It's Hard to Say Goodbye

As I’m preparing to go home, I am filled with a very difficult mix of emotions. I am so happy and grateful for the time I’ve had here, but it hurts my heart to leave. I have formed many strong relationship with people here, nationals and missionaries alike, and it is unfortunately highly likely that I may never see most of them again. I will be able to keep in touch with most, and might even be lucky enough to meet up with some of the US missionaries in the future, but I cannot count on seeing my national friends again.

I have gotten quite close to three ladies here: our hausmeri, Kitty; a coworker of mine from LCORE, Rudy; and Jotty, who works at the high school, but I met her in Ukarumpa village. The upside is that all three of these women are believers, so we will be together again in heaven, but it still breaks my heart to leave them. I know that I leave them in God’s capable hands, as well as those I did not mention, but it doesn’t lessen my sadness. I am full of the joy of the Lord, but still acutely feeling an earthly sorrow. Prayers for my strength would be appreciated. The is a good church in Ukarumpa village, so I am confidant that the locals there will continue to be influenced by people who love them like I do. There are still around 300 language groups that are without a translation program in the works. Pray for these as well when you think of me.

I must admit for you all to understand the depth of my emotions that I am tearing up just thinking about leaving these beloved friends of mine. I will see Jotty again tomorrow, perhaps for the last time, but she has an email address so we can keep in touch. Kitty will be here tomorrow as well, so that will be the last time for me to see her. Rudy lives next door and I will hopefully see her a few more times before I leave.

I am tempted to say that it is cruel for me to get to know and love these people and then possibly never see them again, but I have faith and joy that go beyond this world, so I do have a profound peace about leaving. I stick by the psalm tattooed on my foot. Psalm 57:7. God is faithful and righteous in all things, no matter how hard they are.

I spent several hours in Ukarumpa village yesterday, just talking and hanging out with people. I don’t think I will ever be more welcome or safe than I am in the village. Everyone there is a friend to me. They are just so happy that I am willing to spend time with them and they don’t even know that it’s a blessing to me too. I had a conversation with two ladies I had just met and they asked how long I had been living on the SIL center. Two months, I told them. “Two months or two years?” Months, I replied. They went on smiling and laughing, telling me how good my Pidgin is and that they were impressed. It was a blessing because that is often where I feel the most inadequate. I am not fluent in Tok Pisin by any stretch of the imagination, but God surpasses all language barriers. A toddler, Indina, grew quite fond of me and she was content to sit with me and feel my hair and skin until her mother finished a round of volleyball.

I was glad for one last chance to sit and talk with the villagers, but I think it made it all the harder to leave. I would have regretted not going, so it is for the best, even though it hurts now. I will miss long afternoons in the sun watch games of volleyball and chatting with people, some I know well, others I don’t know at all. Adults are happy to approach me with abandon to introduce themselves and talk or just simply shake my hand. Kids will watch me from a distance before coming close and wanting to play with me. It’s truly beautiful.

Okay, I’ve rambled enough and my peace has increased from this introspection. I look forward to seeing you, my friends and family in the states, but until then, keep my heart and safety in your prayers.

Beloved

 Today I was going to write about the gift God gave me Thursday of being able to play softball and how much joy that gave me, but God seems to have other plans. Today, you will actually be able to read part of my own personal journalings in my Moleskine.

“Oh, today how I am blessed! Oh, today how God is with me! I hate that in the darkness I oft forget what God has made so plainly known! Oh, but I am a new creation and His mercies are new each morning. I do not want to leave this place or this moment, though I will move forward in joy. I will not always have these mountains or this sunshine, but I will have the Lord, who is with me always as He is now. The heavens are surely declaring the glory of God as I sit beneath this tree. The choir is practicing now and singing ‘Hallelujah!’ with my heart. The smell of the dirt and grass and the warmth are lulling me to sleep, but my senses are too stimulated for that; the joy in my heart is too great. The sky could not be more blue nor the clouds more soft. The new vegetation that has become familiar and the norm smile upon me with no hint of sadness at my preparing to leave them. We are now old friends who will never be apart no matter how much space separates us.

