Thanksgiving

Dear All,

I thought I would post a few pictures of recent and Thanksgiving times :)

Paula, Becca, and I at a recent pot luck that our friends at the hospital hosted.

Paul sent me an Advent care package...you might say I was a "little" excited to receive it :)

Thanksgiving evening...Paula had been sick all day and was severely dehydrated.  Our nurse friend, Sophie, came over to hook up an IV (notice our sweet make-shift IV bag holder).

After we got Paula hooked up, Sophie and I went to Thanksgiving dinner that our friends at the hospital graciously invited us to.  Chicken instead of turkey - the only turkeys in Ethiopia were apparently imported and sold in Addis Ababa for $100!...Sad that Paula couldn't come :(

Sophie and I at dinner.

After dinner, we came back to our castle to check in with Paula.  Not too long after, we all went to bed - Good night, and thank God for sooo many blessings in my life!

A Day in the Life

I thought it might be advantageous to post "A Day in the Life," but first a couple of other things I have realized:

Things I am consistently thankful for (listed in no particular order):
-the fact that I'm here with Paula
-the food here is delicious
-I am in good health
-getting to celebrate Mass daily
-having such readily available access to the Chapel and Tabernacle to pray = favy! ;)
-Paul (my boyfriend) is sooo wonderful...and so good to me!
-I feel productive most days
-great and loving family and friends back at home
-moments when the kids are extra cute! (*see note below for examples from today)
-my favorite one of the mountains here, which is so gorgeous
-Mary's prayers for us
-for my guardian angel
-for the strength to make it through the day
I should make more of an effort to actually thank God for these things each day (some I do better with than others), but I consistently truly do feel thankful for all of these things (I'm sure it's not an exhaustive list).

Also, I have recently realized that there are a lot of things that I never used to like/appreciate, but now I REALLY enjoy (again, listed in no particular order nor exhaustively):
-the wind
-when the power goes out (well except for when my computer runs out of charge)
-candles (especially when the power goes out, are in my opinion way better than flashlights, which are called “torches” here)
-eating eggplant
-singing
-playing the guitar
-playing foosball (I’ve begun to get pretty competitive about this)
-the rain (I like it even more than I did before)
-Tums
-speaking/listening to Spanish (this is not a regular activity, nor am I much more proficient at it than I was back in the States…but I enjoy it much more than before)
-writing in cursive with a fountain pen
-learning other languages
-eating prunes

Reflecting on this all makes me think, “Who even AM I these days?!”…Hahaha! I guess that’s what going to Africa ‘ill do to you (or maybe it just took that for me to broaden my horizons on some things) :) …Also, I was unable to think of anything that I used to enjoy (before leaving the states), that I no longer like…so I guess that’s a good sign.

Ok, now I present to you… “A Day in the Life”…

6:30AM - I wake up in the morning feelin' like P Diddy...hahaha! (That is a quote from one of our favorite pump up songs - "Tik Tok" by Kesha)

The first thing I see each morning = my princess canopy (AKA mosquito net)

It is really hard to get the eyes open that early in the morning

6:35AM - Good Morning Paula!

6:40AM - Morning prayer and Daily Mass in the chapel (Paula is sitting on my right, even though you can't see her)

7:30AM - Breakfast (usually Paula would sit in the chair to my left and Abba would sit in the empty chair on the back right, but they weren't there at the moment)
*Note: The very large peanut butter jar...We finished it in about two weeks - good thing we know which stores to walk to for buying more!

7:45AM - Walk down to the school for the Morning Assembly.  Students stand in lines based on grade.  During the assembly, Abba leads prayer and makes announcements, then the kids sing the National Anthem as the flags are raised.  Classes are dismissed one-by-one and students walk to their classrooms.

The front of the school

Morning Assembly

 8:00AM-10:15AM - Teach classes:  5th grade Math (Solving linear equations by substitution), 3rd grade English Tutorial (what animals do and where, ie-"A monkey climbs in the tree."), 4th grade Spoken English (finish talking about animals, and began the verb "to have")...I've been temporarily filling in as a math teacher, so I taught three extra classes today that I would not usually have.

