Stars

One of my favorite things to do is look at stars, even when I was in the States. Of course, when I got to Africa, I was hoping for even more than I saw in the States, and new ones because I'm in the Southern Hemisphere.

Well, in the capital city, because of smog and lights, I really couldn't see anymore than I could see in America. Then, in Mzuzu, I came during the peak of rainy season, so the nights were always cloudy.

BUT, the past 2 weeks, the nights have been really clear. I was stuck outside in my backyard the other night waiting for a friend to come and pick me up so I went to stargazing.

I could see so many stars! But, there's this really great spot in my backyard, between to little trees that line my driveway, that if you look up, you can see this huge band of thousands of stars.

This is kinda what I see. (If only I had my Uncle Wayne's IPad app that tells me what it is!) I see this except not quite as much milky white cloud lookin' stuff.

When I first saw it I was just dumbfounded. I couldn't believe I had the privilege to see such an amazing sight and from the convenience of my own backyard. The next night, I put out my blanket, grabbed a cup of tea, and laid out to look at them...mesmerized for an hour.

I was doing some research on the internet as to what this band of stars is...and I think its the Milky Way. Maybe not...I'm sure someone out there way smarter than me can tell me exactly what it is, but boy, is it amazing to look at.

I wish I could put into words what runs through my head when I look at the sky about Jesus' love for us, the majesty and beauty of His creation, the awe and honor I feel to live here in Africa, the gratefulness that my Father would put such a beautiful sight in my backyard.....

I hardly ever took time to marvel at God's creation in the States. Praise him that he made things slow down so much in my life that I can take time to Praise Him through his creation.

Psalm 8:3-9

    ³When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
         The moon and the stars, which You have ordained;
    ⁴What is man that You take thought of him,
         And the son of man that You care for him?
    ⁵Yet You have made him a little lower than God,
         And You crown him with glory and majesty!
    ⁶You make him to rule over the works of Your hands;
         You have put all things under his feet,
    ⁷All sheep and oxen,
         And also the beasts of the field,
    ⁸The birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea,
         Whatever passes through the paths of the seas.
    ⁹O LORD, our Lord,
         How majestic is Your name in all the earth! 

Exciting Days...

Yesterday after "FunFriday" at school, I was heading over to the Laffoon's so that Lisa and I could start making my curtains for my kitchen! I was so excited.

As I was pulling up to their gate (which is on a very steep hill), I stopped and waited for Joel to open the gate all the way. The dogs come running out, as they always do, and were sniffing around my car. I s-l-o-w-l-y pull up to go through the gate, and my car just rolled over this big lump....which was promptly followed by yelping...not to mention of bunch of African women at the bottom of the driveway yelling, "THE DOG!"

So, I picked up the giant Belgium Shepherd and his back leg hung limply. Uh-oh.
The family came running.. They were so gracious, and said if the dog didn't get out of the way, then it was his fault. Plus, now he will just learn not to come up so close to cars.

Well, we piled into my truck and off we went to the vet. The vet said that his leg was broken in about 3 places. They put him in a cast, gave him some shots, and we headed back home.

That night when I got home, my nightguard already knew all about it. Small town....ha.

Today, I finally got to work on my curtains for my kitchen! They are going to be adorable. We decided to run to the local lake/sanctuary for the sunset, so we all piled in the car and headed there.

When we got out, I walked up to the edge of the grass and looked around at the amazing view. Indigenous forest surrounds the lake and it is very peaceful. Almost immediately, my foot felt like it was on FIRE!

I looked down...I had step directly in the path of Safari Ants! There were several on my leg, and PINCHING THE CRAP OUT OF MY FOOT!

Lisa quickly told me to pull up my pants because they just start traveling directly up your body. So, I'm jerking off my shoes and pulling up my pants. I got just a few bites before I got them all off. After we piled into the car again to head back home, my hand started hurting, and there was another one on my hand! AHHH! geez, those suckers can pinch.

Eric said there are tribes in Kenya that use them as stitches. They get the ant to pinch the wound close, then bit off the head and keep it here. Weird, huh?

So, I think, though I'm quite paranoid, that I have all of them off. When we got home, we heard a boom outside...Someone was shooting off fireworks down the street! And they were really good ones too!

Wowzo...what a weekend....and its only Saturday. :)

The Lake.

Just when I thought that Malawi could not get any more beautiful, we drove to Lake Malawi on Monday after school to just get away. I had had a rough day of school...just frustrations of doing school in a 3rd world country, and so had the Laffoons. So, we packed up ourselves, put on our swimsuits, and started the 45 minute drive there.

I hadn't been there before, nor even the road that direction. Boy was I in for a surprise. This picture just doesn't even do it justice. 

