I promised to give you updates on all three major areas of the ministry with the last being about the school itself which you can find here if you missed it. This wee I am wanting to give you an update on myself. While I have been home enjoying hot showers, clothes washer, time with my friends (friendships that seem to suffer while I am away), time with my family; I do find myself missing so many important aspects of my life in Tanzania. Spending time with my friends there (those friendships also seem to suffer while I am away), the kids and all their joy and energy, the beauty of seeing Kilimanjaro on my walks or just from the school.
When I came home in December, I knew I would be here for at least a slightly extended period because I was suffering pain in my left knee and lower abdomen area (started in the hip area). After testing, several doctor appointments, at least one misdiagnosis and a lot of money the decision was a damaged tendon in my knee and damaged core muscle in my abdomen. Neither required surgery as expected for the original diagnosis. The unfortunate truth is despite rest for the areas damaged and a rehabilitation program, the pain is still there and I have decided it will join all the other pains as just something I will live with.
This delay pushed me into the height of Coronavirus travel restrictions. Those became a logistical concern for me on a tourist visa. That visa requires I leave the country every 90 days (this is common for most tourist visas to keep people from just living somewhere without a residence permit). Testing requirements to visit other countries or to return home from a country that denied the existence of Coronavirus and had an unreliable system to provide that testing made it difficult to head back over. Since then I have had two people who have visited with the testing protocols. The one that had the better time still had to visit two hospitals before one could handle the testing. The other was delayed at every step and was forced to postpone their return. So I feel it was best to delay as they get things worked out.
So in this time I decided to renew my passport(it would technically expire in January) and get my vaccinations. I have finished with one and the passport should be back mid-May. My current hope is to return late June/early July for the start of the 2nd Semester of school. Tanzanian schools are typically closed for most of June.
While I have been home, I have been working with the school to keep track of our financials, student grades and the general welfare of the school. In addition I have been trying to learn a new type of fundraising (virtual for the new world we live in) which is difficult for me since I believe I shine in fellowship type fundraising events and in conversations and stories about our school. Some have asked about my support and if I was still drawing a stipend from my account or did I need them to redirect their contributions to me personally. I truly appreciate that you want to make sure I am taking care of myself financially and yes I am currently taking my normal living stipend while I am working virtually.
While I have a hopeful schedule to return to Tanzania, I am taking advantage of my opportunities of being stateside. I have been working on my sugar free or low sugar pies and cakes since Dad and I are both diabetics. So far I have pumpkin, apple, caramel cheesecake, chocolate cheesecake, peanut butter cheesecake, key lime pie (which required I learn to make sugar free sweetened condensed milk), cakes from a box and cinnamon bread from a box. I hope to add lemon bars next.
I have worked on my writing as well pulling out some of the old starter sentences to practice my creativity. My favorite one from these was when I was taking a creative writing course while working in NC. It went: “The detective was confused by the body in the morgue missing his big toe.” I turned it into an espionage story where the toe was false with a hidden compartment.
I am going to be getting some type of virtual fundraiser activity going before I leave and I hope to have everyone help out by sharing that event/activity on their social media accounts to help us spread the word. But before that I have at least one chance to meet with a group of ladies at Mauldin UMC on May 12th to give an update. So your prayers that will go well would be appreciated.
The only other big news I guess I have to share is that I decided to replace the family cruise vacation to Alaska that was cancelled last June with a personal trip to Boston to go whale watching and soak up some history and good food. So be warned I will post a lot of pictures of Whales hopefully next month. This is my last big animal to see in the wild. I have Elephants, rhinos, hippos, giraffes, black bears, brown bears, deer, moose, elk, gnu, gorillas and etc. But no whales.
