It's dark out at 5:16.

VENTING TIIIME!


Okay, not really venting. But right now I'm so super duper frustrated with myself that it's ridiculous. I talked to an education advisor today, and left feeling pretty good. Until I got to thinking.... I still don't know what I'm doing. That's not such a problem in itself, but I would really really like a long-term goal to work towards. Like becoming a doctor for instance. Seriously, I want to be a doctor so badly. But but BUT the road is long and the sacrifices are many. Do I want to give up the next thirteen years of my life so I can be settled in with a career from then until death do us part? Uhhh. I don't know. I really don't. And I can't just float around in university, without a purpose. I need to either get in a program, know what I want, or.. Quit for a while. And I don't want to quit school. So should I just give 'er and get my BSc in Biology? Orrrrrr do I actually want to go a completely separate route and get my BSc in Kinesiology? Physiotherapist, anyone? SURE. At this moment I'm leaning towards Biology. Then comes the whole "getting into med school" business. That's a piece of work in itself. They look at your marks from first year on, as well as whatever extracurricular activities you get involved in.. Because Biology majors have so much spare time on their hands? I would definitely have to do that degree in five years instead of four. Plus the MCAT (Medical College Admission Test) that needs doing after your degree, which you have to do quite well on to get into med school... So then you do your four years of med school madness, and get to become a resident. Yayyy! Let's work 80 hour weeks and still have a social life! Oh waaaaait, that's not right, is it?


I seem bitter about this. I'm really not, I'm just being realistic. By next year I need to decide if I'm gonna just go for it, or do something else, or wait. Because decisions need to be made! Tough ones, suuuuure. But I'm not the only one to have gone through it. And I know that if I make it into med school and come out alive on the other side, I won't regret a minute of it. Then I can go to Africa with Doctors Without Borders! Yeah! Sweet.


Right now I should focus on this year. I have exams to do (thaaaat I should be studying for) and a new semester to go into. It's the time for improving studying habits! I will do better next semester than I did this time around. Above 90 or bust. Hopefully. Keep me accountable, people!


In more exciting, less stressful news... I'm going home on Saturday! Wheeee! That means going DIRTBIKING! And seeing my faaaaam jam (minus my dear brother.) And going to North Beaaaaaach, and also probably working with my dad. Interesting.. And eating delicious FOOD! Oh my word, I won't be eating sandwiches and crackers every day for two whole weeks. That is unbelievable. Of course, I will also be sitting in the basement at the Zimmerman's house: drinking tea, playing video games, sitting around. Sigh. Bringin' back the good ol' times. So stoked!


But for now, I study. Or.. iStudy. Hah. "There's an app for that!"


Seriously though. Home. Countdown, suckaaaaaaszszzszz.

First snow?

Life gets chaotic sometimes. Ups and downs and ups and downs and waaayyy ups and waaaay downs. I've been having an interesting time of it all, what with my mum having lymphoma and starting chemo (she's still in Vancouver for another couple weeks) and my brother being all gone away to Switzerland (again) and my dad working like crazy because it's necessary (as usual.) You'd think I'd be used to it by now. I suppose I have my ways of dealing with not having my family around. It normally doesn't bother me that they're far away, but when you face trials, there's comfort to be found in family. But praise the Lord for giving me His family to lean on! So many people around here take care of me, because they all know I can't cook..


I still have mixed feelings about everything, of course. Life is kinda weird like that. Sometimes I really feel like a lost little girl. Or maybe indifferent is the right word. Uncaring. Caught in a neutral mindset. But then it snows, and I am filled with rage, and all is well again. 'Cause a little emotion helps the day go by.


If you were reading this while I was in Tanzania, then this will seem familiar... I love getting mail!! So I shall discreetly slip my address into this here blog, in hopes of someday receiving a letter from YOU! Yes, you.


Kirsten Hitchcock
# 3208
4 University Crescent
Nanaimo, BC
V9R 6C5


And thank you to everyone who has been praying for my family. It's sweet. And it's appreciated. Much love to all y'all!

DROPPEDDDDD

I just dropped my accounting course. YAY. Although it means I lose that money. Not yay. How miserable I was compared to how much I was actually getting out of that course was just.. Oh man. So not worth it.

So now I have no excuse to get at LEAST 85% in all my classes. Done deal. And I now have a car. YAY!

PS pray for my mum. She's not well.

