Khawaja Outing

Eddy and I have started "running" (loose term for a ridiculously slow jog with copious amounts of sweat, pain and panting) in the mornings before the sun rises/heat. We went yesterday, stopping by a friend's house to take her along. Afterwards we were invited to go to a local wrestling match, held in a different section of town. We quickly accepted the invitation, as it is always fun to experience cultural events.These wrestling matches have been going on for years, especially in one tribe from south-central part of the country. The matches are held every Friday, supposedly all day, in a "suburb" outside of the city. Surrounded by a fence/wall made of blankets and carpets, the "arena" is 2 large concentric chalk circles placed on the sand/dirt. People, predominantly men (there were approx 5-10 women out of the 1000+), crowd in along the perimeter, sitting on the ground, on mats, homemade chairs and standing. It was a fairly organized event, costing about 50 cents to get in, an announcer commentated about the competitors, the calls and the matches. We were 2 families and a few stragglers, all khawajas (foreigners), standing out like sore thumbs in the packed arena. We managed to befriend some of the locals in our "section" and learned a little more about the event. Some of the wrestler's names were pretty colorful... In Arabic: The Foreigner Without Any Money, Gun Powder, School, Kaka (a famous soccer player from Brazil)... While a bit on the hot side, we still had a fabulous time cheering on the contenders!

Visa Update: We will go AGAIN to the visa office... Jess' passport/visa still MIA.

Photos: The Arena (panoramic view)... Our friend Christine and I taking in the event... One of the matches, note the wrestlers right arm; pieces of the Koran are placed in small leather pouches and tied around the upper part of the arm for protection... Another match... A little girl selling sunflower seeds and peanuts... The contenders would strut around the arena, at times carried around by teammates (WWF style)...

Everyday Reminder

While we have gotten considerably more busy and seemingly consumed with school life, we still are daily reminded of why we are here and the purpose we long to fulfill. Every morning around 4:30am the prayer calls start and then continue throughout the day 1:00pm, 5:30pm, 7:00pm and 9:00pm. Now that Ramadan is approaching the prayer calls tend to linger, with chanting, praying and singing, and in some instances, passionate yelling, for hours.

As you wander through the streets at these times, people everywhere, in shops, offices, gas stations, at the visa office, on the sidewalks and roads, stop where they are, roll out a large woven mat (or if they are alone, a small rug) and begin the ritualistic movements of the prayers. Everything stops. They take off their shoes and wash their hands, feet and faces and rinse out their mouths. Bowing before they step on the mat, they take a place, forming rows of devoted followers. After a few minutes, a leader appears and begins to guide them through the by-now routine 'stand-up, bow down, head touches the floor, return to standing' procedure of the Islamic prayer time. After a few minutes they remain kneeling, turn their heads to the right, greeting the "good angel" and to the left, greeting the "evil demon"... saying, "Asalaam Aleykum", peace be with you. It has become a common thing for us to see. But we have yet to let it become common place and routine in our hearts. A constant reminder for us to pray, ask and believe God for revelation and salvation. At times overwhelming, the depth of their devotion and discipline, we know that God is victorious and His desire is for redemption of all nations, tribes and tongues!

Visa Update: Jess' passport and visa are still MIA... we will try again today.
Housing Update: We have one month left in our current home... the search is on!
Photos: Prayer time at the gas station; cars were waiting in lines to be serviced... Women gather in lines in front of a Sufi mosque... A little girl in front of a house in a now developed refugee camp... Eddy coaching at school...

Church Meetings

Some of our Family here go to the same church in a refugee camp outside of the city and organized a week of nightly teachings/meetings. Eddy and I both had the opportunity to share to the body of about 250+ in their jammed pack mud church about 45 minutes away. The theme was foundational teachings. I taught on hearing God's voice and Eddy on the Holy Spirit. It was a powerful time for the church, with worship, prayer, listening to the Word and questions. As they gathered over a few hours (start times are hard to enforce!) and sang out there soulful African worship, the immense realization of how privileged we are to be used by God; to share in the fellowship of the saints and to lead others to Him. Wow.

We wanted to share a bit about a Family member here that lives in this camp and helped organize the meetings. We have known him and his family for quite sometime now and it was our first visit to his home. We didn't realize that he was living in the camp, or that he had lived there for over 15 years. We were humbled. He and his family and extended family (12-15 people) live in 3 mud huts in a small mud compound. As is the culture, they usually sleep outside. There is no electricity, no running water, no plumbing. He is a man after God's heart and his desire is to continue growing in the Lord- he hopes to study with other Family members during a "second level school" here. Please pray that he will receive the finances that he and his family needs to be a part of this school ($200+ cost of living).

