beware on Friday [April 10] suspected Somalian terrorist attacks in Dar, Mwanza, Arusha and Mbeya. Try to avoid public gathering places on that day, especially hotels. UN Security warning. Please take extra care and avoid public gathering places. Forward this message to all your friends."HOPAC has been checking directly with the United Nations, the U.S. embassy, the British High Commission and other sources and all research shows that this is a completely false report. Nonetheless, despite being totally unverified, this message spread like wildfire throughout the community this week and many students said they would not be attending school today.
From a logical, rational perspective, I know that these rumors are just rumors. Anyone can anonymously post up a wild and crazy theory and I can't imagine that Al-Shabaab would gain anything by starting a conflict with another country (or in the case of an attack on an international school, many countries).
But terror does not operate in a climate of logical or rational behavior and our kids in particular have been very affected by this. They begged to stay home from school this morning and Tim and I have spent most of the last 2 evenings at home trying to calm their fears. It's times like these that I realize that I have no idea what I'm doing as a parent. I can say all the "right" things and commit it all to prayer, but when they say things like, "A responsible parent wouldn't send their child to school...it's not worth the risk" or "I just want to grow up and go to college, get married and have kids," that's when the cold fear of terror hits me. Are we making the right decisions? What if?
How much do you expose your kids to the news versus sheltering them from it? When they ask, "Do they kill people because they are Christians?" do you answer honestly? When they question, "Are there terrorists in Tanzania?" how do you respond?
Hearing the brutal truth: "Yes, terrorists are everywhere! They are godless and soulless and can attack at anytime. Islamic fundamentalists do hate Christians. We are all unsafe: anytime, anywhere!" and living in a grip of fear is more terrifying than anything the actual terrorists can do. The other truth: "Put your trust in God alone - He will shelter you under His wings...If anything happens and we are killed, we're going to a better place!" often rings hollow.
Nonetheless, today, instead of focusing on Al-Shabaab (the youth), I'm choosing to meditate on El-Shaddai (God Almighty). I read Psalm 46 to the kids before school this morning and I was struck again by its message of comfort.
"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble." (verse 1) We don't need to be strong because He is the refuge.
"Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall. He lifts his voice, the earth melts" (verse 6).
God is not surprised by any of this. In fact, He promised that Christians would be persecuted for their faith.
"He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear." (verse 9).
God is more powerful than any terrorist group or nation. They all exist only by His will.
"Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." (verse 10).
God has this all under control and whatever happens, we know that He will be glorified.
It is good for me to be reminded to "be still." I am honestly less afraid at what will happen today as I am angry that our family has been in turmoil for 2 days over this. A handful of terrorists have the ability to literally paralyze my children with fear and I can't protect their minds, let alone their bodies. But God can.
Please join me in praying specifically for East Africa today, and for protection for Christians around the world.
"The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress." (verse 11)
Thursday, April 2, 2015
Waiting
The last time I posted about decision-making: will we stay? will we go? it was in late November
Although we made the decision in early January that we'll be moving back to the U.S., we intentionally haven't said anything publicly. We wanted everything to fall into place so that we could trumpet to the world: We're going back to New Jersey, at this time, to do this specific thing and execute this specific plan! However, things are still not finalized and we're not sure when they will be. Although returning to the U.S. does not feel nearly as exciting as heading to Africa, it is still a big leap of faith (and a lesson in patience). We feel called to go back, although we're not sure how this will happen.
We've been in a very weird limbo for the past 3 months, keeping the news public but quiet, and we have really lapsed in our communication to the outside world because of it. (Maybe because if we don't talk about it, it's not happening!) However, the longer we go on, the harder it is to pretend that we're not facing another big life change. More and more people know we're leaving and things are rolling on without us. We have people asking us if we're selling our stuff. Just this morning, we had a family looking through our house and hoping to rent it. I'm eyeing things with the intent to use them up before leaving. Do I need to buy another jar of rosemary?
Yet we haven't yet fully committed to NJ living either. Our kids aren't enrolled in school anywhere right now, neither of us has jobs, and we don't know exactly what date we'll be moving back into our house. When we look to the future, there are many unanswered questions.