Where I belong

And on the final day I die 
I want to hold my head up high 
I want to tell You that I tried 
To live it like a song


Where I belong - Switchfoot




I heard a sweet message at camp once.. About a woman who chose her life's testimony before she lived it out. She decided that she wanted to live for Jesus, and have a passion for Him, and spend every moment loving life for Christ because he sacrificed himself on the cross for her every sin. So she did. She has lived that testimony out to this very day, and has never regretted a moment of it. 


There is always time to reevaluate your life and completely switch lanes into living a life not for yourself. I for one, remember hearing that story and I think it changed my motives. Not just to be a "good Christian" and to never do "bad stuff" but I had a desire planted in me to just live and love and use what I have for God's glory. This desire has grown over time, and I genuinely hope and pray that I'm fulfilling it. I know I have such a long way to go, but that's where the growth part comes in. It's not like I'm doing any of this by my own strength anyways. It's all Jesus. Through Him I'm learning to step back and let things be orchestrated NOT by my hands, and to really truly be patient and continue to pray that he provide for the desires of my heart, but also that it be His will that ultimately comes forth in my life. I'm learning how much give a person really has in them, if they try to just love others for Christ. I'm learning to breathe freely and be still in his peace. I'm learning to trust my creator for the wisdom to just shut up and also the courage for when He nudges me to speak up. I'm learning how to be a prayer warrior, I'm learning how to be humble, I'm learning how to be silent and listen when He speaks. I'm learning how to enter deeper into His word, how to hold it close to my heart, and just how much I should treasure it as the life-giving water that it is. 


There is no end to the list of what can be gained through Christ, and through Christ I will never stop learning.

Tragic tale, indeed.

"Once upon a time there was Hosé. You know Hosé.......Hydraulic Hosé, he has a little brother named Fuel Hosé and a wimpy second cousin named Garden Hosé. Anyway HH and I were wrestling and he got all bent out of shape when I was twisting his scrawny, oily neck with the crescent wrench. Well, he didn't like that at all and went all ballistic on me and smashed me in the cheek with the wrench. I thought I was helping him out but nnnoooooo he didn't appreciate it at all. The End."

For those of you who aren't facebook friends with my father (Or just friends with him period)... You're missing out on life. I read the above story, which he wrote as a comment on the picture of him with a black eye. This is indeed the tragic tale of how he received said black eye. And it's hilarious. I love you dad! 

Ups n' downs?

I don't know about stuff sometimes.

I'm never vague, ever.

I get turkey dinner tomorrow! I also got it last night.

I really love going to church. It's a gooood feelin'.

I feel as though I'm being tested in some areas of my life. But that's normal, I suppose. It's still frustrating though.

Sigh.

My cold just ain't going away.

Stupid sniffles, anyways.

One more sigh, then I'm done.










... Sigh.

Sup new colours.

... New year, new colours? Yessir!

.. Althought not a new year.. TECHNICALLY speaking... S'all good, yo.

God answers prayer.

God does have that impeccable timing thing down pat, doesn't he? So. Here I was, all worried about next year, and how am I EVER going to sort out what to do? I really didn't want to leave school after my first year, but I committed (both to Pamoja AND myself) that I would go back to help with the Maasai Opera in TZ next year. Major dilemma! But as I visited with Jeremy on Sunday (YAY for seeing the En-kata choir as they were in Victoria!!) I mentioned this to him. In response, he told me not to think about leaving after my first year! And they were going to be writing the script all of next year anyways, so they wouldn't even NEED me yet. 


.. Oh, hey there relief. I was wondering when you'd show up.


Isn't that just SWEET?! I was like.. Huh. That completely gets rid of every anxious feeling I've been having about next year. Life is gooooood! 


Also about Sunday:


I visited with the terrific Hayden and Elaine Waring!! They have an awesome loft apartment in Victoria, and are just.. Well. They're cool. I like them alot. And the choir was GREAT in their performance at the church. Such a passionate group of people, spreading God's vision for their community! It was so exciting to see them in Canada!! I also got to see Lisa, though very briefly... But Victoria isn't so far away. I can definitely visit again! Rebecca and I of course had a fun drive, because... We're fun people? YEAH I'll go with that! We've also decided to go glow-in-the-dark ice skating sometime. THAT will be rad. 


Anyways. Mini-update on cool stuff. Have a goodnight everyone! I have a mid-term tomorrow. Ew.

Tea time thoughts.