One of my 3rd grade classes

3rd grade English Tutorial lesson

10:15AM-10:45AM - Morning break for students, during which they play table tennis, sing songs, foosball, etc.  I usually play/keep order at the girl's foosball table

10:45AM-12:15AM - Teach classes:  one 4th grade Math (Division), 3rd grade Spoken English (administered a verbal test over face and body parts)
12:15AM-1:15AM - Student lunch and recess
1:30PM - Lunch - yesssssss!!! (We all eat lunch at different times depending on when we are teaching classes)  Today I don't teach 6th period, so I spent time with the students during their lunch/recess time before eating lunch myself.  After lunch I have a couple of class periods off, so I catch up on emails and work on lesson plans.

We have spaghetti every day at lunch, and I'm still not tired of it!

I try to get some prayer time (on my own) in at some point during the day.  Today, I have time after I eat lunch.

2:45PM-3:30PM - Teach class: the other 4th grade Math (Division)

One of my 4th grade classes

 

3:30PM - Hop in the car to go teach English at the Daughters of Charity (they send a driver to pick us up)

Since our school just got out, the road is lined with our students - shouting our names and waving.

The goats, chickens, donkeys in the roads crack me up!

The arch on the left is the gate for the Daughters of Charity compound

Some of the flowers we see once we drive in - their compound is like an oasis, just beautiful!

3:45PM-4:35PM - Teach English at the Daughters of Charity (review and practice conversational questions)

The inside of the building where we teach - our classrooms are on the right

Once we finished teaching we had some time to kill, waiting for the driver, so Paula pulled out the guitar and we sang a couple of songs (typical)

 5:00PMish - Drive back to Don Bosco and head down to Rosary with some of the kids from Oratory (on the days we teach at the Daughters of Charity we miss Oratory at Don Bosco...otherwise, we typically attend Oratory, during which I participate in more foosball with my "jotanee girls" as I fondly refer to them as)

Headed down the hill for Rosary

Rosary with the kids (attendance ranges from about 7-25 kids)

6:00PM - 7:00PM - Break time...eat a snack, catch up on emails, shower, lesson plan, etc.
7:00PM - Evening prayer, followed by dinner-yessss!!! (I like to EAT!)

Evening prayer

Left overs after dinner

 8:30PMish - Back in our rooms, this is the typical scene...more email/internet/lesson planning/rec time

Paula set up an internet station in the hallway because the connection is better for her there

At my desk

10:30PM/11:00PMish - Typical bedtime...Tell Paula good night, check for mosquitoes in my room (so far I think there's been three the entire time we've been here), climb back into bed beneath my "princess canopy," and say my prayers...

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen...Thank you, Lord, for the day - to you be the glory...

Prayer of Faith (By: Fr. Ken):
Dearest Jesus,
Help me not to look forward
to what may happen tomorrow
I know you will take care of me
Today
Tomorrow
Every day of my life-
Help me to be at peace-
Trusting in your promise:
"I will be with you always"

*Note about extra cuteness of the day:
1) During the verbal test over the face and body parts today in 3rd grade, I pointed at my toes and asked one of my students what they were...After half saying the word a couple of times and really struggling to think, he guessed "fingers"...I said "no", and after thinking some more (I'm kind of lenient with my tests), he said, "leg fingers?"....hahahaha! Oh geez, how cute is that?!

2) The other day, we were talking about animals and their body parts in my other 3rd grade class.  One student said, "An ant has eight legs."  To which I responded by asking the class, "How many legs does an ant have?"...The answers varied (and brought about quite the commotion, I might add) from I think two to ten and just about anything in between.  In an effort to quell the "storm," and myriad answers, I said (and wrote on the board), "An ant has six legs."  Immediately, I don't even know how many students adamantly begged to differ, saying, "Miss, Miss, it is incorrect!"  One student pulled out the English workbook (picturing an ant), and proceeded to count the legs depicted...and sure enough there were eight!...How can I compete with that-black and white-there it was!  I proceeded to look around the classroom floor, trying to find an actual ant-however unsuccessful...So I just stood my ground saying there were six and moved on.  Today, one of my students from that class came up to me at the end of play time, saying "Miss Jenna!" and looking down at his fingers exclaimed, "ant!"...and there it was, he had found a real ant...I said, in surprise, "Oh yes! And how many legs does it have?"...he said, "six"...I said, with a smile, "ok, good :)"

