Friday, December 11, 2009
christmas tree
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Thanksgiving and the rainy season
Saturday, November 14, 2009
my birthday!
Monday, November 9, 2009
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
friendship
i have been recently challenged to think about friendship in new ways. i have spent the last two months realizing that i am a bit lonely because i do not have friendships here in zim like i have had in the past. and if you know me well you know that friendships are very important to me- so when i say i was challenged i mean CHALLENGED! my lovely friend kylee told me that she thinks i might have to let my ways of making friends and even thinking about friendships die in order to make friends and have friends in zim. i thought about this for a day and a half and then found myself in church listening to a man tell us that we may have to be willing to give up a gifting that God has given us for His glory. we may have to be ready to lay down what we know is “easy” to depend on Him and bring Him the glory for what we actually do. all i could think about was my way of friendship. i have seen it as a gift from God for awhile so it fit this man’s point very well.
i don’t really know what it means to let my ways die. and i don’t know what these new ways will look like. but i do know that i want God to be glorified in my life. i know that i want to love Him more than i love my friends and more than i love myself.
-m
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Made in Zimbabwe
-orange drink concentrate (this stuff is ridiculously popular here)
-hot sauce named “cheeky chili”
-Loose leaf tea and coffee
-Honey (“huchi” in Shona)
-Baking powder, white flour and “brown” flour, all made by a company named “Gloria”
-Various spices, packed under the name “New Seasons”
-Cocoa powder
-Sugar, brown sugar, powdered sugar and salt
-Muesli
-Bread
-Yogurt and milk
-Coke in bottles (cans are becoming prolific now, too, except nobody seems to be collecting them)
-Mr. Freeze, a sort of freeze pop that somebody is always selling after church, at bus stops, etc.
-Lots of produce is grown here, but it’s hard to tell what is imported. I’d guess that our tomatoes, onions, bananas, lettuce, apples, and eggs are grown here, as well as most meat (at the moment, we have some beef mince, sausage, chicken pieces and a beef steak in the freezer—but again I really don’t know where it is from, I just know that ranching is alive in Zim)
-Bleach, vinegar and ammonia
-Our mattress, which is “foam-rubber”—pretty decent I’d say
-And other furniture: nearly everything we have bought for our home (couch, chairs, tables, bookshelf, nightstand) is made on the side of the road close to our flat, from welded rebar and woven grass. It’s incredible to watch it being made.
So what sorts of things are imported, you might ask? Currently we have corn flakes, peanut butter, baking soda, soup mix, rooibos tea, vanilla extract, crackers, fruit juice, instant pudding, cat food, cooking oil, mayo, olives, pasta and butter-type spread from South Africa, and butter from Zambia. Some of these things are also made here in Zim (like oil), but different shops stock different things, as you might imagine.
Our fridge and kettle are from SA, but I think our stove was made here.
So there you have it, a snapshot of production in Zimbabwe, at least of whatever happens to come our way. I certainly enjoyed my little scavenger hunt.
-D
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
A tribute to Zvakanaka
Zvakanaka is our kitten we got our first week here in Zim. He was 6 weeks old when we got him and trained him to use his litter box, not to bite me, and to sleep on our laps. We really enjoyed having him around to cuddle with, and laugh at, and pet something soft.
Unfortunately, he snuck out of our garden one night and was killed by a dog. We are very sad. So Zvaka- know that you were loved and are now missed.
Zvaka was the first real animal that I lived with and then disappeared and we actually found dead. I was surprised at how upset I was at the whole event. I cried much more than I expected. As I thought about it more I realized that Zvaka was the one who kept me company when I felt lonely here. One of the most difficult things I have experienced is not feeling like I have friends around me. So for these first few weeks, as we are making friends, I have found myself lonely and longing for companionship- and many days Zvaka provided a bit of that. I have wrestled with being sad over such a normal part of life with pets- but I decided that I was made to feel and sadness is part of life with the Fall. So my prayer for awhile is that I will continue to choose love over safety in future relationships and that my heart will be sad and weep over what Jesus weeps over. I was reminded yesterday of the many great and real tragedies around me- much bigger than the loss of a kitten. So while I can be sad and grieve a bit over my kitten- I must rise again today and live out of the life that Christ has given me and the command that he has given me to be light, salt, and to love my neighbors. Maybe they will bond with me over the sadness of my loss- and maybe it will open doors to conversation that never would have happened.