My thoughts are increasingly resting on next year. Now, I know I shouldn't be looking so far ahead, as I have things to do in THIS year, and THIS moment, but I think it's human nature to want to have some idea of what lies in front of us. Our plans almost never work out the way we would like them to, but there's such a sense of security in HAVING that plan. The overwhelming need to just know how things will turn out is a feeling that I know I have all the time, but can't STAND. This feeling is us trying to remain in control of our lives, and direct them in the paths which WE believe are the right ones, the paths 'best' for us. Let me tell you, this ain't how it should be. The fact that we have a SOVEREIGN LORD completely nullifies the need to worry about tomorrows. I'm not saying planning is a bad thing, I'm just saying that we shouldn't get so ridiculously attached to our plans, that we shut out the bigger picture. I'm so young still, that it's crazy. What could I possibly worry about, that God hasn't planned for me in the future already? Do I find a boyfriend? Do I go back to Tanzania next year? What program should I go into if I stay? What career path do I want? Blah blah BLAAAHH I tell you! This year I've been working on just straight-up getting closer to my Saviour. He is the way the truth and the LIFE of my soul. Everything else falls into place, and God knowwwwwsssss that I in no way have the skills to make things fall into place on my own. So I leave that part up to him. Holla.

September... Stuff?

So here I am. Sitting on Oceana's bed, thinking veeeeerrryy hard about doing schoolwork, but deciding that I feel like writing a blog instead. Allow me to list the thoughts on my mind at this moment:

- My nails are lookin' pretty dang nice right about now.
- I need to seriously improve my studying habits.
- I need to seriously improve my dietary habits.
- Oceana's math sounds dreadfully boring.
- I like eating goldfish crackers. They're the snack that smiles back, y'know.
- If my hair were six inches longer right meow, I'd be supah dupah stoked on life.
- I deleted a bunch of people off of facebook and it was SO LIBERATING! Muahahahaaaaa!

Nothing profound rolling around in my spacious cranium, as you can obviously see. So much has happened lately that I feel like... Nothing has. Right?! You know the feeling. But I CAN tell all y'all about my surfing adventure. Let's start from the start though, shall we?

It's a lovely sunshiney Saturday morning, in Nanaimo, BC. Wait, I lied. That was a terrible start to a story. It was actually raining, and dark, and like 6 in the morning. A crew of people from the UCM group (University Christian Ministries) is meeting in a parking lot, preparing to go surfing in Tofino. Soooooo we meet. And divide ourselves amongst the vehicles that are driving to Tofino! I end up in an exciting car with some pretty awesome people, and the three hour drive goes by... In three hours. Nothing new there. I was super stoked on the fact that one of the girls in our car lived in Tofino, and had extra wetsuits at her parents house for me and Rebecca to borrow! SCORE! Plus boogie boards.

Upon arrival at the beach... Rebecca and I went straight into the water with our boogie boards, and tried to 'catch some waves'. Unfortunately, neither of us actually knew how to.. Catch waves. So we just yelled around a bunch and got all wet, and went back to where our group was hanging out. A couple of guys that were with our group also happen to be pretty good surfers and teachers! Sooo they were all, "Wanna learn some stuff and go surfing?!" and I was all, "HECK YES!" and Rebecca was all, "I dunnoooo..." but then she got all, "Okay!" so we went surfing. I've been surfing once before, so I found that helped me a bit with my "Pop-ups" and.. Not falling off the board immediately after catching a wave. And when I say catching a wave, it involved Ian holding the board for me, allowing me to jump on, and pushing me when the wave came so I didn't have to paddle. Chyeah. Awesome right? I'm still sore though, but thaaaat's okaaayyy. Anyways, with Ian's help I caught about as many waves as I ever will, and had tons of fun doing so! Apparently the surf in Tofino was pretty 'messy' that day, it was like.. Relentless waves! Tiring stuff, yo. After surfing and hanging out and sitting around and talking a few of us decided to head back into the water. To frolic. Awwww YEYUH. So we frolicked and floated, and had a great time. Yeahhh lots of hanging out happened that day. After the whole beach thing, we had been invited to someone's home for a campfire and food! Which we appreciated! Basically it was a terrific day. Much fun was had.

I will definitely be taking every opportunity I can to go surfing in the future. Especially when I get back to good ol' Haida Gwaii. Add that to my list of things to get better at.. Dirtbiking is still at the top of that one, with snowboarding coming pretty close after. Mmmmm, dirtbiking. I miss it. Sighh..

I need to study. I'm a student now guys, and that means I'm all BIZNESSSS. As you can tell by the aforementioned surfing story. Hah. Have a gooder, people.