What God has in store for me, I don’t know. Mountains and jungles like I have seen here? The snow of the tundra? The cornfields of home? It’s no matter. I am the Lord’s beloved, a term I’ve somehow never felt appropriate for myself until this day. How have I missed His wooing me like this before? Is this what I came here to learn? A greater depth of God’s love for me? To be able to say honestly, ‘Lord, my God, I want nothing more than You. Let me know You more and that will be enough. If I have no friend or lover save You, it is more than enough,’? Perhaps. I cannot claim to know the things which He alone can know. But I know that I must continue to grow and change; I can never be the same.”

And then it gets into things not necessary to be shared with anyone but God, but I will let you know how my meandering ends.

“I do not want to leave PNG, but when I do, I will continue to seek the Lord in everything and strive to follow Him with all my heart. Life will not always be as picturesque as it is today, but my God will always be as loving and perfect as He has always been. I will always be His beloved, even in my darkest hour, and He will always be mine. I need not more than this, for I am already blessed beyond measure.”

I hope this makes sense to you all. I know it is a bit out of place without context and the middle, but those things are best kept off the Internet. Some things are too sacred to be plastered everywhere, especially when so fresh and new, but I did want to share with you all some of what I learned today.

 

Beginning Debrief

So much has been happening lately. Sorry I haven’t been updating regularly. It’s hard to find the time to sit down and blog.

            I leave Ukarumpa a week from tomorrow morning. I can’t believe it’s almost been two whole months. I have been having a blast and am not ready to trade these beautiful mountains for my home of cornfields. I am ready to see my friends and family again, though. Oh well, it was great while it lasted!

            I got another roommate on Tuesday. She is on a break from her village. She’s very spunky and we get along great. Unfortunately, she went to the clinic yesterday and has malaria. Poor girl. So she’ll be out of it for the next few days. The good news is that this is a good place to get malaria if you’re going to get it because the doctors here are familiar with it and it is easily treated.

Here is the conclusion of the response paper I had to write for my professor regarding my internship:

"Overall, I have greatly enjoyed my time working at LCORE. My job working on profiles has allowed me to do in-depth studies of the differences and similarities in the subcultures of Papua New Guineans. In order to successfully write even a single People Profile, I must become a sort of mini-expert on each language. This has been one of my favorite parts of writing People Profiles. It is almost like I was able to visit the most remote parts of Papua New Guinea without actually leaving the office (though I did, fortunately, get to travel to nearby villages and towns).

The hardest part of work for me has been staying inside for the majority of the day. It is winter here, so the sun goes down between 6:00 and 6:30 P.M. each night, and women cannot, or at least should not, be walking without a male present past dark as security is a big issue here. The mountain air and beautiful surrounding often seem to call to me while I’m in the office. My previous summers have consisted of my working jobs that require me to be outside almost the entire day, so this has been a big switch for me. Luckily, the hours here are very flexible, so it is easy for me to leave the office in time to spend a few hours at the barn a few times a week. I have even been invited to play against the high school’s softball team here as a sort of pre-season scrimmage. These outlets have kept me sane and able to work in an office setting.

I have discovered that flexibility is one of my strengths and that it is absolutely necessary for being a writer. Editors and bosses will change their minds or make mistakes, but I must continue to write everything as if it were the most important thing I’d write in my life (an adaption of a lesson I learned in orchestra). Deadlines, expectations, and priorities can change in a minute, so it is important that I be flexible and able to change too.

Focus is also a necessary part of a writer’s life, and it is, unfortunately, something I seem to lack. Even in school it is difficult for me to focus on one thing for a large period of time. It is even more difficult for me to remain focused here in a completely different environment full of new things to explore. My stubbornness has been a positive in this instance because it has somehow allowed me to focus on the same, often monotonous, tasks day after day without loss of productivity or excellence. Taking short breaks has also been beneficial to me. It is good for me to be able to get my mind off work for a brief time so that I can start again refreshed.

This experience has blessed and changed me in more ways than I’m probably aware of right now. One of the main ways it has affected my identity as a writer is by confirming that there are many needs writers can fill overseas. I don’t have the slightest clue where I will end up after I graduate, but I know the following: I can freelance from almost anywhere on the globe, and writers are an important and necessary part of almost all organizations. My options are quite limitless in these respects. The only thing that will hold me back in my career is myself, and that’s one thing over which I have nearly complete control (after all, I am not my own). I may not know precisely what my future will look like, but I am positive that writing will be a big part of it.