-m
Happy 1st Birthday Noku
We are settling in nicely and most days we really like living here- we love our home and garden.
We know how to take the public transport to just about anywhere
We are now getting used to driving on the left side of the road and dodging pot holes and slowing down for the hard to spot speed bumps.
We have found that you can buy just about anything in town (except for a water filter and chocolate chips), you just have to be willing to walk a bit.
We love practicing our Shona and have found that some people in the city are eager to help us and some just want to speak in English.
We are very excited about the ways that Foundations for Farming is growing and especially about their vision for the Peri-Urban (or high density) area.
-m
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Faithfulness to be inconvenienced when others are in need…
...Once my friend Grete wrote this in her blog when she was talking about her community. For years I have pondered this statement trying to put it into practice. Zim offers many opportunities to practice this. The other day we left Harare very early to dive the 250km to Mutare (near the border of Mozambique) for the opening of a herbal clinic. We spent the whole day there and then drove back getting back into Harare after dark and ready to go home. We thought we were going to drop off our other passengers in town where we picked them but we soon found out that they could not catch public transport to their house and if didn’t take them home they would end up walking about 3k in the dark. Normally it is not a big deal for Africans to walk 3k but in the dark it is not a good idea. So we took them across town. I was a little frustrated b/c I was tired and wanted to get home- but someone was in need. And these words came flooding into my mind. And I remembered that really I wasn’t being - inconvenienced I was just riding in the car. I hope to keep practicing it.
In other news my allergies have found a new way to manifest themselves- puffy sore eye lids! It isn’t overwhelming but it is annoying.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Zimbabwe
Thursday, August 27, 2009
sometimes i think i'm great...
Sunday, August 16, 2009
rejoicing and weeping
tim keller said in a sermon that you cannot truly enjoy something unless you share it with someone else. i think the same principle applies to mourning. in romans 12:15 paul encourages us to rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep.
i think we were made to do this. as i thought about mourning and weeping i realized that it is so difficult to keep to yourself. we weren't made to mourn alone. so i'm not. i will refuse to take the easy way and the way that the non-christian culture around me want me to react. i will not put on a tough face and tell myself to keep it together. the tears don't always come but the mourning is there.
i will weep and mourn and ask others to join me. and i hope that i will do the same for those around me when the time comes.
-m
Friday, August 14, 2009
a faith that trusts that God will provide
the second thing that stuck out to me where abraham's words, "here i am". years ago i knew i was supposed to be in missions when i heard the passage in isaiah of him saying, "here i am Lord, send me". when i read these words again my heart jumped knowing i am being sent because i am willing to go.
so this sermon sticks in my head and heart as we prepare these next two weeks before getting on a plane for zim. we prepare and will get on that plane saying, "here i am" and with faith that is trusting for God to provide all that is good.
-m
Thursday, August 6, 2009
we all call it vacation
Thursday, July 23, 2009
i am deeply loved
Monday, July 20, 2009
storms to rainbows
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Faith to be Stong
Give us faith to be strong
Father, we are so weak
Our bodies are fragile and weary
As we stagger and stumble to walk where you lead
Give us faith to be strong
Give us faith to be strong
Give us strength to be faithful
This life is not long, but it's hard
Give us grace to go on
Make us willing and able
Lord, give us faith to be strong
Give us peace when we're torn
Mend us up when we break
This flesh can be wounded and shaking
When there's much too much trouble for one heart to take
Give us peace when we're torn
Give us faith to be strong
Give us strength to be faithful
This life is not long, but it's hard
Give us grace to go on
Make us willing and able
Lord, give us faith to be strong
Give us hearts to find hope
Father, we cannot see
How the sorrow we feel can bring freedom
And as hard as we try, Lord, it's hard to believe
So, give us hearts to find hope
Give us faith to be strong
Give us strength to be faithful
This life is not long, but it's hard
Give us grace to go on
Make us willing and able
Lord, give us faith to be strong
Give us peace when we're torn
Give us faith, faith to be strong
Sunday, July 5, 2009
4th of july
it has been a long time since i have celebrated the 4th of july in the us. for some reason i found myself getting really excited as i read about the festivities that were planned in the small towns around MTI. dan and i caught the end of a long parade in monument and then walked around the vendors of a small street fair. one of the people we were with commented that small town america is where you find the american spirit you think about on days like this. and it was true. i really enjoyed walking around seeing people in all sorts of red, white, and blue.
