letusgive!

Ahhh...back in Budapest for Christmas and New Years!  My Mom and Dad did make it over here to Europe...Mom is doing well!  She had surgery on December 6th and when they checked the nodes etc...the cancer had not spread!  So that was very good news:).  She is healing well from the surgery and by the time she returns in January she will meet again with doctors and probably do round(s) of radiation.  At this point; it does not look like chemo will be needed but that is up to the doctors etc.  Thank you for your prayers and asking how she is...see the picture to the side...good times with Mom in Krakow! Bob/Co/Michael/Mom and Dad all came up to Krakow for 2 days.  They took the train, slept and ate in my 'loft' and we had a great time.  We went to the Christmas Market in Old Town Krakow that is just absolutely beautiful.  The whole Old Town Square is awesome just in itself...and then add the decorations, all the wonderful food smells cooking (...

The impact ONE person can have on other's lives has come 'alive' for me this week.  Lets just take a look at some folks relevant to my little world anyway.  Nelson Mandela, Oskar Schindler, Adolf Hitler and let me not forget; Jesus Christ.  Can anybody argue that these people have had amazing impact on others; much less our very own lives? As I read the news and see the clips of so many people going to Africa to honor Mr. Mandela; it moves me to realize this ONE man lived 95 years and made such a huge difference.  It may have been a 'world' away for me but I do remember apartheid in the news and one of my favorite books is 'The Power of One'.  Life is real, it hurts and yet Mr. Mandela made it better for many. I went through the Schindler Factory Museum this past Monday.  Mr. Schindler was a German spy and member of the Nazi party; generally speaking, not such a good man right?  And yet he came to Poland to work, took on a factory and earned a lot...

Sounds from my apartment... 1.  Work being done upstairs...starts early and ends late :).  The awesome part of this is the building used to be a flour mill so the walls are brick, the wood is old and it is all very amazing!  Going down the stairs (I live on the 3rd floor) I can see the different equipment that used to be in the mill.  Right by the main entrance there are curly chutes...like it would be curly staircases but they used to send the bags of flour down these wooden chutes...makes me want to send a bag of something down them now to see it go from top to bottom! (See picture to the side). 2.  At first I thought it was a plane (which I love) but it is the tram going over the bridge.  My building is near the Vistula River so when the tram goes over the bridge - I can hear it!  I love that.  I'm on that tram sometimes too...that would be #20 anyway:).  Takes me right into downtown and the beautiful Christmas market. 3.  Sirens....

So much! It has been a while...Thanksgiving was awesome - on the Mediterranean!  I even was able to have some turkey...not like my Momma's but it was fairly tasty and appreciated! Some funnies... Well my first day in Poland, Bob and I were going to have dinner at my 'new' apartment.  So be it - and since I'm not a fantastic chef or anything I thought pasta with some sauce mixed with kielbasa would be excellent!  Throw a bit of a salad in there and viola...not bad right?  Well...we went to the store to get some items for the apartment and I picked up some pasta etc.  I forgot the pasta sauce so I went to the little store around the corner.  It's called 'Fresh Market' and it is pretty much your little convenience store; has a whole bunch of stuff in a small space but very convenient.  I found the pasta and some sauces next to it so I picked out one that looked good...not being able to read any labels.  Came home - started fixing it all and got r...

It is difficult to imagine that I am actually over here for a while!  I still feel like I'm on vacation - I'm sure that will change with time but I am enjoying it here for sure!  Here are some 'reminders' that I have been going over as I go about my daily life here in Europe. 1.  Signs for restrooms?....Very American - look for 'WC' or 'Toilet' here.  By the way - I knew that WC stood for water closet but always thought it was old fashioned.  Not so much - the bathroom in many houses are literally that - the toilet is in its own room or closet - generally separate from the sink, shower etc. 2.  Metric everything!  I remember starting to learn this system in school, back in the day, remind me why America never converted?  Yes...I have new bookmarks and apps on my devices so I can convert. 3.  Dollars - another app I downloaded to convert.  Euro is popular of course...but Hungary uses their own currency (Forint), Poland uses their own...

