So I wanted to update you all also on the other Christmas celebrations I have had. First of all, the day of Christmas Eve- I had a great relaxing morning, making crepes with syrup and nutella and singing along to the entire double C.D. of Handel's Messiah for fun. After an afternoon with the kids, I spent an enjoyable Christmas Eve by myself at my house, listening to music, baking Oma's christmas cookies which turned out really well, chatting with my mom on the phone, and then with friends on msn- so I wasn't even really alone, which was great. Christmas Day I went to Starehe for the morning, stopped at Mama Sophia's for an hour hanging out with her family, then headed through the downpour to Trent and Rhonda's house in town, where the Lipinskis (and Rhonda's parents who are here) were joined also by Simon and Greta. We had a crazy good turkey dinner (I contributed a tomato salad) followed by dessert (I contibuted my Oma's christmas cookies that I baked...) and a gift exchange (I got some Kenyan coffee and a couple of mugs, which will be very useful, and I gave 3 wooden carved candlesticks that I got from the market in town). We all enjoyed it a lot! Finally, today I went out to the farm with Simon and Greta, and had some fun time with the Starehe boys there (they are the exiles- living there because of behavioural issues for a few months now), singing some Christmas carols, reading scripture, learning spoons, (oh- side note, not sure if I mentioned it yet, but I've introduced the game 'spoons' to Tanzanian children- it is wonderful:) and eating some more of my cookies. It was so good to see them, and I hope to make it out to the farm more often in the new year.
Anyways, that's the summary of my christmas events. I had a great time, and have lots to be thankful for- God is good. I hope everyone at home had a good Christmas too. Blessings to everyone who is reading this!
Friday, December 28, 2007
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Christmas with the kids...
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Yesterday we celebrated Christmas with the kids at Starehe.
It involved some singing, (Silent Night and O Come All Ye Faithful, both 1st verses in English and Kiswahili) reading cards people sent for the kids, some Bible reading from Luke by Rhonda and some from Isaiah from my bible study by Robert and Steven, a song by the mamas (which was fabulous- they can ALL sing!!), and then a big chicken, rice and beans dinner which was amazing, followed by soda, and then gift bags for everyone. It was a great afternoon, everything worked smoothly, and the kids enjoyed it a lot, especially the chicken. :) The Lipinskis, Rhonda's parents, Simon and Greta and I will celebrate together on Christmas Day, and I'm bringing my attempt at recreating Oma's Christmas cookies. Hopefully they will turn out!
Monday, December 17, 2007
Steve the cook? You must mean someone else...
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I know you are all wondering why this entry begins with a picture of food. Maybe you think Steve is showing a meal someone cooked for him, or a fun time at a restaurant in town. But no... this is much better...
So this evening I used my last piece of precious chicken. As I think I've mentioned already, meat is expensive and often sketchy. So, this was the one piece I had frozen from the bag of chicken Patti and I bought over a month ago. I decided to use Patti's recipe for butter chicken that I think she found online. I proceeded to cook it- a bit sceptical of whether or not I could recreate that experiment. Remember, for those of you who at this point are forgetting, (or for those who don't know me well enough to know) I am not a cook. I am a beginner, barely knowing anything about it. So then I finished the butter chicken, and finished the rice, and put it together and began to eat. At the time I was talking with my friend Laura on msn. I suddenly interrupted the flow of the conversation and began expressing wonder and amazement. I had managed to produce the most amazing meal! It was just incredible! Such flavour! I couldn't get over it. I mean, if my Omas produced something this good it would be no big deal, they routinely cook amazing dinners. But how long has it been since I've had Oma's cooking?? And this is ME we are talking about. So I had to apologize to Laura, because of the abrupt tangent that captured my attention. I told her some things just become very worthy of celebration over here. My butter chicken is clearly one of those things.
So, mock Steve's lack of cooking skills no longer- he has managed to produce a truly excellent meal. (not that this means I have become an expert- don't take this to mean I'm bragging about having become a chef- I still know very little, including how in the world this meal turned out so well :) So, hopefully much more food-related learning and goodness to come...
Monday, December 10, 2007
Steve's Reading List...
So since I knew I'd be living by myself for most of the year, I brought with me some friends for company... i.e. half my library. (well, for those of you who know just how big my library is, it really isn't anywhere close to half- but still a good number of books) So I thought I'd do a bit of book reviewing to tell you what I've been reading and do a few recommendations while I'm at it. I've really had some good stuff to read.
The Idiot, by Fyodor Dostoevsky- 19th Century Russian novel, about a guy that is in a way Dostoevsky's vision of someone as close to Jesus as it gets, who is considered an innocent idiot by everyone else and who just doesn't fit into wealthy Russian society of the time- stirs up some interesting ideas of society's reaction to a Jesus-figure. Long and slow, but really great character development.
The Screwtape Letters, by C.S. Lewis- a collection of letters written by a experienced demon to his demon nephew about how to ensnare a young man. Very witty and at the same time convicting.
Cross-Cultural Servanthood, by Duane Elmer- this book focuses a lot on what it means to be humbly learning and not having superiority when working in a different culture- very key for me here, and dealing with some of the things I feel are not very well done by missionaries working here making it hard for me to figure out what it means for me.
