Today is our rest day. Rest day from a typical Nepali day usually means resting our aching legs from hiking up mountains all day. Rough life I know, BUT I am assuming what has become usual for me is probably not so usual for you so here is an ordinary day as a world racer in Nepal.
7:00-8:00am Sweet peaceful alone time outside on the “porch” that looks directly into the face of a mountain. There is so much foliage that you cannot see too much around the trees, but there is a river that runs directly next to the church.
8:00am Tea time! This is perhaps one of my favorite times of the day. Yes they bring us tea at 8pm sharp every day and it is delightful.
9:00am Lunch. No, I didn’t mess up my meal times. This is actually lunch. Nepali’s only eat 2 meals a day: lunch and dinner, with a snack in between. Everyday we eat the exact same thing for lunch and dinner: rice, chips, cucumber (Dad your favorite!), potatoes and some other vegetable, a sauce and a salsa-ish dip that they call ‘pickle’. Some days there will be chicken in stead of the potatoes, but for the most part it stays the same.
10:30am Leave for ministry. On a typical day we will walk or hike anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours occasionally taking the bus when they are not on strike. Whenever we ask how long the hike is, we get “1 hour for us, 2 hours for you.” Apparently us slow Americans are not up to par with the Nepali.
We hike with Pastor and his son Samuel who is also our translator. We struggle up the mountain in our chacos, and they hike in flip-flops carrying umbrellas. Pastor does not speak a word of English, but you always know where he is because he shouts HALLELUJA periodically through out the day. Samuel’s English is minimal, but he is improving every day as he gets more confident. I really don’t know how to describe him, but here are my favorite quotes from Samuel thus far:
“I think you understand…”
“The sun is so hot, I want to punch the sun!”
“I don’t think you have to shower because you are white”
“Thanks me!”
2pm Snack time Snack time usually includes rice some days, noodles other days, and our personal favorite….Nepali donuts! They are not like american donuts (or we would all be fat…) but they are delicious all the same. I am not sure we are getting enough carbs here…
5pm Team time This is our time to check in with everyone and see how we are all doing as a team and individually. This includes feedback and encouragement. It is a sweet time to process the day.
7pm Dinner same as lunch! So far, still looking forward to it each day 🙂 Our ministry contacts are so good to us!
8pm Fellowship This only happens on tuesdays and fridays. This is kind of like bible study with the church group! We sing songs, pray for one another and preach. Most people come from hours away over the mountain and usually end up spending the night in the church.
BED TIME. Yes I still go to bed early. And love it. After making sure our sleeping space is free of any insect that may have made its way in during the day, it is a beautiful thing to fall asleep to the evening rainstorms and look forward to tea again in the morning!
Sending love from Nepal!