I left Sacramento on 12:05 p.m. on Wednesday, November 20th (that is 3:05 a.m. on the 21st  in Budapest).  Then I arrived Budapest at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 21st....which is 4:00 a.m. on Thursday in Sacramento.  So....not bad!  I flew to LA and then from LA to Paris...where I missed my connection but was able to get on the next flight out to Budapest which worked out great.  I was on an Airbus380 from LA to Paris and they have two levels - I was on the top level!  I love airplanes and that was just amazing to be up there!  A Boeing 747 only has first class in their top level but the Airbus has all classes up there...it was great to be on the upper level:).  Easy flights...a couple movies, some sleep, some food and lots of water.  Good times. I went to bed early - slept most of the night...I did wake up about 3:00 a.m. for about 1 1/2 hours but was able to go back to sleep.  Then we (Bob, Colleen and some friends from Kiev) wen...

Good stuff!  Had great leaders, met some amazing people and feel very close to ready to be going to Poland for 6 months!  Oklahoma City was a nice place to visit...pretty flat but I think I like it...the people sure are nice. So here I am in the OKC airport ready to fly back to Sacramento for a crazy busy 1 1/2 days and then off to start my new job/chapter/adventure!  One thing I do know after this weekend...I have a LOT to learn.  Culture, language, getting around Krakow, working and living with new people...oh I am sooo excited!  I'm sure there will be days that I will look at my pictures of friends, family, and ache for familiar surroundings etc but that is a given.  Who doesn't have a bad day now and then - right? Life is good...God is waaayyy better. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. (Proverbs 3:6 NLT)

I must say that early in my life my Grandmother (Gram) and my parents  were amazing role models to follow for giving.  These amazing people in my life gave, gave and gave some more! My Gram invited all her grandkids when they were 8 years old to her summer cabin in the 'UP' (Upper Peninsula of Michigan) for the entire summer!  We learned to fish, row boats, shoot a BB gun, and most importantly, to me anyway, we learned to water ski!  What an amazing summer...so many memories with cousins, Aunts, Uncles and most of all my Gram.  What an awesome role model. My parents gave when they had nothing!  We learned it was important to get creative in our giving - it doesn't have to be in cash...it can be providing wood for those that needed it for their fireplaces to keep them warm in the winter or my personal favorite (feel the sarcasm here)weeding and taking care of the church grounds each week.  Maybe its taking a plate of cookies to somebody that is lon...

Czesc!!! Wow...hard to believe I only have three days of work left at Pacific Coast!  This company has been so good to me...started in September 1986 and now it is October 2013 so 27 years!  A great company and amazing people to have worked with for that period of time.  Still surreal to me but I'm very excited and ready to head into this next 'season' of life. The last blog entry I said there were decisions to be made...well - it has been a decision making month!  Let me tell you...it has been awesome to see things work out and come together.  Ethiopia has not come together as previously thought or hoped for but that is still in process.  In the meantime my 'accountability team'  has affirmed and encouraged my desire to go work with my brother and sister-in-law in Poland!  Actually they live in Hungary but also work in Poland.  So that is the meaning of the greeting above... Czesc is 'hello' in Polish (pronounced tesh-ch) .  So on ...

10/1/13 One month left until I am done at Pacific Coast Supply!  Crazy to think that I've been there for 27 years and a month from now - just gone!  Excited? - definitely!  A little nervous? - defintely!  But ready for this next part of my life - definitely! So my official last month at work was great but I did end up in tears when I bought a paper.  It was 'Shriner Hospital' Day for our local paper so there were people selling the Sacramento Bee at various intersections around town.  Wait...backup.  I went to get gas (at Arco of course) and put in my first bill...no problem; the machine took it.  Second bill - rejected it like 3 times - yes, of course I kept trying.  Finally gave in and just got what gas I could with the first bill.  See where this is going?....yes!  Then I drove through an intersection that was selling those Shriner papers and I was able to buy one since I had some cash! I am a Shriner kid...was in the Shrine...