**Visa Update: Jess' visa is still MIA... they said tomorrow (bukra) yeasterday and today told us in 2 days... Insha Allah...




Photos: The Church outside of the city... Our friend and his wife, and 2 nieces... 2 ladies drinking water before entering the church... Eddy sharing some good news!

Motorcycle Dreams

Since our arrival in May, Eddy hasn't stopped talking about motorcycles. With the traffic in the city picking up, the high gas prices, and need for quick and easy transport, we've been looking into it a bit. It just so happens that our boss has been trying to sell his for quite sometime. He brought it in from the states a few years ago, but now that they have a family, feels it's a bit not as useful. He offered to lend it to us for a awhile to see if we like it, if it's something we want to invest in. Originally thinking it was too big, now, after one ride, Eddy is hooked. He's out right now, going for a little ride during the sunset.



On a more random note... Out in our lanai/patio area (hosch) we have some trees and I couldn't help but notice a similarity between one tree and a character in one of my favorite movies.


Photos: Eddy trying out the motorcycle... The tree in our Hosch... Admiral Ackbar from Star Wars: Return of the Jedi... Uncanny isn't it???

On the Job

Always be aware of what you pray for... a few weeks ago we were desperate for activities to be involved in. Today, we can't seem to find a minute to ourselves... great- but how about a happy medium?!? We start the day around 5:45am and usually don't get home until night time. While learning to be teachers, we are still teaching English on Tuesday Nights and recently have had the opportunity to share at a church in a "suburb" (camp) outside the city. Some 200+ people have been coming to the meetings; I shared last night, Eddy shares on Saturday. Our only prayer is that God is glorified and people's eyes are opened to the truth of the Gospel!




Our Arabic classes resume next week. The school will provide it for the teachers; it's free and will be taught 2x/week after classes are dismissed. We are eager to get back into studying!



Basketball season also starts soon. Eddy will be coaching the boys with Math Teacher Jeff and I will be coaching with 7th grade Teacher Stephanie. While our school isn't necessarily the most talented, apparently the family/friend support network dwarfs the competition, with pom-poms, painted faces and Crocodile (our mascot) paraphernalia covering the sidelines. We're eager to get started!



And finally, being surrounded by books all day and reading aloud to classes, I've been touring the shelves and have come across some old favorites... Amazing how just one glance at a familiar illustration or title can take you back to your childhood. Good times.




Photos: Eddy leading the Kindergardeners in PE... Jess reading to the Kindergardeners later that day... One of the best, Author Richard Scary.... and one of my childhood favorites, "Harry the Dirty Dog"-- stir up any memories for you???

SCHOOL!

It's the 2nd week already and the initial excitement of seeing friends and new books has worn off... kids are becoming kids again! As I write this Eddy is fast asleep next to me... at 8:30pm and he's been there since 7:45. He's beyond exhausted. I think the PE teaching fits him perfectly, but the age discrepancies during the day (5 year olds for 30 min, followed by 14 year olds, followed by 7 year olds...etc) is wrecking havoc on his mind, body, and spirit! He's great with the kids, but like kids, their energy can get overwhelming. As he says, "It's like they all have ants in their pants... they just won't stop!". But he's handling them well and has started basketball in a rented gym down the street. The actual basketball season will start in Sept, when we'll both be coaching...

The Library/Nursing is going well too. I get to read stories to the PK-3rd grades and bring age appropriate books for them to select. The older ones come in and wreck havoc on our little place with over 6000 books... I never knew all that went on behind the scenes in those quiet, old-paper smelling facilities, but now I know! The re-shelving, dusting, selecting, processing... wow! And if one more kid asks for, "you know that book, with the cover that is gray... and it's got a face on it... and it's about... um... well there's a girl in it... and um... where's that book?"... Yeah- good luck! And no major injuries yet- Praise God. Just blazing through those band-aids as if they were water. Amazing what kids think needs a band-aid! (2 times the cut was not visible to the naked eye). But we're having fun, learning a ton, and developing friendships with hundreds of Muslim families.

Visa Update: Eddy ventured over to the Visa office today- never a good time. The security office told him it will be one more week for my visa, Insha Allah.

Praise: At church, Eddy talked to a local who has seen 16 of our focus group become Family! PTL!

