Christmas at Our House

Christmas was a several day event for us...

Christmas for the four of us, spending time with some friends, an overnight guest, Skyping with family in the States, and getting ready for a visit from family from South Africa.

Peppermint Mocha Recreation

Someone's feeling festive...

I love listening to beginning readers reading the Word of God!

Today the SA Hammetts went back home, so we drove with them partway to the border and stopped to do some fun stuff on the way. Things got a little crazy in the backseat with Tanni Rachel. :) 

Merry Christmas!

It’s the age-old story that never grows old… how God became a man and came to earth. But what? How can this be? For centuries, men have been trying to understand this. Movies have been made, books written, and every year around the world, little children dress up to reenact the most striking moment that has ever occurred in human history.

Jesus left behind everything – this we cannot imagine. Have you ever heard of ‘culture shock?’ It is a coping mechanism that we automatically default to when trying to live and understand a culture not like our own. I’ve been in cultures where it was a step backwards from my own – sanitarily and technologically. Yet, I still live as an American, dress as an American, and have my culture in my home. It is a minor shock to me to visit houses where there is no electricity, no running water, and yet, it is nothing compared to the shock I would receive were I to change my entire life to live that way.

Imagine the difference for Jesus. We can’t fully, because we don’t know the glories of Heaven… but can you start to get a glimpse of the difference for Him? He didn’t come to a digitally advanced age. He didn’t come to a well-educated and conquering nation. He didn’t come to a wealthy family in a good situation. He didn’t come as a full-grown man, or to royalty, or even to what most of us would call ‘clean’ circumstances. Instead, He was born as a baby, a helpless little baby who couldn’t even feed himself. He came as a Jew, to a poor carpenter and his penniless young bride, in a stable surrounded by the animals. Welcome, Lord Jesus. That would have been the ultimate ‘culture shock,’ and yet He did it willingly… for me.

What a picture of love! What a picture of mercy! What a picture of grace! No matter how many times we may reenact the precious scene, no matter how many times we may ponder on what everyone was thinking or feeling… we will never, ever be able to realize the complete picture of what happened the night that Jesus was born. So much culminated with His birth – hundreds of years of prophecies were fulfilled in a tiny little baby in Bethlehem.

Tonight, on this Christmas night, I am so thankful that He decided to come. I look forward to the day when I can be with Him in Heaven, and maybe then I’ll fully realize what it was for Him to come. Probably not even then. I hope they have instant replay, because I’d certainly like to see it! :)

'Tis the Season...

Made a huge batch of sugar cookies... iced with lemon, mint, and cinnamon. 

...for making cookies in the 'cool' breeze of a fan.
...for playing Christmas music and chuckling every time someone sings "the weather outside is frightful."
...for drinking cinnamon coffee and eating a bowl of watermelon.
...for turning the air con down as low as it can go, and simmering a pot of cinnamon and lemon on the stove to create the right Christmas 'atmosphere.'

{in progress: quilt}

Material prewashed...
Then cut into strips, and then into uniform little squares...

A general idea of what I'm envisioning...
We'll see what it ends up looking like. ;)

Stuck much?

Why, yes... it is rainy season here. Why do you ask?

December 16th, 2010

It’s late at night, but my stomach won’t let me wait until morning. Why this sudden midnight pang of hunger? I make oatmeal… I overpour and end up with a huge bowl. Fruit flies buzz around a banana that has broken open. I peel off limp skin and mush a knife through. Oatmeal with mashed banana… I feel like I’m six again. I crave the comfort of this food.

Today was one of those wonderfully busy days that isn’t stressful. Things start going in the morning and everything falls so nicely into place, so at the end of the day, you look back at all you have accomplished, and yet you don’t feel tired.

As we ran errands – picking up mail, getting price quotes on printing supplies, the hardware store again – I realized that I am becoming familiar with this Africa. Things no longer look new and strange. We drive by ladies in tribal dress, Zulu boys selling brooms, the homeless man who scavenges, zealous carwashers beckoning us into their stalls. None of these give me cause for second glance… this is the Africa that I know. Thorn trees, dung beetles, and stray dogs receive as much attention from me as the trash that blows in the wind. Is it good that this place is feeling normal?

Home again to hang laundry and clean up lunch dishes… the guys are off to Bible study; the afternoon has begun, and with it passing rain showers. With our new dining table, we now have a small table for the office, so organization has begun in full force. With our new dining table, our house is beginning to look more like home. Little touches here and there make our space more comfortable and more effective.

We all gather in the kitchen to have toast – it is really just the vehicle to try mom’s freshly-made peach jam. A nearby orchard gets two crops of peaches a year… first come, first served. To make our peaches last longer, she mashed and preserved them. Do you really think it will last that long?

Soon it will be dark, and I settle down for some Scripture writing. I’ve always loved the book of John, but I’m gaining a new respect for the book of Matthew while writing it out. Such things as I’ve never noticed before are jumping out. We sit together to listen to a sermon from home. The dog snores through the whole thing, though occasionally waking to lick my foot in affection. (At least, I surmise it is affection!) I keep my hands busy and work on making a memo board out of a ruined whiteboard. (We bought it last year while here, but since that time, someone wrote on it in permanent marker… oops.) I cover it in fabric, sew the corners, and tie ribbons while listening about Jesus our Counselor.

Cleanup around the house and preparing for tomorrow bring us to now… I'm sitting here thinking of many things while eating my bowl of oatmeal and mashed banana. I'm missing snowstorms and Christmas caroling, but I'm glad I can work in the garden and have long-lit days. I'm missing my boots and my sweaters, but I'm so happy for freckles and flip-flop tan lines. Such conflictions I have to have deal with! And yet, of one thing I am sure - I love comfort food.

Sewing Adventures... or what I like to do when I have the time

We were blessed to be given a disabled old sewing machine, which my brother was able to fix for our use. It has to be run on a transformer, and our only little plastic table shakes under its action, but we've had fun with it! My mom was able to sew some kitchen curtains, as the windows were an odd size and we were having trouble finding premade curtains to fit. This week, she's been working on some curtain toppers for our living room. It looked rather like a hospital waiting room - white ceiling, white walls, white curtains, tile floor. :) Our new curtains help pull color out of the furniture and soften the look of the whole room. It's a work in progress, what can I say.

One day, as my mom and I were deliberating over fabric choices for the living room, I spied these cute cotton prints, which happened to be on sale. I had the brilliant idea to buy three different kinds to make some culottes (split skirt) for my niece for Christmas. Now remember, I don't have a pattern, nor did I have her measurements at the time... but who was I to wait for that? 

