It's the Smallest Things

It's the smallest things that take me back.  Today it was a fly.

I was cooking breakfast, and a fly buzzed around my head.  My mind quickly went back to Uganda.  Flies were such a common part of my kitchen and life there, but this small fly today made me realize that I haven't seen a fly indoors in a long time.

Sometimes, on the rare chance I hear a rooster or goat, I am also reminded of my home back in Uganda.  It can be the wide roads and shoulders, the variety of choices at the grocery store, the ice in my glass, the availability of Dr. Pepper, my lack of car horn use, a clean smell, or wearing sweaters in air conditioning.  They all still catch me off-guard a little sometimes.  The smallest things will take me back in an instant.

And of course, there are things that never happen here, but I remember them as part of daily life there.

There is no one sweeping my grass/dirt at 6:30 in the morning.

I can't smell what the neighbors are cooking unless they are grilling out.

No one stares at me when I go out.

No one yells "Mundu" or "Mzungu" when I am seen walking around.

It's VERY quiet here; plus, my windows are shut.
Can you believe that my neighbors don't know when I'm going to the bathroom?
And there is no one patrolling around my house at night on foot.

I haven't filtered water in almost a year, and I've been brushing my teeth with sink water.

Not once have I had to check solar before doing a load of laundry.

And I don't have to buy meat and cheese three months at a time (although I could).

If you haven't figured out, we are still in America.  Father's plans are different than ours, and I'm so glad, because His are better.  We anxiously await what He has in store for us.

We've had quite a few adventures, but I never thought to share them because they're America-type things that you're used to.

We had originally been living in my hometown, with my parents, but as we saw our time on this continent was being extended, we knew we needed to find another place to live.  Through the workings of Our Creator, we are now living in another town we love, but the drawbacks were we had to leave our church, friends, and the kids' schools behind.  The kids weren't quite up to enrolling in a new school, so I started home-schooling again.  We're now finding our rhythm with school while having a baby around.

None of this is our plan, but we are confident in the One who is working "all things for good."

God speaks in a still, small voice, and He imparts amazing wisdom to us.

It's the smallest things that move and change us, and for me, today, it was a fly.

It Seems like Yesterday

Remember this?  

This was the kids leaving Texas January 4, 2010.  Our friend Natalie brought doughnuts to the airport for the kids to eat as we checked in, which took a long time.

The airline wouldn't let us on because we didn't have a return ticket.  We had to contact our company and get a letter faxed to the airport, so that they would allow us on the plane.

We arrived in London for a layover,

And started life in Uganda.

Riding bodas became the norm

Watch dogs and a guard on the compound became a part of our life

Receiving packages was such a joy

Learning to cook in a new environment was a new challenge.

This is our house during the most recent packing marathon in June 2013.

We found a gecko behind a box in the garage

Looks like he had been "stuck" here quite a while

We brought several bags home (I'll spare you the number), and we left several behind for some wonderful people from Arkansas to carry (again, I'll spare you the number).

In case you've missed the news somewhere along the way, we will not be returning to Uganda when we come back overseas.  

The other news is that we don't know yet where we WILL be going.

So, in the meantime, feel free to follow our journeys as a family full of children who don't quite remember America, and the interesting observations they make.