Make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other's gold.
I was never in Girl Scouts, but April was, and in her sisterly love she passed that little ditty on to me in childhood. I was reminded of that song with the arrival of Brit and Erin yesterday morning! It is such a joy to have friends from "home" visit my new "home" out here!
So far they have dived right into life in Zambia. We have ridden mini-buses with way too many people on them, hitched a ride in the back of a truck with way too many eggs in it, and walked around with way too little sunscreen on. Our first day we spent lounging around, grabbing coffee at a bakery and then napping at Munda Wanga Gardens. After finally letting them bathe we met up with some Peace Corps friends for a great dinner. Today I let them sleep in (I think the 12 hours of rest did them some good!) and we have been bartering at the market and getting great deals all morning. They just recognized the glory of seeing a movie in Lusaka, since the theatre is the only place with air-conditioning. We are heading back to the Gardens now to stay the night and tomorrow we will be heading out to my village! We have 8 hours of travel ahead of us tomorrow; pray that they still want to be my friend after hours in the back of a truck!
I have no doubt there will be plenty of stories coming your way as they get a taste of village life. I hope you are making and keeping friends of your own!
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Monday, February 04, 2008
Crazy Funny
We all know someone who is a little crazy. Most of us have at least one in our immediate family. Maybe that person is you. A lot of the time you are not aware that it is you until too late. Self examination is essential.
There is scary crazy and then funny crazy. We hope to medicate the scary and enjoy the funny. Thankfully the funny crazy guy in my village hasn't been introduced to any anti-psychotic meds. This means lots of funny stories for you to read now.
His name is Miyandu and rumor has it he used to be normal but his father traded his sanity for wealth in a little juju deal with the local witch doctor. This is the first of many facts throughout this story you think I have made up. People, I could not make this stuff up if I tried.
So his name is Miyandu, but he refers to himself in the third person as "King George". So our daily conversation as I am walking to get water goes something like this...
"Good morning."(Me)
"Ah, yes, white woman from Britain, King George is fine." (Miyandu)
He usually addresses me as "white woman from Britain", though at times I am referred to as "the red Indian". While I strive for a British accent and dream of tanning like an Indian, neither of these titles is accurate for me. I've tried to explain my Irish German heritage and the fact that I am an American, but it doesn't seem to stick. Oh well.
King George must have listened to a lot of top 40 hits back in the late 80's, early 90's. He does an amazing Michael Jackson impression and knows all the words to "Thriller". This man can, no joke, moonwalk barefoot on the dirt path. This takes major skills. Very impressive. Often in passing he will make comments to me about Michael Bolton or Bob Marley.
Last week he stopped me to tell me he finally had proof he was King George. Playing along I asked him to show me. He sat down in the dirt and squished his knee cap together.
"If you look into my kneecap you can clearly see the letters "j","k", and "y"." (Him)
I looked. I could see the way his skin folded it did look like those letters were there.
He said, "See, I told you!"
And there you have it...clearly proof that this man is, in fact, King George.
As you read that, if this made any sense to you, then you are definitely crazy too. If it did not make sense to you then hopefully you are at least laughing.
Hope you have a little bit of crazy funny in your own life this week.
There is scary crazy and then funny crazy. We hope to medicate the scary and enjoy the funny. Thankfully the funny crazy guy in my village hasn't been introduced to any anti-psychotic meds. This means lots of funny stories for you to read now.
His name is Miyandu and rumor has it he used to be normal but his father traded his sanity for wealth in a little juju deal with the local witch doctor. This is the first of many facts throughout this story you think I have made up. People, I could not make this stuff up if I tried.
So his name is Miyandu, but he refers to himself in the third person as "King George". So our daily conversation as I am walking to get water goes something like this...
"Good morning."(Me)
"Ah, yes, white woman from Britain, King George is fine." (Miyandu)
He usually addresses me as "white woman from Britain", though at times I am referred to as "the red Indian". While I strive for a British accent and dream of tanning like an Indian, neither of these titles is accurate for me. I've tried to explain my Irish German heritage and the fact that I am an American, but it doesn't seem to stick. Oh well.
King George must have listened to a lot of top 40 hits back in the late 80's, early 90's. He does an amazing Michael Jackson impression and knows all the words to "Thriller". This man can, no joke, moonwalk barefoot on the dirt path. This takes major skills. Very impressive. Often in passing he will make comments to me about Michael Bolton or Bob Marley.