This experience has also encouraged me to try new things with my writing. I could have potential as a Public Relations writer or even a fiction writer, as I discovered through your [Dr. Hensley’s] Writing Commercial Fiction class this spring. Both of these are things I wouldn’t have thought I was capable of a year ago."

I hope that gives you a bit of insight into just a few of the things I have learned while here. There is still much introspection that needs to be done. I don’t think I’ve even begun to process a lot of what I’ve experienced here because there’s just so much.

Please pray for my travels. I leave here the 12^th and spend two days in Port Moresby. I leave very early in the morning on the 14^th. Pray that my flights will go smoothly, that I won’t miss any of my connections, and that I will be able to get through customs without any problems. Please also pray for safety in Port Moresby as it is one of the most dangerous places in PNG.

Long Weekend

Monday was Remembrance Day, similar to Memorial Day in the states, so we had the day off of work! My weekend was pretty jam packed with all kinds of fun things. Friday night I stayed in and watched a movie with my roommate. Saturday morning/afternoon I was out at the barn, which is always pretty muddy, but it was a blast anyway. When I got home and cleaned up from the barn, I baked some switkai (sweet food) for the auction we were having that night. My cookies were a little flat, but they tasted delicious and I once again managed to not burn the house down!

The auction went really well. There were probably about 20 or so people smushed into our living room. It’s always fun having “the group” get together. The group consists mainly of singles and younger married couples with one or no children. I’ve made some great friends in this group.

 The Sunday morning service was held by the Discovery team, who are sadly leaving this Thursday morning. I have really enjoyed getting to know them all. About 6 out of the 11 of them gave a brief testimony during the service, and the other presented in the evening service. I was also asked to speak at the evening service, which was late notice, but it all worked out. I went out on a walk with my Bible and notebook to figure out what I was going to say and wound up at the paddocks. It took longer than I had planned because I wound up helping someone with a horse, but it was all worth it in the end. The evening service went really well and afterwards I hung out with the Discovery team. We wound up watching Secretariat, which got my all stoked up to go trail riding the next morning.

We met at the barn around 8 a.m. to get ready to go out into the mountains. We were heading home when I actually got thrown from my horse, who then ran all the way home…from the mountain top. I had to ride back double with someone, but it was still a great trip and so worth it. I felt like I was riding through a postcard. I worked with my horse after I got her back and now she follows me around like a puppy dog. We’ll see if she remembers it today. One of my friends from the Discovery team got baptized in the river yesterday afternoon, and I was blessed to make it back from my ride in time to make it to her baptism. It was beautiful and powerful. After that was finished, I got a much-needed shower, as I was pretty covered in mud from my fall. My tailbone hurt tremendously, the whole night and made it very difficult to sleep. This morning, my whole upper-body is extremely sore and stiff. Prayers for quick healing would be appreciated.

Mi Tru PNG Meri

Today I was about to head off to work when a van pulled up in my driveway. It was the Discovery group looking to see if my roommate was planning on going to Kainantu with them. She was still asleep because they forgot to tell her in advance about it, but she got dressed quickly and they invited me to go with them. So I was called the office and told them I wouldn’t be in today.

Kainantu is only about 15 minutes away by car. It’s a much bigger town than any I’ve spent time in yet, except Port Moresby. We were being given a tour by a man named David, who is in charge of the Discovery students and very welcoming and knowledgeable. We went to the cultural center where we got to see all kinds of cool stuff, including where they sort out and process and eventually make rugs and blankets our of wool, and nationals hand-making pottery. We bought gifts and artifacts for our friends and families. (You’ll just have to wait and see, Mom, Dad, Brian, and Grandma).

We spent some time in second hand shops and various stores and then headed over to the market. It’s much much bigger than the market we have here in Ukarumpa. I bought my very own meriblouse (a type of shirt that is commonly worn by women here). Now I am a true PNG woman.

We got back in the early afternoon and had lunch. It was about 1 o’clock by the time I walked back into my house. I could have gone to work for the afternoon, since lunch is from 12-1, but I decided it was far too beautiful of a day to be stuck inside. I went on a long walk instead. I was gone a bit over two hours. I found a shady spot under a tree where I sat and finished a sketch I started last night about partway through. I wandered around parts of the center I haven’t spent much time on yet. It was wonderfully relaxing, but I hadn’t brought any water with me and it was hot, so I went back home to keep from getting dehydrated or overheated. The best part was probably as I was walking the familiar path up the steep hill to the paddocks, a national woman was hanging up her laundry to dry. She called “Appenoon” (good afternoon) which I returned smiling. She called out to me and complimented my meriblouse. It’s official, I’m now a true PNG woman.