Schooley things and such

Lookeee at meeee!! Big university kiddo now. Well. Been to two classes. English, in which I shall learn quite a lot about.. Writing, I suppose? Whatever. That's gonna be the tough one. "Biology: Anatomy & Physiology for Health Professionals - Part I" was my second class. This was the big one, guys. If I didn't like this then my direction in life would be completely skewed. Needless to say, I was quite nervous about this class. BUT fortunately... I went and the introduction was made and now I'm ridiculously excited for this course, and feeling as though all the others will be dreadfully mundane in the face of all things fascinating and downright COOL that you learn in Biology. Maybe I'm a nerd. Such is life. I have two other courses today, Psychology and Accounting (Yes, random) aaaaaaand hopefully they will also reassure me that school just ain't so bad after all.

I feel like nothing is happening in my life right now. As though my summer is just kind of a waiting time until I can continue on with life. I only have two more weeks of work until I'm DONE. Then I camp for the weekend, and peace it to university. Madness!

I've been housesitting for a couple of weeks.... It's taught me some awesome skills on how to not starve to death. Pretty good stuff to know, right? Last night for our Young Adults meeting, we decided to meet at Pure Lake. For those of you who don't know.. Pure Lake is more like a big pond. Or a gigantic puddle. Whichever. Anyways, that's an irrelevant fact. The point is that it was raining all of yesterday. And we decided to go anyways. In the rain. Because we're islanders, and if we try to wait for nicer weather before we do something, we tend to have to wait a looooong while. And Vera swam. In the puddle lake. WITH a wetsuit on. Entertaining much? Why yes, yes she is.

I ate an orange yesterday. It was pretty tasty. And Lisa and I made cookies. Which were pretty tasty. I think I like cookie dough better than actual cookies... Bye!

Myself: The philosophical anomaly.

Work work work work... Sleep.

I'm hungry and tired. All wrapped up in a wee little bundle. Like a burrito! With feelings...

Boy oh boy.

Snapshots of June.

So here I am, almost two weeks after my previous post... I was so stoked to stay on top of my blog but we can all see how that worked out.. Since my last blog I've started working steadily at the seafood processing plant called Seapak. I'm a receptionist! So exciting. There are like a million things to remember, and the hours DO interfere with my social life... But that's okay. I'm actually enjoying my job, mostly because I'm working with some great people! Also, it turns out a major reason I was hired was because I have a "terrific handshake". Who knew?! Something to keep in mind, all ye who seeketh work.

As for recreational funstuff, on Sunday the 5th, a crew of us went and hiked a mountain! YESSS. It was such a beautiful day, clear and cold enough that we didn't overheat too much on the way up.. And then there was snow, so that helped cool us off a little too. Yes, SNOW. Not to mention the absolutely gorgeous view. Let me show you!!

The peak!

Way down there is the village of Queen Charlotte..

All of us except for the one person taking the picture.

Yakoun Lake is to the right.

The ladies! I really love this picture.

Well, I had to get down somehow! Several of us ended sliding down the snow on our butts because it was practically impossible to stay on our feet.

Jed only managed because he's a ninja. 

If you want to see more pictures from this adventure, check out my facebook photo album!

I'm getting picture-happy with this blog and it's fun!

So here are some more :)

I found salmonberries yesterday! The first ripe ones I've seen this year, 

and my oh my were they ever pretty.

Taking pictures from the beach in front of our church.

I found a pair of shoes on the beach. No big deal.

... That is a driftwood log, for those of you who don't know.

Good ol' canoeing!! Daniel is in the back, I'm in the front. 

Stole this from Quinlan's facebook.. Photo cred: Quinlan.

That's enough of that.

Summer is ON.

I have to say... I do love adventures. Whether they be halfway around the world, or in your hometown, adventures are superb! Now, correct me if I'm wrong... But it's my understanding that blogs are for sharing adventures. Am I right?! The following is an excerpt from.. The story of my life.


