Thanksgiving 2009

I have always been a fan of the holiday season. I love the way Thanksgiving kicks off the season's festivities and brings anticipation for things to come. Thanksgiving is uniquily American. Those poor pilgrims back in the day took time to recognize that God had truly provided for them. God allowed them to survive and eventually prosper in a place that was far from "home."

With that in mind how fitting that I should celebrate Thanksgiving with American friends here in this foreing land far from home. Although I love spending the holidays with my family I truly believe that I have been given the unique opportunity to celebrate the "important days"over seas.

You see, we try our very hardest to make the holidays special. We search high and low for the one turkey in town and I won't even flinch when asked to pay a ridiculous amount for things such as turkey, ham,or cheese...but we do it because we want the day to be special.

Thanksgiving Eve was celebrated by going to the grand opening of Pizza Hut. How better to celebrate being a blessed American than with an American style pepperoni pizza. When my friends and I arrived at the new Pizza Hut (first major chain to come to Nepal) we were giddy. Seriously, you could not slap the smiles off our faces if you had tired. Money was not an issue, all that we cared about was the pizza. We ordered appatizers, sodas, and pizzas as if it was our last meal. Needless to say we went home stuffed and happy.

Thanksgiving day was orginaly supposed to be hosted at my neighbors apartment. Thanks to a case of typhoid fever my poor neighbors were in no condition to host. So, with a few last minute phone calls and e-mails it was decided that I would host Thanksgiving mostly impart to my apartment's big yard not my culinary skills.

My friend Kristin came early to help me set up and before I new it about 30 American friends decended on my house. There was food galore and an all around good time was had. We had some singing, football, and just good fun.

Everyone was just plain happy. Happy to be with friends, happy to eat good food, and happy to acknowledge how God has provided for us in this foreign land.

Have I said yet that it was a great Thanksgiving?

Strange Days

When applying to move over seas I had to take this crazy long mental test. I then had to go over the results with a counselor. One of the questions on the test was "Strange things happen to me." I answered TRUE. The counselor was concerned with this answer so he questioned me...

Counselor "Do you feel that strange things happen to you all the time?"

Me: "No, not all the time"

Counselor: "Well, what sort of strange things happen to you?"

Me: "At the moment I can't think of anything specific but I work at a nursing home and I lived in South Asia."

Counselor: "maybe if you gave me an example I could better understand."

Me: baffeled as to why he could not understand I said "today Clarence, who is 101 years old, came into my office and told me a story about how while he was walking in the forest he saw a naked woman singing to him. He was wondering if I had seen her and why she was naked." I then went on to tell him a few strange moments that happened to me while living in Bangladesh.

These stories seemed to appease him but I could tell that he was still not happy with my TRUE answer.

If I were to run into that counselor I would tell him about the past couple of days....

Day 1

I hit a frog with my bathroom door. The frog lost a leg in this mishap and then proceeded to bleed all over the floor. After some debate as to wether I should euthanize it I decided to put it outside and hope a natural predator would take it out of it's misery.

Day2

While driving my scooter a man next to me decided to spit thereby covering me in his mucus. Thankfully my visor was down but still...YUCK

Day3

while walking home in the dark I could hear someone following me. As my foot steps quickened so did the persons behind me. I turned to see who it was and let me guard  down when I saw that it was a Buddhist monk. As I turned and started walking again the monk ran to me and grabbed me. I proceeded to hit him and started yelling "thief thief"(a word used for bad people in general). This worked, he started to run away. My fear quickly turned to anger causing me to run after him. I kept yelling in hopes that someone would come out of their house. When I ran out of Nepali words I  then started yelling in english "DID BUDDHA TEACH YOU THAT....RUN COWARD". By the time I reached my house he was long gone.

There are times when I am tired of the "strange" and wish for normal and easy. That however is not my life nor do I suspect is anyones. During these times I just have to remember who it is that brought me over here to Nepal.

Mom and Dad take on Nepal

The first time I lived in South Asia was back in 2003-2004. Ever since that time I have longed for my family to experience South Asia. When my parents found out that I would be moving to Nepal again they started saving with the promise to come and visit. These past two weeks Mom and Dad made good on their promise.

This was their first time over seas and they were real troopers. They were up for just about anything. They ate everything set in front of them and followed me into new and very different places. They walked the streets I walk every day and experienced the sights, sounds, and smells that are apart of my life.

I know that there were times when their senses were overwhelmed and the newness of it all left them speechless. It would be safe to say that they will be forever changed by their two weeks here in Nepal.

I must admit that they tired me out. I so badly wanted them to experience as much as possible but at the same time I wanted to protect them. I was certain that Mom would fall in a hole and Dad would get lost but, they came through physically unscathed.

 Nepal has been apart of me from the moment I stepped off the plane. Now, that they know Nepal they in turn know my heart a little better.

