I am laying here in my mosquito net with music playing, the fan on, and a sleeping kitty curled up beside me. My mind is pondering the simpleness of this life. Can't believe I have less than six weeks in Uganda before I start the journey to the other side of the world. Where have the last 7 months gone?
I have learned a lot and grown in the past year. With just a few weeks left... I have started pondering what this year has taught me...
+It has shown me my strengths... my weaknesses... my wants and my needs.
+it has taught me that I am beautiful...independent... strong...desirable...adventurous. ..compassionate...
+it has grown my desire to be a wife and mother
+it has led me to react as a Southern lady...with kindness and grace in difficult situations and letting the guy in the situation lead
+it has shown me how to be an advocate for these little ones with no voice
+it has taught me to fully trust in God for each and every detail in life
As I ponder what is ahead, I know I face a lot of unknowns and need to continue to be flexible. I realize that many friends and family that I come in contact with as I transition back will have no clue what my heart is going through. My home is not in this world but yet my heart is with the people in so many parts of this world. So when someone asks... aren't you glad to be home?... I struggle to answer as home is where my heart is.
My biggest fear going back to the land of plenty ... is the overwhelming sense of "too much"... and until you have lived in a place where people live off of less than a dollar a day ... you really can't truly understand the sensory overload.
Other concerns in this transition...
- driving.... besides the fact that I have had a driver for 7 months and have gotten accustomed to riding on the other side and having no traffic laws... this is going to be interesting!
-money and shopping... having to always do the conversion of money when I go to buy something is constant... then having to take a way quite a few zeros as 2500 Uganda shillings to 1 US $...it is common to spend in the millions when we are buying things like school shoes or furniture... or a dresser for half a million...it will also be nice to be able to buy things like apples, oranges, and cheese without having to take out a second mortgage!
-friends... I have been in a place where I haven't heard from very many people over the past 7 months however I am sure from a couple of people's recent comments that many are following my blog and fb posts... I am unaware of what is going on in many of my friends and families lives and it is going to take some time to catch up. This also goes for world events!
-language skills... after having to learn Luganda and speaking English very s-l-o-w-l-y and using facial expressions rather than words to answer questions... it will be interesting when I get back to using English again full time... then throw in traveling through several countries in Europe.... the South.... and Hawaii... and who knows what might come out of my mouth. So once in Hawaii if I say chi-chi?...I am simply asking What?! LOL!
I am sure this list will continue to grow as departure day gets closer! So stay tuned!
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