A title like that suggests that this is a how-to letter and not an informative update. The truth is that this question is something I’m slowly finding an answer to and what I’ve learned and written here fails to answer this dilemma, but it does show that I believe stability can be built here...which hasn’t always been the case. Keep reading. :)
My last post in April is still true now. Living here is hard. Just to “live”. Productiveness, punctuality, efficiency, grocery shopping, paying rent/bills – and the clincher – preparing the documents required (by law for foreigners) every few weeks. Wooo! those can really get you wound up tight!
How do you respond to unforeseen HARD seasons?
At first, not well.
Now, one day at a time…and ask for help!
I think it’s safe to assume that crossing a culture will be hard. What we can’t assume are the additional sources of difficulties that come. Other westerner-born workers, the weather, expenses, bad appliances, mess causing pets, gossip, being caught in the middle of someone’s oversight, sexism and theft – Factor those stressors in and the whole enchilada might look fit to be tossed! “I am so uncomfortable and spent. Is this even worth it? Is this a disaster? What could God be up to?”
I wondered those things. On especially challenging days those questions still return, fear returns and joy is nowhere to be found. Thankfully the good days outnumber the challenging days! My little community here has really come around me and I feel like I’m seeing The Body become more body-like. What a great family we’re in!
Compulsory Int’l Journeys
I arrived here in “Narnia” in December of 2009. My first Visa expired in the middle of March. I took a train to a neighboring country. Anxiously I traveled alone. I had no choice. But thankfully an American friend met me at the train station when I arrived, and she hosted me during my entire stay. And another American friend rode the overnight-train back to “Narnia” with me! These women helped make the trip less impossible for me, and I made it!
My second Visa expired in June. This time there was no translator or friend to accompany me during ANY part of the trip. It was not a good idea to take the train alone out of Narnia (which I had to do in March). I found out (the week my visa expired) that Georgia (the country) ceased issuing my class of Visa. One more option existed: Dubai. At first I couldn’t imagine myself being able to afford Dubai. I mean, anyone who has heard of it knows it’s an opulent tourist town built with oil money in the desert. (“Opulent” being the operative word!) BUT the expat-community here (Americans, Norwegians, Canadians, etc.) hooked me up with an inexpensive place to stay. So Dubai, being my only legal option, was my only hope. Traveling alone is much safer on a plane than a train and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is an English speaking nation! No translator necessary! And I had the chance to reacquaint myself with the legendary Mocha Frappuccino! The trip came with it’s inconveniences and surprises, but Dad included some awesome blessings in the deal.
In March I stayed at a hotel in Georgia.There met a traveling American woman who works with
‘meeting places’ all over the world. She was lively, encouraging and fun! In June while in Dubai she AGAIN happened to stay at the same place as me! Since it was my first time in Dubai it was a real delight to see a familiar face! I guess Dad thought I ought to encounter this same lively, encouraging and fun lady! J
Now in Narnia
These past months I’ve been working as an English teacher. It’s great to see people advance in their knowledge of our language. Because of the difficult “soil” – shaped by the prevalent religion here, seeing them advance in their knowledge of our Friend will show over time. Currently I have not seen significant fruit. But seasoned workers here continue to remind us all that the time we’re spending in this field is not in vain. Please remember this in your next chat with Dad. From time to time they ask me about spiritual things and want to connect with me out of class. It’s really exciting to see this begin happening. Mention this in your next talk with our Dad. :)
Thank you for the wall posts on Facebook, comments on my photos, and your e-mails.
Without your funds, “thoughts” and encouragement, the work here would be unsustainable. Thank you for your obedience to Dad and heart for the world.
This city was built upon desert. The plants living in its soil are either too young and fresh for the adversity of living in this place to affect their petals. Or they have retained their footing and held their ground - fighting off punishing winds and patiently relying on their occasional shower from above. This month they are showing how much beauty Their Creator blessed them with. And boy do we need to see it. This is not an easy place to live - for any of us - and yet blossoms can be found at their appointed time.
My local Site Leaders lost their main source of income, I was forced to leave the country on a train alone (but I got back in), there are 5 culturally stressed college women dwelling around me (not to mention my own stressed voice - at times joining in the cacophony), we teach English to Narnians - my class begins at 7:00pm... I teach without a partner. Most of my team-members are paired with veteran teachers. Here's to lesson plans and white boards!