Hhhmm... so here's what I ended up with:

The pink ones were my first endeavor, and turned out beautifully. I was rather proud (in a good way, of course ;) of myself that they actually turned out! My sis-in-law sent the measurements, and I was only two inches off in the waist, which was easy enough to fix! The second thing I made was a circle skirt out of the third, blue fabric I bought. That is still in process... and at this point, I think its future life will be a doll's skirt. LOL! I wanted to make another pair of culottes out of the purple fabric, but they ended up too narrow in the hips for the niece that I had in mind. No worries... I just cinched the waist and hemmed them a bit more, and they will be a good present to send to a smaller, younger niece in the Spring. Good thing I have so many nieces. :) 

(Just a side note... those of you who grew up wearing homeade culottes will appreciate this. Can you see the little tags I put in the back? That was always my pet peeve, all the years growing up with culottes. I could never, ever figure out which was the back and which was the front. I have vowed that the next generation of culotte wearers will not undergo the same stress!)

So then from the scraps I made this, all handstitched:

This little doll quilt only took me an hour or so to stitch up. I put in one of the DVDs I brought with me, and just sewed away. It was a very relaxing project, and will be a good birthday present for, you guessed it... a niece! :)

I've done hand quilting before, but always small projects - pillows, doll quilts, and once a very, very small throw (more like a lap rug). For years, I've been *meaning* to get around to making a full-size quilt, but other things always took precedence. I've always had quite a stash of crafting and sewing supplies on hand and projects in various stages of completion. I decided that now is the perfect time to work on quilting. If I do it by hand, it doesn't take very many tools, and I can work on it in the evenings that we don't have internet or power, or when I just want something relaxing to do. So I went fabric shopping again today:

I love the traditional Tswana fabrics, but I'm not a big fan of the Tswana dresses the ladies make with their traditional fabric (hhhmm... not quite my style). The fabrics always have a small, detailed, white print on blue or brown. I bought three blue and three brown, in six different patterns - one meter of each. Then I bought three meters of a plain white material. I prewashed it all and it is hanging up to dry right now. Then I will cut it all up into blocks, and lay out my pattern. I'm thinking of doing something very, very simple... I have in my mind exactly how I want it to look, so we'll see if I can pull it off.

We'll see if I can get this done before I go back to the States in about a year! My plan is to just handstitch the quilt top, then it will be easier to transport home, where I can back it and then I will have to quilt all the layers together. So this may be an ongoing project, but I thought that it would be easier to transport the quilt top and finish in the States, than to do the whole thing here and have a more bulky quilt to transport.

Those are the plans... I'll keep you posted. :)

Today is a good day

There are many things that make this a good day, in a string of good days. 

-The weather has been beautiful - breezy, overcast, and cool*ish*. It doesn't really feel like December, maybe more like September, but it is lovely all the less, and puts one more in the holiday spirit. This is my second Christmas in Africa, so I suppose I'm getting used to it - as much as this PA girl can get used to not having snow on Christmas day. 

-We got our front door unwelded and a gate put up, so we are now able to use the front entrance instead of going around the side all the time. :) 

-The internet connection is working well enough tonight to actually let me upload some pictures! Its strength comes and goes, and usually when it comes, the list of things to do and check and write is long. But I've missed blogging with regularity, and I'm feeling more word-inspired these days. Maybe it has something to do with not having anyone to talk to here (well, besides family, but you do get tired of talking to each other all the time :). I even changed my blog around a bit in anticipation of more posting!

Brilliant beauty

-Sunsets here are gorgeous... but quickly fleeting. A sky like this will last less than a minute or two, then a moment of twilight... and then dark descends. It still surprises me. 

Princess Kiara

-I really like having a girl dog. :)

Beginnings of a modest garden

-Yes, our yard needs a lot of help. We're working on it, a little bit at a time. We have a walled-in yard all the way around the house, but it isn't very wide and there is no grass. We had some grass planted in our courtyard last week, and we're working on resurrecting the flower beds. We'll see how well the garden does this year... we planted squash, watermelon, tomatoes, okra, and beans, and then I planted a little herb garden with cilantro, thyme, and parsley. I'm on the lookout for basil seeds.

Scripture writing

-I was doing Scripture writing last year when we were here, but when I got back home and into the busyness, it fell out of my routine. I had intended to read through the Bible this past year, as I have done for several years in a row. Once I got through the NT, Psalms & Proverbs, I took off on some other studies of interest until we moved here. So I decided to abandon my original plan of reading through the entire Bible this year, and started writing in Matthew instead. It's been such a blessing - so much is opened up to you when you are taking the time to write each word carefully. 

Cookie baking

-We have some guests coming this week as well as a trip planned to a neighboring country. Cookies are a must for times like these. In fact, I made a triple batch of triple chocolate chunk cookies, and I think I will be baking far into the night. I've baked 6 or 7 sheets already and I'm only halfway through my dough! Maybe I'll just finish up in the morning... then the house will smell like fresh-baked cookies all day! Yum. :) 

I am convinced that one of the greatest and most under-estimated pleasures in life is sleeping in a bed made up with freshly-washed, sun-dried sheets. There is nothing sweeter or softer... it's like you can feel everything good about sunshine seeping through the fibers and lulling you to sleep.

It's up! It's up! The Christmas edition of Grace & Honor is up! :) Enjoy!

What DO You Do All Day?

I've had several people ask me just in the last week what exactly it is that I do over here. Since others are asking, I thought maybe some of you were wondering too. :)

It is counter-cultural of me to be here, living with my parents on the foreign mission field at the age of 25. Most missionary kids go back to the States once they reach 18. So first, let me tell you why I came to Africa. In May, I graduated with my Master's degree, and I am so glad to be done with school! With my parents packing up to head off to the mission field, life as I knew it was coming to a close. No longer could I live with my parents. Moving out and finding my own place meant that I would have to find another job. I loved working at the church, but to be perfectly honest, there was no way I could pay a normal set of bills on those wages. It worked great when I had minimal expenses from living at home, but moving out on my own meant I would have to find another job. I had nothing against working another job, but honestly, I loved working for a ministry with a purpose. I loved knowing that everything I was doing - big or small - was contributing to the ministries of my church. Working a secular job just didn't have the same satisfaction to it. So the other option was to come with my parents to Botswana. And why not? There was nothing holding me in the States. I love Africa and her people, and I could be a help here. So that is when I determined to come over here and help with the ministry, for at least a year, but maybe more.