The New Friars, by Scott Bessenecker- Wow. This book talks about young people moving into slums and garbage dump communities in major poor-country cities to be an incarnation of the Gospel to the poorest and most desperate people, and traces their radical lifestyles to historic monastic/missions movements in the church. I've had to question my own unwillingness to give up comforts here and how separate my life in Mwanza is from the most desperate... what will it look like for Jesus to change me into someone willing to go into the garbage dumps to be with people there??? And can he accomplish such an impossible task given how selfish I still am even though it looks like I've given up a lot to come here to Mwanza to hang out with the kids at Starehe? I really recommend this one.
The Bible Jesus Read, by Philip Yancey- An overview of his understanding of why it is good to read the Old Testiment... making some insights into how much there is for us to relate with in the wide range of people's experiences with God.
Reading the Bible with the Damned, by Bob Ekblad- Wow. I've finally finished this one. It is one of the most life-stirring Gospel-revealing books I've encountered. It is all about seeing the Bible through the eyes of God's liberating of the outcasts of today who are usually ignored and who are the very ones most needing to meet a God who specifically reaches out to them. So good!
Blue Like Jazz, by Donald Miller- I was sceptical of this one, because it seemed like such a fad-book, but it is really good. It is a collections of rambling, on all sorts of topics, and very honest and revealing, i.e. very much something that I like and can relate to. He has a lot of really interesting insights in how his journey has been and where it is going, and usually doesn't end up giving some new fad party line like I expected it to.
Race Against Time, by Stephen Lewis- Also an amazing book. Lewis writes so compellingly about AIDS, about crisis and life in Africa, and the response of the West/the UN/etc. And where the world could be heading if people were willing to care deeply. Not a book that will change everything and fix all the problems, but great to open people's eyes to see what's been going on in the world.
1491: New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus, by Charles Mann- I read bits of this for my cultural-historical geography class at WLU (a course I loved while not enjoying the not-nice professor) Its title is clear, and it goes into the richness of civilization in the americas before the Wazungu came (some things apply so well both to my present home in Tanzania and back home...) It especially highlights the scope of the disastrous spread of disease that came with Europeans that he argues was the main reason for the weakness of Native cultures to resist the dirty hairy Europeans who came. Very well written.
Many more books to come from the Library of Steve, especially some African novels I've picked up lately and some of the history I brought with me from home. Hope you enjoyed seeing what I've been reading, since reading is what I do mostly when I sit by myself most nights and enjoy the quiet restful time.
The Idiot, by Fyodor Dostoevsky- 19th Century Russian novel, about a guy that is in a way Dostoevsky's vision of someone as close to Jesus as it gets, who is considered an innocent idiot by everyone else and who just doesn't fit into wealthy Russian society of the time- stirs up some interesting ideas of society's reaction to a Jesus-figure. Long and slow, but really great character development.
The Screwtape Letters, by C.S. Lewis- a collection of letters written by a experienced demon to his demon nephew about how to ensnare a young man. Very witty and at the same time convicting.
Cross-Cultural Servanthood, by Duane Elmer- this book focuses a lot on what it means to be humbly learning and not having superiority when working in a different culture- very key for me here, and dealing with some of the things I feel are not very well done by missionaries working here making it hard for me to figure out what it means for me.
The New Friars, by Scott Bessenecker- Wow. This book talks about young people moving into slums and garbage dump communities in major poor-country cities to be an incarnation of the Gospel to the poorest and most desperate people, and traces their radical lifestyles to historic monastic/missions movements in the church. I've had to question my own unwillingness to give up comforts here and how separate my life in Mwanza is from the most desperate... what will it look like for Jesus to change me into someone willing to go into the garbage dumps to be with people there??? And can he accomplish such an impossible task given how selfish I still am even though it looks like I've given up a lot to come here to Mwanza to hang out with the kids at Starehe? I really recommend this one.
The Bible Jesus Read, by Philip Yancey- An overview of his understanding of why it is good to read the Old Testiment... making some insights into how much there is for us to relate with in the wide range of people's experiences with God.
Reading the Bible with the Damned, by Bob Ekblad- Wow. I've finally finished this one. It is one of the most life-stirring Gospel-revealing books I've encountered. It is all about seeing the Bible through the eyes of God's liberating of the outcasts of today who are usually ignored and who are the very ones most needing to meet a God who specifically reaches out to them. So good!
Blue Like Jazz, by Donald Miller- I was sceptical of this one, because it seemed like such a fad-book, but it is really good. It is a collections of rambling, on all sorts of topics, and very honest and revealing, i.e. very much something that I like and can relate to. He has a lot of really interesting insights in how his journey has been and where it is going, and usually doesn't end up giving some new fad party line like I expected it to.
Race Against Time, by Stephen Lewis- Also an amazing book. Lewis writes so compellingly about AIDS, about crisis and life in Africa, and the response of the West/the UN/etc. And where the world could be heading if people were willing to care deeply. Not a book that will change everything and fix all the problems, but great to open people's eyes to see what's been going on in the world.