So that was just the ride there. We knew we didn't have much time, so we went to the closest part. It is called Nkhata Bay. It is really touristy, but we didn't care. We just wanted some lake. Someone in the market had told us about this little beach there, so we were on our way to find it. This is my first view of the bay.

WOW!

and when we finally found the little beach,
THIS is what it looked like...my jaw hit the sand.

That is Mozambique and Tanzania mountains in the background by the way. Pretty cool, huh?

So...this my friends....is all so very close to my house. And I can go there whenever I want. :)
I feel so blessed.

I live here!! WOW!

My April Update

Happy Easter friends!

I had a FANTASTIC Easter here. Our chrch service today lasted from 8:30-12:30, so I sure got my praise on. I took some video, and maybe one day I'll get to upload it so you can see what chrch is like here.

As most of you heard, I was very sick the past 2 weeks. On our very first day of school (which went well), I got a very bad headache. By the next morning, they had decided that I had Malaria. The end of the week brought the Malaria back with it, and I saw an American doctor in the capital city. He says I most likely had Malaria and Strep Throat/Typhoid...and possibly the flu. So I got lots of meds, and now I'm feeling much better.

So, we'll get school going again full swing...for the next 2 weeks. THEN, I'm off to Zambia for a month of training. We'll spend 2 weeks in the city, and then 2 weeks in the bush (camping! my favorite!) and end it with 3 days living with a Zambian family. I've decided to go see Victoria Falls with some friends while I'm there. THEN, I'm flying off to Nairobi to do some ministry with another M friend of mine Jeff Norton and his friend Blake. My best friend Michelle is flying in from the states to work with us as well, and she will accompany me back to Malawi on June 2 and spend a week with me there. WHEW! I have a whirlwind schedule coming up, but BOY am I excited about it.

Couple of pr@yer points:
1. My gardener and his family are not Christians. I've spent a lot of time lifting them up, and trying to think of ways to share with them. They don't speak English so it makes communicating very hard, but I spend a lot of time with the oldest girl. There were also some issues with possibly firing him, so I really need some Gdly Wisdom.
2. That my time traveling will be safe and that this time spent with friends will be a good one.

Praises:
I'M ALL BETTER! I was SO overwhelmed by the amount of people who were pr@ying for me. People I've never even met where emailing me to tell me they were lifting me up. Thank you so much. It could have been much worse.

The Father is really working in my heart concerning being alone. He has taught me so much already. I have made older friends here, but still waiting on a friend my age. He has taught me that it is HIS timing, and HE is my Friend and Comfort.

Thanks for all the emails guys! I love reading them! Fun fact about Malawi: Its totally acceptable to pick your nose in public...even in the middle of a conversation with you....even if you are a "business person" and  dressed all fancy. ha.

Love in our Father,
Lauren

I'm Too Energetic for My Own Good

I thought I was totally better this morning, so I started my morning with a GIANT cup of coffee in my most favorite Mary Poppins mug (a recent souvenir from Disney World). I read my new favorite series I'm about to finish (Miss Match - adorable!) and, I actually showered today, put on loud Bob Jones music (Don't judge!) and sang my heart away.

It was pouring outside, so I put on my super-cute red-and-white polka-dotted rain boots, and off to do some school work and errands. I was feeling fantastic!

Until 20 minutes later when I'm so weak and lightheaded I'm sitting in a heap on the floor of one of my classrooms.

You may not know me personally or that well, but I'll let you know a little secret about me: I get excited very easily and tend to go 90 mph (or km for the Africa friendly metric system) or nothin'.

What can I say? Bob Jones music gets all pumped up! :)

Well, now I'm sitting at the hotel bumming internet with some chips (fries) and a Coke. Tomorrow, we go to Lilongwe (the capital) to get supplies, etc. So, I need to take it kinda easy so I can drive the 4 hour drive to and fro AND teach on the road. Busy, I know.

The whole reason for this post was to update re: my Malaria, and to let you know kind of a prayer request update.

Most of you have been praying for me to find a friend, and I got a phone call today from another missionary here saying a girl my age was coming for a month here to work in the Crisis Nursery. She wanted to know if I would like her to stay with me.

Of course, I shouted and jumped and screamed and could barely contain myself (90 or nuthin' remember?). However, I slowly remembered that the entire month she was going to be here...I would be in Zambia....in training.

Does it feel like God put it right in front of my face, dangled it, and then quickly jerked it back before I could grab it? Yes.

But, just as quickly has I was questioning his Ways, I remembered what He has taught me so far about His Timing and Sovereignty. He is in control, and I'm still trusting Him to bring a friend into my life. Even if He doesn't, He'll still be there and be a way better comfort to me than a friend.