Just when you don't think Life could be turned up a notch - something new gets going...
speaking of which I have to get going to a meeting. PLEASE THINK OF my team. :) We're still in the "Forming" - "Storming" phases. Four months in and a lot of lessons learned! Love, Yvonne
Women's Day Season is here! During language class we were sent out of the room to practice in the situation we just learned to articulate, looking at people through windows and saying "Do you know who that is? No I'm not acquainted with them." Four of us went toward a doorway with a window into a classroom. A very boisterous and friendly national spotted us. His wife and he met me at the Meeting place. We stood outside of the door about to practice our dialog and my acquaintance swung the door open and insisted that we enter. It was a party, every woman inside had a rose and a man was speaking before everyone. How awkward!! But we were persuaded, entered, were handed roses and a plate with a slice of very nice looking cake and offered seats in the front row. The nature of the gathering was a party...and we royally crashed it. But they carried on, greeted us warmly and included us in the festivities!
Things I expected...but found different when I got here:
Mustard isn't common, but an import store will sell you a bottle for $4-5 The common Clothing Hangers are chunky weird shaped. Don't always have strap holder things. Milk is usually 3.4%! And $6.00 for a Gallon! But it's sold in Liters Toilet Paper is pricey because, unlike us who view it as a necessity, Narnians use spray nozzles attached to the toilet...I don't get it. So TP is expensive too! :( Water is safe to brush your teeth with but everyone says not to drink it. You can walk alone out in public, even after dark. 10pm is the latest they say to be out. I'm soo happy about this!!!! Men will give up their seat and sometimes let you ahead in line when you're riding public trans. January 20th - just a few days after you get here - is a day of national mourning. No Music/laughing on the street and at home. (A woman's team of M's was doing well with this but a couple of them started to mess around. One of them laughed. Next thing they knew a neighbor woman who heard through the wall -totally paper thin!- stormed down the stares and banged on their door yelling, "HOW CAN YOU LAUGH? My son died on THIS DAY!") There's no such thing as J-Walking, but cars will NOT stop, so dodge carefully. (A friend was once hit by a bus but was able to land on his feet.) It's common to have running water from 6-9 AM/PM and stored in a tank called a "Bach" said: bock (Like Johan Sebastian Bach)
Narnia – Where I am. Narnian – a person from here AND the name of their language. IE: the English speak English. :)
Imagine This: You’re huddled with four people who don’t speak English, one is holding a cell phone set on Speaker. They blurt out foreign words into the phone. From the phone a stranger poses a question to you in English. You respond, as the four glance between you face and the phone. Once you're done answering, their eyes are glued on the phone. The next thing you hear from the stranger on the other end are more foreign words, but this time the group nods and smiles at you!
Welcome to Narnia!
Here I am! In Country! PraiseYouLord! The first thing that struck me when I got off the plane was how all of the customs guards waved me through. I didn’t bring anything to declare. All of them were so laid back as I wheeled my carry-on’s out… (emphasis on the "carry-on's") I wasn’t familiar with the arrangement of the airport or the Visa booth lines. They separated foreigners and nationals. It lead straight to two baggage carousels. In my sleep deprived state I thought there must be separate baggage carousels for Narnians and Foreigners. I didn’t recognize people from the“foreigner’s line”, so I continued through the terminal expecting to see another baggage carousel. I passed through some doors where I saw two very familiar American women!
This was my welcoming committee! But I didn’t have my suit cases with me!!! They looked a little confused and clued me in on how I just exited the airport without my bags! I thought, “Now I’ve done it… There’s no way they’ll let me back there again!” But my friends held my carry-on's and turned me around to get my luggage – entering the way I exited! The sliding doors had Do Not Enter looking markings, and a guard was perched there. “Just walk through the way you came! They’ll let it slide.” I guess they knew how casual these guards were because I had eye contact with one guard who waved me back through the sliding doors! I scurried up the corridor to the baggage carousel and HALLELUJAH my suit cases were cycling around with the remaining bags. Had I stood there I probably would have waited the same amount of time because others were pulling their bags off the carousel too. :) And just like the first time, the guards let me through and I didn’t even have to slow my pace.
The Drive away from the airport was an experience. I landed after dark on Thursday December 17th. We drove down a four lane road. As the traffic slowed I noticed there WAS a train! No red blinking lights, no bar that lowers to eye level with red and white reflectors, no bell was dinging. Just a train…cruising through the moderately lit highway. A car beside us was roaring down the street and screeched like nobody’s business! That’s when the driver (an “M” here) explained that there are three kinds of license plates here. White: Normal Citizen, Yellow: Foreigner Driving, Red: Diplomat or Embassy worker. I’ve also seen blue, but I still don’t know what it indicates. Red Plates are special because they don’t have a speed limit and rarely get pulled over! So my guess is that Mr. Speed Racer who saw the train in the nick of time was a Red Plated car.
