Thanks to the hard work of Amy and Lucy, our language coaches, I am now able to speak a few sentences in Swahili, and able to understand a large base vocabulary! I was so surprised to realize while at a Swahili church service (more about that in a later post!) that I could actually catch…
Exploring Iringa
As many of you know, I enjoy being outdoors. Being in Iringa offered a world of opportunities for hiking and exploration. Iringa is located in the southern half of Tanzania, and is a semi-arid mountainous region. There are a number of trails and footpaths surrounding River Valley Camp, which I was free to explore each…
Autumn Leaves
Upon the breeze, the autumn leaves Are carried thither, yon: They rest at last, upon the grass One moment…then they’re gone. They’re tossed about and in and out They fly across the way; And up and down, they sail around- The wind they must obey. Now, if you please, the autumn leaves Are much like…
Habari!
Hello from Iringa!Language school started on Monday so I am officially learning a few Swahili words. Some of my favorites are the word for horse, the word for spider, and the word for goat. Unfortunately, I don’t know how to spell them yet so it might be best for you to look them up on…
Live Beautifully
Fires of the night Burning bright Beacons of blessing Bearing hope Innumerable Astounding Creation reveals Mighty hands Shaping this, our world Crafting life Brilliant beauty Shows His love Live beautifully Reflect Him.
I Made It!
Its 11:13 p.m. here, so I’ll make this short and sweet: I MADE IT TO DAR ES SALAAM, TANZANIA!!!! All of my flights went well. My plethora of bags and bicycle made it. Customs was a breeze. That’s not to say the last twenty-five hours weren’t emotional. Leaving my family was crazy hard. Getting harassed…
For Two Years…
In Philip Keller’s book on Psalm 23, he exposes the sheep in all its insufficiency, helplessness, and utter dependence on the shepherd. There are certain points in life where my own insufficiency, helplessness, and utter dependence on the Shepherd are displayed in all the brilliance of a glaring neon sign. Ugly. I don’t like this….
Beauty?
Whatever happened to beauty? We create fake art, entertainment designed only to create an adrenaline rush that is forgotten soon after. It is full of human ugliness, destruction, and death. Now, certainly, there is room for ugliness; if only to show beauty in redemption. Maybe I’m disillusioned. Maybe I just long for real beauty. Or…
The Messiness of Life
Packing for two years is messy business. Socks. Sandals. Sheets. Shampoo. Sweatshirts. Shorts. Tossing clothing from the drawers into the middle of the room, and then into the already-overflowing duffel bags is stressing me out. Then, when I finally have an item checked off of the list, I realize that I need to wear those…
We the People…
…of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” In my high school days, I was…
Ride Fierce Racing 