6:15am // I’m
usually already coming out of a deep sleep when my alarm goes off. I reach up
and click it off then rest for another ten minutes or so and convince myself
that I really do want to rise.
6:30am // After
waiting in line for the only bathroom (which has a western toilet and running
water!), I grab my backpack and head to the living room.
6:37am // I spread
a few pillows on the floor and do a quick ab workout. Gotta make sure I stay
fit! All this delicious food they serve us is transforming my waistline in not
so good ways 😛
6:53am // I open
the curtains and curl up on a couch in the early morning light with my Bible
and notebook, praying that God will change me, use me, and teach me.
8:48am // The
others begin to emerge from the bedroom as I finish my second cup of tea and
prepare for breakfast.
9:35am // Breakfast
is done. Stomach is settled. Time for some Insanity!
10:23am // Dripping
in sweat from the workout, I head to the refreshingly cold shower. It’s sooo
nice to have running water and be able to shampoo my hair!
1:03pm // Sometimes
I hang out and talk to Pastor Robert’s daughters Rosie and Lydia or do laundry
by hand under the spigot in back or read. Other times, I’ll visit Zulfah (the
young Muslim woman who lives next door), read, hang out with the girls and
watch tv, or visit another family friend until it’s time for lunch.
3:03pm // After a
delicious lunch, the other girls read, sleep, or take turns using the internet
in the bedroom. I have more free time
and usually spend it in the living room hanging out with Robert Junior
(aged 21). Pastor Robert’s call to leave for ministry comes promptly at three
and we head up to the mountain.
4:14pm // A short
hike up the hill to the road, a fifteen minute bus ride (after waiting for said
bus for twenty minutes), then a half hour hike down and up mountains and we
arrive at the church.
4:48pm // English
class begins! Sometimes I sit in the audience and the kids play with my hair or
touch my skin while the adults listen. A few times, I’ll teach. Other times, I
take all the kids outside and we’ll play rundown in the yard or tear up and
down the street playing soccer.
6:45pm // We arrive
back home after another trek (I’m glad we get the daily exercise and it’s
filled with breathtaking scenery) and enjoy relaxing with cups of tea while
watching Aljazeerah world news.
8:00pm //
Dinnertime! There is a minimum of six dishes – rice, matoki (mashed
plaintains), chips (fries), beef stew, vegetables, red beans, avocado,
sometimes pasta salad, and so much more deliciousness. Then, for dessert, there
is always a plate of fresh cut fruit. My new addiction is passion fruit. So
tasty!
9:00pm // Lady
Love/feedback time. Sometimes it’s difficult but it’s usually revitalizing. I
don’t want to do it before we begin but after, I’m always so glad we did!
10:17 pm // I’ll
usually hang out in the living room and have a second small dinner (my body
still hasn’t adjusted to three big meals a day; I still like small frequent
ones) while chatting with Augustine, one of Pastor Robert’s brothers. Junior
often joins us for the news and Rosie and Jennifer (Pastor’s two oldest
daughters; one is 26 and the other 22) come in for a late dinner after night
classes. After news, it’s various shows but most often soccer. I think I’m now
an Arsenal fan (Solomon, are you happy now?).
11:30pm // Very
often, I’ll fall asleep on the couch because Rosie is playing with my hair. She
wakes me up when she’s going to bed and I head back to the bedroom and curl up
with my iPod and quickly pass out.