I'm not going to lie and say this has been easy. The hardest thing has been the loss of my independence. No longer do I have three rooms to myself and my own bathroom. No longer do I have the ability to set my own schedule and eat whenever I want. No longer can I jump in the car and go shopping, or run errands. I'm a girl, so it's not exactly safe for me to be running around town by myself, nor do I have my own car. No longer do I have friends around to hang out with, or opportunities to be involved in all the things I enjoyed at home. No longer can I take walks by myself or even with the dog. No longer do I have spending money. Okay... the loss of a steady income is probably the hardest one for me! :) Everything is different now. I'm either at home, or I am out running errands with my brother or parents. BUT - the blessings far outweigh the drawbacks, and I'm so thankful for this opportunity in my life.

So what DO I do all day? What a good question - I'm so glad you asked. :)

First, let me say that I am NOT at home just sitting around. There are a lot of negative connotation that can come with the term stay-at-home-daughter. Whatever your view on that (that is another whole post right there!), I can guarantee that I am not a stay-at-home-daughter that is just twiddling her thumbs waiting for the closest thing to a Prince Charming to come. I HATE being bored, and you already knew that if you knew me. I have a hard time sitting still for long. :)

My main area of responsibility is our correspondence school and literature ministry. We have almost 3,000 correspondence students, so that alone creates a great need for someone to oversee, grade, print, and mail the Bible studies. In addition to that, we print and give out quite a bit of literature - from salvation tracts and gospel booklets to discipleship material. The past couple weeks I have been very busy in sorting out what literature was already here, getting the masters filed away, reformatting things to a new paper size, and updating our Bible study database. I think we are finally ready to roll - but we still have only half of our equipment for the print shop. Until our container arrives, I have to be content with only our Riso (high-speed duplicator) and one long-reach stapler... all folding, cutting, and collating must be done by hand.

In addition to our literature ministry, my dad is still overseeing Challenge Press in Emmaus. We haven't done much yet, but I know there are some new publications in the works that will give me plenty to do in the evenings.

I always love the opportunity to do Bible studies, but on an African timetable, this usually eats up large portions of your day. For instance, I schedule to meet a lady for a Bible study in the early afternoon. I arrive half an hour early, because that's when I could be dropped off. She is at least an hour late, and then when she arrives, she brings a friend with her, so we rearrange and do a different study, which must be cut short because they have to leave. By this time, I've spent well over three hours in preparing and waiting, just to have 15 minutes to talk about something else. Just remember - Blessed are the flexible; for they shall not be bent out of shape. :)

My dad and brother have several group Bible studies each week in a handful of different villages. Sometimes I get to go along to these, but often they are in the evening, and it is safer if I just stay home. Besides, someone has to stay home and do all the work!

Other than that, it's just life as usual. Except, it is not life as usual, but life in Africa. Everything takes longer here. Bills are paid by going to the bank or the post office and standing in line to pay cash. This takes several hours each week. There is not a one-stop-shop to get everything you need at once. Just the weekly grocery shopping requires stops at four different stores, and even then, you never know what they will have in stock. We make a menu and plan our shopping list, go to the store and buy what they have available, and come home to change our whole menu! There are very few processed foods, and the ones they do have are very expensive, thus just about everything we make is completely from scratch. With tile floors, a dog, and unsealed windows blowing in dust all day and night, we sweep the floors just about every day and the kitchen more than once a day. How glad I am that we have a washing machine again!!!! The first three weeks we were handwashing like we did last year, and that takes up HOURS of your time! We've done quite a bit of entertaining already (even without a dining room table!) for meals and overnight guests, and look forward to a group of guys coming in January for a time of training. In all this, Mom and I work very well together, knowing each other's strengths and weaknesses. :)

The last part of my day is taken up with communication. I'm so blessed to have friends around the world, but keeping in touch with them takes a conscious act on my part. It's not like we see each other at church each week to chat - I must make the effort to stay in touch, as well as remember to pray for them. I LOVE getting emails, so write me, please! (Okay, shameless plug for emails over. :) Seriously, there are a few of you I've been meaning to write and will eventually get to it, but if you want to hear from me, you could always write first!)

Add to that our trips to Gabs about our visas (4 hours away, so that's an all-day event!), trips back and forth to South Africa (last one-way trip from my brother's house was made in record time - 6.5 hours!), and other things that come up as various crises and appointments, and you know what it is that I do all day. But above all, I'm so glad to be right where God wants me to be for now. I'd much rather be doing this than living the "American Dream" all by myself - working 40+ hours a week, just to keep an apartment and a car. I love Africa! :) Life is good. :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

We've been in South Africa since Tuesday celebrating birthdays at my brother's house and doing some shopping for things that we couldn't find in Botswana. Today we head to another missionary's house to celebrate Thanksgiving with them and spend the night. Then it's home to Botswana in the morning!

Today actually 'feels' like Thanksgiving as it is rainy and cool. I made some pumpkin spice coffee creamer, and I plan on putting on a sweater and drinking pumpkin spice coffee all day. Happy Thanksgiving!

We have so very much to be thankful for. At this time last year, I never imagined I would be back here again for the holidays this year! I'm thankful that we can be here to celebrate with family, even while we miss the family left behind.

To friends and family spread out across the United States and through the world (the more I travel, the more my close friends reach into all corners of the world)... we love you and miss you and wish our internet was better so we could stay in touch more! We are thankful for each one of you that has prayed for us and made a difference in our lives.

It was a good Sunday today! I took some pictures, but my dad stole them all for his blog. :)

I made a little friend! When visiting at her house this week, she began crying when I left, saying she wanted to go home with me. But whenever I pull out my camera, she gives me this serious look... no smiles, but she still make a pretty cute photo. :)

Decorating a New Room

I believe I promised you some pictures of my room. I've taken some pictures 'in progress', but there has really been so little progress, I'll just show you before and after. :)

This is when we moved into the house:

Not the very day we moved in... because then I had a green blanket for a curtain. :) This was probably two or three days after we moved in when I got real curtains for the window. As for paint color choice, my room has the best color in the house! However, when you look at the wall up close, it is very much in need of another coat of paint. There are stains, holes, patches in various stages of completion, and the trim at the ceiling comes down onto the wall about two inches. I'm still not sure how soon the painting will get done... it may be a few months until we get to it. So I decided to start cozying up my space for now... just working with what I had.