Random craving update for approx. the last week: Taco Bell burrito with sour cream in it (I love sour cream), key lime pie, french bread with butter and garlic salt lightly toasted in the oven, quiche, Chipotle...currently chicken potpie sounds sooo good!  Then maybe followed by warm brownies from the oven with a cold glass of milk-yummm!

Teaching Teachers, Americans, and Guitar

A few notable things have happened this week…

Monday:

Today a sister from the Daughters of Charity came to tell Paula and I that she spoke with Deacon regarding our schedules and times of availability for teaching English at their school for teachers (this is something that has been talked about since we got here, but we haven’t been sure whether or not it would actually be happening).  She said she would call us tomorrow to let us know when we what our schedules would be for teaching.

Tuesday:

The driver from the Daughters of Charity came to pick up Paula and I (we didn't know this was going to happen 1) today and 2) immediately after I finished teaching classes at Don Bosco). He took us back to their compound so we could meet with some people there regarding teaching English classes. We will be starting tomorrow!...For the remainder of the school year, we will be taken to the Daughters of Charity compound twice a week to teach an English class for 47 young women who are in a training program to become kindergarten teachers.  They are from all over Ethiopia and range in age from 18-30 years old.  Once they finish their training program, they will disperse throughout Ethiopia to begin teaching. 

Also, while in the car on the way to the other compound, there were a whole bunch of our kids walking along the road, waving at us, and shouting our names...I felt like saying, "Princess Jenna greets you this afternoon. Hello! (slight hand wave)" hahahaha!! oh geez :)

We had fried fish today at lunch and dinner, and it was delicious...I like fish :)

Wednesday:

Today, my classes went really well.  I am teaching my 3rd grade classes about the body parts, so we sang "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes"...I think they liked that :) 

Lunch was delicious!  The type of watt (thick soup) they made today was really good with the injera (thin sour pancake-like bread used to scoop the watt=eaten with hands).

Today was our first day of teaching at the Daughters of Charity.  The girls were really great, and I'm really excited for getting to be involved with that 'mission'...being that we are teaching young women from all over Ethiopia, who will become Kindergarten teachers all over Ethiopia...I think it's kind of cool to think about :)  Because of this, today was the second day in a row of missing Oratory, which meant I didn't get to play with my jotanee girls, and I missed them!

We don’t have school at Don Bosco Thursday and Friday this week, so that’s kind of a nice break.  This means the next time we have school (not including teaching at the Daughters of Charity) will be Monday, November 5!  Can you believe that?!...It will soon be November 5, already!

Thursday:

Today is All Saints Day (and my Baptism Day - well I guess technically, the reunion of said day - and I'm really excited about that fact)!  Our reflection preceding Evening prayer explained more of the reasons WHY/purpose we celebrate All Saints Day. It was so beautiful in the way that it explained the saints as "an army of holy soldiers interceding for us before the throne of grace." In that our asking for intercession from the saints (and the saints themselves) ultimately points toward the grace and greatness of God.

Today something REALLY exciting happened...We met other Americans!!!!!  They are the first we've seen in two months!  We walked over to the Christian Hospital (opened and operated by Americans), seeking to meet them.  They were great!  And it was definitely a God thing because we walked in there and just happened to encounter the field director's wife (exactly the person we needed to talk with).  We told her why we were there, and she was super welcoming.  We had tea with her and her husband, and then she showed us around the missionary community that lives there, introducing us to other missionaries (some of whom are Americans).  We exchanged phone numbers with a couple of the other women there, and they all said we could come back any time (may be a possibility to go there for Thanksgiving, even!).

