Thankful for a Big Family

This past week was Thanksgiving, and what started as a week of feeling sorry for myself, ended in giving thanks to an awesome God who continues to pour out blessings upon me. 

Starting last weekend, everyone’s Facebook statuses were about traveling to see family and all the cooking that was being done- the pies, the casseroles, and the massive turkeys. The thought of being away from my family for the holidays has been an area of struggle for me.  I knew back in May when I left the states that November and December were going to be the hardest months for me here.  I started to feel sorry for myself.  No family on Thanksgiving. Poor, pitiful me.  

No family on Thanksgiving- that could not be farther from the truth.  I am, in fact, surrounded by family- brothers and sisters- that love me dearly.  The A’s hosted a Thanksgiving feast for the Americans on the Island.  These two cuties came into my room with an adorable invitation to our dinner celebration. 

We enjoyed chicken, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, stuffing (my mouth is watering just typing the word “stuffing” because it was that good), gravy, and rolls. 

Dessert was a homemade apple pie with a scoop of ice cream on top. 

Sandy is an INCREDIBLE cook- and made everything except the sweet potato casserole.  The three single folks- Melisa, Son (another Peacecorp worker here), and myself, made that.  It felt just like Thanksgiving back home.  Family, fun, and yummy food!  We even talked about downloading an old football game to watch, but the speed of the internet deterred us from following through.  Even without football, a good time was had by all!

Sandy even sent us all away with goodie bags of banana muffins with pumpkin butter. DELICIOUS.

That would have been more than enough to make me feel like I didn’t miss out, BUT I got to celebrate a second time!  I had to go over to the other Island to do some work this past weekend, and got to stay with my friends from language school, Jamie and Chad.  We didn’t get much sleep because we were enjoying catching up- swapping stories, laughing, crying- things you do with family.  It was such an awesome time of mutual encouragement and much needed friend time.  Friday night we were talking about smoothies and how I can’t get yogurt on my Island- something I practically lived off of when I was in language school.  Saturday morning, Jamie came knocking on my door with a smoothie she had made me for breakfast.  Incredibly blessed, I tell you.  I am surrounded by very thoughtful and loving friends.  Family. 

Jamie and Chad teach English for a different company, and they work with a group of about 12 others.  They just so happened to be celebrating their Thanksgiving together on Saturday night, and extended me an invitation.  They had a large spread of delicious goodness, and even had an imported turkey from Kenya.  I lucked out and even got a piece of pecan pie for dessert!  My favorite.  Here's a pic of me and Jamie after our feast.  She's awesome.

Sandy and I flew back to our Island today, and she informed me that we were having our leftovers for dinner tonight- SCORE.  Needless to say, I ate very well this past week.  3 Thanksgiving meals.  All delicious.  Rumor has it, that’s what we are having for lunch tomorrow, as well.

Grateful for the reminder from the Lord that I have family right here with me.  My brothers and sisters- what a blessing they have all been to me.  So grateful that my family is WAY bigger than my immediate family back in Jax.  Can’t wait for there to be more family members here on my Island one day J

Wedding(s)

Last week, on Wednesday evening, I went to dinner at a friend’s house in a nearby village.  After eating with her family, her uncle (about 18 years old), came and asked if we wanted to go to a wedding with him.  Sure!  I love weddings!  It was already getting dark, so I told them I wasn’t able to stay too long.  They said we would just go, greet the family of the bride and groom, and leave.  So my friend and I hopped on my piki piki and followed her uncle there.  When we arrived, everyone was dancing and having a good time.  I greeted and congratulated the Bibi Herusi (mother of the Bride), and she asked me to dance with her.  I told her I didn’t know how, but I would try.  She grabbed my hand and dragged me inside.  A circle formed around us, as they all started clapping, laughing, and telling me that I know how to dance.  If you could have only seen what they called dancing.  In fact, I’m really glad you weren’t able to see.  I managed to escape the circle, we said our goodbyes, and we were off!  It all happened so fast.  I was wishing time would have slowed down so I could have appreciated what all a wedding entails in this culture.  Luckily, there was another wedding that I was able to enjoy a couple of days later.

For over a month now, one of my students from the secondary school has been telling me about her sister’s wedding that she wanted me to come to.  The wedding was on Friday of last week, so she stopped by my office everyday last week just to make sure I hadn’t forgotten.  On Thursday, she had arranged for another one of my students to take Melissa and me to get henna to make us look beautiful.

The “Umependeza”’s have been flying left and right!  Umependeza means “you are beautiful”.  Henna is beautiful, but it is a lengthy process.  It took about 2 hours just for my hands.   When you are the bride, you are supposed to get it all the way up your arms to your shoulders, and from the bottom of your feet to your knees.  Can’t imagine how long that would take.  I don’t think I would be able to sit still that long- two hours was already pushing it for me.  Pole, future hubby! 

