Eww Gross!
Matthew here…So, I am coming to terms with my biggest “fear” in moving to Kinshasa – if you have a weak stomach, consider this a content warning…
I am a bit of a clean freak. Not quite as OCD about it as my sister Jennifer (who will NEVER walk on a hotel floor without socks or flip-flops and is the Queen of Purell) but I still am pretty picky when it comes to bugs. Part of this comes from doing pest control full-time for a couple years, as well as off-and-on after that. I don’t really care too much about bugs in the yard, on the floor, swimming in the toilet bowl, or even the giant cockroach-eating spiders that hang out nonchalantly on the wall. (I’m not making up any of this, even the spiders are a featured amenity in our new home).
But, here is what I “can’t” handle…and what I am going to have to…
-Cockroaches on the kitchen counters – apparently Nancy Burton plays Whack-a-Roach with the little baby ones because by the time she goes for the bug spray, they are long gone. BARF!
-Deworming my children (same blog).
-Sifting the larvae out of our flour prior to use (holy cow, this takes the cake).
-Having to iron or tumble dry anything that has been line-dried, because you have to kill the mango-fly larvae otherwise they will burrow into your skin and give you nasty boils (Alien anyone?)
So there it is, my biggest hurdle. I can deal with theft, corruption, extortion, foreign cuisine, lack of power and water, broken tools, appliances, and vehicles. But when there is a potential for grubs in my grub – I yack.
Pictures!
These are the last few pictures from our road trip. There are more pictures, not related to anything blog-worthy here, though the line is rather blurry, I think.
Levi helped Daddy pick out Mommy's Valentine's Day present - a chicken!
Lisa's chicken...it's super adorable!
Standing, nearly on her own!
Hi Amelia!
Through Snoqualmie Pass - the last picture of our road trip
Our bins - that's it!
Capcity testing
Bins!!!
Today Matthew researched dimensions, cost, availability, sturdiness and we all took a family trip to The Home Depot, where the bins that won Best in all of the above categories were waiting for us. We bought eight of them – two allowed per ticket – and brought them home. Immediately Matthew began pulling stuff we had stuffed into every stuffable spot, weighed it, put it in his fancy packing spreadsheet, and stuck it in a bin. We’ll pack the bins properly later, but for now, it is important to note how much each item weighs (and put it in that fancy spreadsheet to keep track). We put our water filter (yay Berkey!) and books into one bin and we still have nearly 20 pounds left! We both pulled most of our clothes, and some shoes, and tah-dah, only one more bin filled. It sorta feels like the opposite of Jesus feeding the crowd with only five loaves and two fish – like Mary Poppins’ purse – endless space. We still want to pack according to our philosophy, and there is still a lot left to find, but for now, we love that we don’t feel cramped and that the kids can still come (ha ha – just kidding…)!
Today we also went to lunch at Olive Garden, one of my (Lisa’s) weaknesses. I did ok in Alaska without it, but I had it each time I came back to Washington. Going without it for a year or longer will be fine, but I asked Matthew if we could go a few times before we leave. There and Panera. Mmmmm… Thankfully, we rarely go out to eat, so it won’t be much of a depature from our normal lives. While it is very expensive, it is an option in Kinshasa on occasion, too.
Levi, too, has had a great day and we are so pleased. He was excellent company today while I took advantage of a sale to stock up on a few clothing items at the mall. He did fine while we stopped at a church where we’ll present our mission work next week. He was pleasant at the restaraunt. He even schooled his dad today: while asking about different letters, Matthew was joking around and asked “Where’s the letter Levi?” Levi replied quite frankly, “Levi is not a letter, it’s a word!” Good work, son.
On Packing and Packages
People now ask about packing: how it’s going, what are we packing, how much can we take, what do we need to take, what advice have we been given on packing…the list goes on.
To answer those questions, and to help us pack properly, we have developed a packing philosophy: we are not taking our lifestyle with us. We are taking necessities for our personal needs, a few personal items to make daily life easier, and the kids get a few toys. We are trying not to take everything we feel is important and everything we think we might need. Why? Space, for one. We can only take what we can bring on the airplane, and, until our tickets are purchased, we won’t know those requirements. Further, because bringing an American lifestyle’s worth of stuff is pointless, silly, and will only lead to frustration. We learned at our training in Nampa last summer that one of the main causes of missionaries to come home, off of the field, is because of what is commonly called “culture shock.” More specifically, they come home because they expected to live the same life they lived in America in their new home. The difference in culture will not allow for it, and they were unprepared to adjust. I’m not saying we won’t have those struggles. We most definitely will deal with culture shock. It is inevitable. We will take a few things to remind us of life stateside. But, we are going with as few expectations as possible of what life “should” be and that means not taking things with the hopes of transferring a certain way of living. I would love to bring all of my favorite kitchen gadgets! I really would! However, besides not having the space in my luggage, I won’t be eating the same diet (we hope to adopt as local a cuisine as possible, for cost-saving measures) or even cooking in the same way. I won’t have consistent electricity…I don’t even know what life in the kitchen will look like – why would I bring tools for a job I may not even do? How frustrating would that be?