The rest of my afternoon consisted of uploading pictures and finishing the book I was reading. It’s now about 5:25 p.m. and I just might take another walk before dinner. It’s back to work tomorrow, but Monday is a holiday, so we get the day off! 

Highlights

Here are some brief highlights of my week:

-       eating puk puk (crocodile)

-       spending time at the barn

-       getting to play with a kitten

-       the sun came out

o   this also means we had hot water

-       floorball

Wednesday we (my roommates and I) had dinner at a family’s house with four children, the oldest going into 4^th grade. Kids are not my favourite. In fact, as much as I love people, people are not my favourite. Some days I’d rather spend all my time with animals instead of people.

But these kids were alright in my book. One is a toddler, one is starting kindergarten and her name is also Sarah. Then I think the boy is next followed by the eldest, another girl. Sarah actually reminds me a great deal of myself. She’s a spit-fire, that one. And Abigail, the eldest, mentioned that she was going to start learning to take care of and eventually ride horses. I told her and her mother that I’d be happy to give her and Joel, who would also be learning, some pointers and lessons while I’m here.

I met them out at the barn yesterday morning, and divided my time between riding and helping train a horse and corralling the two youngest girls. They think I’m probably about the coolest thing ever. There’s also a high school aged girl who wants to pursue working with horses and she found out that I train horses back home and my school is part of IHSA. She is very eager to hear all my stories (I don’t know what all my stories are, but she said she wanted to hear them, so I should probably figure that out).

I am grateful for the opportunity to be able to share this gift with other people while I’m on center.  

Whoops.

So it’s been about a week since I last updated. My bad.

Things here have been going along in what is now the new norm. I’ve been working and reading a ton. I’m reading The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People for my practicum and after that I plan on starting The Search for the Source, which was written by a PNG missionary. I had a long conversation with someone here about books, and he is now trying to find fantasy books that I would like, since I told him that it’s the one genre I have been known to dislike almost entirely. So for fun I’m also reading a book called Men at Arms, which is part of the Disc World series, I think. So far, it’s pretty good. Still not my favourite thing to read, but it’s not nearly as bad as some of the fantasy I’ve read. He also gave me a book from another series he thought I might like, and the lady at one of the community libraries here had me rent out The Once and Future King. So we’ll see. Since leaving home I have also read A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, and Jude the Obscure. My goal is to have well over 3,000 pages read this summer, not including the things I have to read for work each day.

One thing that was new and exciting was a coffeehouse/game night Friday. It was kind of crazy, as there were a ton of people there. I personally played Taboo, and a game with paper and dice (which is really intense) where you try to be the first to write to 100, but you only get the pen by rolling a certain number or colour and we go around in a circle rolling the dice. I also learned a new game, what some people called the Paper Game. It’s like telephone pictionary. It makes for really hilarious stories. I’ll have to teach it to many of you when I get home because it’s just great.

Leading worship on Sunday went really well. It was hard since the group is so diverse (different ages, backgrounds, ethnicities, denominations) but I’ve gotten a lot of compliments and encouragement from people from several walks of life, so hopefully it was a success for the rest. Either way, I got to sing and play guitar for the Lord, which is when I feel closest to Him.

Weekend and Holiday

So Saturday, instead of going riding, I went to Ukarumpa village again because the former rascals or criminals were putting on a formal apology. Many of them came to Christ this past Easter and they have been making amends ever since. First they apologized to the director and then to BTA. Then they wanted to apologize to the community as a whole, which is what I got to see.

It was really powerful. A few local pastors spoke and then introduced the former rascals who put on a long skit and played/sang some special music for us. Then they all came forward and apologized individually. If they knew someone whose house they specifically broke into and that person was there, they apologized specifically and shook hands/hugged. Then there was more speaking and at the end they came to shake all of our hands. They also had gathered up a bunch of food and a bit of money to give to us. It took a few hours in the hot sun on a hard bench, but it was definitely worth it. I got a little red in some places, but not burned, luckily.

