This is life: Embracing The New

The old has gone, the new has come. I am living in a different house this year with different housemates; our house has rats; I recently slept all night with a gecko in my room on the wall; several people have moved out of Bulembu and some new people have come in; we have started the ACE individualized program at school; our school staff prays together every single morning before school; I saw my first poisonous snake…these are some of the new things in my life this year J It’s going to be a fantastic year. I absolutely love my life in Bulembu. It’s simple in some ways, but complex in others. Problems, struggles, and frustrations are not absent from this place, but dealing with things is different. I have a greater appreciation for just about everything. And every single day, at some point, I think to myself, “I love my life.” So that’s a pretty good place to be. I miss my boyfriend and my family and my friends, of course, but I really do have a life here and I am working and building relationships, so it’s great.
Last week the school was still not finished and so we could not begin the normal school year. So we had a sort of “summer camp” week. We played sports and games, did team building stuff, hiked, went swimming, had a field day with all sorts of relays and such, had a big scavenger hunt, made skits from a parable, etc. It was a super fun week, but we did work really hard to finish our classrooms and make the week fun for the kids. They had a blast. Now school has officially started and it is…interesting. The ACE program we are doing is SO different from anything any of us has ever experienced, so it’s really going to take some getting used to. There are all of these tedious little procedures that the kids have to do, and if they don’t do it all correctly, they get demerits, which are bad…so then they feel bad and it’s all a bit overwhelming!! But we will get through it and get used to it and then it will be great. I hope!!