Sunday morning I woke up ready for an adventure, the task of riding the blue and white mini buses all by myself and attempting to make it to church on time. So I left the house at 9:30 (church starts at 10:30) and decided I would try and get a macchiato (very small cup of coffee) at a little tea shop before getting on the bus. Unfortunately, there were tons of people there and no seats because the church next door was just about to begin service. So I went down the road, bought some oranges, and then decided to try the buses. And then my learning for the day began. Lesson #1: never ask how much before boarding the mini bus, even in the local language, because then it is free day for high prices on the dumb foreigner. So after that I could not get a fair price and I decided to walk to the next stop and try my luck there.

Lesson #2: walking alone as the only foreigner is not so much fun, everyone has to say something and they assume all foreigners have lots of money. So my only response was to smile, say hello, and pray while I walked. Lesson #3: wearing sandals with really dry feet while walking the not so clean roads of the city is not the best of plans. Somewhere along my walk I picked up a rock, piece of glass, or something that cut my foot up really bad. So no not only am I the only white person on the street, but the only one with a limp and bleeding foot. Not good. But I made it to the next stop. Lesson #4: Success comes by saying very little at all. Just get on a bus heading the right direction and then tell them when to stop. It worked great. Lesson #5: Women stand up for each other. When I finally got on the right bus, the boy did not want to give me my change and two wonderful women helped me and made sure he gave me the correct change. I am so thankful for those two women who in one simple act changed my whole perspective on the day.

It is amazing how often that happens both in the Word and in our lives. One small, seemingly insignificant act speaks so powerfully in the life of another. What an incredible lesson I learned today from those women. A simple act, that meant nothing to them, changed my entire outlook on my day. It brought a smile back to my face that they cared enough to make sure I was treated fairly. I hope I never forget to power of a simple act. Even a smile and a kind word can change the day of someone in desperate need of love. It is a truth we all know, but the reminder is always so powerful.

Lesson #6: Nothing here ever starts on time. And being late is perfectly acceptable and most of the time expected. I arrived to the house on time but we did not get started until after eleven. That did give me time to mend my cut foot though. House church was really good and then afterwards we went to a birthday party for one of the kids. I got to see the other j-men in the city there who I had not seen since my first week here and also see david, who I met at orientation, for the first time since he has been in the country. They all went out country last week on a trip and they all had lots of stories to tell of their adventures in the wild. After the party (we had pizza and ice cream….it was awesome!), I successfully made it all the way back to school by mini bus and felt like the day had been quite a success of getting out on my own.

Then Sunday night we enjoyed a bonfire and dinner together on the compound to celebrate a British holiday. Apparently in honor of parliament not being blown up, they celebrate November 5th as the disarming of the gunpowder plot. And they celebrate by lighting bonfires, shooting of fireworks, and burning a figure of the man who was caught in effigy. It was interesting to say the least and a lot of fun, especially watching kids play with sparklers for the first time.