Last week he stopped me to tell me he finally had proof he was King George. Playing along I asked him to show me. He sat down in the dirt and squished his knee cap together.
"If you look into my kneecap you can clearly see the letters "j","k", and "y"." (Him)
I looked. I could see the way his skin folded it did look like those letters were there.
He said, "See, I told you!"
And there you have it...clearly proof that this man is, in fact, King George.
As you read that, if this made any sense to you, then you are definitely crazy too. If it did not make sense to you then hopefully you are at least laughing.
Hope you have a little bit of crazy funny in your own life this week.
30 Days
I am a girl that likes a challenge. Marathons, bungee jumping, sky diving, moving to Africa- I enjoy pushing myself to do hard things. This past month I embarked on the "30 Days" Challenge. Basically, I wanted to stay in my village for 30 days without going into town for anything! As the days went on I added little challenges...not plucking my eyebrows or shaving my legs or drinking coffee or speaking English. After this little adventure things like hiking Everest with no oxygen seem possible!
I made it! And it was really great to spend lots of quality time uninterrupted in the village. Since I came to Zambia there has always been some conference I came in for or email that I needed to rush to town to read! I figured it was now or never and I don't want to have regrets about not spending enough time doing what I came to Zambia to do!
We are in rainy season now and have had tons of rain. The most rainfall in Zambia since 1920! There were quite a few rainy days spent reading (9 books), playing cards, and chatting about the rain. Other days I was busy working in my garden, weeding, making rows, killing snakes, and trying to get my field ready for planting. My regular work- Girls Club, Club Mweka, teaching at the clinic, all of that is going well. I am also in the process of getting HIV Support Groups started; we have about 30 people interested at this point. It has been encouraging to see more people come forward about their status and not hiding in shame.
I am still missing Mrs Mpongo. Her children have all been taken to their aunt's home in another town and so it has been lonely without Bertha and crew to brighten my days! It seems more real now that she is gone. God has deepened my friendship with Mrs Kapuwe and that has been a huge blessing. We are meeting together Wednesday nights to read through the Bible and talk about what God is teaching us. It is really amazing to talk about how our cultures have given us such different perspectives.
Two very special ladies are arriving in Zambia on the 16th for their own adventures here! I can't wait to see Erin and Britt and I will have them be guest bloggers for their time here. We will have a week in my village and then be in Livingstone and Botswana. Should be a blast.
Keep praying for me! Specifically for these support groups, for an upcoming IGA workshop, an upcoming NHC training, and that God would be so present in my last 6 months here!
Here's to challenges of your own making!
I made it! And it was really great to spend lots of quality time uninterrupted in the village. Since I came to Zambia there has always been some conference I came in for or email that I needed to rush to town to read! I figured it was now or never and I don't want to have regrets about not spending enough time doing what I came to Zambia to do!
We are in rainy season now and have had tons of rain. The most rainfall in Zambia since 1920! There were quite a few rainy days spent reading (9 books), playing cards, and chatting about the rain. Other days I was busy working in my garden, weeding, making rows, killing snakes, and trying to get my field ready for planting. My regular work- Girls Club, Club Mweka, teaching at the clinic, all of that is going well. I am also in the process of getting HIV Support Groups started; we have about 30 people interested at this point. It has been encouraging to see more people come forward about their status and not hiding in shame.
I am still missing Mrs Mpongo. Her children have all been taken to their aunt's home in another town and so it has been lonely without Bertha and crew to brighten my days! It seems more real now that she is gone. God has deepened my friendship with Mrs Kapuwe and that has been a huge blessing. We are meeting together Wednesday nights to read through the Bible and talk about what God is teaching us. It is really amazing to talk about how our cultures have given us such different perspectives.
Two very special ladies are arriving in Zambia on the 16th for their own adventures here! I can't wait to see Erin and Britt and I will have them be guest bloggers for their time here. We will have a week in my village and then be in Livingstone and Botswana. Should be a blast.
Keep praying for me! Specifically for these support groups, for an upcoming IGA workshop, an upcoming NHC training, and that God would be so present in my last 6 months here!
Here's to challenges of your own making!
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