A little messed up time wise---3:30 a.m. here and I'm awake. 1:30 p.m. in Ethiopia right now. Oh well-it will take a while to adjust back.  But what a great day and country!!!   I had my In-N-Out about 3 hours after landing,  I washed my clothes twice just for good measure---the sound of the washing machine was music to my ears!  And I drove into Sacramento at rush hour--traffic with no cows, goats, people on the road!  All three in a matter of hours...AMAZING.  Great flights home---watched a few movies, napped and got VERY excited when the flight attendant handed me a toblerone chocolate bar!  I asked if I could have a diet coke with it and he said yes...would you like ice?  I got tears in my eyes I was so happy.   Joyful to be picked up by Michael...and my parents are at my Aunts house so family time too:).  Book club last night-- fun to tell some stories and catch up with a few dear friends!   All in all-'re-entry' is go...

Re-entry is a weird deal... 1.  Traffic/roads---so, so different.  And will I really be the one driving again soon?!  I do enjoy driving:) 2. Food---this is talked about by many, not just me. We all agree In-N-Out is the first stop. Ahhhh...a diet coke and cheeseburger with fries!  #2 with no onions please! 3.  Shopping---supermarkets!  One stop shopping like Wal-Mart or Target. Just the thought is a tad overwhelming. I remember my nephews coming to America from Ukraine and there was some concern when I immediately wanted to take them to Toys-R-Us...such excess! 4.  The speed of life. I do enjoy the quickness of my life and doing/getting things done quickly. But there is something to be said for this different, slower, pace of life as well. Lazinrss is not good but pace is an interesting dilemma really.  5.  Cleanliness---rainy season brings mud and I'm a mess!  I truly cannot wait to put in a load of clothes...I may wash them twi...

Showers...such a simple pleasure. But go a while without one and boy howdy!  I let the water wash over me and said 'sweet Georgia brown'---yes, I really did:). Thank The Lord for whoever invented them.  Not too common in the villages of Western Ethiopia:) Having said that---I was torn in leaving Masha. Such a good time with people but Addis does have a few more amenities readily available! Leaving---some people ask for things as we are leaving-not a lot but some. And...it would be so easy to give 1,800 birr (approx $100) and they would do what they want and we would just leave. But that has proven to not help---in fact---it hurts!  Thankfully the church is very 'complete' here and they care for the mind, body and spirit. So various funds (medical, educational, small business) funds have been set up and people can go through those avenues to receive assistance.  In fact, if there is family etc that SHOULD be caring for that person...they will be approached to assi...

We had a party!  All the Presbytery and translation families were invited...hosted by the forenjis:). Good times---Ethiopian ladies did the cooking which of course is better than my cooking!  Karen cooks well...but forenji food and this was traditional Ethiopian. It was excellent and I had talked of some games with kids so we were able to do that too. Three legged race---funny!  Of course we got adults involved---fairly competitive folks I must say. Our driver probably the most--he wanted to win!  We did a word match deal too...an English word and a Shekka ( local language) word. Each person had a word taped to them and they had to find their match...now I was shocked on this one.  Ethiopians are pretty quiet spoken for the most part but this group of 40-50 got pretty loud and chaotic!  It was awesome---Andualem (high school director) was with us as well and he did not like the chaos:)...forever a teacher I guess.  We were all outside and the rain st...

Blog by candlelight today (July 16). The power was on and off the last few hours so here I am! One of my students from 2007, Amanuel Haile, came to see us the other day.  He is working for the beer distributor here in Maasha and taking distance learning (online courses) for Accounting thru the University in Tepi. Yaaaay!   That is great news!  He gifted me today with a bottle of some kind of honey.  It is like a liquid and he said they use it to treat colds etc.  Hmmm...I will ask some more questions to other people to see if I can understand:).  While we were in Tepi we saw the University and they are building a lot. I didn't see any of the students wearing jerseys or sweatshirts with 'TU' on them....and I wonder what the mascot is?!!!  That area is lower elevation and is known for their pineapple, warm weather and bugs (yes-I got mosquito bites!). So I think they should be named the Tepi Pinebugs! Ok...not sure when I can post this...all is wel...

