Palibe Madzi!!!

“….the water is off again…”

This phrase no longer comes as a surprise when I hear it. It’s almost a bit of an inside joke… except you typically don’t hear much (any) laughter after it is uttered. Nothing like coming back from a run in the heat to find out that you can’t shower, or flush the toilet, or any other task requiring running water! Things I never thought about at home: when the college down the hill from you has 900+ students and is completely over-capacitated, all those students use water to take showers. The water flows downhill (thank you, physics) and thus leaves those of us UP the hill with empty faucets for hours (sometimes the majority of a day) on end. Oh the joys!

If you ever wondered what it was like to run through the Malamulo "jungle"...

School is going well! The boys are so much fun. Some days I feel like patience is a Latin word no longer present in my vocabulary or mindset but other days I just want to stop time and spend a few more hours watching them build and interact. If I had a picture of every lego/duplo/train track creation the boys have made… let’s just say I’d need a much bigger memory card! Also, the phrase “I hope you step on a lego” takes on a WHOLE new meaning here. When the creativity is flowing, step gingerly! Also, keep a close watch on what the dog might be chewing. The dog will survive, but the lego might not!

Had a really good Easter weekend, got to spend a few days in Blantyre with some good friends Sue and Dustin at their new place! We lounged, read, worked out (boot camp day 1!), rode bikes, ate, got harassed by a few drunk guys at market, enjoyed chatting with a few other sober guys sitting not far away, visited the bookstore (that was unfortunately closed for the weekend), and played ultimate Frisbee with some local expats! I had the new experience of riding on the back of a bike since we were one bike short. Not a method I would recommend for long distance taxi service, (ouch!), but effective for short distances! I don’t know how locals manage to go so far sitting on the bars over the back tire! (These bikes used to be carriers for the Royal Mail in the U.K, before being discontinued and shipped here. They’re in pretty good condition and have the added benefit of bars over the back tire that now often serve as a “seat.”) I have heard tale of even a woman in labor braving the road to Malamulo (can it even be called a road?) on the back of a bike. How that was accomplished is beyond me. Anyway, thankful for friends to visit and also thankful for the presence of Bombay Palace which provided excellent Indian cuisine… minus the appetizer that was a bit of a bust. Win some and lose some, right?

Harsh reality hit a bit when the Haytons returned from a weekend at the lake to discover that someone had poisoned a few of their dogs. (Someone threw food laced with poison over the fence so that the dogs would eat it.) I couldn’t believe it. They survived, thanks to Susan coming to feed the dogs and discovering them the day before and nursing them back to health. Why would someone try to poison dogs? Hard to say for certain, but a good guess is that big black dogs are a pretty good deterrent to theft. Especially here where general perception is that dogs kill. Still so thankful that the dogs are all ok, but it’s a sobering thought that things like that can happen at any time.

Speaking of Susan, she is an incredible lady. Taking her home yesterday she showed us her house that she’d built and WOW she is business savvy! She knew how to ration savings and look for cheaper but effective alternatives, and thus she was able to build a great house for much cheaper than many are able to. She didn’t even know we were coming and the place was impeccably tidy. I admire her work ethic and hope to see her go far in life! Enjoyed seeing the baby goats too, and the kids following us around were bashful but cute as ever! Every time I go to a village, though, I’m struck at how differently people live. It is so normal to see houses with dirt floors and thatch roofs, some with doors, some without. My perspective on things has certainly changed since coming here. I honestly don’t know exactly how much I have changed, and I suppose I may not find out till I am faced with life at home again, but I know I’ve changed. Hopefully for the better. It’s something to see life here and begin to understand it (I can only begin to understand, I know full understanding would take so much more time), but then wondering how to help. A thousand questions there.

Anyways, a short update but an update nonetheless. :) Here’s a few random snapshots that don’t have full stories with them:

Tried dragon fruit for the first time!

If you wonder what "Bend Over Boutique" looks like! (Didn't get that shirt.)