This we do know: our contract with World Missions and HOPAC ends on June 30, and we have plane tickets home, arriving on July 22 at JFK airport. Beyond that, we have wishes and hopes and dreams but not a lot of concrete anything. For a recovering Type-A planning-loving perfectionist, this waiting is hard.
This we also know: it is going to be really hard to leave. We have made lots of friends and this place has felt like home in many ways. Change is always harder than status quo. Life is definitely more complicated, busier and more expensive in the U.S.
This we also know: it would be really hard to stay long-term. Neither one of us feels like support-raising is a particular strength and it's getting harder and harder each month. Every time the kids are sick, my anxiety ratchets up. Our car is not reliable and would require a major investment. Looming ahead in just another 2 years are the Cambridge exams beginning for the kids. Living here is difficult and day in, day out, it takes its toll. I have so much respect for the people who grind it out here for years.
So, we wait. And try to live each day in the moment, trusting that it's all going to work out.
(this was a photo that was going around Facebook recently...this particular one is from the blog Just a Girl Who Loves).
Although we made the decision in early January that we'll be moving back to the U.S., we intentionally haven't said anything publicly. We wanted everything to fall into place so that we could trumpet to the world: We're going back to New Jersey, at this time, to do this specific thing and execute this specific plan! However, things are still not finalized and we're not sure when they will be. Although returning to the U.S. does not feel nearly as exciting as heading to Africa, it is still a big leap of faith (and a lesson in patience). We feel called to go back, although we're not sure how this will happen.
We've been in a very weird limbo for the past 3 months, keeping the news public but quiet, and we have really lapsed in our communication to the outside world because of it. (Maybe because if we don't talk about it, it's not happening!) However, the longer we go on, the harder it is to pretend that we're not facing another big life change. More and more people know we're leaving and things are rolling on without us. We have people asking us if we're selling our stuff. Just this morning, we had a family looking through our house and hoping to rent it. I'm eyeing things with the intent to use them up before leaving. Do I need to buy another jar of rosemary?
Yet we haven't yet fully committed to NJ living either. Our kids aren't enrolled in school anywhere right now, neither of us has jobs, and we don't know exactly what date we'll be moving back into our house. When we look to the future, there are many unanswered questions.
This we do know: our contract with World Missions and HOPAC ends on June 30, and we have plane tickets home, arriving on July 22 at JFK airport. Beyond that, we have wishes and hopes and dreams but not a lot of concrete anything. For a recovering Type-A planning-loving perfectionist, this waiting is hard.
This we also know: it is going to be really hard to leave. We have made lots of friends and this place has felt like home in many ways. Change is always harder than status quo. Life is definitely more complicated, busier and more expensive in the U.S.
This we also know: it would be really hard to stay long-term. Neither one of us feels like support-raising is a particular strength and it's getting harder and harder each month. Every time the kids are sick, my anxiety ratchets up. Our car is not reliable and would require a major investment. Looming ahead in just another 2 years are the Cambridge exams beginning for the kids. Living here is difficult and day in, day out, it takes its toll. I have so much respect for the people who grind it out here for years.
So, we wait. And try to live each day in the moment, trusting that it's all going to work out.
(this was a photo that was going around Facebook recently...this particular one is from the blog Just a Girl Who Loves).
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Enough
One thing that has surprised me about my time in Africa is how much I have struggled with contentment. In my very first month here I blogged about these feelings of dissatisfaction (you can read about them here) and although I've made some strides since then, I still struggle with feeling that I have enough. Enough missionary support, enough food in the house, enough wearable clothes, enough activities to give my life meaning and purpose, enough time and attention to give my children.
The reality is that I'll never feel like I have enough, even though I actually do (especially in comparison to most people around me).
I need to learn afresh that we are to pray for daily bread. Not weekly bread, monthly bread, or (as I'd prefer) a lifetime supply of bread.
