tonight i got to spend some time with a sweet friend...who encourages me continually in every area of life. i so cherish that time we have together! got to laugh which was much-needed & it spurred me to share with you some of the ridiculous cultural mishaps from the last 4 months or so. enjoy (at my expense)! :) it's ok to laugh...i do...everyday!
from cape town:
- while sitting in church, the pastor made fun of americans. so, we joined in on the laughter...& then faked french accents.
- while getting my haircut, the hairdresser said in a south african accent (think british), "oh, you're graying." i rolled my eyes & though...gosh lady. i KNOW...i'm 26 & i have a few gray hairs but i wouldn't say i was GRAYING. so we proceeded to have a 5-minute conversation about how my dad had white hair at 30. only LATER, when she refused to cut my bangs did i realize she said, "oh, you're GROWING (your bangs out)." no. i am not growing them out. please cut them...& excuse my inability to decipher 'graying' from 'growing'
- yesterday, as i sat at a red robot (red light) the guy standing on the side of the road selling things looked at me with arms raised & mouthed, "what??" not unti then did i realize i was on the wrong side of the road. i high-tailed it into reverse & backed up a good 30-40 yards. praise the Lord no one turned. yes, i am american.
- today, when i asked the learners if they enjoyed camp one boy said no! when i asked why he said, "becuase there was no big foot!" i laughed & said, "what?!" 2-3 minutes later i realized he said, "because there was no big FOOD..." meaning we didn't give them "enough" food. he is one of the most animated kids i know & was simply trying to joke around...little did he know how funny the whole situation would end up being.
from 40/40 in zambia:
you remember you're in africa when...
- going to the "bathroom" involves required multi-tasking (aiming into a 5X7 hole all the while being greeted by bats who fly UP & bees who fly AROUND...& spiders which climb ALL AROUND.
- your favorite part of the day is showering under the stars...after hand-pumping your water from the well & then heating it in a kettle over a fire
- you've killed a snake in your shower by sitting a hot kettle on top of it, successfully frying it.
- you've been in a van with 8-10 people & wondered why it wasn't full yet
- you've made a kite out of a plastic bag & floss
- you've made a homemade mancala board out of dirt & rocks
- you've been hungry so you gnawed on sugarcane
- you've gone to the bathroom in a bucket inside your tent right next to a friend because there's a cow standing outside your tent & it's too dark to walk to the "long drop"/"squatty potty"/toilet
- you've drugged yourself so as not to hear the rats in the middle of the night
- you've had to de-worm yourself
- you've been in a church service where women were dancing/worshipping on stage & nursing at the same time
- you've gone to the bathroom on the side of the road...(do you notice a trend...)
- you realize you talk about going to the bathroom way more than you ever did before.
i'm sure there are more i've forgotten & i KNOW there will be more in the future...but here's a glimpse into the last few months of the journey! loving where the Lord has led!
2 comments:
one of my favs was the ladies dancing and nursing at the same time! i'm not sure i would have survived the snake burning bathroom experience though! agh!
Guess you've had to train yourself to not be shocked by anything! You would win an season of "Survivor" hands down. Thanks for sharing the funnies. Praying for continued success and response at your schools and your spiritual "armor" to be in place!
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