i have been back in africa 3 months; a total of 6 months for the year. it feels like just a few days. my days are busy, i love being here and i continue to feel incredible blessed beyond measure that God has placed this experience in my life.
i continue to be amazed, still, at how simple life has become. and how okay that is for me. and how far i am from what i was accustomed to. what is interesting, at least to me, is the things that i do NOT miss and what i do miss. for example. i care not the least about having no a/c, no ice, frequent periods of power outages (well maybe i do bitch a bit when the power is out too frequently) and the resulting cold showers or use of flashlights. i don’t mind living in a simple bedroom with just a few changes of clothing. i don’t mind walking and being filthy sweaty dirty much of the time. i don’t miss dealing with make-up and nails (but as a friend recently observed, i do still have a thing about my hair, so continue to color it and get african hair weaved in. my story is that it’s easier to take care of . regardless, i suppose i must fess up to having the hair vanity issue.). i do miss my family of course but since i have regular communications, it helps to span that gap (but i do worry at times about things).
however i confess that i still have moments in which i miss my FABulous shoes (ha ha. of all things, i know!) but if you know me well, you are probably nodding your head and maybe laughing. just for old time sakes, i have included a few old pictures of some favorite shoes which were a big part of my life just a year ago. and of course, cannot forget about those really fun skull and roses boots! oh, another thing, i do not miss is the hectic, overbooked, stressed life in which i wore these shoes.
what am i doing these days? well, seems like more and more business mentoring. i daily send up a prayer that i will be used in service in some way. while walking to town recently, i was reflecting on that prayer and it suddenly occurred to me that what has been happening is that i am being placed in these situations. of course, i knew that i would be using my business background, experience, connections, wisdom, etc in my role here at foot2afrika, but now appearing before me on a regular basis is a new opportunity, a new person, a new business with a need for assistance. and it was just during my walk, and reflection following the appearance of the 4th or 5th opportunity that i suddenly got it – ah…the dots connected. love when that happens.
i shared this with a business professor friend, who is also one of my greatest supporters in my mission – his comment was: deb, your business mind in tanzania is no accident. another friend, before i came over the first time, said to me: deb, using your business intelligence and experience is sharing your gifts and talents and that is mission work. so i guess i’m still on the right track. lol
oh, of course, i continue to love on the children and that is the icing on the cake blessing. their gift of unconditional love, their joy despite the losses in their young lives, their smiles are priceless beyond words. so now i have multiple areas of mission focus and that works for me.
i have 9 more months in my initial commitment. perhaps things will shift again and i will have other areas to serve in. well, hakuna matata, i’m down with that. and while my mind does try to look down the path to the future and fall into its old ways of analysis and predicting outcome (i.e. what will happen after that 9 months? will i stay in africa? if not, where will i go?) i consistently bring myself back to the here and now, and focus on the moment. i know that things will become clear when it is time. and in this moment, i am right where i am supposed to be with my africa family, serving others, learning and living, and that’s enough for me.
oh, and i’m still raising funds for the water filtration devices for the massai village as well. those interested can send funds as indicated on the right side bar of this blog. you know – i become cranky when the water is out for a day at the volunteer house, so i cannot imagine being a mother, a child, an elder living without access to running water or clean water. these filtration units will allow them to at least turn nearby stagnant water that is available into something that they can use and drink. if you missed the full story of this, see the back to the m.a.s.s.a.i. blog dated december 19.
as always, love you, miss you. but life is amazing here. thanks for your continued comments and support, whether via the blog or facebook or email. they always lift me up. i’m grateful that you have chosen to follow my journey and i hope that in some way you are enriched or blessed or perhaps a bit entertained by my experiences.
wishing you all peace, joy, love, health, laughter and bliss in the coming year. you. are. loved.