Here is my room today:

Just about everything I have added to my room has been a happy, accidental find. For the most part, I did not go looking for anything in particular, I just happened to be out shopping for other things (like groceries or office supplies) and I would happen across something - on sale! - that I thought would go perfectly in my room! 

I'm in love the curtain topper fabric. It's a brownish-orange, depending on your angle and the time of day. The lampshade and the edges/back of the pillow are all the same color as the curtain fabric, though it's hard to tell in this picture. For my fellow mistreaters out there, the brown curtain is currently straight-pinned. :) 

The mosquito net I bought mostly for looks, but it's come in handy a couple powerless nights!

I'm so thankful for that dresser! You can see the closet all the way to the left of the picture, but I have the smallest closet in the house and no hang-up space for dresses. We picked up the dresser from some Americans who were having a moving sale, so I inherited it because of my closet size. :) Of course, considering I only had two suitcases coming over, everything I had *could* fit in the closet, but it is nice to have the room to spread out and organize.

You can see my paint chips on the wall... I'm leaning very heavily on a taupish-gray color... but I'm afraid it will look too much like wet cement. I would really like to have a gray room... it's a very soothing color for me, and I think it will be cooling as well. Also, with all the warm and natural elements in my room already, I'd like to counteract with a cool wall color. I'm still undecided... I keep leaning toward a creamed coffee color, just like my old room. :)

Some things I'm looking out for right now: I'd like to find a nice big mirror to put over my dresser, a big basket to use as a laundry hamper, and a duvet cover for my bed. I will probably look in South Africa for a nice duvet set and ask for it for Christmas.

Anyway, that's my room as of now... always changing! But it suits me for now, and it's nice to have my own little space again. :)

Weather Whiplash

I'm amazed at the great and drastic changes in the weather here. This rainy season has just started and has been so much rainier than it was last year at this time. It makes for some interesting situations if you don't remember to be prepared for anything.

Here's a day that happened recently:

3PM - It is sweltering hot outside, when suddenly the wind picks up and it begins to rain. We rush to take clothes off the line and remove things from the yard, while the big drops first stir up dust and then begin to pool into puddles.

4PM - The rain stopped, the sun comes back out, and the heat returns. Within 30 minutes or less, every evidence that it has just rained is evaporated.

8PM - Out of nowhere, a big, black cloud rolled by and dumped us with rains and gusty, cool winds. I actually put on a light sweater!

11PM - It's beautiful outside. Inside, the windows are shut tight to keep away mosquitoes, but it's the first time I've gone to bed without being sweaty since I got here.

5AM - I wake up early and open the windows to the first rays of sun. The weather is still beautiful, and I go back to bed feeling the fresh, cool air on my face.

7AM - I get up (for real this time) and notice that my room is already heating up from the sun's rays. The breeze is still nice, but I pull the curtains to try to keep out as much of the sun's warmth as possible.

9:30AM - We are just leaving for church, and it is hot outside! I can tell it's going to be a very long service outside.

11AM - We are about halfway through our church service, which is more like a Bible study. We are sitting on a curb in the market, in a corner that doesn't get much activity on the weekends. It is mostly shaded where we sit, but still I am already sweating.

1PM - We are home and turn on the air conditioning. It's got to be over 95 degrees outside, which is not bad considering we've broken 100 most of the days this week. It's nice to have lunch in the cool indoors after the hot morning outside!

3PM - Way off in the distance, a storm cloud approaches. More rain perhaps?

5PM - Sure enough! With the rain comes another drop in temperature, and we fling open all the windows to enjoy the respite. Within an hour, I have my sweater on again. :)

Weather whiplash, anyone?

I'm very thankful that we are getting more rain this year. When we were here last year from October-December, I don't even remember it raining at all until the end of November, with the exception of a couple night showers. Even then, it only rained a few times up until the time we left and never for very long. This year, we've had some incredible thunder storms and great lightning displays (and, consequently, a lot of power outages). It also rains at some point, just about every day. But when it is so sweltering hot, it is definitely a relief!

Book Sale!

As we walked out of the store the other day, Sam wondered about an interesting setup on the other side of the parking lot. We had seen a truck and trailer with several tables of something set up over there as we entered the store, but didn't get closer to check it out. Curiosity got the better of us, and we decided to see what was for sale. Imagine my surprise when we drove over to find a book sale. (!)

This picture doesn't do justice to how many books were available... this trailer, plus the back of a truck, plus two folding tables' worth. The books were all old, dusty, and well-loved. The English gentleman (we've dubbed him Bookman Bob since we never asked his name) says he buys them at SPCA sales in South Africa and brings them over to resell here. I've yet to find a used bookstore here in Francistown (or even much of a real bookstore), so I was ecstatic.

I limited myself to four books - one I'd read before, one I'd been meaning to read, one I thought I'd try, and one the gentleman recommended as we chatted about our reading interests. I now have these four books propped up on my dresser with the one book that I brought and my two journals. I hadn't realized how much I missed having my books around me.

Since coming to Africa, I've read several books on my Kindle, and I'm still very much in love with my e-reader. However, there is something to be said of the hominess a shelf of books brings to a room.

Next time I see Bookman Bob, I'll have to stop and pick up a couple more books. And maybe I'll ask him what his real name is, too. ;)

A Storm in Francistown

ETA: Within a couple hours of posting this, our power went off again. Why... I have no idea. This time we make toasted sandwiches on the grill and had just finished supper when it came back on! I love Africa! :)
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Sometime on Friday our power happened to go out. We were gone at the time, and when we arrived home, realized what had happened. Maybe I’m just getting to be too African, but it didn’t even phase me. We weren’t sure what caused the outage, but does it really matter? Life goes on...

Friday evening the power was still out. Our dinner plans obviously weren’t going to work out without a stove, so Sam and I decided to go get some bread for sandwiches. We thought we would open the fridge once to remove everything we needed, and if the power was still off after supper, we’d eat up the ice cream. :) On the way to the store, I noticed the dark, ominous-looking clouds rolling in to town. We also noted a large truck of security guards who were being dropped off to various houses serviced by that particular security company. With the power off in the whole neighborhood, it was part of their responsibility to still protect houses under their contract. I was excited about the prospect of a storm, hoping it would cool it off. I think it was the hottest day since we’ve been here, well over 110. The winds were picking up and we gave our neighbors a lift, since it looked like it was going to pour any second.

