Contemplating Tourism (NaBloPoMo Day 2)

Today I ran a couple of errands around town and spotted (1)  a car full of tourists with an African driver and (2) a heavy set, male French tourist leaving one of the hotels in town with his camera in hand and a look of “photo-op lust” on his face.  As I drove past both the man and the tourist group I remembered what it felt like for myself to be a tourist in this place.  When we arrived in Kara, Togo in both the summers of 1996 and 1997 to survey this town and people, I didn’t consider myself a tourist, but in a way tourism was part of my mentality.  Everything was so foreign: the language a strange cacophony of sounds strung together, the mannerisms of people consisting of strange sudden outbursts without context, the landscape both beautiful with the surrounding hills and dirty with garbage strewn about, the smells of food cooking and rotting waste mingled together making me feel both nauseated and perplexed.  Through all of these new bombarding senses I was seeking God’s voice, listening for a call, wondering if it was these people he wanted David and me and our team to move to minister among.

Now, 12 years later, these sounds, smells, and sights are neither foreign nor difficult to process.  They are common, known, familiar and in most every way comforting.  I realize that I still don’t completely fit in but many people know me and accept me as an established foreigner.  The best part is that I no longer have a desire to “fit in” here or to “fit in” in  America.  From observing me when I’m in the US I look like I belong but my mind and values and world view are different.  In Togo, I know what to do, how to speak, how to respond, and how to relate to others.  But, of course, my skin color and inward values and thought processes are different here.  Over the past 10 years I belong more fully to a different culture.  I am a citizen of heaven, able to exist and function well in 2 separate cultures, but my core values, ideas, and relational strategies are different from both cultures.  I pledge allegiance to Jesus.  I follow Him and my deepest desire, wherever I am in whichever country in this world that He and the Father created together, is to share with others who want to know Him, too.  So, in some ways as long as I’m in this world I will always be a tourist.  I’m enjoying the trip for now but I’m looking forward to getting home.

What happened today:  Today is our community’s “Day Off”.  Our work week is Tuesday through Saturday.  In case anyone is wondering, the baby bird’s mother came and fetched it back to the nest yesterday.  (Yay!) And Caleb still seems to be feeling fine today except he’s not eating quite as well as normal.  We slept in this morning as we were up talking to The Ries family on skype until way past our bedtime last night. (It was well worth it!)  David and Andrea taught the older children on the team the first in a series of lessons on badminton.  Hannah, Elijah, Maddie, Abby, Aidan, and Gabriel are all trying to earn a badge through the little “Keepers” club we’ve formed for learning the rules and playing a certain number of games of badminton.  Aimee (our house helper) didn’t come to work  this morning because her foot was so swollen she couldn’t walk.  I went to her house and picked her and her cousin up and took them to the SOS hospital in town.  She found out from the doctor there that she has a significant infection in her foot.  She got the proper medication and I took them back home.  Her sister came and worked in her place today.  I told her to REST!!!  and stay off her foot (Not an easy task  for this strong, hard-working and loving lady to do!) David also broke part of his back left molar off while eating lunch today.  The nearest dentist we trust with hygienic procedures is a 9 hour drive away in Accra.  We weren’t planning to travel there until May so an emergency trip is in store for David and Matt M. tomorrow or Wednesday, as Matt’s computer completely crashed and can get repaired there also.  Tonight’s our prayer night so we’ll spend a good amount of time in prayer for many of you.

Today’s Menu:

Breakfast:  Rice Pancakes

Lunch: Take Out from Le Jardin (steak, potatoes, and carrots)

Dinner:  Gluten free pizza, broccoli, and canned fruit (we ended up making homemade chips, salsa, and smoothies last night instead)

Scripture on my mind today:  “By faith Abraham lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents…for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”  Hebrews 11:9,10