Photos: An all school assembly in the basketball/play ground area (Principal in the far left)... Eddy and the kids... Jess and the kids...

Best Ball

Yep, we were invited by our "boss" from the school for a round of golf! Expectations leading up to the experience ran low, how nice can a course be here? We had heard of golf clubs in the desert where you carry around a little tuft of sod for you to put your ball on, thus avoiding whacking it on the sand/dirt. Surprisingly, our little course south of the city turned out to have its own built in sod patches for the tees and greens. The fairways, on the other hand, were predominantly dirt, and usually not flat! Undaunted by shabby appearances, we divided into 3 teams, each team sharing a set of fairly decent rented clubs and proceeded to play best ball with the shrubbery, goats and camels that pepper this desolate nation. And it was an absolute blast! Slightly surreal, but fun. Eddy and I felt like we had our first real normal "break". It cost us $5 for 9 holes.




They also have a little driving range, perhaps home to the nicest grass on the course, maybe in the entire nation for that matter. Balls scattered everywhere, we grabbed our hats and hunted a few, hacked away at them and, of course, ran out to gather them up to be hacked at again.




Visa Update: As most of you know, Eddy received his resident permit (visa) last week. My passport is now in the security office; I am applying for a visa as Eddy's dependent. Told it will take only 1 week, we know of people who have been waiting for months. We'll see!


Photos: Eddy and math teacher Jeff with camel... Jess lines up, the greens were a BIT dry, thus hard and fast!!... Eddy takes a swing on the fairway... the fearsome fivesome (minus 1st grade teacher Laura, taking photo)!

New Developments?

Now that we've started our new jobs, we have been able to meet many different people and network a bit. The organization that runs the school also has 6 other facilities focused on education and development. Eddy had a chance to meet with the director, becoming a good friend at this point, and Eddy shared our heart to be in our "target city". Wouldn't you know that the organization has a facility there already! "Facility" is for sure a loose term for a few rooms and some storage space. The best part however, is that the storage space was previously a little shop (ducan) in the heart of the area that we would like to work in. The director said we have full liberty to open Eddy Ice Creem in the space and use their generator, rent free. The only hitch is that we need to start some sort of English program for the Locals... the people we'd like to work with! Needless to say, we were beyond encouraged and are hoping to travel there over fall break to check it out.

Another brewing development has to do with our friends living in the South. They want to start a ferry boat system between 2 towns, where roads are virtually non-existent. They are looking to buy a passenger boat from China. They would have it shipped here, going through our target city. They offered to transport any equipment we might need from China- like an ice cream machine or freezers... Wow! We are still working out the details, but if it actually comes together, what a blessing!

Photos: Eddy's first day with the 6th graders- he had them all in stitches... How we buy our vegetables- per Kilo at the local market (suuq).

First Day Of School

It was our first day... Kids, with parents in-tow, or sometimes vice versa for the younger ones, backpacks on, light blue shirts tucked neatly into dark blue pants straggled infrom 7-8:15am. We tried to get to school early, but had some problems with our Lil' Red Gem (she's in the shop now), so we managed to get there on time- pretty important for the first day! School only goes until noon this week and there are no "specials", PE or Library time. Eddy and I busied ourselves with lesson planning and protocol forming. It was a smooth day and the kids seem eager to be there. We'll see how we sound after a few weeks!

It's cultural here for weddings to be held in the neighborhood; actually, right in front of the house. Whether you live with a paved road or not, plumbing or no plumbing. Our neighbor's daughter was getting married today and we had to (Lazem!) make an appearance. And with the festivities literally right in front of our door (we had to use our other ex-pat neighbor's door to get back into our house) it would be awkward and rude not to show up! The shin-dig doesn't even really start till around 9-10pm and then music must stop at 11pm. As I type the speakers are still pumping out the vibrato voices and synth accompaniment. Our bathroom is outside in the patio (hosch)- so we just took showers one wall away from where the bride and groom are sitting, literally... a bit awkward... thank goodness for the ridiculously loud music obscuring the sound of the toilet flushing and bathroom fan!

Eddy has his visa... still waiting on Jess'... tomorrow, insha allah!

Photos: The Library... before and after, with some splashy decorations : )... The wedding- notice stacked red chairs on right- that's where our door is!