Arriving at the closest shopping center with a grocery store, Sam let me out at the front door just as it started to rain. The shopping center is shaped as a short, squatty T with the entrance at the bottom. I walked in and immediately noticed that there were twice as many security guards as there usually are, and they all had their sticks out and ready. (Power outages are prime times for looting in stores, and they had obviously had this problem before.) Just as I reached the intersection of the T, the wind reached its worst. If I was in Pennsylvania, I would have thought it was a tornado! The power flickered, a couple of the plexiglass panels in the ceiling broke loose, showering everyone below with rain and debris. I ran for cover as people started to scream, and security guards began closing the doors and gates on the shops closest to the front. Just as Sam came running in from the rain, the power died completely and the security guards finished closing up the grocery store.

So much for our bread… but we weren’t leaving any time soon. By now, we were all the way at the end of the T, the furthest away we could get from the main outside entrance. Yet still I could feel the rain blowing in, and trash and debris were swirling all over the shopping center. People huddled in all the corners, trying to wait out the storm. After waiting several minutes, we decided to make a run for it, getting soaked in the process. The far end of the parking lot was several inches deep in water… it just had nowhere to go!

Back home again and we decided to use up our milk and have cereal for supper. We also tried to make chocolate chip cookies on our grill. It was a valiant effort, producing results that were pretty good, but can be improved on. In fact, I foresee a power outage tradition in that! We lit our candles and sat in the semi-darkness swatting mosquitoes for several hours. I think that is the worst part of having the power go out… the air is absolutely still and stifling; you feel like you can hardly breathe. All windows open to catch the slightest breeze, and then the mosquitoes come. Ick…

Using the last of the water in our heater, we all took lukewarm showers and sprayed down with bug spray, ready to settle in for a long night. I had just purchased a mosquito net which I looked forward to using, but while nets keep the bugs out, they also keep any moving air out, making it even more stifling, especially when all is pitch black. Just then, the power came back on. What rejoicing! It went off and on some more that night, but most of the night was spent in relative comfort.

Saturday and Sunday it continued to flicker off and on. We found out that Tonota, a village just a few kilometers from us, did not receive a bit of the storm. However, just on the other side of town, whole trees were rooted up and billboards blown over by the violent winds. Much of Francistown lost power, and we were among one of the few sections that received power by Friday night. Some friends of ours did not receive power until Sunday afternoon.

When we found that out, it certainly put some things in perspective, considering we were mourning the loss of our internet. Our hotspot had been blown over and though we tried to find out what was going on, we soon realized that our main provider was still out of power. Monday we took a trip to Gabs to check on some paperwork and were thrilled when we got home and realized we had internet again. :) 

There are many things that I don’t like about losing power – the main thing being that we lose the use of our fans. Even if we didn’t have our air conditioning, I would be fine as long as there was a working fan. The nights are the worst with oppressive heat and buzzing mosquitoes. But there are also some aspects I love of not having power… I like the quiet evenings with only candlelight and conversation to amuse us. I like the challenge of making things on the grill… boiling water for coffee and frying chocolate chip cookies on tin foil.

Just another day in Africa…

Meet Kiara

Those of you who are friends with me on FB have already seen pictures of our house, but for security reasons, it is best if I don't publish those publicly. Down the road, once I start working on my room, I'm sure you'll see pictures of that. :) I can, however, show you a picture of the newest member of our family!

Meet Kiara:

She's an 18-month old Rottweiler, trained guard dog, and seems to have a sweet temperament. Rottweilers don't make friends easily (from what I've read about them), so she's still getting used to us and a bit reserved. Don't let her cuteness fool you! She can look pretty mean when she needs to. Her name is pronounced like Tiara, only with a K.

I've missed having a dog around the house!

November 1, 2010

The first day of November, and I’m finally starting to feel at home. We’ve been here almost a week, and the house is still bare with temporary corners and empty spaces, and probably will be for a while. Saturday I hung curtains, and now they glide in the breeze, edges skimming over the floor like they know they belong. Still I had a hard time envisioning this space for potential and making it mine. I’ve expounded before about the evils of overhead lights, so I purposed that today I would purchase a small table and lamp. I’m here to testify that it made just the difference I was looking for! My room is beginning to take shape, all because of a little warm light. Ideas float in my head, and I have paint chips taped up around a little dresser someone gave to me. I make a list of things to look for, on sale if possible! After months of packing up and cleaning out, and then living out of suitcases, it feels so good to finally be creating a home space instead of tearing one down. Tonight I sit in my room and think of possibilities in this new space, instead of mourning the one that I lost. I’m still sad over the loss, yet I’m excited about moving on. After weeks of feeling displaced and transitory, it’s nice to stay put in one place… at least for now. :)

A picture on the wall shows the beaming smiles of some of my closest friends, and I miss them all so much. I’d be lying if I said this wasn’t hard, because it is. It is hard to just walk away from everything and everyone that I love, but there is really nothing new in it, because it has been the state of my life for the past years. Flipping through my passport on our trip over, I realized that I’ve made at least one international trip every year since I graduated from high school. The majority of those were to Africa, so you can see where I’ve made my second home. The day we arrived in Francistown, we were hot and tired from traveling all day. We had two vehicles, but in order to fit everyone and everything, there were bags stuffed in literally every crevice. It was exciting, but everyone’s nerves were frazzled and all were slightly parched and mildly starved. I have to be perfectly honest and say that I was not being very grateful at that moment. Botswana never looked so barren, our house never looked so bad, the road between our house and my brother’s never seemed so long; I was gritting my teeth and getting ready to settle down to a year of miserable. Then who should I see but my dearest Botswanan friend? Though I missed her, written to her, and prayed for her often, when I saw her, I realized just how much I had missed her. The feeling was evidently mutual, for we both started crying on the spot and hugged over and over. It was so wonderful – I realized again just why I am here. She is a new Christian, alone in many respects, and so desirous of learning about God and growing in her faith. She, and many others like her, are the reason we are here. Just like a little warm light in a room, a little warm friendship can make all the difference in the world.

So here I am tonight, musing over how little incidents can make things seem so much better. It’s amazing how much better life will look if only you change your perspective.

“I am still determined to be cheerful and happy, in whatever situation I may be; for I have also learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends upon our dispositions, and not upon our circumstances.” Martha Washington

The mercies of God, what a theme for my song...

It's a rainy and cool Sunday morning. I'm sitting on my airbed with a cup of coffee, listening to the rooster down the street and the spectacled weaver in the thorn tree outside my bedroom. This house is much quieter than our last house in Francistown, because it is not located right next to a main road. This has pros and cons - pros because it is quieter and there is less traffic, cons because you must walk farther to catch a taxi and more 'rural' means more snakes. (Sam saw one on the other side of our wall yesterday!)