On a grander scale, we want to be involved in the culture there. We hope attend a local church, despite the language barrier. We don’t want to pack things that would suggest that we don’t want to adapt. We are going to force ourselves to immerse. It may sound tough, but to us, taking excess things and being frustrated by them sounds tougher. We are excited to go live in this new place – why would we bring our old place with us?
More importantly, in missions and in ministry, our goal is not to help the Congolese become more American. It is to share the Truth of the Gospel. It is to tell them about the hope of redemption. We feel this is better done by trying to assimilate as much as we can without drowning in the adjustment (one of the reasons we won’t be living in a mud hut, for example). We’re not trying to torture ourselves, but we want to be effective in ministry. We may not be effective if we are busy trying to make all of the things we brought fit into our new life in the DRC. We aren’t poor, and we won’t pretend to be, but we want to learn about those we are trying to reach and we feel that by not having an abundance of things with us will we be better off in the long run.
Furthermore, they have stores there. People sell things that are commonly used. We will have the opportunity to support local people and their families. That transaction could lead to a relationship. A relationship is necessary to share the love of Christ. Goal accomplished!
Conclusion: we are packing as if we are going on vacation. A very long, hard, hot vacation. Isn’t is more fun to think of it as a vacation anyway? It isn’t one, but we can pretend, right?
And about packages. Many of you have asked how to send us packages. Perhaps more of you are thinking of surprising us this way. To all of you: thank you. Thanks for the thoughts – it does mean a lot to us. But, the sad news is that we cannot receive packages. Not a one
Bummer, right? We are bummed too. I am still confused as to how life looks without Amazon.com. But, the Lord will help us learn this new way of living, too, won’t He?
The DRC lacks proper infrastructure to have a mail system. If something did arrive, we may not know about it. And then it would most likely be “inspected.” And then it would definitely be “taxed.” And all of that amounts to whatever is in that package is not worth the trouble and money it would take to receive it.
Can you think of something we should take with us? What would you need with you in a foreign country? Have you lived abroad – what did you miss most?
Tweet Tweet!
We now have a Twitter account! Do you remember me mentioning that I was working hard to set up a Facebook page for our trip? Well, after working really really hard I learned that I do not have the knowledge to make it do what I want. And I certainly don’t have the motivation to learn right now. So, with just a few clicks we now have a Twitter running on the right side of our blog. Why does this matter? Well, to some it may not. But what I really didn’t like was that I would post something funny or interesting about our mission work, deputation, or something witty Levi said and I would remember that not all of you have Facebook and I would be bummed. It’s not enough for a whole post (plus, I’m not going to remember later) but it might be worth mentioning…and, thus, Twitter…with only a few clicks to set up! So, anytime you stop by our blog, scroll through what we’ve been doing or thinking…my favorites are the things Levi has said. He’s pretty clever. Best part, Matthew will post some too! Today’s is by Matthew. Yay!
Off to dinner…mmmm.
Day 38…The End
Today is not Day 38…sorry. Technically, that was Sunday. We got home two days ago and have been busy ever since for a very special reason. Today IS, however, the eight year anniversary of the day Matthew and I met. Awww.
Backing up…Saturday night was a late night continuing to help our friends move into their house. Sunday morning, not wanting to stress Levi by waking him too early, Matthew and Amelia went to church while Levi was allowed to sleep in and I packed our things and got ready to leave. By early afternoon we drove out of Walla Walla and made our very first non-stop drive over four hours! Ironic! But, we flew (metaphorically) through the mountain passes (which had been closed the day before when a storm blew in) and enjoyed familiar roads. We did not, and have not, enjoyed the gray. We had only ONE day of rain on our entire five week trip (thanks, Tennessee!) and a few snow days…the rest were beautifully sunny and even warm in a few places. The gray here is…sad.
Sunday evening Matthew headed over to hang out with his brother for the last time for a long time. He is joining the military and left early this morning, so we wanted to be sure we had time to say goodbye. Yesterday we were all there helping him pack his things and letting the kids hang out with their uncle. It was a nice goodbye and we wish him success!
Today is our first day back at “work” and we have been fairly productive, despite two needy children. I managed to sort five weeks’ worth of mail and Matthew filed our taxes. Yay for a significant refund (thanks Amelia)! We were so blessed to learn that the remaining balance for our travel doctor visits had been forgiven after we applied for financial aid. Praise the Lord! We have quite a few more administrative projects to accomplish, as is the nature of living overseas, but we still have time.