Wednesday is a beautiful sunny day here on Haida Gwaii! So myself, Vera, Jed, Daniel, and Quinlan all decide to head to the church (which is on the waterfront) to go canoeing! Vera has a wetsuit, so she just heads straight into the water, skipping the boat completely. Jed and I are in one canoe, Dan and Quin in the other. Now... Quinlan has recently had his appendix taken out, so he has 7 lovely staples in his gut. This means he's not allowed to paddle, and he reeeaaaally shouldn't get those staples wet in the salt water, either. This is no big deal, as Daniel is macho enough to paddle both himself and Quinlan's dead weight around for a while. So Vera is swimming along, enjoying herself, and Jed decides to join her in the water. Just like that, I'm alone in my canoe and Jed is wet. Haaahaaa, good times all around! It dawns on Jed that he is now wet, Vera is wet, and there are three people who aren't -and have no desire to be- wet. Because I'm alone and defenseless in my canoe, I become the target of Jed's boat-flipping goal. But Quinlan decides he would rather see Daniel get flipped first, so he hops over into my canoe. Daniel promptly paddles away so Jed can't get him... But then circles around to join up with my boat anyways. Again: Quinlan can't get in the water, so even though he's trying to go back into Daniel's canoe (Apparently he thought I would be an easier victim for Jed after all) I hold him down. He manages to escape, and I follow, now knowing well that Quinlan is the safe-zone for those who wish to avoid drenching. Several minutes of intense canoe-hopping ensue, before we finally come to an impasse. Quinlan, Daniel and I are all in the same canoe. Jed has given Daniel an ultimatum: Either you get flipped, or you first help me and Vera with the task of flipping Kirsten. You don't need three guesses to know which he picked.... It all comes down to Quinlan trying to jump in the other canoe, so Jed and Vera can flip myself and Daniel into the water. I, of course, being a clever girl, am standing over Quinlan, holding him down by the shoulders. Daniel is simply holding onto my leg, which is fabulous escape prevention, to be sure. Sooo Quinlan manages to stand up (what can I say, I'm like 5'5" and he's... Bigger.) And attempts to step over to the other canoe, once and for all. Not one to give up easily, I follow suit, and Daniel? Well... I think he's still holding onto my leg. For those of you who aren't seeing where this is headed.... Hah. Yep. All the weight on one side of a lil' canoe? We fell in. Gut staples, leg-holding and all. The result was everyone heading to shore, to be treated to iced tea, cookies, and towels, courtesy of our pastor and his wife. Not to mention jumping on the trampoline and enjoying the glorious sunshine to wrap up our first summery experience of 2011. It doesn't get much better then that. OH and the Canucks won last night, after the aforementioned group of people made a ton of sushi and ate most of it, too. So. Amazing.


Also: today I saw an otter, a black bear, and the first fawn I've seen this year! It was lying on the road, so I had to pick it up and carry it off, or else it probably would've been run over. No worries, it ran away when I set it down, and the mothers DO take babies back if they've been touched by humans. Usually..

On it goes.

I love the feeling of life coming together. There's practically an audible clicking sound as the pieces are slotted into place. A sense of satisfaction is settling over the scenario of my everything, as I wonder what else I need to figure out. It seems like not much else for school needs doing, I'm SO thankful that Oceana's and my courses worked out so it looks like we'll be in a couple of the same classes. Yay! My work situation also seems to be regulating... I'm still working with my dad: wearing my safety-regulation hardhat at a jaunty angle, driving dump truck (heck yes, I learned how to SHIFT the other day. Harder than a standard car, fo' sho'.) and running the D5M Cat. Starting soon I'll begin going to Masset for training at Seapak, a fish packing place. I'll be managing the front desk mostly, so that shouldn't be bad at all! 


OH and coolness happened over the May long weekend! A certain someone (ME) was able to go to HISTORYMAKER in Abbotsford, where Jeremy Feser picked me up at the airport, I visited with Christine Feser and baby Benjamin, volunteered over the weekend, met tons of awesome people, saw the Fesers AGAIN and went home feeling absolutely sky-high with smiles. That is what I call good times. 

This evening, from a beach in Charlotte. Gorgeous much?!

Life vs Living

Aaahhhh life goes every which way.. ALL THE TIME. There's no slowing that sucker down. Make the best of it, and learn as you go, right? Well, if you're boring, that sounds just great. But if you're more exciting, you'll do what I'm trying (sometimes in vain, might I add) so desperately hard to do. And that's taking life.. And runnin' like MAAAAAD. Instead of making the best of your hum drum life, just give it a big ol' bear hug and say, "No! You're coming with ME." Show your life who's BOSS and.. be a mental case. Who cares?

Well, I guess that's how I'm trying to go at it all anyways... But going that all-out crazy for too long comes back to get you. I think? I don't know yet, I'll let you in on it when I find out.

In more reality related news.. I have work. In July and August. And some bits of work with my daddio until the other job starts. And next Thursday, I'm ferrying over to visit Ruth! Yayyyy! I like seeing that lil' Arndt family. They're great. My birthday is also comin' up pretty quick, so that's aiiiiight. I'll try to update this on my more day-to-day life, as soon as I actually get a life. Wheeeee!

I am true and I am living

We will walk through the valley 

of the shadow of the boring

and burn it all

No we will not go quietly

Lyrics from Closer Than We Think 

- The Classic Crime

Home, I suppose.

