Happy New Year! It is crazy to be starting another year, 2011 went by way to fast. The older i get, the faster time seems to pass by. Every year i say the same thing, and i think every year it slipping by a little quicker then the last. especially this last holiday season was so busy, i don't understand how December flew by.
It began with two funerals and all the sudden it went from two people sleeping in the house to eight, and the craziness began. the last two weeks have been a blur family and friend get togethers and lots and lots of food. lots of food. Kenyans can really eat. it is amazing how much they can put away in one sitting. and i am not just talking about big people, the little people do it too! one night we all went out to dinner. we ordered three plates of french fries (a staple in a Kenyan diet), three plates of meat, ugali (boiled corn flour, very filling), and vegetables. i was stuffed when it was finished. then everyone decided they were still hungry, so we ordered another chicken. this is how almost every meal went.
Christmas is so different here, it is hard to even compare it. It is maybe more like the fourth of July. families all get together and eat a lot of food, but with no presents. everyone gets a new outfit and girls get their hair done, so everyone looks very smart (clean and polished), but they don't actually give gifts at Christmas. Of course things like this are changing a little bit every year, as more western influence makes its way into the culture. At Nakumat, a spendy rich supermarket throughout Kenya, they have a life size animatronic Santa, that says, "Ho Ho Ho, Merry Christmas,"when you walk in front of it. Whenever i walk by it, it seems so out of place, with his big woolly red suit and rosy red cheeks, and a Christmas tree with lots of presents next to him. While there is a species of evergreen that lives here, they are few and far between.
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It began with two funerals and all the sudden it went from two people sleeping in the house to eight, and the craziness began. the last two weeks have been a blur family and friend get togethers and lots and lots of food. lots of food. Kenyans can really eat. it is amazing how much they can put away in one sitting. and i am not just talking about big people, the little people do it too! one night we all went out to dinner. we ordered three plates of french fries (a staple in a Kenyan diet), three plates of meat, ugali (boiled corn flour, very filling), and vegetables. i was stuffed when it was finished. then everyone decided they were still hungry, so we ordered another chicken. this is how almost every meal went.
Christmas is so different here, it is hard to even compare it. It is maybe more like the fourth of July. families all get together and eat a lot of food, but with no presents. everyone gets a new outfit and girls get their hair done, so everyone looks very smart (clean and polished), but they don't actually give gifts at Christmas. Of course things like this are changing a little bit every year, as more western influence makes its way into the culture. At Nakumat, a spendy rich supermarket throughout Kenya, they have a life size animatronic Santa, that says, "Ho Ho Ho, Merry Christmas,"when you walk in front of it. Whenever i walk by it, it seems so out of place, with his big woolly red suit and rosy red cheeks, and a Christmas tree with lots of presents next to him. While there is a species of evergreen that lives here, they are few and far between.
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I have learned that much of my spiritual progress does not come directly from God,
but through my ability to humble myself and hear Him speak through imperfect people.
Francis Frangipane
When i first read this i was reminded of something that i once heard Graham Cooke talk about. He had these horrible annoying people in his life that kept showing up and disturbing his peace. He finally realized that God was allowing them to help him grow through a situation, he called them, "grace growers." Not that this is exactly the same thing, but i think so often we see others who just don't have it as together as ourselves and we, not always meaning to, put ourselves above them. God can speak to us through the strangest circumstances and people, you just never know where He is going to pop up next. With this realization brings peace. I have had so many frustrating people in my life lately, but there is always something to learn and if i have patience and don't loose my temper, God can work through them. more often then not, i first loose patience and my tempter, and then learn the lesson. all part of growing up.
love to you all!
suzanne
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