Ok....I think it is official---I will be returning.  Training on computers...some have them here but don't really know how to use them or care for them. Then I will do English---meaning conversational most of all...church leaders and nights/weekends at the local high school. It helps to know the Director!  And some work with kids/youth at the local churches ...sounds good to me!   The housing---yet to be determined but getting estimates on a house to be built---very simple but with water/electricity and plumbing!  Amazing--I keep having dreams of people coming to visit---the estimate is for a six bedroom house!   All the discussions have been very humbling--very kind words and encouragement. Again; life is good-even great BUT God s better! We are in Tepi--better Internet connections---have a great weekend!  

I opened a bank account today...Commercial Bank of Ethiopia!  I think that will help for when I return. When we are in Addis again I have to go to the head office but I have an account book and the whole deal. Kinda makes it real huh?! Excited!   Last Sunday....drove to church as far as we could then had to walk about 30 minutes....MUD!!!!  This past Monday-invited for breakfast to our driver's home---MUD!!! Guess what I did?  Yep---fell each time. First was going up an incline so that was embarrassing but today was going down an incline...I did the 'snow ski' move...fell on my side and popped back up. I felt so bad.  Dumb.  Ahhh well so goes life--I'm thankful we were in Metu and I had a warm shower to clean up.  Now---unpacking the 'real' shoes/boots and we will see if that helps:).   Counting 1-ant 2-ulet 3-sost 4-arat 5-amist 6-sadist (no...not the same) 7-sabat 8- cement  9-zegn 10- asir I like pill...

Ethiopian food is not my favorite but I've been doing good!  I don't think I've offended anybody--I hope not:).  Injera---with EVERY meal. The best I can explain I think is a cross between a pancake and a burrito. It is doughy like a pancake but thin like a burrito. Depending on who makes it--can be sour. I remember sour from last time for some reason but have not had sour so far this year. I'm okay with that! Roll injera out partially on your plate---part of it stays rolled up and you put the meat; lentils, vegetables or what have you on the part that is rolled out. Typical---some cooked spinach, maybe potatoes cooked in some oil, and chunks of beef or lamb cooked in sauce---usually hot but they tame it down for us forenji type.  Sorry I can't seem to upload pictures to my blog:)!   Then...you eat with your RIGHT hand.  Always--never with the left.  You tear a chunk of injera off, grab one or two items and pop it in your mouth. Voila---Ethiopian food....

Well we went 'to the end of the earth' as the people in Begi called it.  Border of South Sudan and it was nice.  We saw two refugee camps and I am very sad to say we could not enter them. The one we thought we were going to; we did not have the correct papers. Maybe that is for the best but I must say I was disappointed. There are 10,000 refugees staying in the camp--- it is ran by the UN and the Ethiopian govt gives food.  Apparently a lot of the food comes from Anerica ultimately so it does not help the local economy.  It had a gated entrance, barbed wire fence around a lot of it but it did look like some people could come and go. Apparently some do attend 3 different local churches.  Majority are Muslim but the local Pastors/congregations do go in and visit, give and put up tents. Most of the structures were tent like...white tarps that had UN on them. Some buildings were near the front--those had tin roofs etc and were offices apparently.  In 2006 t...

Traveling to a new area for me and it is just amazingly beautiful. We left Metu at about 9:00 and went 225 kilometers (140 miles) and we arrived in Nejo at 4:30. We stopped for lunch, fuel and Dave was sick the last part (not good...he is resting now hopefully) so about 6 hours travel time. The road for the first 150 kilometers (94 miles) was tough to travel.  Comparisons: Cabin in Michigan: cut-across road John Day area:  Canyon Mountain trail but a bit wider California:  off road like where Coleman took me in the jeep to the zip line! Sounds of Ethiopia: 1.  Dogs fighting/ barking/ howling at night, maybe over food? 2.  Horns honking---short honks talking to people and animals on the road. Long honks when fairly angry or they see somebody they know--a wave is added:) 3.  Rain on the metal roof...hail in Addis! 4.  Clapping in a restaurant---to get attention of servers etc 5.  Call to prayer--Mosque 6.  Kids choir practice--list...

