Watch the Walk

(Warning: this post isn't a lovely tied up package of a post. It's slightly stream-of-consciousness.) If you've ever watched Holiday Inn, you might remember the sight of Bing Crosby sitting alone at a huge table full of holiday foods, singing the song, "I've got Plenty to be Thankful for." The verses talk about all the things that he doesn't have... but he's still got plenty to be thankful for. Today is Thanksgiving. In North America it's probably not 90 degrees at 8 AM, but you probably don't have fresh tropical fruit on hand for that fruit salad. A couple weeks ago I ended up in a taxi with the mayor of the port town. One of the questions he asked was if I had any regrets. Ha. Well, what's a regret anyway? It's not like I would change anything.  It reminds me of quote I tried to live by in high school: "No reserve. No retreat. No regrets." That was penned by William Borden, a rich guy who gave away as much as possible, moved...

I've never been water skiing. But I watched  few videos on YouTube of people doing a poor job of it. And what I saw of their experience reminds me a lot of living in Africa-- which I've been doing for a little over a year now. Here's the process, from the observer's perspective: 1) You get ready. Water skis, swimsuit, life jacket, boat. 2) You get in the water. 3) The boat starts moving and, if you're still holding the tow line, you start moving too. 4) You get slapped in the face with water. Lots of water. 5) Eventually it gets too difficult (splits, tangled skis, too much water in the air you're breathing) and you let go. 6) Rinse, repeat. But the interesting thing is that as a person learns to water ski, they quit getting slapped in the face with waves. Instead they ride on top of the waves and enjoy success through perseverance and honed coordination. Twenty minutes later it was pouring rain Here's what being in Africa is like: 1) You get ready: support,...

Front door at high tide It's not all bad news. Not all the men are terrible and inappropriate. And I know the problems here aren't unique in the world. Polygamy certainly accentuates the issue though. Just as there are a lot of awful men here, there are also some really great ones. Since I gave you a rundown of some typical situations with random men last time, this time I'll give you the balancing side-- some of the men I know who are great to be around and whom I appreciate greatly. Mwenye wahandra*: This man is connected. He knows everyone and everyone knows him. For our move to the new house in M-town , he rounded up a large truc k and a bunch of guys to help haul things. Any time I need something in the community he knows who to tal k to. He's a go-getter , a problem solver , and quite devout. A great role model for the young men of the community. Mwenye wawaili: He's friendly , knowledgable , and helpful. Any language question I've got , I know he can ans...

At first I thought of writing a post on the "Man of the Day" awards-- which man was the most annoying or infuriating in his advances on me each day. It could have been funny. It could have been witty. It could have made you laugh, and cry, and feel for me, while wishing you could see it happen just once. But that doesn't do the issue the justice it deserves. First, let me say that islanders have pre-conceptions of what American women are like. They've seen the movies and they know how we normally like to behave. Can I use the word? Sluts. Yeah, they assume that we're sluts. Isn't that a great way to start things off? So every day I have to demonstrate that I'm a woman worthy of respect and not the loose woman they assume I am. Second, let me point to my passport. It's American. If I marry someone not from America it will be (according to speculation) far easier for my husband to go to America. Third, polygamy is widely accepted here, especially among t...

Yesterday I went with a friend to an information session given by a naturally-focused Kenyan doctor. He was telling about the benefits of Spirulina, a diet supplement, but he ended up spending a lot more time discussing diet and mindset issues of islanders (and Africans in general) than actually telling about Spirulina. The issues he raised have been quite evident to me here, and it was amazing to see the islanders' response to his commentary. See, islanders don't like new things. When I make American-style food for an islander friend I never really know if they'll appreciate it. If I go to the market and see something I don't recognize, I generally ask how they cook it. And every islander cooks it pretty much the same way. So when there are selective food shortages, like right now, islanders start complaining a lot. For example, the doctor told of when there was a rice shortage (a couple weeks ago), and islanders were protesting near the market. "There's no fo...

This month has been pretty busy. English classes have started. I'm teaching one class in my town and one class in the town I'll be moving to at the end of this month. Yesterday was Eid al-Adha the day Msms commemorate Abraham sacrificing his son. What a great bridge to talking about deep truths! The Father spared Abraham's son... yet did not spare His own Son (Rom. 8:32).  Instead of writing a lot this time I'm giving you a few pictures to look at. Island life remains interesting. The greatest challenge of late has been avoiding men and their unappreciated advances. I contemplated writing a post about the "man of the day" -- who managed to be the most annoying man during my day... but probably will leave that topic alone. Alright, picture time! Sunset at the beach Trash at the beach. This is the typical beach scene here. Looking across to the port House construction. This is one of my favorite places for a peaceful walk There's a woman blocking the view, b...

So we're moving, Jess and I. After 10 months in this beautiful house, the lack of water* has caused us to seek new accommodations. We've found a house that we both really like and are excited about, but details still need to be sorted through and we've got two months left in our current house. On Sunday afternoon we went to a river in another town to wash laundry. If I lived there, I would totally wash clothes in the river. It's amazing! The water was cool and there was plenty of it. It was a little less than knee-deep in the middle, but it was water! Here are a few pictures from our adventure at the river. *Want the longer water story? Read on:   When we moved in, it was a matter of setting up the system. Because our house is on the second floor, water pressure wouldn't be sufficient to bring water into the house. So a lower cistern was built to collect water from the local pipes, a pump installed, and an upper cistern placed on the roof to collect water pumped...