It's time to wake up. It's 7 o'clock in the morning. (British Accents only)

Adjustments.  Adjusting to the time change.  Adjusting to the weather.  Adjusting to the cuisine.  Adjusting to a new bed.  Adjusting to the British lady's voice on my African cell phone waking us up in the morning.  Adjusting to someone else doing my laundry (can I get an AMEN?).  Adjusting to being so far from home and family and friends.  I could go on and on, but you get the picture.  Everything is an adjustment.  You just wake up in the morning, when the clock says its morning, and just go with the flow.  No expectations.

Our days are full of the OVC, the agriculture center, Live School retreat, staff counseling, devotions and just whatever we can get into that looks fun, which is pretty much anything around here.  When you have no idea what is being said or how people are reacting to you being there it frees you from any pre judging on your part.  It leaves the field wide open for me to be happy within my own skin and focus on the people around me and the task at hand rather than my own self awareness.  It’s amazingly free.  Everyone says hello here.  Not the southern hello, bless your heart kind of hello but the sincere hello, hey stop and let’s talk about the day kind of hello.  Adjustments to sincerity, both in those around me and in myself.  Feels good.  But truthfully, being sincere with myself has helped me to understand the sincerity of those nearby and I’m sure I have been missing out on those beautifully sincere people back at home by my preoccupation with self.

Jet-lag is not for sissies, by the way.  If you have never traveled internationally or to another time zone altogether, then you’re missing out on this lovely physical reality called jet-lag.  Ick.  It’s a lot like altitude sickness to me. Headache, queasiness, dehydration, loss of sleep, etc.  It’s a joyful time had by all….NOT!  I didn’t realize it would take quite so long to adjust to the time difference.  Don’t know how people do it working nights instead of days.  It’s got to be a similar change.  Adjusting.  By Sunday evening my body seemed to have adjusted to the time and I slept the first good night’s sleep since we left.  Just in time for our week to start.

I’ve met a wonderful lady, Anna, who heads up the sewing center at the OVC (Orphans and Vulnerable Children Center).  The first day I showed up she asked me what I was going to teach them.  No pressure, right?  I helped cut out patterns for the bags they sell to raise money for their sewing center the first morning, but by afternoon was sewing with Anna!  I was a little nervous walking in and seeing a dozen treadle sewing machines lining the room and thinking, “uh oh, I am going to sew my fingers together!”  Thankfully she has two electric machines that she and I used for the bags.  The treadles are for the students since most do not have electricity in their homes, so what they learn here is what they can use at home someday.  Adjustments.

David has really jumped right into his duties here.  He’s helping out at the agricultural center and is even doing devotionals with the guys.  He said it’s good to get out of his comfort zone.  My husband is an amazing human. 

Funny though, he finds this pace painfully slow and frustrating at times when you just lean on the shovel waiting for the gravel to arrive, that may not make it til afternoon or tomorrow or whenever.  He says next time he wants to bring a watch.  I don’t think that will make it better personally.  Adjustments.  God is good.  He is faithful.  He is merciful.  He likes to hand out the adjustments.  My hubby is handling his very well.

Most residents of the village do not have electricity or running water in their homes or huts.  It is, however, such an odd sight to see a tv or some other electronic device hooked up to some places that look like they’d fall down if a big wind came.  Everyone without water must walk to the river or to the wells in their areas and carry their water back in large containers.  It’s carried mostly on their heads.  Adjustments?  I would need a chiropractic adjustment if I tried to do that.  Maybe I’ll try with something a little less weighty.

Everyone adjusts to doing whatever it is you must do to get the necessities taken care of around here.  It really is that way everywhere, but here it’s such a simple life it seems a lot easier to see how adjustments are made.  No one talks about how to adjust, why to adjust, the right procedure to adjust, if someone should seek counsel on the right adjustments, they just adjust.  Adjustments.  But is it always a good idea to just adjust?  Should a person just give up and do what everyone else is doing?  Is the adjustment good for those around you?  Or are you adjusting for the convenience of self?

If God calls us friend and calls us to Love one another, what adjustments must happen in our lives to make this possible to be Love to each other?  We do nothing to deserve the Love of our Heavenly Father and all he asks in return is to Love each other.  

Our devotionals came from John 15:15-17

I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his mater’s business.  Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.  You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit – fruit that will last – and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you.  This is my command:  Love each other.