Time...it took me two weeks to stop wearing my watch.  Probably should have been two days but...slow learner! We were invited to be at Tesfaye's house at 10:00 ( or 4:00 Ethiopian time) and we got there about 10:30. We were served a cold soda and popcorn/snacks at 11:00.....Hmmm what would have happened if we were 15 minutes early like my parents are to everything?!!!  We will never know but there you have it!  Time is on a whole different level here:). We arrived back in Metu this evening--we will meet with leaders here tomorrow ( some future planning for me--did some this morning as well!).  The accommodations here are nicer than Maasha--loved my shower!  Right now it is raining---metal roofs are the 'nice' roofs here-the sound of rain is like music to me---I love it!  Soothing... Thursday (happy 4th if July!) we head to Begi- a two day trip I think. There is a Sudanese refugee camp we will visit. Could be a bit tough...but looking forward to it ac...

It has been a long time! I am in Maasha and the connection to the Internet has been difficult:). It is 1:00 a.m. Here and working so I thought I would try this from my phone.  Kinda slow! Ok...Ethiopian calendar:  today July 1, 2013 to me and you---Ethiopians---it is June 14, 2005!  So imagine their Y2K issues...once in 'our' 2000 and then again for them.  Funny! Time---6:00 am starts at 0:00...we will meet at 2:00 to walk to the Presbytery office...that is 8:00 am to you and me:). Awesome isn't it!?...so when we talk---we use both and so do the Ethiopians. Communication is tough enough-don't want to confuse time and dates too! Here are some menu items that I thought you may like: Beef meet balls Panecakes French frize Piper steak (pepper) Rosted beaf Chicken cottlet I've been talking to a lot of people about my return in November and they are very excited, encouraging and making lists!  Good stuff.  Makes me very grateful to all who are s...

Traveling in Ethiopia is an adventure.  From 2005 when I first came here - the road Jima to  is VASTLY improved!  209 miles and it took us about 6 hours...we took a while getting out of Addis but then in the country you have to watch out for pot holes, people, cows, goats and we even saw baboons today!  I'm so bummed I did not get a picture...there were baby baboons which I had not seen before.  It was awesome.  At the time I was sitting in the front seat and had the window down so I saw them pretty close.  One jumped up on a road post and looked right at me so I said 'hello'...I'm quite sure he was happy that a 'forenji' (foreigner) acknowledged him.  At least this forenji was happy he looked at me! The area is so beautiful - it is the rainy season so everything is green and lush.  Farmers were out plowing with their 1 or 2 oxen and corn was growing! There is a yellow flower that is everywhere that is just really pretty...yeah - sorry - no...

Tenestulin! That is 'hello' in Amharic...I can handle that one :).  Amasaganallo = thank you...I have that one down too.  I'm sure there will be more - I have a lot of notes in my previous journals so I need to review again. It is Saturday night and I was listening to the rain, lightning, thunder and then it turned into hail!  It was amazing and all I could think of was...the roofs are going to be ruined and this would be good business for Pacific Supply!  Sad....but I guess 27 years in the building industry kind of does that to me:).  Alas, metal roofs  for the most part here in Addis so the rain/hail is loud but damage will probably be minimal.  In the countryside where there are more of the grass hut type of houses; definitely getting wet there. Today was graduation day!!....very nice ceremony and we were ushered right to the front considered to be 'special guests'.  Kind of embarrassing but on the other hand - kind of nice.  They turn...