Enjoyed front row seats to the puppet show the boys put on :)

Brunch at the Blanchards - pancakes and potatoes and casserole!


Enjoyed a evening walk to the "spirit tree"!

Spoken Word

I don't often (ever, actually) post poetry works that I do but a friend encouraged me to post this one. Wrote it today.

3.18.16

Lost and Found
Equally, by both I am bound.
At peace with the chaos within
Yet still pulled in every direction
A constant battle between contentment and entrapment
An ever present desire to be free
But you see freedom comes at a cost
Trying to recover something once lost
We keep trying to pinpoint the human condition
But somehow all we can come up with is another faulty contraption
There’s hunger on every human face
Not just hunger for food,
But hunger for money, power, love, or grace
To each their own – we are all gaunt with desire
A promotion
A feast
A child
To each their own
We are all starving
The things that drive division between us are the very things we have in common
Hunger
We’re trapped by what we lack
But still we turn our back
Each heart turned black by its own hidden crack
We claim individuality by all singing to the same soundtrack
The answer has always been there
Love your neighbor
Love yourself
We have the answers
But yet we hunger
Lost and found
Equally bound
Silently screaming without a sound
What separates you and I
Binds us together
So come… listen to your favorite soundtrack
The sound of our own history
Freshly rewound

Twenty-One

Well, I have under 3 months left. It isn’t nearly long enough. We keep joking(?) that I’m going to stay on for another year, and as my departure date comes closer and closer, I can’t help but think of what it would be like to actually stay on longer. Yes, I have friends and family that I dearly miss, and I have a job to go to that I’m excited for, and I miss temperatures in the 50’s(F not C), but honestly. Am I ready to go back to the fast-paced political nightmare that is home, with due dates and drama and endless excess? I suppose my answer has to be yes, but I have to admit I will always miss the simplicity of life here. There are always struggles, but how could I complain? The good outweighs the bad in so many ways. The warm heart of Africa has lodged itself firmly in my own heart. Cliché as that may be, I still hold that clichés only become as such because of the truth they tell. And this truth will stick with me. :)

Day by day, hour by hour, life continues to exist and time continues to tick – whether vaguely or poignantly. One day I was twenty, the next I was twenty-one. It doesn’t seem possible that I’ve reached this age, yet I couldn’t imagine not turning this age. Now I’m at the age where there are countless blogs and articles screaming at me, “20 Things To Do In Your 20’s”, or, “13 Things I Wish I Had Known at 21” etc. etc. It would seem as though these next years ahead of me are pretty important. And I wouldn’t argue with that, a lot is going to change between school and transitioning to the full time working life (hopefully) instead of days spent knocking on dorm doors of friends living just down the hall. (I’ll miss that, but life has to go on eventually.)

With the theme of lists being a thing in your twenties, here’s a list of 21 things I’ve done or learned since my last blog post.

1.I road-tripped to Lake Malawi for another glorious weekend (this time to a cottage in Cape Maclear) with the Haytons and Blanchards



2.I met an incredible Zimbabwean/Malawian lady who worked there that teaches English to kids in the area and we chatted a bit about the trials/joys of teaching

3.I went snorkeling (for the first time) at Tombe(I think that’s what it’s called, don’t quote me though) Island

4.Discovered Lake Malawi is the best place to fresh-water snorkel. Lake Malawi cichlids are indescribable. So many varieties and shades of blue and luminescence. It was a surreal experience to float there in the water with hundreds of them swimming circles around me, then later on sitting on a rock as they came and nibbled at my toes. It was magical! :) (If I sound like a kid in a candy shop – laugh away but I deserve to be enthusiastic! Right?)



5.I re-discovered that I will never have a good enough base tan to not get burned here. Even around the mission with Dustin as sunscreen police I still get burned. Skin cancer have mercy.

