A New Sunday

My alarm didn't work this morning. Signe let me borrow her's till i get one but it didn't go off. i woke automatically at five past seven, so it didn't much matter. i hadn't missed breakfast. i didn't sleep soundly last night. people kept telling me that jet lag would catch up with me. i think it did last night. i was exhasted all day. napped once. wanted to go out for ice cream after dinner but the jeep only fit 6, i was the 7th. I hit my little bed at eight o'clock and woke up about an hour later at 9. I wrote some letters and red a little of Cry, The Beloved Country. Sam has been encouraging me to read that. Honestly, i find it challanging reading but i'm going to perservere through it. I went to bed again at 10:30. Woke up two hours later at 12. The pattern contined throughout the night. My body seemed confused with my new living.

(these walls are ver thin against my bed. I hear voices speaking loudly in Zimbabway tounge. It's nearly midnight.)

I woke this morning with a rare excitement. I say rare because it was the sabboth. I'm in love with my church. The people are jewels to me. I miss my church more than my home and i don't mean for my family to take that the wrong way. My family is a part of my providence (my church) family. THey are included in the body. I adore the body. I miss the body. Normally any Sunday i'm away, it's not very enjoyable and theres a sincere sadness that i can't be amongst my family in the church.

I didn't feel that sadness this morning. It was replaced with joy and anticipation for my African Sunday. I simply don't understand why i was so excited. Honestly, it's very uncharacteristic of my attitude. There must be many praying for me. For i am sure, after that optimistic morning, there is a mighty God looking out for me. How real he is! He won't give me what i can't handle. I don't believe i could have handled missing my church this morning. It would have been so painful adn i would have plumeted. God has replaced my sorrow with joy. I was excited this morning to attend a new church - my first sunday away and there is plainly no absense of God. He is all so real and ever present. I havn't even cried here, only tears of joy. My God has spared me homesickness and i honestly can't make sense of it. The Lord is my sheperd, i shall not want.

Signe and I signed up for a presbyterian church a couple miles away. A friendly, fast talking, brittish lady came to pick us up at 8:30. She drove a new volkswagon. I sat in the front on the left. Quite a new experience. Signe asked me to sit in front, she feared for her life on the left. I laughed. The lady's name was Carusta. Her mother was from Sweden and her father, from Germany. She had grown up in South Africa. She was a school teacher and traveled many different places to teach. Carusta had a husband for 10 years but 3 years ago he had decided he'd rather sell mirrows on the street with his hippy girlfriend, and he left his wife. Carusta now lives with her 15 and 18 year old daughters who are "finally" learning not to be embarrased by their mum. Signe talked about her mother. Said they were best friends. I mentioned how my friend, Hayley, had thanked God for our parents in our bible study back home and had commented on how we don't appriciate them enough.

The church had about 80 people. It reminded me of my church. We even sang some of the same songs. Signe had sang them too. We held hands during a prayer and i liked that. The body was close and i felt close to them. We serve an amazingly mysterious God. Millions of miles away in south africa, theres a family waiting for me. How does God remember such a speck as me?

The sermon was quite good. Even though the songs were ordinary my hands kept rising in the air. God had my life. All of me was surrendered. I am at the mercy of my maker and the simple praise lyrics leaked with truth. Somehow Sam made it to an African church. They were dancing there. He was the only white boy. The preacher spotted him and said, "Hey, someone get a translater for that boy". They are friendly here.

Carusta asked Signe and I if she could take us out for coffee and brunch after church. The ship skips lunch on saturdays and sundays so we gladly accepted. Signe appriciates food as i do. We thought we might loose some weight here but so far we're finding it no problem keeping our bellies full. Carusta talked and talked. I learned so much. What an education i'm getting! I may not school my children, i might just take them to Africa.

First of all, Carusta is a white woman and she's quite wealthy. Actually, she's an average citizen, but she's not poor. She speaks 5 languages and asked me if my impression of Africa had been different before i got here. It was very different. She said in her thick accent, "did you think we all wore loinclothes?" The stupid american nodded yes. I knew they didn't all wear loinclothes but no one owned new cars, wore nice clothing, or lived in anything fancier then a dirt hut. All my thoughts of this land are very much wrong though. I know very little. I'm so ignorant of this civilization. Carusta taught me much as we had brunch at a sweet place, overlooking the Indian Ocean.

On the way home, we stopped to watch a bit of field hockey in this massive field. (They wore fancy uniforms and everything) She asked what sports were popular in the United States. I told her football which wasn't the same as her football - you played US football with your hands, not your feet. She getured with her hands as to make big shoulder pads and commented on the brutality and confusingness of the game. I agreed.

Later that Evening Sam, Cully, and I met out on the deck at 7, after Sam had gotten off work. We wanted to do something but everything closes around 3 on saturdays and doesn't open again till monday morning. We walked up the huge hill to find a gas station and purchased a couple candy bars which were 10 ran, which as sam pointed out, is equivelant with their movie ticket. An interesting fact. 10 ran is a little less than $2. We returned to the ship unharmed. We met a man on the way back though that Sam talked to enthusiastically while Cully and I discussed accents and considered faking an english one for the rest of the year. Everything is pretty in the english accent, even curse words. We talked of Asians immitating how we sound. The asians here immitate us with their mouths gaping open. Cully did an impression for me and said, "CONSUME, CONSUME, give me food to CONSUME!!". I laughed very hard.

The captain had left for the weekend with his wife and the girl cabin sitting his cabin, i knew. I told the boys i could hook them up with a tour. The place is luxurious. My friend, Corina, also my co-worker and trainer, warmly invited us in serving us cake and tea. She got quite excited and said, "Have you ever tried these? I got them today. They're excellent. I've never seen them in Germany." She ran to the kitchen to "fetch" them which by this time, Sam and I were getting pretty excited at the prospect of such a treat. She came back with honey musterd pretzals. I didnt' complain - they're one of my favorite snacks. Actually, Sam and I ate them all. Thought it was funny though that she'd never seen them.

I love this ship.