I remember the days when the end of the street seemed so far away.
Coming back to the town where I grew up has been like having an old familiar sweater of yours returned. You knew exactly how it felt on you,  knew every threadbare spot, every dangling thread, and the worn cuffs and stains simply added character. So anything different is just obvious. Similarly, living in the same small town for the past 18 years of your life... It's an area that you've never NOT known. Returning, I can't help but notice every minuscule detail that's changed since I've been gone. Short story? It's weird to be back. Not to mention I've got a bunch of new things that I need to find places for.

Being back in Canada doesn't necessarily mean my adventure is over and I'm back at home. To that I say: HECK NO. Here I am, chillaxin' in Vancouver, watching copious amounts of television and waking up earlier than I want to. The problem with returning from a trip such as the one I was on, is that everything seems more dull afterwards. You don't wake up every day in AFRICA thinking, "Wow, what can I do today that is completely AWESOME?!" Yeaaahhh, you just end up with thoughts going through your head on how much you wish you were still off in the big wide world, doing cool stuff and meeting cool people. Which is the worse mindset EVER. I'll admit, my first little while away from Tanzania, I was pretty gutted. But now I'm coming around to the frame of mind where there's always something awesome to do, with cool people, no matter where you are. Which is a much more fun place to be. Mentally, that is..

I need a job. Ugh. I have to get home before I can get a job though, I suppose. Rarararawwwrrr. Liiiittle steps. OH and I need to start figuring out university stuff. That's always interesting. And I don't have a car right now. Yup. This is more of a to-do/ woe is me list than a blog, so I'll just cut it off here.

URUP

GERMANY – Feb. 26th

Legit. I have been staying in a schloss. I bet you have no idea what that means, so I’ll tell you. Apparently... It means palace. As I mentioned before... LEGIT. Pastor Dan has some pretty sweet connections in Germany, and it totally benefits me, that’s fo’ sho. Sooo we’re in this town called Nuewied. And we’re  staying with the Zu Wiedes. Basically they’re this noble family, with the head of the family being a prince. Chyeah. His name is Carl. As scared as I was to be dining with a family of such high class, it turns out that they’re fairly laid back. Even though the dudes serving our food are dressed better than I am, it’s not really a big deal. I probably don’t need to mention that the house is nice.. And their cars are nice.. And the food isn’t bad either.. I’m still in the stage where I’m used to Africa, but I’m not in Africa anymore.. It’s quite a jump to be staying in a palace. And all the cars are back on the other side of the road! It’s bizarre, and driving anywhere is so quiet, nobody uses their horns or anything. 

FRANCE - Feb. 28th

Uhhh. Didn't like France much. Eiffel Tower was pretty sweet. Vimy Ridge was just awesome, I came outta that place all full of patriotic pride and stuff. But yeah.. France? No thanks, keep your baguettes. I'll find breakfast elsewhere.

HOLLAND - Feb. 28th

I've been here for a couple hours.. And it's already better than France. Tomorrow we're going to Amsterdam and shopping! Thennnnn after that... Back to CANADA!!! So weird to be heading home... So weird. 

So that first Germany bit was written when I wasn't distracted... Top Gear is on, so I apologize for the rest of that mess up there. I'll see you soon, snowy north! 

February the twenty first.

Well life has been interesting these past 5 and a bit months. It was brought to my attention that my blogging hasn’t been particularly informative concerning the actual work I’ve been doing during my time here with Pamoja Ministries. I suppose that’s because I assumed everyone wanted to hear that life was going great and that I’ve been having fun. I know in my own mind I’ve undermined the value of the work I’ve been doing, so maybe that’s why I only blog about the adventures and fun times. Now I begin to see the error of my ways! There are so many areas that I have had the opportunity to be useful and a blessing to this ministry and the people here. And yes, it’s a good feeling. If you’ve read my blog from the start, you’ll know that I came here with absolutely no set of skills attributable to my person. Yet still I was used, and considered an asset to this mission base during my time here. I’ve met a ton of amazing people from all over the place, and even some from close to home (Oh Alison, you Kelowna girl, you!) I don’t know what God has in store for these people, or if I’ll ever have the chance to see them again, but that’s alright, as long as it’s for His glory. Yay!

