This week my team and I are heading to THE BUSH! When you say you’re going to “the bush” in Africa, it’s basically like saying I’m going to “the boonies” in the states; an area that’s considered out in the middle of nowhere, or out in the middle of the desert in this case.
We’ll spend a week tenting in the backyard of a local pastor and spending our days evangelizing and being in fellowship with the people in the villages there. We’ll also have an opportunity to attend a traditional African wedding!!! We’re stoked!
A week in the bush is a pretty good trade-off for missing a traditional American thanksgiving this week and although my team plans on preparing a belated thanksgiving meal once we get back to Maun, I wanted to take the opportunity to write about things I’m even more thankful for back in the states after experiencing life on the field for the past four months!
- I’m thankful for washers and dryers that are big, reliable, and don’t shrink your clothes
- I’m thankful for clean, running water that is safe to drink, cook and brush your teeth with
- I’m thankful for air conditioning and electricity that is consistently on
- I’m thankful for consistent and reliable wifi without a cap
- I’m thankful for alone time and a room to myself
- I’m thankful for dressers and closets that hold my clothes instead of a backpack
- I’m thankful for hot showers
- I’m thankful for outlets that fit all of my charging cords
- I’m thankful for grocery stores filled with brands I’ve heard of
- I’m thankful for ceiling fans
- I’m thankful for full size stove tops and ovens
- I’m thankful to have a car of my own where I can drive myself and have reliable transportation
- I’m thankful for when I’m in close proximity to my friends and family
- I’m thankful for when I’m on the same continent as my boyfriend
- I’m thankful for a home church that preaches and sings worship in a language I can understand
- I’m thankful for comfortable couches, chairs with cushions
- I’m thankful for comfortable beds with warm blankets
- I’m thankful for drivers who abide to the laws of the road (most of the time, haha)
- I’m thankful for holidays spent with family and doing holiday traditions
- I’m thankful for a place to call home
I’ve realized how easy it is to take these small things for granted and I’m able to appreciate the blessings that I have at home so much more, now that I’m living without most of them for a year. It also makes you realize how capable you are to live without these things and how good the Lord is to provide for the things that you lack or left behind. I’m also so thankful for the many things I get to experience here in Botswana this month: my team, plenty of food, a bed, running water, exotic animals everywhere, wifi, the loving people of Botswana and seeing the Lord use me in ways he’s never before. So very blessed.
I pray you and yours have a wonderful thanksgiving filled with love, laughter, good food and gratitude!