later in the evening we went to the other town to watch the big fireworks show! again it was fun to be surrounded by the people who call this place home. and the fireworks were great! :) we got to stand right under them, shivering and enjoying every minute. so thanks small towns around me! it was a wonderful last 4th of july for awhile.
-mary
pictures from CO
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Giving
So what's the alternative, according to this guy? He pointed out that when the rich young ruler asked Jesus what to do with his nearly-perfect life, Jesus didn't tell him how much the disciples could use his support....instead he pointed out a way for him to grow spiritually, through radical charity. So, supposedly, the point is not meeting your needs but encouraging people to live lives more characterized by giving than receiving.
I may be butchering this concept, but it was pretty impressive on the big screen. The idea of never "selling myself" again is tantalizing...not to mention ministry to donors. Ideas?
On a different note, I flew to Tampa on Friday for Shane and Helen's wedding, only to fly back on Saturday. Ouch. But the wedding was beautiful and I'm glad I went. Would have been better with Mary, but at least it was just one night apart.
-Dan
Friday, June 26, 2009
we are good at many things...
i'll start with MTI. we have spent the last two weeks (and will spend 3 more) just outside of colorado springs. since dan already went through both training programs- he spent his days outside working on the landscaping. i sat in PILAT- Program In Language Acquisition Techniques. we filled our days with thinking about how to go about learning a new language when we arrive in the countries we are going to, practicing the thousands of sounds that are not in the english language (did you know we only have 44 sounds?!), practicing some of the techniques we should use when we arrive by learning various languages (for me it was russian), and various other things that will help us as we learn to communicate in a new way. i really enjoyed this training. i was pretty intimidated by the whole idea before i started and very intimidated by the idea of learning shona in a few months. now i feel very equipped to learn shona. and i am excited about it! :)
i also found a new game that i love to play! mexican train domino's. i have stayed up far too late a few nights playing - but it was always worth the loss of sleep for the fellowship!
dan, of course, won the hearts of many little people, which helped us build relationships with their parents. missions is bittersweet for the missionary and those close to them. it is a constant stream of building relationships and then saying goodbye. it was hard not to cry today just watching people say goodbye and when it came time for me to say goodbye it just got harder. and at the same time it is absolutely beautiful! we are all going out- all over the world- to share Christ. wow!
ok that's all for now. more to come
-mary
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
home
on monday we got to mti in colorado. it is the place we will be the longest (five whole weeks) until we get to zim. so the first thing we did was unpack our suitcase and put our plants in the sun. this morning was the first full day of pilat, the language learning part of our training. we sang the hymn, How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord for devos and the second and third verse caught me:
When through the deep waters I call thee to go, the rivers of sorrow shall not overflow; the flame shall not hurt thee; I only design and sanctify to thee thy deepest distress."
-mary
Friday, June 5, 2009
i've been pondering...
on another note, i told you i would get back to you on how i feel about buying our tickets to zimbabwe. i feel good about it. we have spent months preparing for this. God has constantly provided along the way. i say: let's do this!
Friday, May 29, 2009
we just spent a lot of money
i'll get back to you.
-mary
Thursday, May 28, 2009
memories continued 07
oh my achin' back
lessons learned: ease into farming in zim. it will be better for everyone. and work on strengthening those back muscles.
-mary
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Monday, May 25, 2009
take two aspirin and call me crazy
So, after that long intro, here we are in NY, where we spend the first three days working on the farm that gave me my start in farming. I was really looking forward to the work (you know, fresh air, using my muscles, etc.), and I was not disappointed. We mulched brassicas, seeded sweetcorn, transplanted peppers and eggplants, prepped land for tomatoes, and played with the dogs. Now, it didn't surprise me, but you don't really ease into farm work here. So we we're a little sore. But grateful. But sore.