We were invited out for dinner Saturday night, too. Apparently there was a 4.9 earthquake during the night, but I didn’t feel it. Sunday I unfortunately set my alarm for 9:15 thinking I set it for 8:15 so I missed going to a village church. My tailbone and back were still really hurting me, so I spent most of the day resting, which I think really helped because it’s felt so much better since. It still hurts, but not nearly as badly.

Monday was the 4^th of July here, so the Americans here threw a party. It was funny to think that I was celebrating America’s Independence Day when even America wasn’t doing that yet. So there was a pot luck and bring your own meat to grill. It was delicious. Once it started to get dark, we all gathered together and one of the hosts read something about the signing of the Declaration of Independence and we sang the (American) national anthem.

After that we had makeshift fireworks, since it’s difficult to get real ones into the country. This involved some guy who had made a cannon out of PVC pipes and put glowsticks in it and shot them really high up. Little kids would run and get them for him so he could get doing it. Then there was my favourite part: steel wool. I never knew you could do this before, but you take the non-soap steel wool and hook it on some wire, which is attached to a string. You put the steel wool in a fire until it starts to glow and then you take it out and spin it around in circles really fast and it makes sparks everywhere. We also fired off some emergency flares from boats/planes that were like five years past their expiration date.

When my roommates and I got home, we watched The Princess and the Frog because it was definitely a good night to veg out. As I was lying in bed to go to sleep there was another earthquake, and I felt it this time. I don’t yet know what it was rated, but it was small and lasted all of three seconds. I was still excited.

So that’s all for now. Miss you all. Keep in touch!

Busy Busy!

Okay, so it’s been a few days since my last post, so here’s my week in a nutshell.

I got introduced to the Pony Club here and got to ride a bit Thursday. I’ll be going out tomorrow morning for a few hours and I’m pretty excited. It makes me feel more at home. Plus, the view is amazing. I hear that people occasionally go on “Ridge Rides” for a couple hours through the mountain trails. I hope I get to experience this while I’m here.

I was also invited to play floor-ball (indoor hockey with a wiffle ball) yesterday and it was incredibly fun. I had no idea I’d be running that much. We play four or five games to 10 pts. In two hours with minimal breaks. For future reference, I should probably bring water…and my inhaler. Just in case. I took a nasty fall because of a wet spot on the gym floor, so my back and tailbone are DEFINITELY feeling it today. I feel like an old person, which is impressive because while I’m here, I’m easily the youngest in any given situation except for MKs here. It’s a nice change of pace from feeling old at home.

This morning was a relaxed day at work. I got in around 8:45, we had a meeting from 9-10 and then we all went to the store and got ice cream. Apparently it’s a tradition, though it occasionally doesn’t happen due to ice cream shortages. (How terrible does that sound?) We sat in a hauswin (gazebo) and chatted for about an hour, which left only an hour of work before lunch.

My roommates and I were invited to dinner tonight, which is always fun. It’s really interesting to meet the different types of people here. They’re all really friendly. Oh, random, but I’m starting to become a fan of tea. There’s free coffee/tea/Milo (hot chocolate) where I work, which is soooooooo nice. And tea helps me cut down on my normal coffee intake.

I’ll update again after the weekend!


Oh! Also, I think my stomach has gotten used to the food because it hasn't been bothering me!

A Weekend in PNG

This weekend was a mixture of full and relaxing. Friday night my roommates and I went and had dinner and watched a movie with the few remaining members of the Discovery program who haven’t gone to other villages. It was a “special occasion” so we all wore ties. It’s the little things in life that make it fun. We ate a bunch of waffles with all kinds of things on top of them and then watched Up, which is one of my personal favourites.

I got to sleep in a bit Saturday, which was fantastic. I went on a walk around center Saturday afternoon. It was the first time I’ve sweat since I’ve been here. I walked all around getting aquainted and taking pictures. I thought I was lost for a while, but managed to find my way back home. I visited the horse paddocks, and it made me feel right at home. I plan on calling someone tonight to find out some details so I can ride and work out there while I’m here. I made friends with an adorable black lab named Ebony. I played with her for a few minutes, and when I went to continue my walk, she ran along her line to follow me and the next thing I know she’s popped her head through the bushes, which were to my right side. It was probably about the cutest thing ever.