They have seen and experienced the extreme lostness that surrounds me daily.

They have met the people that I love and during the hard days remind me why I am here.

They have seen the beauty of the majestic Himalayas and have witnessed the dirty streets of the city.

They have looked into the eyes of beggars and have been recipients of Sherpa generosity.

They watched as the lost walked in circles in hope of salvation and sang and clapped as believers praised the One True God.

As my parents fly back to the states I know it will take some time for them to truly process all that they have seen. Those who are friends of my parents will be hearing stories of their time here. As I write I am reminded of a song called "Albertine" by Brooke Fraser. The words of her song are my wish for my parents. (I hope Brook does not mind but I would like to use her lyrics with one small change)

"now that I have seen, I am responsible

Faith without deeds is dead

I am on a plane across a distant sea

But I carry you in me

and the dust on my feet

I will tell the world, I will tell them where I've been

I will keep my word

I will tell them Nepal"

Mom and Dad, my friends are already asking when you will be coming back again.

good byes

God has blessed me with some amazing friendships here in Nepal. It sort of feels like I have two sets of friends. I have Nepali friends and "foreigner" friends. My Nepali friends live in my neighborhood. I see them on a regular basis and I usually I get to know their friends and family.

My foreigner friends are in the same boat as I am...i.e.. a foreigner trying to make Nepal home.  Some of them are here for a limited time only and some are in it for the long haul. For me, this past year in Nepal has truly been blessed by these "foreign" friends. We have church together and eat beef at each others homes. We can let our guard down and share our struggles of being a foreigner in this land. We encourage each other and help one another navigate through this journey. It is a sure bet that we will be together for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Birthdays and other major events.

Although this past year has brought me some amazing friends, unfortunately I have had to say goodbye to four of them.

I knew the goodbyes were coming. There were no surprises but I was sad to see them go. What their future holds is a mystery but I do know that God is going to do some great things in their lives.

Amanda was my roommate for six months. We weathered the dark/ cold winter together. We sang, danced and laughed a lot. God truly brought her into my life at just the right time. I miss working with her.

Jenn was a kindred spirit from the beginning. The minute I met her I knew we would be friends. God's call on her life is amazing and I know that He has big plans for her in the states. I miss her stories and laugh

Matt was the little brother I had always wished for. There were plenty of moments  when Matt got me out of a jam or two. I loved watching God work in his life and watching him grow.

Betsy is a young woman to be admired. Although she makes a quite first impression she is far from shy. Her drive blows me away. I can't imagine that she will be away form this side of the world for very long.

It is tradition with our group to see one another off at the airport providing one last hug and goodbye before going through the Kathmandu security.

God continues to bring people in and out of my life. I am always changed and bettered by the friendships that He blesses me with.

Although this blog may sound a little sad I don't write with a sad heart but rather I write with a heart of gratefulness.

I could go on and on about these friends...but I will spare you. Who knows, maybe one day they will come across your path.

Kathmandu 5k

The last time I ran a 5k was in college. The night before the 5k I busted my nose playing ultimate Frisbee in the middle of the night. The morning of the 5k I dawned a baseball cap in hopes of covering up my swollen nose and black eyes...fast forward 7yrs...

We were all surprised to hear that Kathmandu actually had a an "annual" 5k. A few of my friends decided it would be a fun experience and I agreed. The day before the 5k I wrecked my scooter providing some nice road rash on the left side of my body. I was however still determined to run the 5k so the morning of the race I bandaged up my wounds, took 2 extra strength tylenol and headed out.

The race started at the national stadium. The participants were an interesting mix of Nepalese and foreigners. For the 5k event my friends and I were the only foreign women running. Everyone was excited thus making the 5am wake up call much more bearable.

Kristin was a 5k virgin and had surfed the web the night before to get running tips and make a runners play list for her i-Pod.

Summer had run a 5k before but came a little over prepared. We all had a good laugh as she pinned a map of the race to her shirt just incase she, the one white woman amongst 500 Nepali runners, got lost.

Carol was there for the same reason I was...the experience and because everyone else was doing it.

When the race started it was crazy to be running down the blocked off streets that were usually packed with busses, cars, motorcycles, and bikes. At times you had to run around cows, mysterious puddles, and garbage piles. My goal was to just keep running. I did not care so much about speed I just knew I did not want to walk as I always end up doing on the tred mill.

As I neared the end of the race there were locals applauding and encouraging us to finish strong. They yelled out your time in Nepali so I think I know how fast I was.

Once all my friends arrived at the finish line we headed over the the water station. There were no cups, just communal pitchers. So we Nepali styled it and drank it by pouring the water into our mouths never letting it touch our lips.

