Week Three | ACCLIMATION

Seriously.  Any time I sit down to blog, something weird happens.  Last week, Shalom (somehow) set her head on my shoulder;  tonight, a bug flew out of my hair.  Out of my hair.  I didn’t even know it was in my hair to begin with.  Seriously.  But it doesn’t even phase me anymore.  Like, oh look, a huge bug flew out of my hair, what else is new?

Acclimation is actually super fun.  I sincerely mean that, and it comes with no sarcasm.  Really.

This week, God has been teaching me all about acclimation and adjusting to this new world around me.  From the heat to the bugs to the food to the timing, God’s been working in cool ways this past week.

This week started with a lot (A LOT) of homesickness.  It was the first time I’d really missed home and my family; it was the first time I’d really cried from being homesick.  But God works in awesome ways sometimes.  This week, the other interns have started to feel like a real family.  They comforted me when I was feeling homesick, and they really do feel like sisters.  It’s amazing to me how God uses our spiritual family to create an (almost) real family.

It’s crazy to me that I’ve already finished three weeks of my time here.  That means that one fourth of my trip is over.  That’s insane.  That makes me want to cry.  I can’t imagine leaving here come August (also I really don’t want to go back to school in August – I just want to stay here forever).  But, as I started learning last week, I can’t focus on the negatives.  I’m choosing to focus on the positives and on all the beautiful ways God is blessing me while I’m here, not on when I have to leave and how quickly it seems to be approaching (even though it’s still two months away).

This week, I’ve gotten to go to the village and meet sweet, sweet little kids…and let them talk me into playing pato pato ganzo (duck duck goose) in the middle of the iglesia (church) in the village.  Those girlies are so darn sweet.  I also went back to the dump both to help Wednesday with morning activities and hang out with the girls in the abstinence program and to help Thursday afternoon at the youth group.  Seeing the kids at the youth group was a blast.  One of my favorite parts was getting to interact with the girls I’ve been starting to get to know from the abstinence program.

I still just absolutely LOVE my days at Taellor’s House.  It’s even more fun now that I’m matching the right names with the right kids (YAY no more calling kids the wrong names!) and now that I’m getting to know them all a little better.  They are seriously a blast.  Being able to be in an environment where kids are learning about Jesus through education brings my heart so much joy.  I would love to use education one day to reach kids who maybe wouldn’t otherwise hear about Jesus or see His love.

This week has been amazing.  So much has been changing as I’ve adjusted.  I cut up my first papaya this week.  I’ve been learning so much about the culture, and I’ve been learning about how, yes, everything really is always late here.  I knew that in my head, but it’s been super fun to experience firsthand.  The heat no longer feels as horridly hot, and the times when it rains actually feel pretty darn cold.  I’m learning how to handle my homesickness and turn to Jesus when the days feel hard or overwhelming, because those days come.  I’m learning to do life with the other interns that I’m living with, and I seriously can’t imagine spending this summer with any other girls.  God really knew what He was doing when He placed us all together.

For now, I can’t think of anything else, so here are some pictures from the last week for you to enjoy!