thirst

by Mary Oliver

Another morning and I wake with thirst
for the goodness I do not have. I walk
out to the pond and all the way God has
given us such beautiful lessons. Oh Lord,
I was never a quick scholar but sulked
and hunched over my books past the hour
and the bell; grant me, in your mercy,
a little more time. Love for the earth
and love for you are having such a long
conversation in my heart. Who knows what
will finally happen or where I will be sent,
yet already I have given a great many things
away, expecting to be told to pack nothing,
except the prayers which, with this thirst,
I am slowy learning.

soniya and baby manish

Soniya and I both had a scar on our right cheek from a dog bite--she was also filled with sarcasm and a loud laugh. I called her my sista.

ashish

I definitely haven't forgotten about my Nepali anticipation. Here is another video and some photos...oh goodness. Ashish is the ham of Harka orphan home. It's hard not to love his charming smile, contagious laugh, and huge head/belly combo. There were five children too young to enter school, so they would stay home with us as we spent our days reading Dr. Seuss, playing soccer, bathing, cleaning, preparing food, etc. Here, Laxmi (the 'director'/mother figure to all the kids) and Britta are helping Ashish practice his numbers in English. Numbers six and eight were usually skipped with much amusement.


Classic Old Man Ashish

my girls

Kenneshia, QueQue & Dria
Sunday, March 14, 2010

utahhh

Last week I had the pleasant opportunity to spend a week in Deer Valley, Utah, nannying for four families including my precious kiddos from Memphis--Mason, Carrington and Tucker. The weather was beautiful and the mountains were majestic as usual...they looked a bit more regal than usual, however, seeing how it had been over a year since I'd seen any. My Sheena Bean who currently is studying Arabic linguistics at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City came over for a girl's night which included hot tub, sauna, movies, food, repeat. And I even got to meet up with my cousins from Mississippi (who I had seen just a few weeks earlier at the family reunion) as they were out skiing for their spring break. Ah, and that skiing...I was blessed to get a whole day on the slopes. It took me about that amount of time to remember how to distribute my weight and glide with confidence, but it just reminded me of how thankful I am for life and mountains and big blue skies.


The view from our front porch...sunrise

Tucker and Carrington


toofless

mi sobrino

This is my nephew, Levi, and I am completely aware of how many photos I just uploaded. But seriously, how cute is he. These were all taken the weekend of the family reunion when he and I went to explore the wonders of leaves and rocks.

family reunion

Before I get back into a Nepal photo exhibit, I need to backtrack into the last month's details. My father turned 65 in mid-February, and for the occasion we had a surprise family reunion in Southern Mississippi. I saw cousins and aunts and uncles that I hadn't seen in years (some, ever), and my dad took my two sisters and I on a brief tour of his hometown. It was a very special weekend with some Holy Spirit-sanctioned weather.


(my cute dad on the bottom right with his brother and cousins)


(my beautiful little cousins: Mary Caldwell above, Shelby below)

secil

Oh my goodness, I miss this kid. Secil was five years old in this photo, the youngest of our kids who went to school daily. He is pure boy, and played it suave and distant for the first week or so that we were there. Shortly thereafter, however, he was creeping his little cuteness up in our lives. He just loved to laugh, play tricks, and wear our shoes.

anticipation

I realized last night that I will be going to Nepal in just four months. It's March...that's surprising and magical and so close to spring...then summer...and July's in summer. With such an event hovering just months away, I thought I would make it a habit to post either photos or videos from my time at Harka just two years ago. For those of you who may not be aware of my time there, you can read the stories at:
www.travelsinnepal.blogspot.com
This just happens to be my favorite video. Tulie was just over two years old here and we had a game where she would ask me what my name was and I would same any name (including poop, 'gu') until I finally said mine...it would keep us laughing for hours. That's Jamuna, one of the girl twins, in the background. Adorable...

work that is to be done

"People notice peacemakers because they dress funny. We know how the people who make war dress--in uniforms and medals, or in computers and clipboards, or in absoluteness, severity, greed, and cynicism. But the peacemaker is dressed in righteousness, justice, and faithfulness--dressed for the work that is to be done."
-Walter Brueggemann