But boy, sometimes lessons stink.
(I think I was really parentheses happy in this post)
(and maybe when I'm in Lilongwe, I can upload videos and pictures!)
(and thanks mom and dad for the video!)
(okay, I'm done now.)

A whole lotta firsts...

Monday night brought about a lot of firsts for me. First time to have a dog wake me up vomiting, first time to an African doctor, first time to sleep in a bed at the African clinic, first time to get a shot in the butt (that I remember), first time for Malaria, and first time to miss just the 2nd day of school!

It all started with this horrible headache I got right behind my eye on Monday night. Just a few minutes later,  my puppy started throwing up on my floor. Then, she woke me up at 3am on my bed and dry heaving. I pushed her off just in time for it to hit the tile floor and not my bedspread. After I let her out, I struggled to get back to sleep because the headache was pounding. I thought, finally, no more dog to wake me up, I'll be better in the morning. :) ha!

Finally, around 7am, my alarm clock went off. The headache was still in full force, but this was our second day of school! I wasn't going miss that.

When I stood up, nausea ensued. But, since I'm also the bus driver for school, I thought that I would hold out until I went to pick up the kids. Maybe this would just pass.

When I arrived at the Laffoons, I could barely get out of the car. I told Lisa I couldn't do school. She asked my symptoms and told me to go immediately to the doctor.

So, off I went to the clinic down the street. I walked very slowly up the steps and into the clinic where everyone just stared at the white girl walking in. It took a few minutes before someone acutally asked me why I was there. I filled out the paper work and was called back to get the dianostics done. The nurse immediately thought it was Malaria as well and sent me back for a finger prick. The test confirmed...I had Malaria.

I was kinda just in shock. The sweet nurse that diagnosed me, led me back to the doctor. He finally figured out what to give me because of all of my allergies to medicine.  They decided to give me a shot in the butt for the nausea, but that would make me sleepy.

When they found out that I drove myself and there was no one with a car to pick me up, they decided to put me in a bed there at the clinic. AND because, I hadn't eaten that morning, they ordered me breakfast from a restaraunt next door. So, I immediately fell into the bed, the sweet nurse gave me a quick prick to the hiney, and I fell right to sleep. Breakfast came an hour later, and I ate it so I could have my first dose of meds. The nurse told me to just sleep there since I was alone at my house.

So, I slept in the bed at the hospital from 8:30-1:30. They took such good care of me. I felt awake enough to drive, so I drove home, made some rice for lunch,a nd fell into bed and slept till dinner.

I ate dinner with the Laffoons, but went back to bed at 8:00.
I'm still really tired and weak, but the headache and nausea are gone. Praise the Lord. I keep taking medicine everyday until tomorrow. Then, I should be just on my way to recovery.

Well, I think I'm officially an African now!

2 months

I have lived in Africa for officially 2 months now. (2 months, 1 week, and 2 days).  It seems like it has been forever though! The first 7 weeks FLEW by, but the last 2 have crawled.

School starts tomorrow, and I am feeling nervous. I realized I haven't taught in over 9 months. That is a long time to take off from teaching, and it is a bit frustrating not to have everything so readily available like I did in the States.

BUT, man...through these past 2 months of lonliness, perfect peace, weeping, laughing, confusion, nerves... God has taught me a lot.

I've realized that my dependence on Him HAS to be a daily thing. He is teaching me not just from his Word either, but from novels or shows I have watched.

Example: I was reading a Christian fiction book the other night and one of the characters said, "When I moved here by myself and I was all alone and didn't know anyone, I had to depend on God so much back then for everything."

WOW! If I didn't relate to that!

I do love Africa. God put it in my heart a long time ago. Just because I love this country and these people doesn't make being away from friends, family, my aptarment, my job, American food, or my idea of "normal" any easier.

I've realized though that if I did have a roommate right now, or even a good friend in town that I wouldn't be daily looking to the Father for help to get through the day.

I can't tell you how many prayers He has answered almost immediately for me every day. I have seen Him work here more vividly than I was tuned into in the States. Sure, He was working at my church, NewSpring, in amazing ways, but I wasn't that personally involved in it. I just got to go and witness it all.

So, I'm learning. I've learned this Christian walk is so much more than how I was so comfortably living in the States. Not saying that everyone needs to be a foreign missionary, but only that God had to bring me over here for me to finally understand some things.

Contentment in whatever situation I am in.
Contentment in that I have food, clothes, a car, and a house.

Anytime I start to feel sorry for myself, I think about all of the people who are around me. They are why I am here. I, at least, have a Comforter and know Him well.

So, I need to get up and go tell them about Him too!