I can't remember where I read this, but it said something to the effect of: how can you truly ask God, "Give us this day our daily bread" when you have a month of food stocked in your pantry? The Lord's Prayer is a prayer of dependence upon God, and when things are easy, we feel like we are providing for our needs in our own strength,
The beauty and the frustration about living here is that it is a lot easier to rely on God for provision as I am reminded again and again of my dependence on Him. It's harder to buy things and it's difficult to stock up. Many times the store will not have exactly what I want, or as much of it as I want, or the ATM won't have money, or the car won't work, or the gas station won't have gas, or we'll lose power and I'll be anxious about the extra chicken I have unexpectedly defrosting in the freezer.
Although my goal is always to plan ahead, it doesn't usually happen. However, over the last few weeks, I have been reminded time and time again that God is providing enough. Even when it's not as much as I want, it's enough. Here are a few examples:
I needed to make play-dough for the kids in the quarry but I was low on salt (there is an insane amount of salt in homemade play-dough!) My car was broken and although a friend went to two separate places to buy salt for me, neither one had any (!) In desperation, I just decided to make due with the amount I had and see what happened. To my great surprise, I had exactly the half cup that was needed. Enough.
In preparing for our 2014 taxes, I added up our rental income and subtracted our mortgage, taxes, unexpected repairs and other expenses. How much did we net this year? $8.80. Enough.
I went to buy Vodacom vouchers, which is how we fund our internet . Although I had hoped to stock up for a couple of weeks, they only had the amount we needed for one week. But it was enough.
Our car has been a problem since, literally, the first day we owned it. It has cost us endless repair charges, frustration and stress and has driven me to the depths of despair (pun intended). But it has only actually broken down one time on the road (and that was really close to home and was a quick solution). It has safely seen us through the last year and a half, including 4 trips that were pretty far outside of Dar, and most recently, 2 trips across town to the clinic in the pouring rain. Enough.
Raising missionary support has been more challenging this year, but every month, we're getting by. There will be an unexpected offering from a church, a new one-time donor, a drop in our expenses. Enough.
Praying this Scripture again today:
Hebrews 13:5: Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."
He is enough.
The reality is that I'll never feel like I have enough, even though I actually do (especially in comparison to most people around me).
I need to learn afresh that we are to pray for daily bread. Not weekly bread, monthly bread, or (as I'd prefer) a lifetime supply of bread.
I can't remember where I read this, but it said something to the effect of: how can you truly ask God, "Give us this day our daily bread" when you have a month of food stocked in your pantry? The Lord's Prayer is a prayer of dependence upon God, and when things are easy, we feel like we are providing for our needs in our own strength,
The beauty and the frustration about living here is that it is a lot easier to rely on God for provision as I am reminded again and again of my dependence on Him. It's harder to buy things and it's difficult to stock up. Many times the store will not have exactly what I want, or as much of it as I want, or the ATM won't have money, or the car won't work, or the gas station won't have gas, or we'll lose power and I'll be anxious about the extra chicken I have unexpectedly defrosting in the freezer.
Although my goal is always to plan ahead, it doesn't usually happen. However, over the last few weeks, I have been reminded time and time again that God is providing enough. Even when it's not as much as I want, it's enough. Here are a few examples:
I needed to make play-dough for the kids in the quarry but I was low on salt (there is an insane amount of salt in homemade play-dough!) My car was broken and although a friend went to two separate places to buy salt for me, neither one had any (!) In desperation, I just decided to make due with the amount I had and see what happened. To my great surprise, I had exactly the half cup that was needed. Enough.
In preparing for our 2014 taxes, I added up our rental income and subtracted our mortgage, taxes, unexpected repairs and other expenses. How much did we net this year? $8.80. Enough.
I went to buy Vodacom vouchers, which is how we fund our internet . Although I had hoped to stock up for a couple of weeks, they only had the amount we needed for one week. But it was enough.
Our car has been a problem since, literally, the first day we owned it. It has cost us endless repair charges, frustration and stress and has driven me to the depths of despair (pun intended). But it has only actually broken down one time on the road (and that was really close to home and was a quick solution). It has safely seen us through the last year and a half, including 4 trips that were pretty far outside of Dar, and most recently, 2 trips across town to the clinic in the pouring rain. Enough.