Additionally, I realized this week that being here is more exhausting than I recognized. Everything is a process…speaking, for example…no matter who I speak to (except Paula), even if they speak English, I have to think really hard about just exactly what I’m saying and how I’m saying it.  When I need to say/ask something, I first think to myself, "Will they understand the concept (culture differences)?  Will they understand the words I use?...brain processes to modify my words and simplify sentence structure...speak...repeat process"…boy, this much energy spent on something that typically would be automatic really takes it out of a person!

Friday:

Today, we got up and went to Mass this morning.  Mass was, as usual, followed by breakfast (I am surprised and glad that I have not yet gotten tired of having the same thing for breakfast every day - we have French bread with cream cheese, bananas, bread with peanut butter and honey, tea, sometimes jam on the bread, sometimes eggs or every once in awhile some kind of meat...I still like this breakfast everyday)...Then I went back to bed, got up, checked my emails, went to lunch (it was nice to get some extra sleep).  Then we went to meet our new American friends (one of the girls invited us over to her house for dinner tomorrow night!), then we taught at the Daughters of Charity (the girls did so well, and I was really proud of them!...We taught greetings and introductions, and then they practiced and "presented").  After that, we made it back for a few minutes at Oratory back at Don Bosco and finished with saying our daily Rosary with the kids.

Also, today I learned from Paula that “Don” means “father” in Italian.  So when we say “Don Bosco” that means “Father Bosco,” which is fitting because he was a Catholic priest.

The night has come to a close, and concluded with my first ever guitar lesson, compliments of Paula – thanks, Paula!

Wow, A LOT of exciting things happened this week!...We began teaching at the Daughters of Charity, we met Americans, and I started learning how to play the guitar!

Dear Mom

26 October 2012

I am sooo thankful for the privilege of growing up in the household I did.  Thank you Dad and Mom for raising us in a loving, supportive, Catholic home.  Thank you for telling us that you would ALWAYS love us, no matter what.  Dad, you kept a light-hearted, playful spirit ever-present.  You would tell us girls we were beautiful, you treated us like princesses, and would shower us with “big bear hugs.”  You helped me keep a level head (or were a level head when I lacked one), and typically would provide a voice of reason during the “storms” throughout my life.  You have helped me keep an open mind (or at least realized I should have been more open-minded when I wasn’t).  You taught us how to dance – those times when you would crank up Vanilla Ice or MC Hammer and we would just dance around the house like crazy!  I love the times we would spend Friday night on the couch with the whole family, watching rented movies and eating pizza and ice cream – the perfect thing for the end of a long, always-active week.  Thank you for teaching us the difference between right and wrong, and how we should treat other people.  While no family is ever perfect, I am proud and feel truly blessed to be able to call mine “mine!” 

Thank you for being so supportive of my dream to come to Africa and for understanding what a hard decision it was to discern whether or not to come.  You have lovingly supported me my whole life, and continue to do so.  From the bottom of my heart, thank you.  With that being said, I would like to dedicate the remainder of this post to my Mom. 

Dear Mom,

Thank you for being so wonderful…not only for everything you have sacrificed for me or all the things you have done for me…but for just being who you are!  I love you so much, and since being in Africa, there are a lot of things I realized you taught me (that have really come in handy)…for which I am so thankful.  I love you sooo much and wanted to take this opportunity to say “Thank you!”

