A different perspective

Hello again all! Hope this email finds you all happy and well.

Despite the fact that I just within the past two and a half months packed my life up and moved myself about 8,000 miles across the world, I still lead a relatively normal, American lifestyle here in Malawi. Mostly all these comforts come from the lucky opportunity to live with the Fitzgerald family. What with American meals graciously cooked for me everyday and a lot of the amenities from home that make life more convenient (hot showers, western toilets, all the basic kitchen appliances), it’s true that there’s a lot of things that I still enjoy here that aren’t that much different.

But, of course, there’s definite differences between life here and life in the US. In some respects, I feel like someone put a kaleidoscope in front of my eyes. I am able to see things way differently here than at home. Living here has given me a noticable different perspective on a lot of things.

In a literal sense, I’m able to view a completely different map of constellations in the night sky because I now live in the southern hemisphere. The stars here are, of course, gorgeous and the amount of them that I am able to see is incalculable. The Big Dipper and Orion are no longer present, but they’re replaced by the southern cross. Last week when we spent a day and night at Lake Malawi, I walked outside to see the stars and ended up seeing the Milky Way stretched across the sky, giving the twinkling dots a nice backdrop.

From the perspective I have from my backyard, I also am able to see the absolute most stunning sunsets I’ve ever seen. The creative team at Crayola would wet themselves if they got to see what I see every day. Colors like red, orange-yellow, fushia, and “electric neon fantasmo pink” wouldn’t even begin to describe the vibrance and vast variety of pigments that our sun casts just before going to bed every evening. Even though there are over 6 billion people on this planet who’s lives are dictated by the same sun, I like to pretend that it is giving this masterpiece of a show just for me, and I try to appreciate it as such.

On a more figurative level, I’m gaining different perspectives on a lot of other things about life as well. Being a full time nanny and living with three kids and their two very loving, capable parents, it goes without saying that I’m learning a lot about parenting. By observation, I’m learning how David and Elizabeth are raising their children and what exactly it means to do it well. I’m learning what it means to love enough to “give someone the shirt off your back” by watching Elizabeth be willing to give her kids the last crumbs off her plate. I’m learning from Dave that the levels of patience are a LOT higher than I ever thought possible. And I’m learning from both of them what true, selfless love looks like when every moment of their every day is focused on those three chaotic but adorable children. This, I think, has been the hardest but most apparent lesson I’ve been learning. I had no idea that I was so immature and selfish until I saw what the opposite looked like. It takes a TON of selfless love to be a BASELINE good parent, and the two that I’m with could win awards. This lesson has taught me a new perspective on where I stand in the world of parenting and without change….well, let’s just say there’s a lot that needs to change if I ever hope to become a good nanny (and maybe eventually a good parent).

In other news, I am starting to meet friends and become more involved with community activities. We also are getting a kitten in a couple weeks! We’re just waiting for it be weened from mama cat so it’ll be itty bitty when it gets here!! And, for those who knew about the civil and politcal unrest that just recently errupted in Malawi, absolutely nothing happened on August 17th. There was supposed to be more riots and such taking place that Wednesday but the city was so quiet that one would have thought it was a national holday because the city was basically shut down. This was, of course, the perferred outcome but the Fitzgerald clan (among other expats) took the opportunity to get out of town for safety reasons and went to the lake for the day. The mini-vacation was nice and a good change of scenery for me.

More to come about my adventures but until then, be well. Love and miss you all!

New land, new life

Hello again everyone! I hope you are all doing well!

Well, it’s officially been a week since arriving in Lilongwe and things are great! I am happy here! I am starting to get adjusted to living with another family and trying to find my role among the group’s dynamics. With three kids with seemingly never ending energy, it feels like herding cats! Dave and Elizabeth are wonderful parents though and I am learning a lot by watching them interact with the kids. Eamonn, the 10 year old red head and only boy, likes to read and likes to terrorize his younger sisters. Aine (pronounced Ania) is a joy in all respects except her unwillingness to eat anything we put in front of her. Her diet mainly consists of candy, salt and bread. Malawi, the adopted Ethiopian littlest girl, is definitely testing her boundaries with me and is not afraid to turn on the water works but otherwise is such a joy and is unbelieveably adorable. Dave is so good with them, having patience all the time and has the same wild imagination they do. Elizabeth’s patience is such a remarkable demonstration of her awesome parenting skills and is always willingn to read a book with them or get captured by the blanket traps rigged on the stairs this morning. I am learning a lot but it’s quite the learning curve. Hopefully things will get easier as time progresses, but it’s hard to feel like you’re doing a good job when I feel like I have to live up to the adoration that the kids have for their parents. I am not them, though, and the kids (and myself) have to learn that I don’t function exactly like they do. Again, I’m learning and have to remind myself to have patience with them and myself.