In just three days I’ll be out of here, and onto the next segment of my life, full of more adventures, more new people, more living for Christ, and definitely more rain. Who knows how much I’ve changed since coming here.. I feel as though I’ve stepped out of every comfort zone that I’ve laid down for myself, and honestly that’s a good thing. Maybe I’ll be on the receiving end of some frowns of disapproval in the future.. But probably not. I’m a good girl at heart, I’ve just decided to not let others impose their views of life on me. I don’t want to impress YOU, I want to impress Jesus! That’s the big ol’ theme of livin’ for me right now.  (As it should be, may I say!)

Oh yeah and I totally want to come back here. But I need a lot of prayer. I have no idea if it’s just what I want or if I’m being called here yet, and then there’s the huge financial thing.. With the money and stuff... Which is always lamesauce. So pleeeaase pray for guidance and wisdom and everything great!! .. For me. Because I’m greedy. Bwahahahaha!! On second thought, just pray for the will of God in my life. That makes it more simple. KTHXBYE.

Deep and profound brain things inside my head

Some days, it's hard to walk with a purpose. When you aren't sure if you're being called to do a certain something, or if you just really wish you were being called to do that certain something... People saying what you should and shouldn't do.. Others encouraging, some tearing down.. But when it comes down to the nitty gritty, it's all between me and God, right?

Yes, Kirsten. Yes it is.

But that isn't always so easy to distinguish from the advice being thrown from all sides. Getting caught in an onslaught of good intentions is easy to do, and difficult to escape from. Everyone means well, and wants the best for a lil' girl. And to that I say, "Get over it." I can't please everybody, and I don't aim to. I aim to please my God, and that's it. One step at a time guys, one at a time.

Or... I could just jump right in.

Another weekend

This previous weekend was quite an interesting one. On Friday we went to do a village showing of Nipe Jibu, and it was straight up fantastic. A man named Majanta is a staff member here at Pamoja, and it was at his village that we were doing the showing. So Friday afternoon, we packed up the truck with seven wazungu (white people/ foreigners) and two Tanzanians (who both work at Pamoja) and set out to show the movie. So Jacob was driving, and Majanta was sitting behind him, giving directions to the village. According to Majanta, it takes a very long time to get to said village, which is fair enough, considering him and Wilfredi walk home on weekends, and it takes them about two hours. Anyways, we go through the college road, and reach Old Moshi road, where Majanta had previously said “Turn left on Old Moshi Road”. So Jacob goes to turn left and Majanta starts yelling “No no no, go right, go right!” This of course, triggers a good natured argument over left being left, and you said to turn left, and don’t you know that direction is your RIGHT?! All the while, I’m in the very back seat with Lis and Wilfredi, and we’re crackin’ up pretty hard. So the next few turns happen with nothing particularly terrible happening, until we’re out on the very back roads, relying on directions, and Majanta stops paying attention. More good-natured yelling ensues, and we’re back on track, with the directions having turned into rather detailed instructions on how to not hit that tree, and watch out for the rocks, and be careful Jacob, those cows don’t like vehicles! We get to a point, for one of the final turns to get to the village, when Majanta goes, “Okay, you see that white cow? That one right there? Turn right at the cow.” So now our landmark for getting out of this place is a mobile animal. I’m not likin’ that so much. “Don’t forget to turn left at the cow, or we’ll be sooo lost coming home.” But yeah, no worries. Wilfredi came back with us, so it was all good. And he was quite a bit better at giving directions than Majanta.

For the actual showing of Nipe Jibu, we set everything up in their cinderblock church. Some ladies from the church (It might’ve been the pastor’s wife, I dunno) had made us supper, which was sooo nice of them. We don’t always realize how much work it takes to cook out in Maasailand, with everything being done over the fire, and nothing being prepackaged. So much prep work has to be done, with the wood gathering, chicken butchering, water collecting, fire starting, water boiling, and THEN the food cooking, for every single meal. It’s completely time consuming, and the fact that food was ready for us about an hour after we arrived meant that they had been working on it for a while already, so it could be eaten immediately. We had rice (I will never know how they make perfect rice over a campfire, let me tell you. It’s AMAZING) and they made a chicken and sauce dish, which was deliiiiicious!

Back to the movie! In the end, about 170 people crammed themselves in and around this tiny little building, with about three people to every window, looking in from outside, and a considerable amount of people standing in the aisle because there was nowhere to sit. Definitely a successful event!!

As for the rest of my weekend... Little Jacob’s birthday party was on Saturday, so Davin and I hustled around helping get stuff ready for that, and went into hiding almost immediately after the mothers began arriving with their 4-year olds in tow. But yeah, there was cake. So I didn’t mind too much. We had a barbecue afterwards, and the power went out, so Kirsty, Davin and I went stargazing on the trampoline (Which totally reminded me of doing the same thing during summer!) And as most of you know, I learned how to ride a motorbike on Sunday! YAY!! I’m still pretty pumped about that, and I can’t wait to go riding again. So there you have it. Instead of seeing how terrible I am at typing this time, I decided to actually tell you some stuff that’s been happening. I figure you might appreciate it.. God bless!