Thank you for teaching me:
1) How to brush my teeth with a water bottle
2) How to wash my underwear in the sink
3) How to check the tent for mosquitoes before bed (I check my room each night)
4) How to dress injuries properly
5) That it’s okay if someone else wants to take care of things every once in awhile
6) To be genuinely open to doing God’s will – to say “YES”
7) That I should strive to always be growing in my faith
8) About love
9) “Chubby”
10)  How to do the “Elvis lip” (9&10-I have been showing to my 'jutanee’ girls, and they just laugh really hard-aaaahahaha!-good thing some things are apparently funny anywhere in the world, no matter what language you speak)
11)  That a lot of medical issues will go away on their own – just keep an eye on it
12)  To be nice to other people
13)  That during an allergic reaction, so long as your breathing is not impeded, you’re probably still okay (don’t need to seek medical assistance)
14)  To lay on my left side when I have trapped gas
15)  How to care for children
16)  How to teach children
17)  About ENDOW (Educating on the Nature and Dignity of Women) and encouraging me to attend a study group.  Our study of Redemptoris Mater really opened big doors for my relationship with Our Blessed Mother Mary.  Now, as a SLM, I am entrusted to her care and am growing in relationship with her, which only leads me ever closer to Christ.
18)  How to French braid hair
19)  How to “write like a teacher” (using correct hand-writing, with crisp edges)
20)  How to wash my hair upside-down (I feel like it gets cleaner that way - especially here, after the kids touch all over it)
21)  How to be inventive, using all different materials in creative ways
22)  How to fix just about anything and use creativity for problem solving
23)  To be aware of how many other people are eating dinner when serving myself food
24)  To be frugal and responsible with money
25)  To laugh REALLY hard!

Additionally, thank you for:
26)  Making Erin and I take self-defense classes at the beginning of college (not like I was opposed to the idea, but probably not something I would have done just on my own)
27)  Encouraging me to go on the trip to Europe
28)  Staying up nearly all night with me to go to Walmart and pack on the eve of my departure for this whole trip
29)  Inspiring my devotion to and love of Adoration – this truly has changed my life (as Father Ken promised it would)
30)  Always loving me, no matter what

Thank you!
Lots of love,
Jenna

Hi All!

I realized the other day that I have been in Soddo now for an entire month (well, now a month and a half)- I can't even believe it!  Also, I GOT MAIL!!!  My first pieces of mail from the US have arrived successfully - this is great news, and I am really excited!!!  I received a birthday card from a friend and my absentee voters ballot...this means I still get to vote (which I know many of you were concerned about)!  I completed my ballot and put it back in the mail already.  Here are some other random thoughts/things I thought I’d share:

1)  On Saturdays at lunch we get this delicious baked pasta with sauce in a skillet.  Each day for a week I was so hopeful at lunch time that we would have it again, but we didn’t…Until one day (Saturday…come to find out it’s a Saturday ‘thing’) we had it again!  Yummmm, it is my favorite food we have here in the compound and I have begun favorably referring to it as the “pasta bake.”

2)  I have been realizing that sometimes I feel beautiful, here.  I guess I’m noting this because I am surprised, more than anything.  I expected to come here and just feel gross all of the time (like camping mode 24/7 for a year).  Also, all of the people here are so beautiful!  I thought I would wish I had skin, lips, teeth, hair, etc. like theirs.  While they are VERY beautiful, I have found my self-image to be different than expected.  Instead, I feel more beautiful here than in the States because I’m different.  Sometimes, I feel like Mary because I have fair skin, blue eyes, and brown hair, and we wear scarves on our heads for Sunday Mass.  The girls sometimes tell me that I have long hair.  To which my internal response is, “Well, I guess it’s kind of long, but not really that long…it’s more just like medium length.”  Then I proceeded to realize that not many people here have anywhere near what I would consider to be long hair.  Most of the girls wear their hair in braids or ‘afro’ style - either way, it’s typically not much longer than their shoulders.  I really like their braids…I’m hoping that maybe some day one of the cook ladies might be able to braid my hair ;)

2) My foosball (‘jutanee’ in Amharic) skills have really been improving, but I’m pretty sure I would win the prize for most inconsistent performance!  Sometimes I can do pretty well, but at other times I still perform really poorly.  I have been playing at the girls’ foosball table each day at oratory (they probably range in age from 7-14).  I have begun to learn some of the girls’ names.  Each day Paula and I walk down to Oratory and are warmly greeted by a plethora of kids, including my jutanee girls :)

3) I learned song in Amharic!  The girls at school taught it to me :) I still have to read it because I do not yet have it memorized, but I really like it.  I also know the song in English but because it’s not a direct translation, the words don’t exactly match up (I don’t know what the Amharic words mean).  Today, I was teaching the song to the oratory girls.  I was really excited because not only was I teaching a song in Amharic, but I was teaching something to them in their language and they acted like they understood the words (so my pronunciation must have been at least proficient).  I have the song written on a paper that I keep in my pocket while I’m playing foosball, and once I got out and went to the end of the line, the girls came around me saying, “Xabier miscana.”  And, as usual, I didn’t understand what they were saying.  Then I thought, “Wait I think I know those words.”  So after thinking really hard, I realized they were asking for the ‘God music.’  I proceeded to take the paper out of my pocket and they repeated each line after I sang it.  I successfully understood something they said to me!!! 

