The past few days have been very interesting. The first full day that I was here (Friday), jet lag hit really hard. It was a struggle to stay up until 9:30, then I woke up several times throughout the night. I ended up getting out of bed around 6:15 feeling somewhat rested. I did not have anything specifically planned until noon, so the morning was spent unpacking and organizing. By 10:00 I was ready to go back to bed, so I took a 30 min nap. By 4:00 both my co-worker and I were ready to fall asleep, but we tried to make it to 9:30 before going to bed.
Saturday was much better. I woke feeling refreshed and somewhat ready for the day. My co-worker and I got SIM cards for our phones around 8:30, then walked around the city and had some tea in a café. Around 10, our guide took us to the English school where I will be teaching and my co-worker will be working and we got a tour. We ended up having some English conversations with students who wanted to practice their English. That went on until noon when everyone left for lunch. After lunch, we learned more about what we would be doing and different things we would need to do to prepare for language learning. We then headed home for a short break and then back to the school to observe the class that I will be taking over at the beginning of the new semester. For dinner, we had some shawarma and headed home. That night we made it until about 10 before going to bed.
Sunday we had a meeting and then ended up eating lunch with some new friends. We had a great time of fellowship and learned more about the country and several good places to shop or visit if we need to rest. That evening, we ended up at a house group with brothers and sisters. English, Somali, and a little French were used there, and it was really cool to be able to observe and be a part of that.
Requests:
- Adjustment to the time difference
- Attunement to Dad’s will as I seek to build relationships with those He brings me into contact with.
- The courage to present the message when He prompts me to
Praises:
- We found a language helper and started language yesterday
- My co-worker and I have not gotten sick from food or anything yet
- People here have been very gracious in helping us adjust and get acclimated to the area and culture