Raising missionary support has been more challenging this year, but every month, we're getting by. There will be an unexpected offering from a church, a new one-time donor, a drop in our expenses. Enough.
Praying this Scripture again today:
Hebrews 13:5: Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."
He is enough.
Monday, March 16, 2015
Blooming in the Dry Season
Last year, the Tanzanians tell me that we had an atypical summer. We never went a really long time without some kind of rain, and it had already significantly cooled off by this point in the calendar. Long-term HOPACers told me, "You don't know how lucky you are to have this as your first summer here."
Although I was still sweating profusely last year, I can see that apparently they were right. This year has been incredibly hot - over 90 degrees (plus humidity) every day for over a month straight. And it has been unbelievably dry. I can't remember much rain at all since early January besides maybe a couple of two-minute sprinkles.
Everyone is looking forward to this rainy season with anticipation, knowing in the back of our minds that it is going to bring new challenges of flooding and mosquitoes.
But there is one plant that is extremely happy in this hot, dry season: the bougainvillea (I can spell it, but don't ask me to say it!) According to Wikipedia, "bougainvilleas grow best in dry soil in very bright full sun...and in fact will not flourish if over-watered."
Everything around it is lifeless, yet it blooms with amazing beauty.
I think there's a lesson in there about thriving despite challenges. Are we going to be the kind of people who are snuffed out by the tough circumstances of life, or are we going to flower in the midst of hardship? Will the hard times cause us to dig down deep to blossom or will we wither on the vine?
Personally, I feel that this hot season has caused me to wither. But I know that the difference between withering and flourishing is the ability to thrive despite our circumstances. The only way to do this is to stay connected to the Vine (John 15:5).
"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all." (2 Corinthians 4:16-17)
Although I was still sweating profusely last year, I can see that apparently they were right. This year has been incredibly hot - over 90 degrees (plus humidity) every day for over a month straight. And it has been unbelievably dry. I can't remember much rain at all since early January besides maybe a couple of two-minute sprinkles.
Everyone is looking forward to this rainy season with anticipation, knowing in the back of our minds that it is going to bring new challenges of flooding and mosquitoes.
But there is one plant that is extremely happy in this hot, dry season: the bougainvillea (I can spell it, but don't ask me to say it!) According to Wikipedia, "bougainvilleas grow best in dry soil in very bright full sun...and in fact will not flourish if over-watered."
Everything around it is lifeless, yet it blooms with amazing beauty.
I think there's a lesson in there about thriving despite challenges. Are we going to be the kind of people who are snuffed out by the tough circumstances of life, or are we going to flower in the midst of hardship? Will the hard times cause us to dig down deep to blossom or will we wither on the vine?
Personally, I feel that this hot season has caused me to wither. But I know that the difference between withering and flourishing is the ability to thrive despite our circumstances. The only way to do this is to stay connected to the Vine (John 15:5).
"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all." (2 Corinthians 4:16-17)
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Ants!
I've always had an appreciation for ants. They are super hard-working, great team players, and they really know how to get the job done. They make impressive structures in just a short amount of time and really have a lot to show for their days.
The book of Proverbs even has two favorable mentions of ants, including one of my favorite sayings: "Go to the ant, you sluggard!" (Proverbs 6:6). In the Aesop's Fable about the ant and the grasshopper, we are all encouraged to be more like the ant who plans ahead for the winter and isn't afraid to work hard.
Nonetheless, these days, I am feeling less favorably disposed to this industrious insect. We are under a veritable explosion of ants, both inside and outside our house. Thankfully, the ants in question are tiny but they are everywhere and there are so many of them!
Every morning, I fill the dog's food and water bowls outside and there are literally thousands surrounding the bowls. I then return to the breakfast table inside and there are thousands more swarming the toast crumbs and jam splotches that have been there all of 10 minutes. Last night, Charlotte dropped a forkful of rice under her chair and it looked like a small party of mountain-climbing ants.
The ants make huge ant highways to transport crumbs - across the table, down the floor, up the wall. I really wish I could get a better picture or a video of this, because despite the fact that I'm repulsed by them, I'm still impressed.
