Answers.

I have been asked a lot of questions by my friends and family about my stay here. So I figured I'd answer the most common here so all of you can know too!

One of the most common questions is...[insert drum roll] How's the food?- Well I live with Americans, so we eat a lot of American food. We make tortillas at least once a week. We eat A LOT of rice and beans. The Nigerian food I eat the most is yams, fried roasted, and mixed in our gina beans. The strangest things I have eaten is Aku, fried termites and a piece of chicken heart. The termites are different than our own. They are much bigger, and can fly. I ate two Aku because the first I ate didn't have wings and I was told the sweetest ones are with the wings.

Another common question, What time is it there?- For those in Texas, look at the time and add 6 hours.

Are you having fun?- OH. MY. GOODNESS. Yes I'm having fun! I love it here SOOOOOOOOOOOOO much! I love everything, minus no cheese and not much meat... The people are so great, the kids are amazing. I love learning about the culture and trying to learn the language!

Joy. She lives up to her name, sometimes.

Which brings me to my next one. Are you learning the language?- I'm trying. I know some words, and can understand a few more. All the people enjoy hearing an onyocha, white person, speaking Igbo. And the staff really gets a kick out of my trying to repeat after them. It's hard to learn Igbo because thye have sounds that we don't have in English, and my English brain tries to make them that way. The kids also LOVE to try to teach me. One thing that makes it hard to learn is the different dialects. I live in Opi, so there is an Opi dialect. Nsukka is a nearby town, which has it's own dialect. And then there is standard  Igbo.

What are you learning?- Well! I'm learning a few things. But the one that I think is the most life changing is that this is where I'm supposed to be. This is exactly where God wants me to be, and not just for the summer. He has used this summer to show me what I knew He told me. Africa is where my heart is, Africa is where my home will be. I can't say 100% that it will be in Nigeria. But it is very possible. I have also been learning, and thinking a lot about religion. Religion is dumb. Why did it get so tangled in our relationship? When did going to church become more important than loving our Savior? And why don't we do anything? Do you know what God says about religion in James? “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit the orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep the oneself unstained from the world.” James 1:27 This is the only kind of religion I want in my life.

What do you miss the most?- Well other than people of course. I miss sleeping with the blankets my mom made me. Every night I wish I had one. I miss my church. Which is funny to say after the question above. But I miss the worship there. The worship here fills my heart with joy because it's just so beautiful to hear praise in another language. But it's hard to truly worship too when I don't know what is being said.

See what I mean about Simdat's smile?

What are you going to miss the most?- The kids. Every single one of them. Kara and I randomly sit and talk about how we can't picture our lives without them. I'll miss giving two little boys a bath at around 7 pm. I'll miss waking up at 3 am to take Terry to the bathroom so he doesn't wet the bed, and I'll miss giving him a bath every morning because he still wet the bed. I'll miss Dajan's hugs. I miss Tokshi sitting in my lap. I'll miss Jurbe holding my hand. I'll miss Simdat's beautifully sweet smile. I'll miss playing at the field and arguing what time we will go home. I'll miss the giggles. I'll miss the nightly prayer and song time with the kids. I have 30 days left to love these kids so much it hurts me, and I plan on it. I could go on forever, but it's killing me now so I'll stop. I'm going to miss Kara so much! I can't picture waking up without her next to me. I have no idea what I am going to do when I have a day without being with her 24 hours a day. For those who will be with me, you are going to have to deal with my massive withdrawals. 

Are you married yet?- No I'm not. But some of the kids have informed me we are getting married. And one day in the market one man I walked by said “Onycha! I love youuuu! Marry me!” I just smiled and kept walking. And then we walked by him later and he said, “I knew you would be back! I love you!” And a girl in the market asked me to marry her brother. I politely turned both offers down. But I have 22 days to follow in family footsteps;]

This picture takes my breath away.

Also I was not asked this but I wanted to share it with you. I now have braids. How did they braid my short hair you may ask. Well I have extensions in. So my hair went from being short to like a foot longer in a matter of two long hours. No, it didn't hurt. It just gave me a small headache. My goal is to have them in for 4 days, we will see if I can make it.

I hope you all enjoy the 4^th of July! We are going to celebrate here by playing some patriotic songs and having a roast for dinner I think.

As always I love you! And I loved reading your comments on my last blog. Y'all are so encouraging!