I've started this post three or four times, but it is very hard to describe a house without pictures. I've been waiting to take pictures until we are a bit more settled, but I see now that will not be the case for some time. We are here in our house, but first my brother and his family were here with us (a big help in getting moved in) and tonight we have a couple other people coming to spend the night. Many things in the house are transitory - some just temporary solutions until we can find/buy/make a permanent answer, and for other things we are just waiting until our container comes in. (February? Can we pray for an early January delivery?) Also, there are so many blessings, and I want to be sure that I give them all proper acknowledgement. So that's why I haven't posted this as of yet, and I do apologize, because I know many of you have been waiting.

Since I still don't have pictures, I will just sum it up: Wednesday, we made the trip to Francistown from South Africa, crossed the border and made the trip in pretty good time, considering there were 9 of us, 3 under the age of 6. We saw our house in the afternoon, set off some bug bombs overnight to kill all our little live-ins (the house had been vacant for several months, and you could tell by the population which had set up camp) and found a room for the night. Thursday we made our first shopping trip to buy cleaning supplies and items needed to get the bathrooms functioning. We spent all day cleaning with a vengeance... carrying away all the trash, scrubbing every square inch, making a list of needed repairs. Friday we moved in with our suitcases and made one big shopping trip to stock the kitchen. We had a few extra blankets to cover the windows, and with the help of some curtains that someone left in the house, we had all the windows covered. Saturday morning the previous tenant arrived to take her things, and said that the curtains were hers. So Saturday the priority became buying curtains for two reasons - to block the sun/heat and to block the gaze of our curious neighbors. :)

When we arrived in South Africa a couple weeks ago (a month ago? a year ago? it seems like ages in some ways...) a mutual friend put us in contact with an American doctor who is leaving for the States. When this doctor and her family moved over, they shipped a container with American furniture. This worked out as a blessing for all involved. They needed to find someone who would buy their things, and were more than thrilled that missionaries could get them, and gave us very reasonable prices. We needed a lot of furniture, and had resigned ourselves to having to buy the cheaply made things here. But this way, we get quality furniture for a very good price, much cheaper than if we had bought all our furniture in the States and sent it over in the container. Furthermore, the doctor's family has been extremely helpful in hooking us up with other contacts of who to go for when we need certain things. One of the most frustrating things about Africa (particularly Botswana) is that many things must be custom-made, but people don't necessarily advertise that they do those things. For instance, if you need furniture, one of the best ways to get it is to have it custom-made. However, you don't just go down to the furniture-making store. No, instead you have go to a certain fabric shop and talk to one particular guy, because his cousin is the best furniture-maker and will give you a good deal. Very confusing when you are first coming in to town, so we are very thankful for the help and information they have given us.

There are so many blessings, big and small, that have happened along the way - I'm sure I'll never remember them all. Just the very fact that we have been here less than 3 weeks, we have a house, we have two vehicles, we have INTERNET, and we have most of our furniture and kitchen supplies is nothing short of a miracle. This is Africa! Things aren't supposed to work so quickly!

Mom and Dad went down to pick out a refrigerator on Wednesday before the store closed, hoping they could purchase it and schedule it for delivery the next day. They looked at the ones available, Mom chose her first choice (the biggest one!) and they decided to go with that one. They approached the salesman to get things set up, and this is what he told them: "This one? Oh, come back tomorrow." At first, they were frustrated, thinking the salesman was being lazy because it was too close to closing time. But then he explained that THAT particular refrigerator was going on sale the next morning, and if only they would come back the next day, they would save a lot of money. Can you believe it? They showed up the next morning and had it delivered the same day.

That happened with so many things: we went armed with our list of necessities to Game (think mini-Walmart), trying to get our kitchen set up with the basics to get us through the weekend at least. First, there were ceiling fans on sale, from 600 to 200 pula! Almost unheard of in Africa to have such a sale, so we bought two. The dishes my mom chose were on sale, the toaster we chose had a floor model (still working, don't worry we checked:) on sale, there was a beautiful clock on sale, and many other things. Some were the necessities, some were extras, some were sales on a better model than what we would have chosen, some were sales on the very model we would have chosen. Time and again, it happened. I'm still shocked when I recount it all, yet I guess I shouldn't be. Isn't God so good to us?

This is starting to get long, so I will just end it here, and hope to get some pictures later today. It is Sunday, rainy and cool, but it is such a relief after being so hot all week long!

An African Miracle

After being in the country for 48 hours, my dad was able to find the perfect house for us and rent it, buy a washer and dryer from a family who is moving, get a lead on a vehicle (which will actually be our second, main vehicle, as my brother found us a beat-up car to use for running around), and get a lead on some furniture from another family who is moving.

If you know anything about Africa, you know this is amazing. I'm still shocked at how fast it all happened.

Of course, I guess I shouldn't be shocked, because we've certainly been praying and I know many others have been praying as well! Thank you!

There are still loose ends to be tied up, the most important of which is our visa from the Embassy. Still waiting to hear a definite word on that, but trusting that all will come through at the right time.

Still hanging out in Tzaneen, as we need to wait a few days before my dad can reenter the country. My head is swimming with ideas, mostly with the fact that I get the delightful pleasure of choosing a paint color for my room. The house is pretty nice, but needs some TLC - a good cleaning and fumigating of the insects will be a good start (it's been sitting empty for a couple months, as if bugs need any invitation to take over in Botswana), but a fresh coat of paint will also do wonders. We've got some other improvement ideas, and can't wait to get in and get busy. Colors, colors... should I go shocking? Neutral? Pleasant? Soothing? I'm definitely thinking a cool color would be nice...

I'm still amazed. Most missionaries find it takes them a good month or more to locate and rent housing in this area of the world. 48 hours is definitely a record... but so was the amount of time it took to raise support. ;)

In the mean time, I've found things to keep me busy.

Wherever I go, literature and correspondence schools seem to follow. Good thing I travel with a one-touch, long-reach stapler. It's like a coffee press and a pound of Starbucks - it's always good to have tucked away in the suitcase, cause you never know when you'll need it.

Why I Write

I borrowed one of my sister-in-law's books, and found At the Edge of the Village to be a quick and enjoyable read, giving one missionary wife's memories of living on the Ivory Coast. A very interesting and funny book, as well as a good look into African culture in that area of the continent.

I came across this little passage as she was writing about each of her children, and I really liked the way she expressed it. This is one of the reasons that I write... to capture a moment or a person with words, just like you would with a camera.

