Hello World!

Hello World!!!!!!!!!!! I may not be able to chat with all of you via phone like I wish, but this is better than nothing! Many thanks to one of my new Congo-friends for letting me borrow an internet thingy while I’m here!!!
So WOW! I don’t even know where to start except to say THANK YOU for your prayers, thoughts, happy wishes, and all the helpful supplies you helped me get stocked up with!! Each and every family member and friend has been such an amazing blessing in helping get me where I am today! God bless you all! God is so amazing! So many of my prayers have been answered and I feel like I’m doing God’s will.
So… not really sure how to start this but I decided that going by the senses would be best… let me also share that many things below may seem like complaints, most aren’t... I just want to share how different things are here than in America. Also, everyone is very friendly and those around me are so helpful and treat me very kindly!!
I’m going to skip taste and will share that later :)
Touch- The main difference is personal space. There really isn’t any. I was sitting on a bench in church for Sunday school on Sunday evening with one of the girls and it seemed like she just kept scooting closer and closer. I do hug the girls and the little kids like to sit on my lap, but sometimes when you want your space, they just don’t understand. It’s just a cultural thing and I’m getting used to it.
Smell- Have mercy! The smell is not too great! I don’t think anyone except me wears deodorant here… Then there’s the smell in the city… it’s a mix of dust, brakes and exhaust. Let me just share that I woke up one morning and thought I was dying because when I looked in the mirror my tongue was BLACK. I later realized that it happens when I go into the city… it’s the dirt, brake dust, exhaust mixture, GROSS!! Sometimes the dirt and exhaust are so thick you can hardly see anything in front of you. (It’s the dry season here which means NO rain for months… not ‘a-slight-chance-of-rain’ type of weather… NO RAIN weather.) However, it’s also the cool season, which I’m totally fine with! It’s cool in the mornings and evenings, I usually where jeans and a sweatshirt or jacket… the days are cool if you’re in the shade… but if you’re in the van or in the sun, it’s nice and hot! I think I can get used to some things here but not sure the smell will ever be one of those things…
Seeing- I cannot even describe what I’ve seen here… lots of kids everywhere are completely dirty, they play in open sewers (just trash in them now, not a lot of water since it’s the dry season), clothing is torn and doesn’t fit correctly for a lot of kids (most of the adults do try to look nice, they have very bright clothing), folks using the bathroom where ever that happen to be when they have to go, cars that are falling apart yet still being driven, homes made of four sticks and tarp, and those are all things I can see… I say that because sometimes you can’t see much. The power goes out daily so a candle-light dinner here isn’t a romantic event, it’s a necessity. I’ve seen lots of cockroaches and flies (haven’t seen many mosquitoes- again, it’s the dry season). The second night I was here I came up with a game in my room called “scare the cockroaches.” I would enter my room and flip on the light and watch them scatter… gross, right? I’m killing as many as I can each day so you think they’d get the point to stay away from my room! Something that I love to see happens at night when the power goes out… the sky is so filled with stars. The first time I saw it, it took my breath away! I also love the sunset. Behind the orphanage is the church I attend and over the wall of the orphanage compound you can see the cross in front of the church… the sun sets right beside it and it’s an amazing sight.
Hearing- As some of you know, I don’t like loud things. I keep the radio in my car turned down and don’t like the TV very loud… loud noises bother me a good bit. They don’t bother folks here! They do everything loudly… In the morning (between 5.15 and 6) and at night (between 8 and 9) the girls all stand in the hallway of the building where our sleep quarters are and sing and pray. It’s great to be a part of but I can hardly stand how loud they are. I finally realized that earplugs do the trick. I don’t think anyone knows my secret just yet. Another loud noise is the horn of the van and other vehicles. Some of you might think that folks in DC are bad drivers and that the roads in Norfolk are no good… come visit me here and you will NEVER, EVER, EVER complain again! A pothole here would be a sinkhole at home, stop signs are merely suggestions and the only rule I’ve seen anyone obey is to stop when the light is red (usually). Besides that people drive all over the road, park anywhere (literally) and pass folks from, and in, any direction. Some roads are paved, some are just dirt and somehow (not sure how since it’s the dry season) some are just mud. I even saw a car scrape the side of another and just keep driving… To add to the hearing section- Most of the time, I have no idea what folks are saying… want to know what Sunday school is like for me? Imagine a super long lecture class you attended in college… then imagine not understanding a word of what anyone is saying… a couple of hours of that at a time is rough, but oh well, I’m doing my best. I am learning some French and bit of Swahili and the girls are working on their English… we manage :)
I am working on a list of things I think the orphanage could use right away. I will get the mailing address soon but in the meantime, any items you can gather or purchase would be great! If folks from all the churches reading this can send boxes as a group, that’s probably best. The sooner the better also because it will probably take at least 10-20 days for it to arrive and then the mailbox is only checked once a month. Here’s the list so far:
-Shoes and socks of all sizes (babies up to probably a women’s 10 or 11)- flip flops, tennis shoes, church shoes… pretty much any type of shoes without a heal… also, the less cloth the better and no leather… (I think Payless has shoes that look like Crocs but are much cheaper, those would be great! Shoes are wiped off by hand or washed in the water bucket like the clothing so they need to be durable, please.)
- Cutlery and a knife sharpener
-Girl’s underwear and bras of all sizes (new please)
-Deodorant and bars of disinfectant soap
- Potholders, kitchen rags and dish towels
-Bath towels and wash cloths
-Clothing of all sizes (infant and up)- No strapless or halter tops, no mini-skirts, nothing revealing- clothing should be appropriate for young girls. Sweaters and jackets are also good since it’s very cool in the morning and evening.
-I don’t know what to call these, but the plastic panties that you put over regular panties when little kids are being potty trained (in case of accidents)
-Bibs, onsies and baby blankets
-Cloth diapers and those big safety pins that are used with them
-Bottles (not the kind that need disposable liners), bottle brushes
-Pins, needles, thread of all colors
-Games and books (if you can find any picture books that have French and English words together, that’s great, the girls love those!)
-They also love photos… flowers, animals, your family (feel free to write a little note to say Hi):)
I continue to covet your prayers while I’m here. I’m adjusting okay and the girls and women at the orphanage are doing everything they possibly could do to make me feel welcome! However, it’s still hard. Something I really miss is running water! I haven’t flushed a toilet in almost two weeks! Something I do enjoy is washing my clothing by hand… don’t ask why, I don’t know... but its fun and the girls like to help me :) (No, I will not continue this practice when I return home!!)
Please feel free to ask any questions and I’ll do my best to answer them! I will only be online occasionally so please don’t be offended if I don’t reply right away!! Also, I’ve put up some photos… I’ll put up more when I have time to give them good descriptions.
Again, I want to express my heart-felt thanks to all of you! Love and Blessings from the DRC to you! God is soooo great!!!
Love and hugs- Rachel