Water

Continuing the thoughts about water... So far, this house has had an inconsistent water situation. We never know if there will be hot water or water pressure or even any water at all. It is quite a guessing game -"Should I shower now with a small trickle of warm water or hope it will be better in the morning?" We have generally erred on the side of just showering at night, but we have also rushed through a quite cold stream.

It really makes me appreciate the times when there is both hot water and pressure, but I am also very aware of the fact that clean, running water is a luxury. I am deeply thankful we are not hauling huge vats of water up a hill each morning. It's hard to imagine what a day in the life is like for our neighbors only kilometers away.

rain

I've never been one of those people crazy about rain. I wasn't one of those dance in the rain, splash in the puddles types. (I did do some puddle jumping once, but someone tried to take my picture and I thought they were going to kidnap me since that was one of the warning signs from the anti-kidnapping news special my mom made me watch the night before. So that kind of dampened my fun.) I don't enjoy my feet getting soaked. Or my hair getting plastered. I prefer the nice hot drink by a fire next to a window watching the rain with a good book or movie.

However, the rainy season here is quite nice. I might be singing a different tune in a few months, but right now, I actually enjoy it. It rains for about an hour and today is the first time it's been overcast for the rest of the day. It has usually cleared up after the rain. The rain makes everything fresh and green and settles the dust. I had to run across campus the other day during a torrential downpour and it was pretty enjoyable, even amidst the smidgen of panic I felt for the laptop in my backpack and the phone in my pocket I was desperately trying to protect. Yesterday, the kids made themselves silly with glee jumping on the trampoline in the rain. I kept eyeing the swing, but decided in the end to stay dry. They say rainy season is off and on for the next 6 months, so I'll have plenty of time to work up to that rain dance.

Kigali Restaurant Fun

We feel the need to let you all know about the restaurant scene here. Food is very important to our people. In addition to the school's hot lunch each day, we have enjoyed delicious Indian, Asian, Italian, and American food with excellent ambiance. We have also enjoyed creating silly jokes, thanks to one restaurant we went to this weekend called Heaven.

Here are the top 10 things we can tell you about Heaven:
-The popcorn is free in Heaven.
-They show kid-friendly movies at 6 and adult movies at 8. (films for adults, not to be confused with "adult films.")
-Heaven has at least 2 owners -one man and one woman. The man's name does start with a J. (Josh)
-There is an old woman who lives on the other side of Heaven.
-Heaven just opened 2 years ago.
-Heaven only has room for 5 cars in the parking lot. Additional parking is located outside the gates.
-Heaven offers a full bar service.
-The fries are really good in Heaven.
-Heaven has an excellent view.
-You can buy t-shirts and hats to prove you made it to Heaven.

and a few more just for fun:
-Heaven does not have a half pipe.
-There are people of all nations in Heaven.
-Unfortunately, we did not see you in Heaven nor a reservation in your name.

Home #3

Well, it’s been a busy week since the last post. (I started writing this post on Monday, the day that internet got set up. But clearly, things got busy again.) We have since moved two houses and will eventually move two more times when we settle in after the rest of my family arrives. It has just absolutely been a whirlwind of activity. It feels like we’ve been here a month, but it’s only been 10 days. Crazy. All last week was orientation activities with the rest of the staff, which was absolutely great. We got to go on a excursion to a small lake, which I’ll post a picture of soon. As could be expected, we were very involved with scheduling. It was a great way to help get settled with the school.

Today is Thursday, the 3rd day of school. It has been going very well and it’s wonderful to see the kids we have been preparing for and thinking about all summer. It’s great to put names and faces together. God truly is blessing my prep time and even in the middle of class to sense his direction. I hope this feeling continues the whole time.

Our classes are right next to each other, which is wonderful. The school is a great brick building, with two areas of campus, one for elementary and one for secondary. It's up on top of a hill, so there's a great view of the whole city. I don't think we can say enough about the administration - they are amazing and wonderful and better than we ever dreamed. We love working with the Headmaster, Trevor Maxwell, and think he's doing an amazing job guiding the school through transition. But seriously, everyone who is there at the school wants to be there and is willing to work hard to make everything come together. It's truly a great work environment.

Keep praying for us - we can feel prayers and God sustaining us in this hectic time. I don't quite have all my textbooks yet, so that makes things a little interesting. But it's such a neat feeling to see God provide for us in the midst of everything. The classes I do have books for are going well and I'm enjoying creating lesson plans. I am definitely enjoying teaching and am so thankful for classrooms and desks! Our class sizes are amazing - I don't have more than 14 right now and Levi doesn't have more than 10!

Thank you for your love and support. We miss you all!