Even though this is a city with very industrial surroundings, a cashier will give you a piece of candy or a match box at the supermarket if she doesn’t have correct change. And cashiers are ALWAYS seated! Lines are advancement-of-the-most-aggressive or higher-status. Women are given honor though. I HAVE TO WRITE THIS - ON THE NOTE OF WOMEN Tonight I'm editing the black text. I wrote it the day before yesterday. However... right now a woman in the apartment beneath me is screaming. A man's voice is roaring in Narnian and there is lots of pounding...I alerted my hosts who are the American family I am temporarily staying with. They came to the room I'm in where they could hear it. We prayed and pounded on the floor (their roof). "They don't want others to know when something is going on. Maybe this will help them stop." The fighting moved to another room and now all I can hear is her sobbing..."Men always beat the women here..." they told me. It's not criminal, it's perceived as reasonable, and "a given". I feel stunned. I feel adrenalin/cortisol effects on my body. I'm alert even though it's after 11 pm. I'm crying and dread the thought of what that woman suffered tonight...will I see a woman with bruises tomorrow? Will she even come out in public? Will she find somewhere safe tonight? Is this going to happen in the building I'm moving into? Will my girls (the students who will be here for 16 months) hear the same traumatizing horrible sounds I just heard? And all I'll be able to do is pound the wall and pray? Where's the 911? Where's the battered women's shelter? Where's the justice??? My heart aches for who ever she is, and who ever he is too. Both need mercy and hope. Please pray for these tenants below my hosts!
Yesterday a packed metro train pulled into the station and I was in a crowd of anxious board-ers. A teenage boy with his younger brother stepped back and gestured for me to be ahead of them in the crowd. The shoving was more that I was up for and the door was sardine-ed with men. No thanks! The next train was much more reasonable. Almost once a day someone will offer their seat to me. More often I see younger men and women give their seats to elderly women. I’m learning how to say “Thank you” but it’s contains difficult sounds and letters that we don’t have in our alphabet! So I nod or smile and take the seat.
Bus trips cost $0.25 whether it’s a 10 minute ride or a 1 hour ride. I’m learning the names of places that a week ago I couldn’t even pronounce! At one time Russian became the official language of trade and commerce here. Though they are free to fully speak the Narnian language, Russian is written and spoken in almost every setting! Sometimes it’s all that’s written on products in the supermarket. I know four Russian words: No, Yes, Shampoo and Forward. Have you ever seen Russian? It’s like Greek or something! I can write only one word: Shampoo :) I’ve learned 10 or so words in Narnian. Yes, No, Dog, Moon, Flavor, One, Ten, Hello, Inner City, January, Soviet, Street, Hour, Father Snow and Blue! Common girl’s names: Gunay, Samira, Esmira, Alyana, Vusale, Sima, Leyla, Lala, Lina, Nigar. Common boy’s names: Kamran, Rasul, Arap-han, Chamil. Last names ending with a consonant indicate masculine, and ending with a vowel indicate feminine. Like traditional Polish! -ski is the last name suffix for a man, -ska is the end of a woman's last name!
My first week I made a trip to the mall with an American family. I browsed through a clothing store while the family went to the kiddie play area upstairs. Before long one of the four store keepers was “shadowing” me. Her name was Esmira. She spoke Russian and pulled out the garment I just looked at and wanted to take me to a dressing room! I was only curious and had no intention of buying. I tried to communicate that with her through gestures and sign language. She laughed embarrassed because she was rambling on in Russian to someone who didn’t understand a word! Then her other co-workers curiously came over too – but none of them spoke English! This was Elyana, Gunay and Samira. After about 10 hilarious minutes of being shadowed by all four, signing and laughing at ourselves, one girl put her English speaking sister on her cell phone. The five of us circled around the cell phone. They spoke to her in Russian and she spoke to me in English! I answered her in English and she, on speaker phone, translated my words into Russian! Oh technology! :) We did this for a little while and then a Narnian customer came in to shop. This was Vusale (Voo Saw Lay). She teaches English to Doctors to enable them to use American medical resources. She asked me to speak to her class sometime! WOW!
