Sifi moyo, nitajiribu tena na tena

Shikamoo!

"I won't give up, I will try again and again"

The last week has been a roller coaster of emotions, but today has been the breath of fresh air I have been longing for! I feel as though I am picking up on the language so much more than ever before. Yesterday on the way to music we took the daladala (the public bus) I was sitting in the back as the other girls were in the front. I was able to sit and talk for a good 20 minutes to the Tanzanian beside me in 97% Swahili, 3% English. I felt like had just conquered Kilimanjaro by the time I got off the bus, I was so happy! (fun fact about the daladala: costs 66 cents round trip.)

The chapati Skollar & I made

I have also made myself practice swahili with the 2 ladies who clean our house and the 2 ladies who provide our dinner. Naomi & Skollar (the cleaning ladies) and Susan & Abigail (the dinner ladies) have become my new best friends. Naomi is the one I buy my Maasai jewelry from and Skollar has been teaching me how to cook, Tanzanian style. Today we made chapati from scratch, the real way. We made the dough then rolled it out, curled it, let it sit, rolled it again, and then cooked them. DELICIOUS! We conquered this hour long cooking expedition in full fledged swahili and it was great. I had a good laugh at the end because I was literally covered in flour, the front of my navy blue shirt turned white, and Skollar grabbed a towel and started cleaning me off. I turned around and said Asante (thank you) mama. They both thought this was hilarious and went on to tell me they love me like their daughters and that they want me to come visit their homes.

The current joke with Susan & Abigail is that every time I see them I say, "jambo rafiki yangu" which means hello my friends! They love this and will laugh and say it back to me. This happens about 10 times each night, every night. Sunday night, I was standing in the kitchen with Susan and told her that I liked her bracelets and they were beautiful and then she gave me one, because I am her "rafiki yangu." This small token of friendship meant so much to me. I then gave each of them a Reese peanut butter cup to try and they both really liked it. Between the small acts of kindness from Abigail & Susan and the continuous offers from Skollar & Naomi to eat their lunch with them, teach me how to cook, or sit down and talk to me about my day, I am reminded of their selflessness and their compassion and genuine love truly makes such an impact on my day.

Today one of the other students, Whitney, and I had the opportunity to return to the peanut butter shop and see what we could to help them out. God knew I needed a breath of fresh air and decided the power shouldn't work today. Last week He also knew I needed some time to myself and gave it to me because the women came into town to buy supplies and therefore I couldn't go out there. Since the power wasn't working, we went down to Victoria's home and helped her and Rosie make and jar the pickled mangos. She had a beautiful home and adorable kids. We had to go get sugar and had 3 of the neighborhood kids with us. Billy (Bildad), the youngest, wanted to come but couldn't find his shoes. He is 2 1/2 and adorable. I figured out what the problem was and decided it would just be easiest to carry him. I was able to revert back to my ways of Kenya and I tied him (by myself :) ) to my back and took him with us. It was just like old times and oh, how I loved it. We came back and cleaned the bottles in boiling water, mixed the spices with the mangos, packed them into jars, and then sealed them. The seals were strips of plastic that we poured boiling water on which then melted the plastic creating an air tight seal around the lid. We were there from 10-1:45. None of the women spoke English, so I once again was given the chance to completely practice and submerge myself in the Swahili language. I am feeling so much more confident today in my communication ability and cannot wait to learn and study more so I become more and more fluent.

This afternoon we had a field trip for our health class to a traditional Tanzanian doctor's home. It was a very interesting visit and different to see how much our health care can vary. Tanzania, like many third world countries are trying desperately to integrate the traditional (healing/herbs/spirits) with the modern medicine that we know so well in the states and is practiced in the hospitals here. I also recorded our whole interview, about 45 minutes, so if you'd like to hear it, let me know!

This weekend we were able to visit a different church, it is called Arusha Vineyard and I LOVED it. I feel like the people here are SO alive in their faith and so welcoming and non judgmental. It was wonderful. We sang more contemporary songs and had a message that I think everyone needs to hear. The service was entitled "hearing God at home and in the workplace." We get so caught up in ourselves, hearing what we want to hear, worrying, and being full of fear that we don't stop and listen to God. I mean really listening to Him. It involves putting down everything and sitting there. Becoming able to listen, retain, and repeat it back. God allows community to work through listening to Him because if we do, we will help each other and obey, even when we don't understand. I have to ask myself, "Am I available? Is my heart soft enough to hear God?" A good point was made, if you aren't sure if it is God you are hearing, or just a random thought, try it out, even if just for one day. I want an adventurous life and that is only achievable if listen, hear, and then obey what God asks of me. Ephesians 1: 15-22 really applies to this, but specifically

v18-19: I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for those of us who believe. That power is like the working of His mighty strength....

I am hoping to be able to visit the Rafiki Orphanage in Tanzania on Thursday. My last trip to Africa was in 2009, my mom and I both worked at the Rafiki in Nairobi, Kenya. I am so excited.

I was able to buy apple juice (to replace my grape juice obsession), cheese, apples, and fresh baked bread. These things have increased my satisfaction with my food so incredibly much.

Taarab band

I almost forgot, this weekend was what we termed as music weekend. Friday night we were able to go see the "grandmother" of taarab music. She is about 90 years old. It was a very cool function and very Tanzanian as taarab was born in Zanzibar, an island off the country. Saturday we were able to go to the yearly international music festival. There were different continents set up inside a tent and the applicable countries under the tents. The US had a "american cookout" with a campfire to cook marshmallows and hotdogs on sticks along with Native American teepees. Israel had a beautiful tent set up with hookah inside. The Asian countries had henna tattoos, chinese food, calligraph, and fortune cookies. Each area also presented a form of music or dance. It was an AWESOME free event. That night we saw a string quartet, Soweto, from South Africa. The cool thing about them is that they are black men who are able to play instruments and are well educated who came out of the South African apartheid. They did a fantastic job. The crowd got into it and by the end, everyone was out of their chairs and up at the front dancing. This was definitely considered a higher class function, but it was so great to see different cultures combine, from American to European to African to Asian. If you want to hear some music you can look them up on iTunes or I can send you the recordings I took of the songs. I loved everything about this weekend and the availability we had to connect with the culture in three completely different ways.

grandmother of Taarab

Schedule for the day and it was ON TIME!

There was an African fashion show and I want to make these shorts in an African fabric
The african part of these shorts are the buttons you can't see which are Maasai fabric.

One last bit of encouragement: don't be dismayed, don't give up!

Isaiah 41:9-10. I took you from the ends of the earth, from the farthest corners I called you. I said, 'You are my servant': I have chosen you and have not rejected you. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous  right hand. 

Joyfully His,
Cathy