I'm struggling with how to introduce this next paragraph, so here goes: Mary was stretching her back a few days ago, and something horrible happened inside her back muscles, and she couldn't get up for 24 hours. It appears to have just been a run-o-the-mill muscle strain (thank you webMD), but it was definitely a big deal...I mean, she couldn't move...but thankfully she's up and (cautiously) about now, which is cause for celebration. So, I brought my wife to a farm, and she spent a day in bed. Yes, we are moving to Zimbabwe to work with farmers. No, I'm not worried :)
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
our adventures in cali
we started our time in oakland with jeff and sarah. this is really my first time meeting them (the actual first time was our wedding but that is not a day for meeting new friends). dan went to college and served in intervarsity together with them. and i am forever indebted to them because they were the organizers of a trip to ECHO where dan heard about NMSI and therefore met me. so thanks jeff and sarah! because i do not spend a lot of time looking at maps of CA, i had no idea that oakland is right across the bay from san francisco. so our first full day, while jeff and sarah worked, we toured the city. we had lots of fun learning about and riding cable cars, walking the hills, seeing famous things like lombard street, alcatraz, the golden gate bridge, fisherman's wharf, and sea lions basking in the sun! we also met up with dan's friend jen, who he went to high school with and had not really seen since! we had lots of fun with her and ate at the stinking rose- famous mostly for having garlic in just about everything! the next day we drove to napa valley to tour wine country. it was beautiful to just drive through the hills and see vineyard after vineyard. i thought a bit about the passages in the bible about vines and fruit that comes from them. i like being connected to the land- even if it is just through sight and thought.
we left oakland to fly to LA to visit some of my friends from college, rachel and warren. i love the random times i get to spend with rachel and warren, which because of our locations happen vary rarely. on sunday they planned a cookout with another couple and family that we share friendship with. joy we know from our milligan days. she met her husband, jordan while serving in australia with YWAM and now they have two beautiful children. tim, i know from NMSI and introduced to rachel and warren. he and his wife, becca live out here and now they are all friends. so we had quite a strange reunion/meeting. it was so good to just share about our lives and ministries about people who understand or are interested in it. while we stayed up far too late, my spirit was encouraged by time with friends who have known me for quite awhile. for most of this week we are trying to rest up for the weekend of wedding festivities ahead. we have no idea what to expect from these events but we are excited and honored to participate. one thing we have done here is eat some amazing food. like last night when i had carne astada fries. yum! and tonight we are doing the "taco crawl" where you go around and eat at various taco trucks in town. sweeet!
the best part of this whole time has been realizing how grateful i am that i get to travel through the rest of my life with dan. the way God works is amazing and i am in awe of the partner He brought to me.
-mary
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
On the runway again...
This morning as we were getting ready, I had a flashback of sorts, to the airport in Johannesburg (Joburg, affectionately), which was/will be our last stop before we get to Zimbabwe. I remember a profound/auspicious feeling there, as in "you're about two spend two weeks/months in a strange culture"...it was all the more weird because everybody else just seemed to be going about their normal business. I think there's a lot of life that feels like that. So anyway, I thought about that this morning, and I have a feeling every flight between now and Zimbabwe might be the same.
In case anybody's wondering why we're going to Cali (as they call it), my brother is getting married there. Fortunately, we also have several friends and supporters, whom we're more than happy to visit with (that's right, I used "whom").
-Dan
Friday, April 24, 2009
memories continued 05-06
in early 2006, all the girls moved again. this time i moved in with stacey, who five weeks later got married to derek. we loved our five weeks together. i learned a lot and miss her but am glad she and her family are now serving in southeast asia.
in feburary i joined one of our board members on a trip to japan to set up the summer internship we were sending to japan that summer. (did i say before that my job from the time i started at nmsi was to direct the summer intern program?)
in 2006 we sent interns all over the world. here they are at our pre-field orientation.
meanwhile, i worked at the camp missionary and life guard at the church camp that i grew up attending
i then went on to berlin to visit the seidls and talked about the next year's summer intern teams...
and on to india to continue to set up internships and visit the frys and stammers