Ready or not, here we come!

Thursday, August 27, 2009

The week has flown by and in a couple of hours, we will be departing for the airport. Our suitcases are packed and we are set to begin the second half of our term in Zambia. After our rough departure two months ago, I was worried that when the time came we would be dreading our return. But God is gracious and has been healing our wounds. The theft and loss still come to mind but it has lost much of the intensity it previously held. It shows up when I remember all the digital pictures that are gone forever, or when I park my car and think, “Is there anything in the car that I should take with me in case it gets stolen?” I don’t think I will ever look forward to going to Lusaka like I used to before the theft. But, for the most part, I think all of us are moving forward without too many scars.

People ask us if we are looking forward to going back and our response is mixed. There are definitely parts of our lives there that are good and that we are eager to get back to and yet there are difficult parts that I am steeling myself to deal with. But returning to Zambia feels so much different than when we first went because the difficult adjustment work has been done already. We have friends and connections and understand a bit how things work and what we have to do. We are looking forward to being home, in our house in Kitwe, even with the cockroaches and power outages and break-ins.

But it has been a great two months and we have enjoyed the time spent with family and with friends. I will miss being with friends who have known us longer than two years and family who have known us forever. I will miss eating my favorite lunch, which I ate most days or whenever I could: pita chips, hummus, sweet red pepper, cherry tomatoes, and baby carrots. I will miss singing out of the Mennonite hymnal, although our last Sunday at our church was an old fashioned hymn sing so I got to sing many of my favorites like “O Healing River” and “Praise God From Whom.” I will miss fast internet, fresh peaches and strawberries, hot showers with fluffy towels, walking and talking with girlfriends, and much more. I will miss blending into the crowd and waiting in neatly formed lines. But while I enjoy these things, I can also live without them.

The spoiling continued for the boys, with the Washington grandparents passing the baton to the California grandparents. Grandpa Al recycled a basketball hoop from a neighbor who was throwing it away and rigged it up for the boys. One evening all six of us played a game of “Horse” which had us making amazing shots and

working hard to keep everyone in the game as long as possible. The boys made peppernuts with Grandma Anne and were treated to backrubs each night before bed. Grandpa Al took the boys for rides in his electric car and found a way to mount a slide for the swimming pool.

For one last family fling, Peter and I took the boys to Legoland for a day.

We drove two hours to get there and arrived ten minutes after it opened at 10 a.m. We stayed there all day and finally left ten minutes after it closed, at 8 p.m. It was a great day with short lines, lots of screams and laughs on crazy rides, good and pleasant attitudes, and great memories.

Jason loved driving his car at the Volvo Driving School. It seemed much of the time he thought he was in Zambia, driving on the left side of the road!

Brendan loved the ride he called “The Claw” but is actually called “The Knight’s Tournament.” It is a crazy ride where a robotic arm makes you twist and turn and go upside down. You can choose the level of intensity and Brendan and I chose Level 5, the highest level. (If you want to view a video of Brendan and I on this ride, go to this link: http://pesmith71.googlepages.com/transfersite)

We had a really great day together as a family. We crawled into bed at 10:30, exhausted from our day but thankful that we had the opportunity to spluge on an outing like that.

So now it is time for goodbyes which are never fun. And gearing up for much too long flight back to Zambia. But it is time and we are ready. Who knows what adventures await us?