Hello from Kathmandu, Nepal! Today, I have a poem that I wrote in India about the days we spent helping out in the kitchen just to give you a little glimpse of life in Sielmat. Enjoy!
it’s sunny
three days went by
the damp cold
seeped into my chest
and stuck
like moss
itching to spread
to consume
to envelop
all that is warm and dry
if you pressed down
on my sponge heart
the squish of water
would bleed out
a perpetual cough
drowned out
by the perpetual rain
minutes trudging by
dragging their feet
through muddy puddles
leaving impatience in their wake
but now!
the sun!
today is kitchen day
my favorite day
especially the sunny kind
the sky is the dullest of blues
tilting ever so close
to the thunder gray of yesterday
just me and my team
slow mornings
busier afternoons
fingernails picking at pea shells
pulling hungry caterpillars
from piles of onion skins
bits of garlic
the scent and stickiness
clinging
the shuffle and hum
of fresh conversation
and chilly bodies
shifting in red plastic lawn chairs
a soft background murmur
the spaces of break are chasms
we glance at the clock
it’s useless
the colors are what i remember
the bright reds and greens
of linen tent cloth
chai brown mud puddles
milky tea and tan skin
sunshine, golden and glaring
sometimes i wonder
if the world understands
our desperate desire
for the warm and the slow
how our bodies ache
for the kind kisses of sun
how our minds long
to be grace with unfamiliar gentleness
today i am reminded
of the art of taking it easy
how selflessness
is offering your hands
dirt under your fingernails
stained pastel green
keeping up
with the pace of the day
however slow
becoming soft
shape shifting into clay
willing yourself into whatever tool
is required
and if that means
our fingers are tied
around the stringy fibers
of pea shells
so be it
praises lifted up
past the sun
kitchen days are my favorite
especially the sunny ones
So there you have it! Days in Sielmat were long, and I was often sick. But somehow God always surprised me with the gift of sunshine and days that were slow and sweet. In India, God taught me about going to him every day in every situation and being patient in listening for the Holy Spirit to guide me. I am so thankful for India.
Now, I am in Kathmandu, Nepal! We are working with a local family doing backpacker outreach, house visits, and hiking ministry! It’s absolutely wild. God is already showing me the fun he has in store for me in this final month of the World Race and revealing all the promises he has fulfilled already in the last eight months. It’s about to be an amazing last month! I can’t believe it’s almost over, but I am so thankful for each and every second. Talk to you soon!
-Emm