At 2:00 on Friday, a student picked us up to go to the wedding.  When we arrived, the bride was still getting dressed and her extended family were all sitting around talking.  We joined the extended family on the floor, and enjoyed a meal with them.  After we finished eating, they told us the bride was ready.  We walked to the back of the house to find a beautiful young woman dressed in a pink and white dress, covered in henna, all dolled up in lots of make-up, and… absolutely drenched in sweat!  It has been getting so hot here- as you all are putting up pics of puffy jackets and snow, I’m thinking about when I get to take my next cold shower J The poor girl was sitting on a bench in a tiny room in her house, with a camera (with a flood light on top of it) in her face.  If that doesn’t seem hot enough already, picture about 30 sweaty women squished together trying to get a glimpse.  Yes, she was hot.  And yes, by the time it was my turn to take a picture with the bride, I was red-faced and drenched in sweat, as well. 

A little while later, her husband came to take her away.  The wedding actually takes place really early in the morning (the deal between her father and her husband at the mosque), but he doesn’t take her away until the afternoon.  After the bride and groom left, the “reception” began.  The men played the drums and the women danced.  I really enjoyed the whole experience.  It was my first wedding here (since two years ago- I don’t count the quickie on Wednesday), and I love learning more about their culture and the way they celebrate important occasions, such as a marriage.  As we were leaving, we were handed brown paper bags with cake inside.  Yummy!  Friends, family, beautiful dress, make-up, lots of pictures, a loving husband, dancing, and cake.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The day after the wedding, I went to visit Mariam and her grandchildren, and as we were sitting there talking, I noticed the girls were very quiet.  I finally got up to see what they were doing, and they were drawing on themselves.  When I got closer, I saw that they were drawing henna on each other.  I asked what they were doing and they responded "Sisi ni kama wewe"- "We are like you".  Theirs went a little higher up their arms, so I'm thinking they are preparing to be the brides.  As beautiful as they are, they have a little while before it's their turn.  Hopefully I'll beat them to it!   But you never know...

More wedding pics to come!

A Good One

This week has been a good one.  A good one for language.  A good one for visiting and talking with friends.  A good one for teaching. 

Today in class, one of my students told me that all the Form 1 students (my students from the local secondary school) are talking about me and how I am able to speak Swahili now.  Too bad it’s just a rumor.  Haha I will say this, though.  Something “clicked” with language this week.  I have been on a roll with speaking- actually making sense and not taking 20 minutes to create each sentence.  I have gotten over the “I don’t want to embarrass myself” stage, and have been trying to use it a lot wherever I go.  I’m really starting to feel like I’m “getting it”.  Also, for the past week, I have been waking up in the middle of the night speaking Swahili in my mind.  So weird.  But I am told that is a step in the right direction!

Visiting is becoming so much more fun and enjoyable.  I am able to join in on conversations and ask questions, answer questions, and joke.  When I first started visiting, it was so formal.  When I would eat meals at their houses, they wouldn’t let me help cook and they gave me my own plate of food to eat before they all ate.  Now, they put me to work cutting mchicha (spinach), stirring wali (rice), pealing kiazi (potatoes), or shaving the nazi (coconut). 

This was my first time on the mbuzi, and I sliced my finger.  Those things are seriously sharp!  That same day, this family served me lunch at the same time as them and on the same plate.  Made me smile.  I felt like family.

 

I have still been going to Mariam’s every day for language.  

She’s my favorite teacher and her kids and grandkids are so great.  They call me “Ginger Tangawizi” and are always laughing, making faces, and climbing on me.  Yesterday, they had some relatives over and they asked if I liked coconut water.  I said yes, and the next thing I knew, the dude had climbed 100ft up a tree to get me some.  Incredible.  Had I known he was going to go to such extreme measures to make me happy, I would have told him no.

 

When I was taking pictures of the coconut, yesterday, I said I wanted a picture of her grandkids to put in my new house (which is still a few weeks away from being done).  She took it pretty seriously and asked me to come back today after class to take a photo after they had showered and put on nicer clothes.  So today we had a photo shoot.

I know I’ve told you before, but I LOVE the people here!  I have never met such hospitable, kind-hearted, friendly people in my entire life.  I feel so incredibly blessed to be here.  Really really grateful.

Trick or Treating Island Style

This year for Halloween, I got to join in on the third annual “Hide and Seek, Trick or Treat”.  They actually don’t call it that, but all the children get dressed up in their costumes and we head out to the beach for a game of hide and seek.  The Ngezi forest lines the beach, so the adults take turns hiding in the woods with candy.  The kids have to run and find us in order to get their candy.

I dressed up this year, as well.  Couldn’t resist busting out the cow outfit for an occasion such as this (and yes, out of all the things I could have packed in my bags to bring to Africa, I brought my cow outfit).  At one point I was hiding behind a tree in my cow outfit waiting for the kids to come and a local guy came running by on the beach.  He did a triple-take, gave me a big smile and a thumbs up, and kept running.

 After trick or treating, the children all swam in the ocean while us “grown-ups” grilled out and enjoyed some hot apple cider.  Other than the fact it was almost 90 degrees, the cider and costumes almost made it feel like fall!  We ended the night with a beach bonfire, lovely conversations with friends, and a lot of kids chasing a lot of crabs.  I could get used to this Island-style Halloween.