" 1 You, God, are my God,
earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you,
my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
where there is no water.
2 I have seen you in the sanctuary
and beheld your power and your glory.
3 Because your love is better than life,
my lips will glorify you.
4 I will praise you as long as I live,
and in your name I will lift up my hands.
5 I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods;
with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
6 On my bed I remember you;
I think of you through the watches of the night.
7 Because you are my help,
I sing in the shadow of your wings.
8 I cling to you;
your right hand upholds me.
9 Those who want to kill me will be destroyed;
they will go down to the depths of the earth.
10 They will be given over to the sword
and become food for jackals.
11 But the king will rejoice in God;
all who swear by God will glory in him,
while the mouths of liars will be silenced."
(biblegateway.com)
Click here to listen to Sons Of Korah sing this Psalm!
It's been an exciting week; I feel like I've done so much! I had opportunities flowing from day one and am completely happy about that....
Monday I started babysitting for one of the MAF families in the mornings so that the mother, Suzanne, could homeschool two of their children while I watched the youngest, Cole. The first day, of course, was full of tears and screams and bribery with snacks, but it was all made up for on Tuesday when Cole fell asleep in my arms and was sweet as can be playing cars and reading books with me; kids can be so fickle sometimes, no?
Wednesday was interesting. I went over to Suzanne's house to babysit, as usual, and about half of the morning went completely normal (I usually get done at about 11). Well, at "Recess" time, Brooke (the oldest at 5) told us she didn't feel good and didn't want to play. Thinking that she just simply didn't want to play, we let her sit on the porch steps watching. About 3 minutes later her younger brother Chad told us his tummy hurt. Then I got a little worried....with good reason. All three kids ended up getting sick within half an hour resulting in my leaving at 10 instead of 11. Poor kids! Suzanne thinks it was something they ate (and yes, they are all fine now!). I left their house at 10 and went over to Bisoke and Furaha's to go for a walk and hang out with their family. Their kids are a lot of fun to play games with! They're competitive and I learn a lot of words from them. Just yesterday, one of their daughters (Grace) asked me if I would teach her to sing. I'm not sure what I'm getting myself into, but I agreed.
Thursday I felt unwell so I stayed home and rested. I'm all better now and think it was just a result of the bit of sunburn I had gotten on Wednesday.
Friday was a good day, too! I again went to Suzanne's to play with Cole (cars...vroom vroom.) and then walked to Bisoke and Furaha's to hang out for a while. I love being at their home because their family is so big and there is always something new for me to see and someone new to meet, which is always nice. I am finally getting to finally know more people than just missionaries here in Bunia which I am thankful for.
On Saturday, I had a hair appointment with Floride (Bisoke's niece) at 10, so I got up, got ready, and walked over to Bisoke and Furaha's from the house I live in here. It's about a 20 minute walk and I enjoyed it very much! Every time I walk somewhere, the kids I see along the way greet me with smiles and wanting to shake my hand and walk beside me. I love it! I even sometimes get random Congolese who walk beside me and chat my ear off in broken English and French, so I have to pay attention to follow the conversation. They talk about everything from schooling to politics to languages - anything to have a conversation with you. :) It's very helpful to getting to know the culture and understanding it.
I got to Bisoke and Furaha's and waited around for about an hour until Floride got there at 11 to do my hair. Typical Congolese time...haha. I expected the braiding to hurt much worse than it did, but after hours of two women laboring over my "smooth, but difficult" hair, I have an African braided head and no headache! They did a beautiful job and I will definitely be having Floride do my hair again. She enjoyed it very much, too, considering this was the first time she had ever done a white woman's hair. Afterwards, all of the women wanted a picture with me, so I posed with them for a few and then played cards with Isolte and Grace (Grace is Bisoke and Furaha's daughter, I believe Isolte is a niece? or a cousin? I'm unsure....) and then walked to the market to pick up some notebooks which, surprisingly, we were able to get for 300 (about $0.25) Congolese Francs each instead of the 500 (about $0.50) we were told they would be. Usually we have them offering us double the price....so that was very exciting. Congolese Francs are something I am still getting used to. I believe the exchange rate is 1 US Dollar= 915 Francs. A whole new currency to adapt to! After the market, we went to volleyball at the MedAir Compound, which is always lots of fun, and then out to dinner at Monusco House, one of the only restaurants in Bunia. It's run by the UN (United Nations) and has lots of American and Indian food on the menu. It's delicious and I love going there for dinner.
I am slowly picking up on words in French and Swahili and am competently able to greet people in French, Swahili, and English now which is very helpful. I laugh whenever I greet them in French or Swahili and they break out in a smile to see me trying to speak their language. Even though that usually results in them rapidly conversing in French or Swahili at me (I say "at" because I don't understand most of what they are saying), it is still enjoyable.
Count so far:
Proposals= directly? 0, indirectly? 4
Conversations in multiple languages at once= 6
Kids shaking my hand= 7
Walks throughout Bunia= 4
Please pray that God would guide me in what His will is.
Maranatha.
-Kelly
earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you,
my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
where there is no water.
2 I have seen you in the sanctuary
and beheld your power and your glory.