Daily activities start with getting woken up around 9 by the screeching of one of the beasts (who, of course, have been awake for a couple hours already) and coffee is immediately made. Afterwards games and activities commence and D&E usually have places to go to errands to run or they just play around the house with us. In the afternoon I usually get some time to myself when the kids are being self entertained by either books or electronic games where I read or journal or unpack a little bit more of my bags. Speaking of bags, the remaining 14 bags came early last week so nothing was lost! Hooray for Ethiopian airlines!

Elizabeth starts to make dinner around 4 or 5 in the afternoon because things take a bit longer to prepare here than they would in the US. We’ve bough a kettle though, so boiling water is no longer such a task. Also, we’ve got a lot of household items that work better with the appliances in our house so we’re adapting and things are becoming easier. We just recently got our oven to work so now we are experimenting with the symbols and what we think they mean. It’s quite the guessing game! Since we don’t have a garden yet, we’re having to buy a lot of our food and goods at the local supermarket but food here is SO expensive. For example, a box of Rice Krispies is the equivalent to about $12 USD and nuts are about $8 for a small package. Also, milk and cheese are outrageous. The bright side is that things like bread and sugar and salt are relatively inexpensive so if we are careful about what we buy, it sort of ends up evening itself out. No doubt that things were cheaper at home, though. Also, the fuel shortage is such a problem here. We got a car (a borrowed sedan by one of Dave’s collegues) but just to fill it was $130!!! When one runs out though, the lines to wait for fuel can be ungodly. We’ve heard horror stories of people waiting in line for up to 10 hours and still not getting any fuel. For varying reasons like people cutting in line, the tanks running out, stuff like that. So, needless to say, we walk everywhere we can but the town is remarkable spread out and it’s several miles to get anywhere outside our neighborhood.

We’re starting to meet families that live in the area. Dave and Elizabeth are working at separate clinics and hospitals, so we’re meeting families and other doctors from both. The kids are finding more and more kids to play with (we have a neighbor that has a 5 year old as well) and D&E are able to get to know other parents but I’m finding myself at this awkward place between groups that leaves me with no one to really relate with. I’m the nanny, so I am there for the kids, but when they are happy on their own with other children, I am free to be with the adults but then again, I have no children and am not the one to worry about where to go to buy groceries, or where the best schools are to send the kids, so I find it hard to relate to either group. Thankfully, D&E are kindly aware of how much I need people my own age, and so they’re trying their best to find social activities that I can join among the expats and Peace Corps volunteers that are heard to be around my age. The process is slow but I am hopeful. It would be nice to have a friend. Especially on the days that, when the kids are asleep and D&E need alone time, I find myself sitting alone in my room, twiddling my thumbs and waiting for me to get tired enough to go to sleep.

Sleep has been difficult for me but it’s getting better! I’m almost at the point where I can have a full night’s sleep and not wake up. Mosquito nets went up over our beds this week so I’m able to sleep without those pesky things buzzing in my ear so that was a relief. I’m hoping that with a little more time to get used to my surroundings that I will be able to sleep well again finally. We’ll see!!

I have run over my max time here at the internet cafe so I have to go now. One last thing to add, though, is that we might be getting internet at our house soon so hopefully I will be able to skype with whomever is interested in the next couple of weeks!! Also, when that is up and running, I’m hoping to upload pictures of the sunsets here – they have been absolutely beautiful and I’ve gotten a picture of each of them every night that we’ve been here. The sun sets and is long gone by 6 pm every night so the days end early!

Miss and love all of you!

