Bonjour!
I know some of you were worried =) But don't be! My internet went out, but I'm absolutely fine. I've been in Mahadaga for...3 weeks exactly! Wow, time flies. I've had so much fun here. Matt's cousin Sophie (my hero in the lost luggage crisis, it's all on my facebook page) and I have been minions together over the past couple of weeks. We've settled into a routine--Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings Sophie and I help Matt with whatever project he has picked out for us, So far, that has included harvesting and crushing neem seeds for insecticide, applying manure-tea to the vegetable garden (I know, that sounds like somebody just left a bag of manure steeping in water. Well, that's exactly what it is, it's really quite disgusting), measuring out lengths of rope, turning compost (a scintillating job involving moving an entire 2 meter high pile of dirt a foot to the side), planting cucumber seeds in different types of soil and recording the effects, and driving out in the Rhino to survey the new property SIM just bought. It's tiring work, but so fun! Tuesday and Thursday mornings we go volunteer at the Handicap Center, working with the kids and helping do odd jobs. Monday and Friday afternoons, we have individual French language study (since my 2 weeks of French doesn't even compare to Sophie's 5 years of classes). Tuesday afternoons, the pastor teaches Sophie, Matt and I Gourmanche, the local language. Wednesday afternoons are cultural debriefing, and Saturday afternoons Sophie and I have formal French lessons with Diabidi, a girl from the Handicap Center.
Living in Africa has its ups and downs. I really, really, really miss American goodies. It's weird, the little things that I crave so badly...Nutella, Mexican food, potato salad (ohh....potato salad...), a MICROWAVE, going to bed without having to brush the bugs off my sheets with my shoe. And there are no formal stores in the bush. All the food is local--which is actually really cool for the economy. But I have a recurring fantasy about going to Target (the A/C is blasting and there is no dust!). On the bright side, my mornings are wonderful. I actually love getting up at 6 (ok, 6:15), because that's when it's nice and cool, and I have time to make breakfast and read my Bible. The mangoes are wonderful right off the tree, and all the work I've been doing here has been directly helping others.
I think my favorite thing to do here is ride in the back of the Rhino. It's like a miniature jeep with a tiny truck bed. When you stand in the back and hold on to the rails, the wind flies in your face, you zoom down the dirt roads, and all the little African kids all wave and shriek "Ca va? Ca va?"--the only French phrase they know =) What they don't know is that I don't know much more French than they do!
It's so weird being white here...The missionaries are pretty much the only non-blacks these people have ever seen. Hispanic, asian, white...we all look the same to them. So when I tell you that I am the FIRST white person some of these people have EVER SEEN, I'm not exaggerating. As such, I've made 4 babies cry just by looking at them, and gotten 4 marriage proposals. Little kids follow Sophie and I when we go anywhere. I think this must be what celebrities feel like...simultaneously a Disney princess and a felon. It definitely makes for interesting interactions, though!
Well, I promise I will post more later--and more often!--but I'm wiped out! Today I went on my second home visit (this time I did NOT pass out!) and I was on the back of a moto for hours. So, I'm going to make myself some spaghetti and curl up with a book out of the guest house library.
I love you all SO very much. I am eternally thankful for your prayers (Know that they have a direct impact on my well-being and ministry here) and I miss you all. God is working hard in my heart, and I'll have so much to share about what I've learned when I get back.
Prayer Requests:
-Boredom/Loneliness: This is the first time I've ever lived by myself, and being in Africa obviously makes it that much crazier. Pray that I will be spending my free time with God and take pleasure in His work and company.
-Language Study: Learning one is hard enough, but 2 at the same time is turning my brain to mush!
-Continued Safety and Provision: The Lord has blessed me in so many ways, and provided so much. Pray that I will continue to rely on Him to be enough.
-Farming God's Way ministry: Matt's direction right now is an agricultural technique that integrates faith and was designed specifically for Africa. Pray that this program will be accepted here, that we can find effective ways to present and teach it, and that the people of Mahadaga can be both good stewards of God's creation, and at the same time come to know the love God has for them.
Grace and peace to you!
Au revoir!
XO Sarah
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