Milestones

Besides our one-month anniversary, a couple of milestones have been achieved in the past few days.

Milestone 1: Kelsi and I completed our first successful bike trip to the store.

John was kind enough to fix Kelsi’s wheel, so we strapped on our helmets yesterday and set off on a mission across town. (And by across town, I mean that we biked to the store that is one mile away. Although this hardly seems to qualify for a mission, the potholes and rocky terrain amp up the intensity quite a bit.) We disagreed on which way would be fastest to get to the store, so we set off in two different directions, agreeing to meet in front of Shoprite. About ten minutes after Kelsi arrived at Shoprite, I pulled in. Guess I lost that bet….

We don’t have bike locks, so Kelsi volunteered to watch the bikes while I ran in to pick up our groceries. During the ten minutes I was inside, Kelsi counted a total of fourteen people who approached her, either asking for her bike or wondering why she was sitting in the sun. All in all, it was a successful outing. Kelsi and I felt like true locals as we bumped home with cabbages dangling from our handle bars.

Milestone 2: We were greeted with loving hugs from our children yesterday morning.

After chapel yesterday morning, we saw some children running down the path we were walking on. We realized that the children were running towards us! The girls grabbed our legs as they reached us, and we kneeled down to scoop them up in a hug.

The children proceeded to follow us down the path to the classroom. (We have an extra fifteen minutes in between chapel and tutoring, so we usually go to the classroom to make last-minute preparations or talk about the upcoming day.) As we wrote a few worksheets, they sat at the desks and stared at us. Kelsi and I exchanged smiles and then stole glances at the children, eliciting an eruption of giggles. When we went to tutoring (under a canopy outside), the children there also ran over to give us hugs. I wish that this was a typical morning, but unfortunately they are usually shy with their hugs. Kels and I are hoping that the morning hug becomes a routine!

Milestone 3: We had a full day of power today. (Although I'm speaking too soon...the day isn’t quite over yet!)

Zesco is the energy company in Lusaka, and for some reason, they have really been struggling for the past few days. Since arriving in Zambia, we typically lose power for a couple hours once a week. However, I believe every day this past week we have had a power outage. Usually the outages only lasted a few hours, but some days they were much longer. Kelsi and I have taken to yelling “Zesco!” in mock anger when the power goes out; we are sure that the energy company is timing the outages to spite us (ie. as we start cooking cabbage. And no, half-cooked cabbage is not as good as it sounds.) However, we are learning to roll with the punches, and we are always very grateful when the power flicks back on!  

I know what you’re thinking. Hugs and power outages count as “milestones?” Perhaps I was a bit generous with the label...could you let it slide this time?

We had a great day today. We were blessed with classes and volleyball games filled with laughter. Kelsi and I love that even though we don’t speak the same language as our students, our smiles and jokes don’t seem to need any translation.

After volleyball, we met John and Sharon. John and Sharon are leaving on furlough next week, and they won’t be back again before we leave. They have been incredibly helpful and kind, and we are very sad that they are leaving so soon! As we walked and watched the sun set, John and Sharon regaled us with stories of Africa. Our jaws dropped more than once as they told us about the years they lived in the bush. Afterwards, we stood in their yard and chatted while fruit bats flew over our heads and the stars twinkled brightly above. It was a great conclusion to another wonderful day.

God is so good! God’s blessings on your day and night!