"There are certain fleeting moments in time that, if stopped and held, say so much about a person - actions that bring personality to life and render it special. I love to capture such moments, no matter how small or mundane, like a camera imprinting a scene and immortalizing it forever in my mind." -Lisa Leidenfrost, At the Edge of the Village

Present and Accounted For

I've been enjoying the break of being disconnected from online life... have you noticed? I'm starting to miss my cell phone though, if I'm perfectly honest.

We are here and safe in South Africa, hanging out at my brother's house in Tzaneen. I feel like I've come back home. :) With all the craziness the past month, it has been nice to take a few days to relax with them. The kids have changed so much in just the past few months, particularly Baby Luke, who isn't much of a baby anymore! (His second birthday is in a couple weeks!)

Now comes the exciting time of being in limbo - we need visas, a house, and a car. All these things take time, especially since we are now in Africa, so we are just enjoying the days as they come.

-------------

"In the part of my life that is already past, and in the scenes of providence that are already cleared up, I cheerfully confess, and sing, He hath done all things well. This is confirmed to me by the experience of many years; so that I may blush, when I see some of the mysteries of Providence in part unriddled, that I have had such low apprehensions of the love and goodness of God, measuring His wisdom by my shallow comprehension, His power by my cramped span, His love by my unbelief, His goodness by my evil eye, and His ways with me by my ways with Him..." 

-James Meikle, Solitude Sweetened

This Weekend

Some posts about this weekend:

By Anne
By Jackie
By Debbie
By Bro. Shorter

Did I miss anyone?

Countdown: 1 Day

Tonight I thought about my last night in Africa, and the things that I was thinking and feeling. We were staying out in the middle of nowhere, kilometers from the nearest person. All around us were the night noises, the calls of the nocturnal world. I leaned back to stare straight up into the clear night sky, and the beauty made me catch my breath. There, far away from human light and pollution, I gazed at the wonders of the night lights, revealed like I had never seen it before. I’ve often marveled at the stars, but never have I seen so many span the sky as I did that last night in Africa. How close they seemed in their brilliance, nothing like the pasty white dots we sometimes see in more populated areas of the earth. As I lay back and started straight up, all I could see from horizon to horizon was millions of brilliant stars – each one seemingly hanging from an invisible thread and dangling just above my nose. It was almost as if I could touch them, but I was too afraid to break the stillness by reaching out my hand.

There I lay, contemplating the handiwork of my God and the insignificance of myself – how could I think of anything else in view of such splendor? “When I consider the Heavens, the moon and the stars which thou hast ordained, what is man, that thou art mindful of him?” Ever so gently, He reminded me that He is mindful of me. Do you know that God has a perfect plan for my life? There is no reason to worry or fret. He has each step planned out; I only need to trust. There is no fear in love, for perfect love casteth out fear. I was not fearful that evening, only thankful that He would be mindful of me, and that He would think of me enough to create a plan for me. And then, I wondered if I would ever return to my beloved Africa again. I asked Him, if He would see fit, if I could one day come back. My heart was so full, I couldn’t even find the words to write my thoughts that evening, but the memory was forever impressed upon my mind.

And now here I am, a mere nine months later, and I am going back. In just a matter of hours, I plan to lay back and once again, view the African sky.

Countdown: 2 Days

Last night was the appreciation banquet at LVBC for my dad for his 23 years of service at the church. There were 3 videos shown. First was a recap video of the last 23 years...

You Have Been Faithful - Pastor Doug Hammett from LVBaptist on Vimeo.

Next was the unveiling of a video the guys have been working on for our website. It came together wonderfully! After that, they showed the 'blooper reel'... so hilarious!

Who Are We? - Lehigh Valley Baptist Church from LVBaptist on Vimeo.

Who We Really Are....Blooper Reel from LVBaptist on Vimeo.

I love my church family... I'm going to miss them so much! Tonight is the sending service... I start tearing up every time I *think* about it, so I think it's going to be a rough night.

Countdown: 3 Days

Eyeball packing... that's what I'm doing today. I'm not quite ready to do the actual packing, so instead I'm stacking things up, eyeballing how they might fit in the suitcase, weighing the heavier items together to see how I want to split them up. I'm convinced that packing - good packing - is a cross between an art and a science. I tend to be more of a stuffer than a neat folder or roller, but there is a method to my madness, and much of my packing is thought out beforehand. When it comes down to the actual packing of the bags, I should be able to knock it out in under an hour on Monday night... but only because I've spent the time now preparing for it.

I'm also picking out my outfits for three important occasions: the banquet tonight, the sending service tomorrow night, and the flight on Tuesday. Tough, tough decisions, I tell you.

Tonight is the banquet... I'm ridiculously excited about the pie selections that will be there. :)

Countdown: 4 Days

Packing up what's left of the kitchen today --- it promises to be a busy weekend, and we're not planning on doing much cooking anyway. :)

Countdown: 5 Days

"...rid yourself before God of everything that might be considered a possession until you are a mere conscious human being standing before Him and then give God that." - Oswald Chambers

I read this quote recently on a missionary friend's Facebook page, and it struck a deep chord with me. That could have something to do with all the giving up of physical possessions. But surrender is more than just giving up physical possessions. The Lord has used this time of 'giving up' to teach me some valuable lessons - about myself and about surrender.

The point is not how much or how little one is giving up or one possesses. The problem lies much deeper than that - it is an issue of the heart. God may want me to be a pauper, or He may want me to be a king, but either way, He wants my heart and He wants all of it. 

When you take it all away, all the possessions, all the titles and honor, all the family ties and obligations, what do I want out of my life?

My Desire

Lord, I don't want my feet to traverse the world; I want to be Your feet, taking the good news to someone who has never heard. I want to be Your feet, responding in perfect sync, no matter what direction You want me to go.

I don't want my hands to hold possessions of worth and esteem; I want to be Your hands, holding out the eternal Word of life. I want to be Your hands, ministering to all You bring into my path.

I don't want my eyes to view situations in selfish interest; I want to be Your eyes, viewing situations with an eternal perspective. I want to be Your eyes, looking past the problems to see the possibilities.

I don't want my lips to speak my own praise; I want to be Your lips, speaking always the truth in love. I want to be Your lips, uplifting things that are just, pure, and good.

I don't want my own wishes, wants, or will to be first; I want to have Your will, always and perfectly worked through my life. I want every breath that I breathe, every step I take, every move I make to be just what You want from me.

