My first Christmas card!

I got a Christmas card yesterday!.....

from Christmas 2009! Ha! :-)

Honest!

Here's what it looked like when Mrs. Dennis gave it to me. (she collects our mail.)

It looked like someone had spilled coffee all over it, and those tiny black dots all over the place are mold! Can you believe it!? When I opened it up, there was a nice card from my friend, Tracy, in Minnesota. Inside the card, there were more bigger black mold spores! I just laughed when I saw that she sent the card December 28, 2009!! There was also a really nice picture of her family, and it was still intact, with no mold growing on it!

It really made my day to get this card! Of course, the Rwandan post office had written on my letter in French that it had reached them already wet. Yeah, I don't believe it! Ha! But I think it's hilarious that it's been hanging out MIA at the crazy post office, and now that it's almost NEXT Christmas, they thought it would be ok to deliver it to me now. :-)

I've heard stories of things taking this long to arrive, but this is a new record for me! Until this 11 month card, my record was a box that took 3 months. This definitely takes the cake.

Thank you, Tracy, for your lovely Christmas card! Merry Christmas ya'll!

Delicacy

This announcement appeared in the KigaliLife newsletter today. It is legit. They eat these things! My curiosity wants me to pay the $4.50 for a packet of this scrumptious delicacy, but I think I'll pass. I can buy a whole lot with $4.50, ya know.

Hello,



Its the rainy season and indeed that time of year for the one and only delicacy that is: Nsenene! [Grasshoppers]. Already prepared, packed & yummy, yummy, yummy!! Ready for your immediate consumption at only 3000 rwf a packet.

Please call 0758888806

No thanks.

Intore Dancing

I forgot to blog about the Intore Dancers last month! We were treated to a wonderful Rwandan "Ballet" last month at an icecream social at the preacher's house. This was the third time I had seen the Intore Dancers performing, and it was by far, the best performance. It's such a neat cultural experience to see. Intore dancing is really an art form in Rwanda, and was started many centuries ago by the kings. But they perform it like a play, and there are 3 main parts to it. The Ballet (songs), the Intore (dance of the heroes), and the Ingoma (drums.)

The Dance of the Heroes is performed by men wearing grass wigs and carrying spears. This is supposed to depict warriors returning from battle and celebrating their victory. They move their arms from side to side, and make warrior cries. The warrior cries are individual to each dancer and represent how many they have "killed" in battle. Both the men and ladies wear bells on their feet, which creates a great rhythm. Their "battles" turn into a great artistic display of dancing, and jumping and drumming. The guys train so they can jump many meters off the ground! So neat to see! The ladies look so graceful and elegant, as they support their "warriors." Watching these Intore dancers was such a privilege!

Small world

At our big Thanksgiving feast, I noticed a new, but familiar mzungu face. After I got a closer look, I realized it was a fellow Merriewoode girl! Can you believe it!? Libby was a camper, about 13, when I first started as a counselor back in '01. Then she eventually became a counselor too. She's an Alabama girl, and just graduated from UVA and is here in Rwanda for 3 months volunteering. We laughed at the odds of us meeting up in Rwanda, of all places, and we had a good time talking "camp." And of course we definitely got a picture so we could make the Merriewoode newsletter. :-) Such a small world!

Great is His Faithfulness!

"Great is Thy faithfulness," O God my Father,

There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not
As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.

"Great is Thy faithfulness!" "Great is Thy faithfulness!"
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
"Great is Thy faithfulness," Lord, unto me!

Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above,
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thy own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Give Thanks

I think I even like Thanksgiving better than Christmas! It has more of a "togetherness" feel for me, and not too much hustle and bustle that often surrounds Christmastime. And fall is just my favorite season...I love the sounds, sights, smells, weather. I miss watching American football too. There's plenty of football here, just not the American kind. This is going to be quick, because I have to hurry home and bake an apple pie and make deviled eggs! But I wanted to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving, and let you know I'm very thankful for your thoughts and prayers and your generosity in so many ways. I have so much to be thankful for this year! I am truly blessed!

I miss spending this holiday at home, with family and friends, and fun times. But we're celebrating here too! I'm headin' over to a friends house tonight, where 40 of us are gathering and enjoying a huge feast of foods from all over! To say I'm excited is an understatement. James has had 3 LIVE turkeys running around his compound all week. Ha! Not live anymore. My friend, Jennifer helped me make my very first apple pie from scratch last night. I never realized how time-consuming pies are! But lots of fun to make. We actually had school today, but just for a half day. My kids learned about William Bradford, the Pilgrims, the Mayflower, and Squanto. We planted corn and squash in our garden this week and wrote thank you letters to Jesus. We made thankful turkeys, and multiplied and divided with corn. And my kids LOVED learning to sing "Over the River and Through the Woods" and "Albuquerque Turkey" (to the tune of Clementine!) It was neat to share holiday traditions and history with my students from all over the world. (We also celebrated Canadian Thanksgiving, back in October, by the way! :-)

As I get excited about celebrating this holiday of thanksgiving, I can just look around me, as we all can, and see others that are not as blessed as we are. And we can see MANY reasons to give thanks, and many opportunities to give to others. Let's give thanks to God, our Creator today! Thank Him for ALL things. Thank Him for the clean water that runs out of your sink today that you can drink. Thank Him for your car today. Thank Him for your grocery stores. Thank Him for your health. If you're sick, STILL thank Him...thank Him for giving you the time to rest and be in His presence. Thank Him for medecine, and the money to buy it. Thank him for hot water that comes out of you shower. Thank him for supplying ALL of your needs! Even the ones you aren't even sure about right now! Let's thank Him for ALL things today! Have an attitutde of gratitude! :-)

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever!

I will enter His gates with thanksgiving in my heart.
I will enter His courts with praise.
I will say this is the day that the Lord has made.
I will rejoice for He has made me glad!

Happy Thanksgiving ya'll!

Update on Kelly

Thanks for your prayers for my roommate, Kelly. She is still resting at home now, and finally has a healthy appetite back. She is still weak, and needs to gain A LOT of strength back before she can go back to being our enthusiastic P.E. teacher. But she is on her way! She goes back to the hospital on Thursday to get tests done on her liver to check her liver enzymes. So we're hoping for a good report. The jaundice is gone, and her cheeks are looking rosy again, so we don't refer to her as "Yellow Kelly" anymore! :-) Thanks for your prayers ya'll!