Did you miss me?

Recently, I have been told on many occasions that there are still people out there who check my blog. Wow, that was convicting. For those of you who do, you obviously know that it has been a while, so here is a shot at getting back in the game. Thank you for your faithfulness, even as my own has failed.

I am back in the States. I arrived on Saturday, 25 June and since then have had a wonderful and blessed time. The first couple of days were spent in Jacksonville, FL with old college roomies, Katie and Allie. We had a great time catching up on everything since we left Virginia Tech. Then I headed off to Eustis, FL for Enrichment Week with Rafiki.

Enrichment Week is an incredible week of talking with other ROS, learning more about how to do my job, and, most predominately, studying the Bible. It is so refreshing, after devoting so much time to teaching the Bible, to get to learn under trusted theologians. It is also extremely instructive to talk to other ROS doing the same job to find out their struggles and how they deal with them. This is really a wonderful and crucial week for our development to serve God more effectively through Rafiki.

Next week, I will begin a series of doctor's appointments and presentations that will last until I return to Rwanda. Of course, the most enjoyable of the two will be the presentations. Because I have decided to renew my commitment to Rafiki, the focus of this time will be to show my supporters how their funds have been used, and to give an opportunity for new supporters to respond to the Spirit by joining with this ministry through finances. Will you pray for fruitful presentations?

This picture is not really related, but cute, so I thought you would enjoy it. Thank you for reading!

Sept 2010 GAMES, Birthdays, and Family Pictures

Where is my neck?

So much has happened since I last wrote that I am not sure how to sufficiently post an update, so today I will just stick with some old pictures I have been meaning to post and some recent events. The pictures are from September and you will find them in a separate post because I could not figure out how to add the whole album to this one, even though I know I have done it before. Oh well.

My class is going great, what awesome students. A couple weeks ago, Epa, the only boy, kept pulling at the collar of his shirt and looking down and around. I asked him, "Epa, what are you doing?" His reply, "I am trying to see my neck," so nonchalantly as if I was the silly one for asking that question. I told him that his neck was like his face, he can only see it in the mirror. "But if you look straight down with your eyes," I continued, "you can see your nose, can't you? That is how you know your face is still there." "Yes! And my cheeks!" he replied. Later I glanced over and saw him puffing out one of his cheeks and looking down at it. Sometimes it is all I can do not to laugh in the middle of class.

Three new girls arrived this week. They have been all smiles and laughter, and so has their new Rafiki Mama, Marie (pronounced Mary). Before they came the other children kept saying, "We are getting a baby!" All three girls are four years old and they had seen pictures of them, I guess they just associate "new" with "baby." Maybe we need to work a little more on their English vocab :-)

Have you ever played hand and foot? If not, you are truly missing out. That is the card game of choice here at the Rafiki Village Rwanda. The ROS usually indulge in a round whenever we are all together. Many of you know that I used to be EXTREMELY competitive in card and board games, but my never-ending losing streak in hand and foot has squelched my overzealous sense of competition. Still I hold out hope that one of these days I will win by a landslide. A girl can dream, anyway.

Finally, a story about the reason I am here.... Immaculee, another of my students, was playing during recess when she looked up and saw the moon was still out. She pointed it out to me and I commented that the moon isn't usually out during the day. She agreed but quickly added, "But it is on purpose! God did it, and he did it on purpose!" "Why do you think that he did that?" I asked. "So that we could know that he is powerful," she replied. I could do nothing but smile back at her. What a wonderful thing, for a child to see that all of creation proclaims the glory of the Lord. I hope you see the same purpose in creation as you look around today.

Four Months

I have lived in Africa for a little over four months. In that time, I have done many things I never imagined that I would. Here are just a few of those things:

• coexist peacefully with the geckos that live in my house
• teach kindergarten
• wear crocs regularly, sometimes with socks
• bargain over the price of a change purse
• bargain over the price of a drum (or even buy a drum)
• enjoy eating goat brochettes (goat kabobs)
• inherit a tall wooden giraffe named Harry
• pay almost $8 for a bottle of chocolate syrup

While these aren't things I could have seen myself doing, I am very happy to have done them. I love Rwanda; the people, the weather, the land, and most of all, the children here at Rafiki. If the Lord wills it, I hope I get to experience many more new and different things in the time to come.

Rain in August

Now September is officially here, and at some point during this month we should start to see some rain. August, however, did not leave us disappointed. After several very dry months, we got one heavy rain that really helped to settle the dust and freshen the air. On Sunday, when I saw what looked like a big rain cloud from my back patio, I went outside, prayed, and waited. (I was on duty this past weekend and so I had to stay at the Village.) Finally, the rain did come and it sounded so nice. Once it was coming down hard enough that it was making noise on the metal roof, I could hear cheers from nearby churches. I never thought rain would be so exciting! Here is a picture of a banana tree blowing in the wind as the storm approaches.

In ther news, the ground is being dug in order to begin laying the foundation for our new Primary School and the teachers and children are all very excited. I am getting to do fun things like choosing paint colors and considering furniture. There are men here every day working very hard to make this school a reality. There are no big machines to do all of that digging, so there are many men instead. All of the students stop by the new school site on the way down to assembly every morning and pray for the safety of all of the workers. Would you pray with us? This is the site of the new school.

Yay! Soft clothes!

I got a clothes dryer! For most of you, this may not be cause for much excitement, but I could not be more thrilled. This is the one and only dryer I have ever seen in Kigali, and it was the only one the store had in stock. I have been eyeing this particular dryer for several weeks and contemplating whether or not I should purchase it, and today I did. As soon as I got home and read the manual, I installed my new dryer and put some clothes in the wash. They are in the spin cycle right at this moment so I will be able to test it out very soon! I can't wait to shrink my t-shirts back down to their proper size and feel soft, straight-from-the-dryer towels again!

A Blessed Evening

So I know I have gone from writing once a month to twice in three days, but I had to share what I just experienced. I worked late at the school today helping our national teacher prepare for next week and explaining some of the arts and crafts projects. I was not excited about staying late when I first realized we were not going to finish quickly, but God soon showed me that he had some blessings in store.

I had a wonderful conversation with the teacher, Patrick, about what he would like to do in the future and how he has grown to love education. It is such a gift to hear that he loves these children and what he is doing and it is not just a paycheck. He does want to go to university in the future, but he hopes to be a teacher and maybe even come back to teach here in the Rafiki Village. Oh, how we could use good, qualified teachers once the primary school is up and running!

After we finished prepping, I went to get the medical box (I am on duty in case of emergencies this weekend) and go home. The evening was the perfect temperature, warm with a cool breeze, and still light enough to see well but not bright and sunny. As I walked up the hill towards the cottages where the children live, I saw that all of the mamas, aunties, and children were sitting out in one of the gazebos. They invited me to come in and sit with them for a while, so I did.

We talked for a bit and I got to love on the children and then some of the girls started dancing. Before long most of the children had made their way to the floor of the gazebo and they were all dancing a beginners' version of the Kinyarwanda dance. It was one of those moments when you just praise God that you get to witness what is before your eyes. These beautiful, sweet children were dancing with all of their hearts and smiling and laughing. I wish I had my video camera there so that I could show you, but you will just have to use your imagination.

As it got a little darker, the security lights began to turn on and the mamas all said, "It is time," which all the children promptly responded to by heading inside. I wished them a good night and the mamas wished me sweet dreams, and I headed the rest of the way up the hill to my home.

What a blessed evening to live in Rwanda.