"Lord, make my way prosperous - not that I achieve high station; but that my life may be a exhibit to the value of knowing God." - Jim Elliot

Countdown: 6 Days

Today may have been my last day with my little car, so I put on a jacket, put the top down, and ran some errands, blasting the heat when it got too chilly. It's been a faithful little Sebring... I shall miss it so.

Countdown: 7 Days

My Bible was falling apart... I've taken the binding completely apart two or three times and glued it back together. This last time I used super glue, and haven't had any problems with pages falling out for several months. :)

However, now the 'leather' cover was beginning to deteriorate, peel, and fall off. I briefly thought about replacing it with a new Bible, but the thoughts of abandoning my old friend with all its familiar markings and placement scared me. Seriously... I can picture a verse in my mind and know exactly where on the page it is located, even if I can't remember the exact reference. I've had this Bible for well over ten years, but the pages are still in wonderful shape... it just needed a new casing to keep the pages intact.

I decided to go with a recovering in fabric. I'm not sure how long it will hold up, but it looks nice for now, and if the fabric does start to peel off or fray, I just used rubber cement so it should come right off for replacement. If it helps me get a few more years of service out of my Bible before I have to replace it for a new one, I'll be happy!

Countdown: 8 Days

Monday Evening X 3 =

3 little 'helpers'

3 batches of apple dumplings

and 3 times as much flour on the floor as in the pie dough

:) 

(And consequently, not a lot of pictures of the process...)

Countdown: 9 Days

Yesterday, after a busy and productive morning and early afternoon, Sam and I headed for a small section of the Appalachian Trail that we've hiked several times - Bake Oven Knob. (Yeah, I've blogged about it before.) Though most of the leaves have just started changing around here, and the peak viewing season will be in a couple weeks, we won't be here then, and this was our last opportunity to go. The weather was gorgeous and I'm really glad we made the time to do it one last time...

Countdown: 10 Days

Oops...missed a countdown day. This is what I intended on posting yesterday. :)

A friend took me for my first bubble tea experience. It was amazing!!! I could see myself getting addicted to it. :) I saw this often in Thailand, but never had the opportunity to really try it, and I really didn't know what it was. I'm pretty sure I'll never find it in Africa. :) 

Countdown: 11 Days

Much of my time has recently been taken up by this website:

It gives me great joy to have all the changes complete - changes which I've been thinking of and planning on for some time now, but just never got around to doing. What a relief to have everything streamlined in such a way that this will (hopefully) not take too much time in the coming months.

I'm really excited about our new columns and authors. We had a little writer's luncheon a couple weeks back, and it was such an encouragement to talk about writing articles - how we all struggle in doing it, but how we all enjoy the process as well as the finished product and what a blessing it is to others, even beyond the ladies in our own church.

Could you take a moment a link to us? You can find different sized banners at the bottom of the Contact Page, but just taking the time to share our link with one or two of your friends would help us out so much! (You can also 'like' us on Facebook, subscribe to our RSS feed, or sign up for our email list to receive notices of updates.) If you do read an article on Grace & Honor that makes you think or encourages you, please take a moment to leave a comment for the author. That is one of our 'new' features, and I think it will be a blessing to our authors to know that there are people out there reading! On the technical side of things, I get the advantage of seeing those signed up for our email list and seeing the stats come in through our counter, but many of the ladies who write have had no idea how impacting their articles are, all due to lack of a comment box.

Now, it's almost 2 AM... it's been an extremely long day, so I should probably go to bed. Tomorrow, er... today, has some pretty exciting stuff planned!

Countdown: 12 Days

Such a rainy, blustery day. Such a long to-do list! But it seemed as if everything I touched today had issues. I was more than happy to watch my nieces and nephew for awhile. I won't get to do that anymore in 12 days! We got to do several fun things in our time together, like visit Chick-fil-a, assemble Cootie Bugs, and run through the rain. 

Here's to hoping there are less issues involved in the evening - I really need to knock some items off that list!

(Also, a short post about a Goodbye Dinner the Halls gave for Sam and I. We had so much fun!)

Countdown: 13 Days

Now we get down to the interesting meal combinations while trying to clean out the stockpile in the fridge, freezer, and pantry. Today was Spicy Chicken Vegetable Soup with Beans and Matzo Balls. I still haven't decided on tomorrow's menu feature, but maybe a Cream of Everything Soup would be in order?

The Last Special

I sang my last special with my groupies :) this Sunday evening. It could have been better - I felt like I was flat the whole time and throwing their parts off, only because I was on the verge of crying. So yeah, it could have been better... but for posterity's sake, I wanted to post it here.

Picture someone with no reason for living,

With no hope of smiling again.

Imagine a world with no golden daybreak,

Enclosed by the blackness of sin.

Then the scene is bathed in beauty and glory,

Transformed by love's sweet embrace,

The hands of the Savior, erased all my sorrow

And painted this picture of grace.

How skillful the hands of the Artist, 

Who painted this picture of me,

He saw with the eyes of a Master, 

How beautiful my life could be, 

Where once was a portrait of gloom and despair,

This masterpiece hangs in its place,

It's signed with His blood and it's framed with His glory, 

This beautiful picture of grace. 

Ashes and ruin, that once filled the picture, 

Have vanished and faded from view, 

And beautiful touches of mercy adorn 

This picture He painted anew.

Such peace fills the eyes of the one He created, 

A smile gently rests on his face, 

Since Jesus erased all the guilt of my past 

And painted this picture of grace.

How I Tie My Ssekos

I bought Sseko sandals at the beginning of the summer. I <3 them! It's a bit of an investment up front (as far as shoes go) but having interchangeable straps really appeals to me. I love having a sole that has shaped exactly to my foot...and between different straps and different tying methods, I can wear them a thousand different ways. Plus, they are very African-looking and very travel-friendly, which is appropriate given my upcoming lifestyle change. :)

However, I found that the tying and untying of them meant that if I was running out the door, I would grab a pair of flip-flops which were easier to slide on. My Ssekos were more comfortable and better for my feet, but the time factor was preventing me from wearing them as often as other things.

I tried a flip-flop tying style for my Ssekos, but it just didn't work for me. I had a hard time getting them tight enough, and then when I finally did, they loosened up after a couple hours of wearing. One day, as I slipped on a cheap pair of flip-flops with a little metal ring holding the straps, I got the idea to tie my Ssekos with a washer, although once it's all tied, you can hardly see it. :)

Here is a little instruction video I did for others who also wear Ssekos:

Do any of you have Ssekos? What are your favorite ways to tie them? Let me know if you try this style, or any variations that you do!