6.We all got to experience fish-eagle feeding, which meant that we bought some chambo (fish) from one of the many fishermen on the lake and took them out on a boat, and when we got to the island where they nested we stopped after sighting them, waved the fish in the air, then threw them out in the water between us and them. Those birds know how to make an entrance. They jump off their high branches overlooking the water and swoop through the sky making a beautiful arc, then swoop again down to the water surface and catch the fish (at much too quick a pace to get a crisp photo. Between the rocking boat and the fast-paced descent of the bird, my photos were less-than stellar.) So here’s a sample of my superb photography – you might just have to take my word for it that it was impressive!



7.As we were feeding the fish eagles, we were somewhat anxiously watching a storm literally roll in towards us. Needless to say, we didn’t waste time boating back to the house. There was also good reason to keep the weight inside the boat balanced thanks to the somewhat-worrisome choppiness of the water.

8.We safely made it back to the house and after rushing the towels and cameras out of the rain, enjoyed watching the rain from under cover.

9.Those of us up for a board game sadly lost in a game of Epidemic. Sorry, world… we tried.

10.I just want anyone with air conditioning in their house to say a silent thank-you. I slept SO well at the lake thanks to it. You don’t know how much you appreciate something until you have to go without it.

11.We boated through Otter Bay and around Domwe Island (again, spelling?) and sadly didn’t see any otters but thankfully didn’t see any crocs. You win some, you lose some, right?

12.I enjoyed more curio shopping with Shar and Erin, and we found some always-stylish chitenji shorts/headbands/purses, as well as the more standard ebony/mahogany wares. Now I just have to find a way of getting things home without them breaking in my luggage. (Oh snap… What have I done.)

13.On the way back from the lake, half of us stopped off for a really nice few days on Chimpeni farm with friends. The boys were on cloud 9 – they love it there! Shar and I were happy to relax and spend time with good people. :)

14.Despite the business of the harvest season, they were still willing to show us (mainly me since I’d never seen it before) the barns and the harvest process.. it was super interesting!

15.I watched my first game of Squash! Good times! Also tried my hand at hitting the ball a few times. Let’s just say I won’t be going pro any time soon. Read into that what you will.

16.After returning home, school again on Thursday! Enjoying having the Blanchard kids joining us one day a week. While soccer is hard with only two kids, having 4 kids (plus me, plus Jett, plus Maxwell if he isn’t busy) makes for a good game! Wait, they call it football here. Which is fine until I tell the boys we’re going to practice passing a football (American) and they grab a soccer ball. Oh well. Pick your battles. :)


17.Dragged myself out of bed on Sabbath morning for the 7:30 am service. Been awhile since I’ve gone, (I’ve been gone most weekends, I’m not just skipping!) so it was nice! They had a really good choir there so that was neat!

18.Oh, let’s see, right! I turned 21 on the 13th!!! Wowza!

19.To celebrate, Shar planned and invited a group to hike up Thyolo mountain in the morning and then have a picnic lunch at a nice viewpoint amongst the Satemwa tea. It was hot but the view never disappoints, and I had an amazing time with all those who came out. Feeling blessed to be surrounded by so many kind people! The kids and a few brave adults played a lively game of soccer after eating while the remaining adults enjoyed a chance to chat - uninterrupted by kids. :) Eventually, the tea fly bites and the responsibilities of life sent us back to our homes. As birthdays go, number 21 in Malawi was as good as they come!

20.I was reminded this week that none of us are exempt from sickness. Even me. Sometimes you have to take a morning off from school and sleep it off. I know the kids were DEVASTATED at having a morning off, but somehow they survived. As did I… and school was on the next day!

21.I don’t know if I saved the best for last, but I’m pretty excited about this one – I now have a Malawi-made dress! Shar found a beautiful fabric in Thyolo and graciously let me use her favorite tailor and voila! My chitenji dress is finished :) I have a picture, just not on my computer yet. It will come later!

I hope that wherever you may be, whoever you are, I hope that life is treating you well. If it isn’t, hang on. Joy presents itself in many disguised packages.

Tionana for now!

P.S. You'll have to excuse my typos, because of faulty internet I often post as quickly as possible to ensure it goes up and don't proofread until later. Sorry for any confusion!