The event as a whole was fun yet a little bazar. Nepal's pollution and congested streets do not lend itself to the ideal location for a race. If anything it was fun getting to experience it all with some good friends.

I hope to run it again next year...maybe even improve on my time.

a few of my favorite things

some of my favorite things....

the nightly down poors that the rainy season brings. love falling asleep to the sound of rain

the way my 5 year old friend says "see you tomorrow" rather then just good bye

2hr full massage for only 1,000 Nepali rupies  (12$ USD)

chacos. just about every American living in this country has a pair. chaco's home page

The DVD rental store. Two DVDs for 70 rupies (90 cents)

Skype = weekly chats with friends and family

skype home page


Sermon series on Ruth...you have to check this out Ruth sermons

the song "Faithful" by Enter the Worship Circle

I WANT TO SING YOU A LOVE SONG, YOU ARE THE THIEF OF MY HEART

RHYTHM AND RHYME TRY TO DESCRIBE IT

NO MATTER HOW HARD I TRY...I CAN`T HIDE ITFAITHFUL, YOU ARE FAITHFUL

I HAVE FOUND NOTHING BUT GOOD IN YOUR HEART

LOVING, YOU ARE LOVING

I AM IN LOVE WITH THE WAY THAT YOU ARE

THANKFUL, I AM THANKFUL

I HAD BEEN RUNNING AWAY ON MY OWN

AND THEN YOU FOUND ME, OH HOW YOU LOVE ME

I KNOW YOU`LL NEVER LEAVE, LEAVE ME ALONEI WANT TO SING YOU A LOVE SONG, FOR YOU

ARE THE LOVE OF MY LIFE

RHYTHM AND RHYME TRY TO EXPLAIN IT

NO MATTER HOW HARD I TRY, I CAN`T CONTAIN IT

weekend trip

This past weekend my team decided to take a little retreat. We went to Pokhara, a place known for it's beautiful lake and and the Annapurna mountain range. Due to the rainy season it was too cloudy to actually see the mountains but that did not inhibit our team from having a fun weekend. 

Pokhara is only 124 miles from KTM but it takes between 5-7 hours to get there...depending on traffic.

Being from the West Coast I constantly find myself missing the water. Although Pokhara's lake is nothing compared to the Pacific Ocean having breakfast next to the water was bliss. It felt nice to sit and relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery. 

On Saturday our team decided to go out for a "team building" experience. We had no idea where we were going or what we were in for. After seeing a few key signs we all realized that we were going to check out some caves. As I flip through the files of my memory I'm pretty sure that I have never been in a proper cave...and to be honest with you  have never longed to do so. I am however usually up for an adventure so I was pretty excited about this cave experience. 

The first cave was pretty small. As we followed the "EXIT" sign we started to become a little leery of the so called exit and it's Nepali size opening. After a few well placed foot steps and a little maneuvering we all made it out and we were off "to the Bat Cave."

Now, in Nepal, one NEVER knows what to expect. Will this Bat Cave have hundreds of bats or did they just name it the bat cave for kicks? Will the exit be small again? How important will it be to have a flash light? These were just a few of the questions we had. As we walked down the stairs to the cave we saw a little hole with an "exit" sign above it. We all briefly looked at this hole and thought "surly, this is not the exit. there is no way a person could fit through that hole there is probably another exit some place else." Folks, let me just tell you that western thought and logic has no place in Nepal.

As we deceded into the cave it was big and did indeed have some bats on the ceiling. All in all it was pretty neat...that is until Tammy decided to check out a trail she saw. This trail took us UP. Climbing over rocks we came to a small opening with a tiny bit of light coming out (I forgot to mention that our flashlights were indeed essential due to the pitch black interior of the cave) After a small debate we realized that this hole was the way to the exit. The hole would lead us to a small cavern that in tern had another small hole also known as the exit. 

We decided to send the biggest person through first. Our logic being, if he could make it out then the rest of us could make it as well. After two people successfully made it out it was my tern. Getting out was more difficult then I had anticipated. It involved wedging myself in this hole, twisting into a position where I could get on my belly and then belly crawl out. 

There was a moment of panic when I thought that I was gonna be stuck in that little crawl space. All I could imagine was my two team mates on the outside pulling and the other two teammates below pushing. No way was I gonna be the sad chubby team mate that had to be pushed out. At that moment I refused to be like Whinny the Pooh eating too much honey and having to be pushed out of the tree. With sheer determination I squeezed through the hole and with a shout of joy and relief exclaiming "I made it!! I made it through."

Everyone made it out. We were all dirty and sweaty from the experience but it was fun. It was indeed a team bonding experience and one of those Nepal moments that I will fondly look back on. 

Sunday afternoon came all too soon and we piled into the car to head back into the city. If you are ever in Nepal I would highly recommend taking a trip into Pokhara. I know it's on my list of places to visit again.