4) We recently attended a going away luncheon for one of the Daughters of Charity.  She has been here in Soddo for 18 years, and is being relocated.  We don’t know her, but the Salesians were invited, so that includes us.  It was really nice, and Paula and I realized that we feel privileged to get an opportunity to attend random celebrations and events like this…Thinking if we had not chosen to be Salesian Lay Missioners we would likely never be presented with opportunities such as the ones we have gotten to experience.

5) I have learned mostly all of the names of my 3rd and 4th grade students.  Which is a huge accomplishment in my book!  Upon arriving Paula and I realized what an impossible challenge it seemed it would be to learn the kids’ names.  There are a few different aspects: 1) pronouncing their names (Some common kid names here are Kidist, Sisay, Wondemogen, Waynarig, and Nazrawit), 2) connecting their names with their faces, and 3) are they able to write their names in English? I had an English roster, but the written Amharic language consists of symbols that I am unable to recognize.  Thankfully, they were able to write their names using English the alphabet, so that was a start.

6) The Oratory kids organized a talent show to celebrate the Feast of the Cross, and Paula and I were asked to perform some songs.  That was an experience!  We sang “Down by the River,” “American Pie,” and “Transformation.”  I have never really considered myself a singer, and I am pretty sure I have never sung with just one other person in front of an audience before.

7) The Salesians have asked us to continue “The Chronicles.”  This is basically a book that the previous SLM started to record noteworthy events and visits throughout the year with short descriptions and pictures.  Because this has unofficially become one of my assignments, I find it ironic (Miss Non-Photographer) has been dubbed the official event photographer and historian!
 
8) I just want you all to know that I feel Paula and I have been exceptionally successful at entertaining ourselves.  When we’re not teaching classes, participating in prayer time/Mass, eating meals, or playing at Oratory, we have dance parties, intellectual conversations (i.e. quantum state of matter), and laughter fests involving different voices and random stories.

9) The power has been going out each night recently and the wind has been blowing pretty hard at night, too (we suspect this two occurrences are related).  Surprisingly, I really kind of like it!  It reminds me of times when it would be blizzarding in Colorado and our family would cozy up for a movie on the couch with blankets and Mom would say, “It’s times like these that make me so thankful we have a nice cozy house!”

10) Recent random food cravings (I think I have at least one, if not more, each day): Cinnabon cinnamon roll, 7-Eleven nachos, macaroni and cheese, warm brownies and cold milk, cottage cheese, chocolate ice cream, queso, Chipotle, cheese enchiladas…I am noticing a themes of cheese and chocolate…hmmmm, maybe I am not getting enough calcium in my diet…I just ate a Tums for the first time ever! (While I was packing before I left, Mom said that would be good source of a little extra calcium intake)

Our Trip to Dilla

The other day, Abba, Deacon, Paula, and I drove to Dilla (about a 3-3.5 hour drive each way) for lunch and a tour of the Salesian compound there.  Here are some pictures from the drive and the compound:

A gas station we stopped at on the way

People were selling stuff along the roadsides

Don Bosco in Dilla

School buildings on the compound in Dilla

The high school building

More school buildings

The food distribution center where they serve lunch to about 300 kids each day

The school building for the kids that come to the food center

One of the classrooms

Paula with coffee beans (Paula loves coffee!!)

Inside the Salesian parish church on the compound

The clock tower right next to the church

Views of Dilla from the top of the clock tower

Paula and Deacon on the stairwell in the clock tower