Borrowed Wheels

Yep, there she is! Isn't she perky? It was part of the deal; we would take the positions as School Nurse and PE Teacher/Coach and would in turn have the use of a car for the year... and there she be! So, it's T minus 3 days till "go time" and we're frantically trying to get everything ready. Probably a bit more challenging for Eddy as he'll be teaching PE to 5-13 year olds, pretty much all in the same day. He'll be lucky if he knows his name by the time they all head home... that's a lot of Kid to deal with! But we are both excited and looking forward to seeing how God will use us.

We've spent the last 3 days at teacher conferences learning about classroom management, procedures, curriculum, discipline... I've also been working on the library, my other position, Librarian. Who woulda thunk? We have quite a few books Arabic and English and I believe they have them set up in the Dewey Decimal System... I'm pretty sure I haven't said those words in the last 15 years. So, I might need a little refresher... : )

MORE IMPORTANTLY THAN ALL THAT.... Eddy got a resident permit card today; aka VISA!!! We've been beyond waiting for this little passport addition and it was finally finished today. What a relief! Now that Eddy has a visa, it is virtually impossible for the government to refuse me a "dependent visa", Insha Allah. We'll see how long that takes... Keep ya posted!

Photos: Our little Kia Visto... she's a little roughed up, but does the job! This a metal water cup (Kooz Moya). Everyone everywhere uses these communally to drink water out of jugs, thermoses, coolers... on the street, at bus stations... we have a cooler of water set up everyday with a little metal mug sitting beside it for when visitors come.

Mosquitoes & Flies

Yesterday while out to eat with a German friend we were swarmed by mosquitoes; the worst yet. We've been seeing them in the house as well, especially at night around our bed... nice. The Nile is almost 20 feet higher than when we first arrived as the rains to the south saturate the soil and gush into the river. Bringing with it nice malaria-carrying mosquitoes. We had noticed locals burning something in small clay containers and smoking their houses, but were not aware of what it was for. Our friend enlightened us and said that they use it in their house about once a month to drive out the pesky little buggers.

Excited for possible relief we found the dried sap/sandal wood concoction at the market (suuq) and brought it home for our first "smoke out" experience. And smoky it is! The smell has a twist of citrus and musk, really not too offensive. A small price to pay for mosquito-free living... if it works... So, we'll let you know how the night goes. The smoke definitely took a few hours to clear the house. Flies seemed undaunted, flying kamikaze style through the dense hanging clouds... maybe we'll have better luck with the mosquitoes!

Jobs & The Camera

After much prayer, consideration and discussion we have decided to accept the school positions! Jess will be the school nurse, the first one in the school's 6 year history, and Eddy the Physical Education Teacher and Soccer/Basketball Coach. We are very excited and slightly uncertain of what lies ahead of us... but eager to start! Monday we meet for teacher orientation and classes kick off on Aug. 10th. We will continue with our language studies at night and on the weekends. They will loan us a car to use for the year- wow!- and help us with housing. It seems to us a present from God... where else could a married couple find openings in the same facility for the exact positions they need?? We thank God and ask that he directs our steps as we move forward with this opportunity.

And... drum roll please... We have received our new camera!!! If you haven't been following along with The Camera Saga, we were unfortunate enough to break our camera pretty much the moment our feet stepped on foreign soil. We devised a slick plan to get a new one, contacting friends and friends of friends and had one brought to Europe where another friend would pick it up and bring it back to us. Smooth planning. However, we have come to know that even with the slickest of plans, things just sometimes don't turn out. The camera was stolen out of our friend's bag as she traveled. It wasn't meant to be.

The story continues in The Camera Saga II, where we contacted my amazing mother who researched and sent yet another camera to yet another friend furloughing in the states. Having learned our lesson, we refrained from "counting on it" and decided that if it did arrive, how cool it would be! As the story closes, we walked over to our friend's house tonight, as she arrived here a few days ago, and chatted about her travels... She stepped into the house and returned with none other than... The Camera. Elation; pure elation. I was afraid to touch it!! How something so simple and so easily accessible in the states, becomes like the Pearl of Great Price here! Thanks to all who endured the Saga... and sent your comforting and encouraging words. I can only hope to use it for God's glory and your benefit and enjoyment!

**Our friend also brought Eddy's long awaited US Travel Permit- allowing us to stay out of the states for longer than 6 months (1st year with a green card)... huge relief!!!

Photos: Eddy with friend Faremie and shop(ducan) owner eating breakfast/Lunch (fatur) while waiting for the visa process (borrowed camera)... One of my beloved rubber duckies brought from the states to brighten our bathroom (new camera)... it was late, what else to photograph at night??