1491: New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus, by Charles Mann- I read bits of this for my cultural-historical geography class at WLU (a course I loved while not enjoying the not-nice professor) Its title is clear, and it goes into the richness of civilization in the americas before the Wazungu came (some things apply so well both to my present home in Tanzania and back home...) It especially highlights the scope of the disastrous spread of disease that came with Europeans that he argues was the main reason for the weakness of Native cultures to resist the dirty hairy Europeans who came. Very well written.
Many more books to come from the Library of Steve, especially some African novels I've picked up lately and some of the history I brought with me from home. Hope you enjoyed seeing what I've been reading, since reading is what I do mostly when I sit by myself most nights and enjoy the quiet restful time.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Wow!
So now that I've done a few of the basic general description blog entries, and more will continue to come, I'll mix in a bit of where I'm at now, not just generally what I'm doing or where I am.
Mostly I've been doing very well, enjoying life here, loving my work with the kids. The biggest factor to my being able to say that I'm doing well is that much to my surprise, God has proven himself to be near enough to me that I'm not overcome with being alone and away from everyone back home. I miss everyone, of course, but God is showing me that I can function without the tangible support structures of home, because He is enough. I actually feel like He's enough, not just knowing in my head that He should be. And my response to that- is wow! He can do pretty amazing things if He can bring me to Africa for 10 months and guide me in not being anxious or lonely. The better you know me the more you realize how amazing it really is- if how I'm doing would be still dependent on how many long conversations I participate in over coffee sharing life, making decisions, figuring stuff out, etc., I'd be completely starved right now- but the great thing is He can change people in ways that would seem to be impossible. Bwana asifiwe is what I have to say to that. (praise the Lord!)
Some recent examples of Him showing up in unexpected places to encourage and teach me....
Tini has been encouraging me to 'get out' and participate in what little social life there is in Mwanza among the NGO/volunteer type crowd (it really isn't a big crowd) of young people. As a result, I stumbled upon a young English-speaking Christian med school student who asked me the 2nd time we met if I was interested in studying the bible with him and a few others. I had to laugh- of course I'd want to do that, and I figured it would not happen while I was away for the year. Also, an elderly couple named Simon and Greta are at Starehe for a few months until January, and I get the privilege of praying with them (communal prayer has been really absent despite my attempts to suggest more) almost every day!! Finally, one of the kids who has spent most of the time I've been around at Starehe seeing me as his enemy for whatever reason, has suddenly decided to begin to look pleased when I smile toward him, and showed up 2 times in a row to bible study now that the rest of the older boys are home from school and not just the Standard 7 grads. What's going on? Some things have really discouraged me the past few weeks, and then God goes and dumps at least 3 huge blessings that I didn't dream could happen, leaving me wide-eyed and stunned, muttering Bwana asifiwe all the time because I can't get over it all. So exclaim Bwana asifiwe along with me and spread the word- He's not kidding when He says that nothing's impossible with God and that He is able to do immeasurably more than all we can ask or imagine. Amen!
Mostly I've been doing very well, enjoying life here, loving my work with the kids. The biggest factor to my being able to say that I'm doing well is that much to my surprise, God has proven himself to be near enough to me that I'm not overcome with being alone and away from everyone back home. I miss everyone, of course, but God is showing me that I can function without the tangible support structures of home, because He is enough. I actually feel like He's enough, not just knowing in my head that He should be. And my response to that- is wow! He can do pretty amazing things if He can bring me to Africa for 10 months and guide me in not being anxious or lonely. The better you know me the more you realize how amazing it really is- if how I'm doing would be still dependent on how many long conversations I participate in over coffee sharing life, making decisions, figuring stuff out, etc., I'd be completely starved right now- but the great thing is He can change people in ways that would seem to be impossible. Bwana asifiwe is what I have to say to that. (praise the Lord!)
Some recent examples of Him showing up in unexpected places to encourage and teach me....
Tini has been encouraging me to 'get out' and participate in what little social life there is in Mwanza among the NGO/volunteer type crowd (it really isn't a big crowd) of young people. As a result, I stumbled upon a young English-speaking Christian med school student who asked me the 2nd time we met if I was interested in studying the bible with him and a few others. I had to laugh- of course I'd want to do that, and I figured it would not happen while I was away for the year. Also, an elderly couple named Simon and Greta are at Starehe for a few months until January, and I get the privilege of praying with them (communal prayer has been really absent despite my attempts to suggest more) almost every day!! Finally, one of the kids who has spent most of the time I've been around at Starehe seeing me as his enemy for whatever reason, has suddenly decided to begin to look pleased when I smile toward him, and showed up 2 times in a row to bible study now that the rest of the older boys are home from school and not just the Standard 7 grads. What's going on? Some things have really discouraged me the past few weeks, and then God goes and dumps at least 3 huge blessings that I didn't dream could happen, leaving me wide-eyed and stunned, muttering Bwana asifiwe all the time because I can't get over it all. So exclaim Bwana asifiwe along with me and spread the word- He's not kidding when He says that nothing's impossible with God and that He is able to do immeasurably more than all we can ask or imagine. Amen!
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