Some Pictures!

Christmas break has been largely uneventful. I've been trying to get things done for school, but I seem to be easily distracted. Can you believe that?
I did house-sat for a family who is moving into Niamey from a village. They want to send their children to Sahel for high school so they had to make the move. I stayed in their home and cared for their dogs for a week. It was wonderful to get out of the dorm and off campus for awhile. I even made a new friend with a Peace Corps girl who lives near the house.
Instead of regailing you with adventures this week that I did not have, I'l just show you a bit of life in Niger that doesn't always make the blog. Pictures are so hard to upload here so I'm hoping for the best.
The stellar driving range at the amazing Niamey Golf Course.
The Kindergarten pet had a baby. I think the hedgehog is my new favorite animal.
Jayson riding Rover, the campus tortoise.
John & Rufus were upset that they were not invited to the girl party at a staff house. They improvised and got themselves in anyway.

Christmas break is speeding by. I am hoping to step out into even more adventures this break and see more of Nigerien life.

I hope your Christmas was wonderful, even if most of you were snowed in. I am missing snow and cold already, and it isn't even May/June when it is supposed to be miserably hot here.

Welcome to Our World

We finally made it! After a few finals, a long weekend, and an intense game day, we watched the last of the dorm kids drive slowly out the gate. The dorm was left empty, still echoing the noise of their voices as they packed and rejoiced after their last final. The echoes soon died, but the ransackery remained. Strewn Christmas decorations embellish each room and we are left to prepare for our own celebration. The kids decorated the dorm a few weeks ago in a whirlwind celebration of Christmas.
Decorating for Christmas. Isn't Beth pretty?

...some were better at decorating than others. Right, Asyncrite?

But then the whole thing was interrupted by the super-fun Conga Line.

Now the building is empty and we are starting on the list of projects to be completed before the kids return. We're getting three new students so rooms had to be rearranged. Refrigerators cleaned up. Freezers thawed out. Lesson plans made. A book room to organize. Plus, there are always a million things to fix.

However, even for as busy as we will be, there is an excitement. 2000 years ago a bunch of angels were so excited about what God has done that they couldn't contain themselves. They jumped out in front of a bunch of lowly, ignorant, stinky shepherds and had a big party. Can you imagine the suprise and fear in the hearts of these shepherds? How long do you think the angles stayed? Sometimes I think it only took as long as it takes me to read the two sentences in Luke, and then they disappeared. What if they stayed in the sky for 15 minutes? or an hour? These shepherds might have experienced a live Angel rock concert!

The writer of Ecclesiates notes the uselessness of our existence. "There is nothing new under the sun," he writes. These angels were celebrating just that. No, Solomon, there is finally something new under the sun!

Camping, Hippo Hunting, and Fun

The last month has been busy! A couple who used to be the dorm parents offered us the weekend off. So the Phillips headed down to the river bank for some camping while my friends and I headed to the plateau overlooking the river for our own camping adventure. The plateau overlooks the Niger River and a small village along the bank.

Soon after we arrived, we were greeted by a troop of children recently released from school. I have learned that most Africans do not have an 'awkward' setting. They are simply not programmed to recognize the same social courtesies we are accustomed to. This explains the following public behavior which takes place whenever and wherever the need arises: staring at white people, relieving yourself, bathing, changing, staring at white people, asking for money, and staring at white people.

Therefore, in our time on the plateau we found ourselves acting as the after school program for 30 children. It was hard for me at that moment not to be able to speak French. When I was in this situation in South Africa, I just started quietly telling Bible stories to the kids. It was amazing to watch them quiet down and just listen, even the little ones, but they all spoke English. Here in Niger, I had the perfect opportunity, but no ability. I just wanted to kick myself.

We waited for the sun to set and tried to get some good photos, but the kids would not leave! So we did. We headed down toward the golf course. Oh yes, Ladies and Gentlemen, Niamey, Niger has it's very own golf course, complete with 18 holes (marked out by rocks painted white), water hazards (sand/rocks painted blue), putting greens (oiled sand) and a clubhouse! We did not go golfing this time, but I certainly want to! I hear rumors of driving off of a piece of Astro-turf.



After dark, we returned to the campsite and pitched the tent in the dark. No children came because it was dark, but we could hear them laughing and playing in the village. Some friends came out to eat with us and we hung around the campfire for some worship. When they left, we went to sleep to the sound of donkeys braying through the night.

In the morning we were greeted by six wandering donkeys, and two little boys who came up to stare at the white people. Instead of being bothered by it, we watched the sun come up and read Job 38-40.

We cleaned up and headed down to the Phillips' campsite for our very own hippo hunting (sightseeing) experience. They took us down the Niger River for some good viewing! Hippos are actually responsible for more deaths in Africa than any other animal on the continent. They are very territorial and do not hesitate to smash a boat. The men who took us were excellent navigators and were very careful not to get too close. Which is probably quite obvious by my pictures.