After my walk, I just relaxed until dinner. I played piano, read a bit, and climbed a tree in our backyard. It was my night to make dinner and I made Spanish rice with veggies and such in it. It actually turned out pretty good. Be impressed, world. Not long after dinner came time for the “auction” which was held at our house. It was for a woman named Laura who is going on furlough for six months. Whoever wanted something first, got it. I got a shirt, two books, and a pair of Five Finger shoes (I’m still not sure how I feel about the shoes). I also got two old copies of a Guidepost publication. After all, they did give me my first legitimate contract. People brought snacks and we hung out and played games until around 11 p.m. I learned a new game called “Hand and Foot” and wasn’t half bad. My partner and I won.

Sunday I went to the English service at church and then was invited to lunch with Mr. and Mrs. Pfaff, whose son goes to Taylor with me. I never actually met him, but his parents are wonderful. My roommates came with me, as well as a guy named Josiah. We ate and talked for quite a while, and then Josiah was going into Ukarumpa village to play volleyball with some nationals there, and I went along with him. We had a cross a pretty sketchy bridge to get there, but I made it without falling. It was really fun to just get to sit and hang out with the nationals. I had some good, albeit broken, conversations. The women were very kind and told me it meant a lot that I was willing to just be a part of their group. Most of the kids were pretty scared of me at first, as I was probably the first or one of the first whiteskins they’ve ever seen, but they warmed up to me. A lot of them just wanted to shake my hand or touch my skin or hair. It was pretty cute.

After that I went home for about an hour before leaving to go hang out with some of the high school alumni. I went with Josiah and a girl named Hope, who also goes to Taylor, though I didn’t really know her until I got here either. It was fun. We had theological discussions about things like the role of women, submission in and outside of marriage and God’s will. Josiah walked me back a little after 10 p.m. (since I’m not allowed to walk anywhere alone after dark). I got ready for work the next day and chatted with my roommates a bit before heading off to bed.

Today has been super rainy. It’s probably the hardest it’s rained since I’ve been here (all of one week). This is getting a tad long, so I should probably stop here. I’m feeling a bit off today. Not really sick, just not totally well, so if you could keep my health in your prayers, I’d appreciate it. The last thing I want is to be stuck in bed sick while I’m here.

Pictures

Notice the clothes drying and the tank where we collect rainwater

The house I'm staying in here

The last plane I took

An amazing view

So, pictures are expensive here, uploading and downloading them, that is. Here's just a small tidbit of my life here. I'll try to upload more to facebook later if I can.

People Profiles

Okay, so here’s an explanation of people profiles and what the survey office does. When we take a survey, we go to a place that does not yet have a Bible in their vernacular language and we assess the vitality of said language, that is, whether or not that language is likely to continue to exist or if it’s going to die out. People profiles are summations of all of the information gathered on these trips. The information includes some of the following:

·      When the church was started and by whom

·      Number of adherent/active christians

·      Resources available

·      Transportation

·      Economics

·      Trade

·      Number of communities

·      Number and denomination of churches

·      Literacy

·      Health care

·      Water quality

·      Diet

·      Modernization

·      Neighbor relations

·      Family structure

And plenty more. Seriously, these things are like six pages long. These are published to encourage prayer and recruit missionaries and supporters and translators, etc. So I am slowly but surely becoming an expert on some of the language groups here. I started work Wednesday and have finished three of these reports. They can be tedious and time consuming, but I am learning so much about the various cultures here, which is fabulous. The Ethnologue and I are quickly becoming good friends.

The people I work with are very helpful and fun to be around. We take lunch from 11-12 and have regular short coffee/tea breaks at 10 and 3. It’s a nice way to take 5-30 minutes, depending on how sociable everyone is being, to clear your mind and relax a bit so that you’re more productive later. Our hours are super flexible, but I’m usually here from 8:30-4:45. If I had to go to the store, which is only open until 3pm, I could leave work to do so and no one would think anything of it.

Tonight my roommates and I are hanging out with the Discovery students, who are doing something similar to me, and watching UP, and I’m pretty excited. Plus, now I don’t have to cook tonight! Woo-hoo!

Okay, pictures this weekend. I promise. It’s just that the internet is slow and expensive here. Keep in touch!

I Finally Made it to Ukarumpa!