3 Because your love is better than life,
my lips will glorify you.
4 I will praise you as long as I live,
and in your name I will lift up my hands.
5 I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods;
with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
6 On my bed I remember you;
I think of you through the watches of the night.
7 Because you are my help,
I sing in the shadow of your wings.
8 I cling to you;
your right hand upholds me.
9 Those who want to kill me will be destroyed;
they will go down to the depths of the earth.
10 They will be given over to the sword
and become food for jackals.
11 But the king will rejoice in God;
all who swear by God will glory in him,
while the mouths of liars will be silenced."
(biblegateway.com)
Click here to listen to Sons Of Korah sing this Psalm!
It's been an exciting week; I feel like I've done so much! I had opportunities flowing from day one and am completely happy about that....
Monday I started babysitting for one of the MAF families in the mornings so that the mother, Suzanne, could homeschool two of their children while I watched the youngest, Cole. The first day, of course, was full of tears and screams and bribery with snacks, but it was all made up for on Tuesday when Cole fell asleep in my arms and was sweet as can be playing cars and reading books with me; kids can be so fickle sometimes, no?
Wednesday was interesting. I went over to Suzanne's house to babysit, as usual, and about half of the morning went completely normal (I usually get done at about 11). Well, at "Recess" time, Brooke (the oldest at 5) told us she didn't feel good and didn't want to play. Thinking that she just simply didn't want to play, we let her sit on the porch steps watching. About 3 minutes later her younger brother Chad told us his tummy hurt. Then I got a little worried....with good reason. All three kids ended up getting sick within half an hour resulting in my leaving at 10 instead of 11. Poor kids! Suzanne thinks it was something they ate (and yes, they are all fine now!). I left their house at 10 and went over to Bisoke and Furaha's to go for a walk and hang out with their family. Their kids are a lot of fun to play games with! They're competitive and I learn a lot of words from them. Just yesterday, one of their daughters (Grace) asked me if I would teach her to sing. I'm not sure what I'm getting myself into, but I agreed.
Thursday I felt unwell so I stayed home and rested. I'm all better now and think it was just a result of the bit of sunburn I had gotten on Wednesday.
Friday was a good day, too! I again went to Suzanne's to play with Cole (cars...vroom vroom.) and then walked to Bisoke and Furaha's to hang out for a while. I love being at their home because their family is so big and there is always something new for me to see and someone new to meet, which is always nice. I am finally getting to finally know more people than just missionaries here in Bunia which I am thankful for.
On Saturday, I had a hair appointment with Floride (Bisoke's niece) at 10, so I got up, got ready, and walked over to Bisoke and Furaha's from the house I live in here. It's about a 20 minute walk and I enjoyed it very much! Every time I walk somewhere, the kids I see along the way greet me with smiles and wanting to shake my hand and walk beside me. I love it! I even sometimes get random Congolese who walk beside me and chat my ear off in broken English and French, so I have to pay attention to follow the conversation. They talk about everything from schooling to politics to languages - anything to have a conversation with you. :) It's very helpful to getting to know the culture and understanding it.
I got to Bisoke and Furaha's and waited around for about an hour until Floride got there at 11 to do my hair. Typical Congolese time...haha. I expected the braiding to hurt much worse than it did, but after hours of two women laboring over my "smooth, but difficult" hair, I have an African braided head and no headache! They did a beautiful job and I will definitely be having Floride do my hair again. She enjoyed it very much, too, considering this was the first time she had ever done a white woman's hair. Afterwards, all of the women wanted a picture with me, so I posed with them for a few and then played cards with Isolte and Grace (Grace is Bisoke and Furaha's daughter, I believe Isolte is a niece? or a cousin? I'm unsure....) and then walked to the market to pick up some notebooks which, surprisingly, we were able to get for 300 (about $0.25) Congolese Francs each instead of the 500 (about $0.50) we were told they would be. Usually we have them offering us double the price....so that was very exciting. Congolese Francs are something I am still getting used to. I believe the exchange rate is 1 US Dollar= 915 Francs. A whole new currency to adapt to! After the market, we went to volleyball at the MedAir Compound, which is always lots of fun, and then out to dinner at Monusco House, one of the only restaurants in Bunia. It's run by the UN (United Nations) and has lots of American and Indian food on the menu. It's delicious and I love going there for dinner.
I am slowly picking up on words in French and Swahili and am competently able to greet people in French, Swahili, and English now which is very helpful. I laugh whenever I greet them in French or Swahili and they break out in a smile to see me trying to speak their language. Even though that usually results in them rapidly conversing in French or Swahili at me (I say "at" because I don't understand most of what they are saying), it is still enjoyable.
Count so far:
Proposals= directly? 0, indirectly? 4
Conversations in multiple languages at once= 6
Kids shaking my hand= 7
Walks throughout Bunia= 4
Please pray that God would guide me in what His will is.
 |
| Braids... |
Maranatha.
-Kelly
Love the braids Kelly!
ReplyDeleteHugs, Jody
Hi Kelly,
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you're having a fun--and exciting time! I can almost hear the "joy of the Lord" in your post!!!
PS--I love your hair!
Diane