Camel riding came next. Liz and I hitched up our skirts for short ride down the road. It's a little embarrassing to have a little 10 year old kids leading your camel along and reminding you to "tenez avec les deux mains." Crummy little kid! We survived (and the kid survived) and returned to Niamey in time for supper.

I have more pictures, but couldn't get them to load. Hopefully this Christmas break (when the kids aren't eating up all the broadband) I can put up more. Stay tuned.

Track & Field Day

Students from Sahel split into four different teams for this year's Track & Field Day. They invited home-schoolers from Niger and surrounding countries to participate, and they were added to the teams. At 7:30 Friday morning the teams marched into the stadium carrying their banners and chanting cheers they had made up. At the end of the day, all the points they had accumulated were added up and one team came out this winner. This year, Rufus, one of the senior boys in the dorm, was captain of the winning team "Big Red". There was also a Black Panther team (which I was silently rooting for since that's the mascot of my hometown) but they didn't fare as well.

For the last few weeks I have been helping with PE/Track practice. I worked mostly with shot-put, but also lent a hand with sprints and relays. On the day of the meet, I ran the shot-put and the hula-hoop toss (for grades K-4). Also available were regular track meet events: running, high jump, long jump, and discuss. The elementary students had some replacement competition so they could still be involved like the 3-legged race, sack races, and golf ball races (put the ball on a spoon and run). I slept very well on Friday night.

We have also been blessed by Operation Blessing. We are now the proud recipients of 100 cans of peas. Not the little family sized cans you buy once a week at the grocery store. We're talking the big cans of peas! We piled them all up in my spare room because the pantry doesn't have enough space. Now I am subject to hundreds of bad pea jokes.
"Hey, Cindy, this spoon is resting in peas (peace)" - Joshua
"Hey, Cindy, Merry Christmas, let's pray for whirled peas" - Angela
"Hey, Cindy, I hear you have a pea room" - all of campus

Aren't they just funny? (to be said with dripping sarcasm)

Photos

Last remaining giraffe herd in West Africa. You can literally walk right up to them. They are incredibly beautiful. Check out this article

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33753490/ns/world_news-world_environment//


This week is Field Day for the students. There is little opportunity to participate in athletic events here so we have to make our own. Teams are compiled of students from K-12 and some homeschoolers join us. Friday is the big day at the Stade (stadium...yes, we use the Niamey Stadium) when Sahel will converge upon the field to try their hand at all the track and field events. Pray for a cool day!

Cool Stuff

Book of the Day: Loser by Jerry Spinelli

It is actually written for jr. high kids, but I find it one of the most insightful books I’ve read in a long time. The kid in the story is definitely a “loser,” but the book addresses how we value people and what makes people worth anything at all. In the end, our value is found in Christ. Each of us is made in the image of God and we must be respect that image in everyone around us! It’s a good read. Go buy your copy today!

All the Single Ladies

God has been so good in giving me a group of single women who are serving in Niger. We try to get together every other Thursday and sometimes go out for Sunday night dinner. Last week we just hung out and prayed for each other. How awesome that I get to hang out with such God-centered people.

Niger

What an incredible land! The cool season is starting and I’ve slept a few nights without the A/C on…tonight will not be one of those nights. I wish you could see this city. It operates like a village in the bush, but with a million people. One two lane bridge crosses the river. We passed a long line of camels hauling hay yesterday. A camel is fairly narrow but I am always surprised at how they can carry some very wide loads. One load of hay was the width of the van. We could not easily pass the camel because it’s impossible for three vehicles of that width cross at one time. I want to get a picture of one but the Tauregs (the group of people with the camels) get pretty uptight if you take a photo…so you have to be sneaky.

International Market

Vendors from all over West Africa converged on Niamey this week for an artisan fair. We walked through the exhibits and found stuff from all over! It is amazing how much is available here. I bought an African outfit from Senagal, cloth from Burkina Faso, and some carved figurines from Togo. I got to practice some French while I was there. I really need to work on it!

French class

Next week I will be attending class with my students. Monsieur Hama (one of the African French teachers) has agreed to let me join his French class. Six of my students in English class will be my classmates. I guess there is no time like the present to let all walls down and show them I’m not perfect either. Hopefully I don’t fail.

Newsletter

I’m trying to get my newsletter out but we are having some computer formatting issues. I apologize for that. Hopefully we can remedy the situation and get that thing out soon! Thanks for your patience.

Why

I'm beginning to understand how this earth is not my home. We are truly just sojourners. People who stay somewhere temporarily. I'm finding that to be content in all circumstances also applies to all places and situations. What is it that God has lead me here for? Do I need to know? I guess not. I do need to be content however. I know I am in His will because of the peace he has given so I shall continue in this way until a new truth is made known. I trust Him, this God who uses both children and military leaders for his purpose. His will is perfect and His ways are true. But the best part is this: He has my safety, protection, design, and life in His priority. What a wonderfully loving God we serve!