So I wrote this Wednesday, but haven't put it up yet:

My trip here:

·      drive to Chicago: 2.5 hours

·      time before flight 1.5 hours

·      fly to LA: 3:40

·      layover in LA: 5 hours

·      Flight to Brisbane: 13:10

·      Layover in Brisbane: 1.5 hours

·      Flight to Port Moresby: delayed half hour; 3 hours

·      Wait in line to get visa

·      Wait for luggage

·      File a claim for my luggage that never made it

·      Go through customs

·      Drive to MFA hanger

·      Miss my flight and wait 4 hours for another

·      Nearly not make it to Ukarumpa due to weather conditions

·      Arrive safely and happiy

That’s a lot, huh? It was a long trip, but I did make it and it’s absolutely gorgeous. It rained a bit my first day and a half here, but today is bright and clear.

My first night I arrived shortly after 5:30 pm Monday and then went to dinner with the survey team, which I am now a part of around 6:30.  There are 7 or 8 of us working on the survey team. It was nice to get to meet everyone all at once and good to learn that I will actually NOT be the most sarcastic person here, even without trying to suppress it. =]

I went to sleep around 10:15 my first night here since I only got around 4 hours on the plane(s). I got up around 8:30, just in time for a scheduled power outage. I wanted to begin my orientation, but really really wanted to shower first, so I waited. It was only supposed to take about an hour, but wound up taking more like and hour and a half. I spent the interim talking in broken English to the house Mary, Kitty. She also had things to do that needed power, so she switched to sweeping and chatting with me.

After a quick shower, I met up with a woman named Deborah who showed me around the town and helped me take care of things like finances and my computer, and showed me where the store is and where I’d be working. She and I had tea late in the afternoon and I really enjoyed getting to know her better. She’s hilarious and a bit of a firecracker.

I am living with two other girls, one who has been here a while, and another who got here the same day as me and is staying for 5 weeks. It’s nice to have company, since I can’t walk around alone after the sun goes down, and we split things like energy costs and cooking.

I actually went to bed at 9:30 last night, as my body is still trying to adjust to the 15 hour time difference. Today I got up early and went to market, which happens Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings. Nationals set up and sell fruits and veggies from their gardens. Some also sell things like bilums, which are bags for carrying things, and woodcarvings.

I began working today and am enjoying it. I am working on writing up People Profiles, which I’ll explain in another post. But for now, I have to get back to work.

Today:

My luggage made it here yesterday, which is great. I got my own bilum at market today, and am about to head off to work for the day. I'll try to write in more detail and maybe post some pictures this weekend when I have more time.

Papua New Guinea

Hey all! So this is where I'm going to be blogging about my trip! I leave in 9 days!

There's a TON to get done in the mean time and a lot of people I want to see before I leave, so I'm sure I'll be quite busy.

My parents and I will drive to Chicago where they will drop me off. I will then fly to LA and from there to Brisbane, Australia. From there to Port Moresby, PNG and then I'll be taking a tiny tiny plane to Ukarumpa, which is my final destination.

Please keep my trip in your prayers, that the final details will come together smoothly and that I won't have any problems with my flights (I'm terrified that I'll miss a flight and be screwed). I've never flown totally alone before, so I'm a bit nervous about that. I love flying, but all of the details suck.

Why How Quickly You Run the Race Doesn't Really Matter

My friend Murphy died this past August in a motorcycle accident.
It was really sudden and, of course, completely unexpected. And it still hurts sometimes.


Murphy and I met in grade school and a lot of my best childhood memories involve her. She always had a way of making everyone feel loved and included. 


Every time I work out, I wind up thinking about her because it reminds me of one of the many amazing things she did to change my life. 


I don't remember exactly how old we were, but it was in grade school some time. My class was running the mile for P.E. and my little, asthmatic self (though we didn't I had asthma at the time) was having a hard time and was getting discouraged. I wanted to start walking or just give up entirely, but Murphy was there to help me along. Instead of getting the best time she could have gotten, she slowed down to run with me. She ran by my side the whole time, encouraging me. I ran my first ever under 10 minute mile that day.


I didn't have the will or desire to run faster or continue on my own, but Murphy was there to help me, just like she always was. It wasn't the biggest gesture, but it changed my life. 


Next time you encounter someone who's struggling with something, no matter how small, remember that the simplest of actions can make a world of difference.