Safe Arrival

Hello again everyone – this time from Malawi, Africa! Goodness, where to start?!

Wanted to let everyone know that we have arrived safely and are getting settled in our new house. The house is amazing! It’s on palace standards here. On several levels it’s like we never left America, on some levels it definitely is African. For example, we cannot drink the water in the house and all of our appliances are from China and so all of our user manuals are in Mandarin. It also takes about half an hour to get water to only slightly boil. We are making do, though. On the flip side, Dave and Elizabeth are such troopers, their spirits never seem to be low and the kids are their usual selves. We also arrived to a partially furnished home – something that was way beyond our expectations. We were able to have couches, a dining room table and beds to sleep in last night. Sleep meds are helping with the 6 hour time change but I still woke up around 3:30 am this time last night and had trouble falling asleep again. Ah, the joys of travel!

It still seems surreal to finally be here, I think it might take a while for it to sink in that this bed is mine, this house is ours, this neighborhood is where we are going to be living and that I should get used to the city pretty fast if I am going to be going any where! Kind of scary still to think about going out alone or even on foot, but we are told it is safe and that it is okay.

As for the civil unrest, it’s like nothing has happened. Granted, we’ve been here only about 24 hours but life seems no different than normal day-to-day living. Elizabeth and Dave are registering us with the Embassy as we speak, so we will have something to turn to if something were to go wrong. No worries, though! Baylor seems to think we won’t need anything of the sort while we’re here – I’m hoping they’re right!

I am doing fine over all. I slept all I wanted and am getting adjusted to this nanny business. Still waiting for a good shower, though! We finally took showers this morning after two days of travel but just as soon as I was going in for mine, the guard informed us that they were shutting off the water to do some routine maintenance of some sort. So, I’m just glad the Fitzgerald clan doesn’t mind a smelly nanny! Food and water are expensive here so we’re out shopping around today to pick up groceries, among them being staples like fruit, veggies and water. I think things are on the up and up. If we can just get the girls to eat unfamiliar food, we’d be set! Only 7 of our 21 checked bags arrived with us, so after a stop in town then we will be driven out to the airport to see if any more have arrived. Keep your fingers crossed!

We don’t have internet at the house so we have come into town and I am using internet at a cafe so emails will probably not be as frequent as I would like. I will email again when I can and hope that things in America are good and this finds you well! I will be able to receive emails, too, so don’t forget to let me know how you are doing! It’s nice to get on and hear from home.

Thank you for all your support and love, friends! I love and miss you all,

your little “mzungu”,

Laura

P.S. “mzungu” means white person in Chichewa.

Nom Nom Nom…

The Tarheel 25:  eateries that define North Carolina’s culture.

Check it out!

“But there ain’t nothin’ like the South.”

Concerning growing up

I’m so close and yet so far.

Question(s)

What good is loving people if they don’t know it?

What good is your love for people if you don’t show it?

“Urinals that lure you to pee in them”

bahahahahahaha

Love it!

“Sell all your possessions and follow Me”

Very inspiring article from a UK newspaper on a guy who’s legit living out the Gospel. Check it out! Lemme know what you think!

From Mansion to Mud Hut

Article about Africans’ health

Some of the stats in this article about African health issues and lack of latrines is staggering.  Check it out and let me know what you think.  There are so many sick people in this world that God can heal!

Sanitation Updates: Too much unsafe water

Prayer Request

So lately I’ve been asking God for a LOT of things (it’s a huge variety but some examples would include the ability to hear His voice, know His presence, Him to visit me in my dreams and for Him to give me more visions). But, I’m having trouble with patience, persistence, hearing His voice and praising Him when He responds.  The verse “be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10) comes to my head for this issue and I’m struggling with it!  So, I would just like to ask for prayer for those things, ears to hear, and an open heart/spirit so that I can become so much closer to Him. The actual act of DOING things or anything is so secondary to actually BEING with Him, you know?

Obviously, like anyone else, I would like to have my prayers answered and be able to see these things that I’ve been asking for become reality, but *I* can’t do them and I would like really to be open to anything He needs me to cooperate with.

Thank you so much for praying for me!  I’ll let you know if anything happens.