I looooovvvveee the macchiatos here in Ethiopia.  We have been in country for about what - about 36 hours (?) and already had 4 of them!  And no - they were not from Starbucks - I did see a few of those in Frankfurt but no Starbucks here in Ethiopia :). Ethiopia - population approx. 80 million people.  The country is about the size of Texas. Addis - population approx 3 milion people...it is at 8,500 feet in elevation.  Really quite pretty and fairly clean as well.  Their cars and trucks do not pass any emission tests so the pollution from that is kinda nasty but oh well!  They just had a big 50 year celebration of the African Union so some new roads were put in and the city was 'spruced' up.  It looks nice.  It is the rainy season here now so it is muddy to walk around but the weather is not hot and for that I am thankful!  I actually wore my light fleece jacket - woo hoo! SIM card purchased today - so that is kind of nice...called my Mo...

So...sitting at the gate waiting to get on the Ethiopian Airlines aircraft.  I think I will sleep well on this flight!  Since we arrive in the morning now - we will probably shower and try to stay up for the day to get our sleep pattern in sync with +10 hours from Sacramento :). Frankfurt is a beautiful city!....took a tour - came back on the train and had a few moments of panic in the train station but...all is well.  Track 21 at 7:01 - easy enough...bought my ticket at the machine and the train came in, people got off and all the doors shut tight!  Looked at the sign and it said 'Bitte nichte einstagen'.  Now - I only took a semester of German but bitte = please and nichte = no so I knew something was up.  I asked at a little snack place and this 'kid' told me to go downstairs.  I knew it was train S8 or S9 so down I went and all the numbers were in the 100's!  So...I finally found a sign - had to keep going down.  Found train S8 depa...

We left San Francisco over an hour late...loading baggage took a while so we missed our connecting flight in Frankfurt.  That means I get to see Frankfurt!  It is almost 2:00 p.m. here and hot!  My favorite :)....but our flight doesn't leave for Addis now until 10:00 p.m. and I'm excited!  We had McDonalds and the rest of the group decided to stay in the airport.  Hope I get some good pictures and adventures to share.

It's kinda crazy how much I love airports, airplanes and just pretty much anything associated with travel!   So here I am...a happy girl sitting in the San Francisco airport - moments away from boarding.  Traveling to Frankfurt, Germany.  This leg is a 10 hour and 50 minute flight.  Then from there another flight into Addis Ababa which is 6 hours and 50 minutes.  So...the plan is to arrive at 7:05 p.m. Tuesday night in Addis.  In time to crash!   See you or talk to you tomorrow hopefully depending on internet access!  Here we gooooooooo!!!!!!

Malaria is not a disease I want to get...my brother got it at one point in his life and that was worrisome enough!  So - I will be taking anti-malaria meds on Monday for the next 10 weeks.  When I went to check on my shots etc - Africa is one of those countries that you pretty much need to get every known vaccine!  I already had Hep A and B series but had to get tetnus, typhoid, meningitis, and polio.  Crazy huh?  Yes...yellow fever as well but that was determined a while back that I could not get due to some other health issues. So...my arm was sore for a few days but I should be pretty good while I'm away for this jaunt to Ethiopia :). Oh - some of you have inquired about donating - you certainly may!  I just don't have it set up through here (yet-not sure if it will be prior to leaving next week).  If you so desire - send a check to the church ( don't put my name on it) and then you will be able to have the donation be tax-d...

New blogger here.  Not sure what I'm doing but I have some amazing people in my life that seem interested in 'following' me during my adventures this summer.  The name of this blog (letusgive) may seem odd but hopefully it will become clear through my subsequent posts - to me as I write it and also to those that read!  Here we go...together! Ethiopia...that is the place I am going for 5 weeks starting June 17th.  I cannot wait and I must admit I'm a bit nervous as well!  Have I been there before?  Yes...once in 2005 for 2 weeks and once in 2007 for 3 weeks.  The 3 week trip was to teach English to high school students.  I fell in love with their beautiful faces, smiles and ambition to learn.  I'm definitely looking forward to seeing them again! This whole year has been a whirlwind so far but bottom line is - I'm preparing to leave Pacific Coast (having worked there for 27 years) and moving onto more mission o...