Unlike the U.S. ants I've experienced, I feel that these ants seem to prefer carbs rather than sticky stuff. They always come out for bread products, including a memorable day when they were transporting a cube of stuffing up the wall.
This is our weapon against the battle of the ants: DOOM (best name for an insect killer ever!) Disclaimer: it's not "odourlous." It has a sickly sweet, cloying smell....but it does spell instantaneous DOOM for the hapless ants.
My friend Gretchen said a couple of months ago "You know, back in the U.S., when you think there's a bug on you and it's usually just a fuzz or a hair? Here it's always a bug!" Usually it's an ant.
I did make the happy discovery that putting a few cloves of garlic in the sugar does get rid of ants. There were hundreds of ants in my sugar (despite it being in an "air-tight" Tupperware container from the U.S.) While I don't necessarily care about picking out the ants before baking, it was a huge gross-out factor for my kids when they went to make Kool-Aid. Instead of throwing out the whole 2 kilos of sugar, I decided to try the helpful hint that was included in my HOPAC cookbook. I was definitely skeptical. At first, it looked like the ants were just going on another mountain-climbing expedition - this time on the garlic cloves. But then, miraculously, they vanished...and they haven't returned! I was also worried that the garlic may permeate the taste of the sugar, but I haven't noticed anything.
Although I'd much rather battle the ants than cockroaches, centipedes or mosquitoes (all have also been in our house) or certainly a tarantula (has been at school), I'd like them to leave now, please. Maybe when the rains come all my problems will go away....is it too much to ask that dust, heat, and ants all leave together? We will see.
The book of Proverbs even has two favorable mentions of ants, including one of my favorite sayings: "Go to the ant, you sluggard!" (Proverbs 6:6). In the Aesop's Fable about the ant and the grasshopper, we are all encouraged to be more like the ant who plans ahead for the winter and isn't afraid to work hard.
Nonetheless, these days, I am feeling less favorably disposed to this industrious insect. We are under a veritable explosion of ants, both inside and outside our house. Thankfully, the ants in question are tiny but they are everywhere and there are so many of them!
Every morning, I fill the dog's food and water bowls outside and there are literally thousands surrounding the bowls. I then return to the breakfast table inside and there are thousands more swarming the toast crumbs and jam splotches that have been there all of 10 minutes. Last night, Charlotte dropped a forkful of rice under her chair and it looked like a small party of mountain-climbing ants.
The ants make huge ant highways to transport crumbs - across the table, down the floor, up the wall. I really wish I could get a better picture or a video of this, because despite the fact that I'm repulsed by them, I'm still impressed.
Unlike the U.S. ants I've experienced, I feel that these ants seem to prefer carbs rather than sticky stuff. They always come out for bread products, including a memorable day when they were transporting a cube of stuffing up the wall.
This is our weapon against the battle of the ants: DOOM (best name for an insect killer ever!) Disclaimer: it's not "odourlous." It has a sickly sweet, cloying smell....but it does spell instantaneous DOOM for the hapless ants.
My friend Gretchen said a couple of months ago "You know, back in the U.S., when you think there's a bug on you and it's usually just a fuzz or a hair? Here it's always a bug!" Usually it's an ant.
I did make the happy discovery that putting a few cloves of garlic in the sugar does get rid of ants. There were hundreds of ants in my sugar (despite it being in an "air-tight" Tupperware container from the U.S.) While I don't necessarily care about picking out the ants before baking, it was a huge gross-out factor for my kids when they went to make Kool-Aid. Instead of throwing out the whole 2 kilos of sugar, I decided to try the helpful hint that was included in my HOPAC cookbook. I was definitely skeptical. At first, it looked like the ants were just going on another mountain-climbing expedition - this time on the garlic cloves. But then, miraculously, they vanished...and they haven't returned! I was also worried that the garlic may permeate the taste of the sugar, but I haven't noticed anything.
Although I'd much rather battle the ants than cockroaches, centipedes or mosquitoes (all have also been in our house) or certainly a tarantula (has been at school), I'd like them to leave now, please. Maybe when the rains come all my problems will go away....is it too much to ask that dust, heat, and ants all leave together? We will see.
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