In the land of typogracphical errors.

Okay, so here's the deal. On December 28th, my friend Kirsty and I went to Tanga!! Which is on the coast. It's a bit smaller then Arusha (the city close to me) and it's mostly a Muslim community. And everyone there rides their bikes around. Anyways! Indian Ocean, people!! I was soooo stoked so see the ocean, having lived by it for 18 years, and now being separated from it for 4 months. It was incredibly warm in comparison to the Pacific, and Tanga was hot too. So much happened while I was on that trip, but I'll give you the general idea! So Kirsty drove her parents car, with me being in charge of music, to Tanga, and we made it in 5 hours. Which is quite good time. Davin had been in Tanga for a while, with his family, and he was taking care of a friends beach house, so that's where we stayed for the duration of our trip. And there was an air conditioned room, praise the Lord!!! So anyways, there was a ton of just relaxing time for Kirsty and myself, and we would go swimming in the ocean, and she would ride the horses... Which I didn't do. Because... They kinda sorta freak me out to be honest. Yup! And we brought Kirsty back four days before we were supposed to because she got an ear infection and her immune system is already crappy because she is just getting better, so at 4:30 she woke me up and we headed back to Arusha at 6. And Davin drove. And then we stayed the night at her house and I decided to just bus back to Tanga with Davin, since I liked it there, and the Pamoja folk weren't expecting me back until the 9th. Sooo back we went, which was an adventure in itself, what with the guy on the bus that kept touching my leg (Don't worry, I had a bodyguard) .... And taking a daladala and walking 2 km in the flipperin' hot heat. Uh huh. Aaaaaand oh yeah! We went on a tuktuk, one of those 3-wheeled bike deals and walked around some caves. And I crashed a random Indian girls birthday party. But not really, because the Korda family was invited so I just tagged along. OH and I played volleyball, which has me all psyched 'cause I didn't suck at it. Chyeah. Some rad stuff went down, anyways. But now I'm back at Pamoja!

Okay so I wrote all that hours ago. And now it's almost midnight and I had a huge cup of coffee, which was stupid, and now I'm all awake and twitchy and stuff. So I'm just gonna keep going with this and see what happens. I've decided to not backspace anything from here on out. JLet's see how coogod my typing is at this hour. Hm. Not gerverygood so far I see. That sucks. ik inda pride myself in my typingm but now I' think I'm overthinkign it, y'know!::?? Yeah. Totally am. Darn. Okay well FI'm going to insert a picture now, see you in a sec.

THAT. Is the beach in fron t of the house we were at. There are stairs up that cliff onto the lawn of the house. 

Check ist outtttttt, that's a tuktuk. Which could be the wrong spelling of the world. Word I mean. But who cares?! They're kinda scary actually.

Alrighty. Well there are some pictures for you,. My internet seems to be going kinda speedy so I'm just gonna throw in another one for your viewing pleasure. No need to thank me.

My dearest friends, that is the lovely and majecstive and by that i mean majestic, Mount Kilimanjaro! Super rad, right>?? Seriious, you never realize how humungous that sucker is until you wee.. Man this is hard. UI meant SEE her in real life. Iiiiiinnnncredible!

Alright. Well seeing as I'm so hardcore and stuff, i scraped my knee playeing volleyball, on SAND which iws quite a skill-taking.. Thing. I guess. I used the wrong word thataere. There. And then tried to make that sentence work and it tdidn't. Ugh. ANYWAYS. Then I played MORE voleleyball and my knee got worse, and then i sat on a bus for like 7 hours and people kept walking by and rubbing against it and now it's all infected and gross. Cool strory, right? Uh huh. Well. It gets better. Because I have a Scooby Doo bandaid on it!! Wheeee!! So yeah. Literally. Better. Scooby is so cute, I like him. I wish wer were better friends. But he's so famous, we hardly would be able to find the time to hang out, y'know?!

... I just realized what i wrote up there. And methinks it's time for me to shut this baby down. So i'm gonna.

And this is just getting more and more awkward. I still haven't backspaced anything and my typing has marginally improved in the past little while. I mean.. I just typed 'marginally' without making a mystkate. TWICE. But then i screwed up while typing mistake which is slightly comical. And now... I'm crashing.