unwanted guests-the unperks

Today is the day of admission. The black jumping specks on my arms, my bed and my books are not pepper. The visitors have moved in to stay and today is the day their eviction notice is to be served. Maybe they are guests from the previous tenants. Maybe friends of the 4 cats upstairs. I'm not sure but being the unfriendly person that I am, today is the day of their doom. I have agreed for the nasty infusion to be imparted in our home. 10 days of vacuum clean up. Really, 10 days of bodies and eggs? The thought makes me shutter. The green natural girl that I aspire to be is wreathing in agony over the thought. Did we really sign up to live here on purpose?

Non Material Poverty

Non Material Poverty is an interesting concept for our Western Culture. Isn’t poverty all about having material wealth? While reading “When Helping Hurts” by Brian Fikkert, I have really been considering My Own Poverty.

Poverty of meaningful moments. It isn’t on purpose, or for lack of trying, but it often seems as if the days go by so quickly: racing out the door to school, then to the office, back to school, snack time, soccer practices words, what about the reading tonight? Are the teeth brushed, why didn’t anyone tell me we were out of laundry soap, a quick trip to the store for poster board? You get the point. Margin In Life. Blank space seems to be in short supply.

How do we give our children the best, stay connected with those we love, work hard and give our best but keep from being drawn up by life? Creating margin and blank space in our day leads to wealth of spirit.

Europeans have watches, African's have Time.

Our tour guide in Ethiopia must have sensed me being schedule sensitive. Maybe it was the unnerving feeling in my stomach when we were kicking back for our coffee ceremony and he casually mentioned some new adoptive family was waiting for him at the airport. This may have been the first time he used this line on me "Europeans have watches, Africans have Time. All the while a relaxed demeanor and a big smile.

Yikes!

I am so thankful for the books I have begun reading. ( When Helping Hurts as well as African Friends and Money Matters)I believe they will help me appreciate the differences in culture from here to there. I really want to lesson the gap in my mind. How can I be more like an African? How can I appreciate a more relaxed schedule?

Experiencing God is also a fantastic read.

While I am still here in Tualatin, Oregon which could be 6 months or forever, I am watching for what God is doing. Instead of just wishing for when I will be somewhere else, why not watch for what is going on around me? There are three precious little girls who I am becoming quite fond of. They love to peak in my sliding door to see what I am doing. I am really deliberately trying to make time. Time to listen, to play marbles, to look in their faces and give them my attention. They just want love. Not much different than my Ethiopian friends. It seems to be a valuable international commodity. Time and love going hand in hand. Instead of looking at the gaping differences between the cultures maybe I should try to see similarities.