Even though it took me this long to update our blog (sorry!), I have written a few other informative posts that you can look forward to in the coming days. There are a lot of unanswered questions about our journey, and we would like to take the time to answer them thoughtfully. If you have any, just drop us a note or a comment!
So, the road trip is done – and you’ve loved following along right? The purpose of the trip was to raise support, both prayer and financial, from people around the country. We looked at our list of people receiving our prayer letters each month and realized that half of them were scattered – why not go out to share with them in person? So we did and we think it was a wonderful success! To have people joining our mission team from all over is such a blessing. And we met so many new people! We love knowing that so many of you, who we couldn’t see on this trip, were following along, praying for our safety and that our mission to help the people of the DRC would be heard by people who would want to partner with us. If you’ve been following along, I challenge you to consider partnering with us as well! If you feel the Lord is leading you to support our little family and our huge move to Africa, please do so! We would love to hear from you as you pray for us or tell someone about our adventure! We love being encouraged by hearing from you. Help us keep the momentum we had on our road trip going, won’t you?
Road trip: done.
Day 36 & 37
I didn’t post yesterday on purpose. There’s not much to say. We are still in Walla Walla, taking this weekend “off” and helping some good friends move into their new house while they are busy at work. It’s been fun to help them in this way and we have been enjoying some down time here – a great end to our epic road trip.
We haven’t had any new news lately on our leave date to Africa. We are still blessed by support rolling in – and we are still in need of a bit more – so thank you on that front! And keep the prayers coming – they are more important than anything else! We need strength, health, sleep, patience, and wisdom in these final weeks stateside!
Tomorrow: One final morning and then…done.
Day 34 & 35
Wow – I am getting lazy as we get close to the end of our trip. Lazy or tired. I think tired. Sooooo tired. So, let me back up to our romantic Valentine’s Day. The afternoon we spent working on ministry partnership at MAF HQ in the lunch room/chapel. We then went back to our host’s house for dinner – delicious home cooking, our favorite! Afterward, I went over to a friend’s house. Not very romantic, huh? Ah well…maybe next year in Africa. That’s ok. It was pretty much my first time without the kiddos, except the occasional grocery stop, since we’ve been on the road. And seeing my friend from Alaska was a fun bonus. We’d stayed at their house at the beginning of the trip, but didn’t think we’d have time to see them the second time. I’m glad to have had one more chance to visit with her! And, really, what mom doesn’t think a few hours without the kiddos isn’t a romantic gift, even minus the husband? Valentine’s Bonus: Matthew had purchased this chicken thing in Santa Fe that I fell in love with immediately upon seeing it and I can’t wait to take it to Africa. Picture forthcoming, I’m sure…
Yesterday we got up early and headed over to chapel at MAF HQ. They were having a pilot instructor course this week and so a few of them reported on their mission work in the field. It was a perfect encouragement for us to be reminded of how important what we are doing really is to the Kingdom of God. It’s been very easy to forget why we’re going to Kinshasa and why we love the mission of MAF when we’re busy trying to raise support. So, we were able to sit back and listen and we are once again refreshed and excited to get over there and be a part of a ministry that enables isolated people to get what they need AND hear the gospel. Or, better yet, SEE the gospel being lived through aviation and technology!
After chapel we met briefly with our ministry partnership coach about our next steps and what it will look like once we’re 100% supported. We walked around the building saying goodbye to the different departments and went back to our host house. We spent a while packing up and then hit the road once again for a four hour drive back to Washington – Walla Walla, that is.
We arrived and we are here through Sunday, possibly Monday, staying with friends. We stayed with them on our stop here the very first night of our road trip. That day, January 13th, they had signed an agreement on a house. And today they closed and got the keys! We were here to help them move and get settled – thankfully the new house is just a few blocks away. I loved being the one to make the first meal to be eaten there – what an honor! We were able to get enough of their stuff moved that they are sleeping at the new place while we are here at the old. And now we are exhausted.
Levi failed to get a nap today, so he was just…done. Ugh. I’m done too, of course. And Matthew. Tomorrow we will continue with the moving process, get more ministry partnership work done in preparation for the weekend, though we don’t have specific plans yet, and we look forward to what we need to get done once we’re back on the other side of the mountains.
On a practical note, we have sent in the first draft of our next prayer letter and we hope to have it go out early next week. If you would like to receive this very special letter, please make sure you are on our list! Send us a quick email at mlind@maf.org if you’re not sure, if you’ve moved, or if you would like to be added. You can certainly just get an emailed copy! But hurry – this will probably be our last letter written state-side…our next will be from Africa!
Tomorrow: Friday…three days left
Day 32 & 33
Oops…completely forgot to post yesterday. It was a long nine hour drive – a total of eleven hours on the road – so I’ll use that as an excuse. Especially because I (Lisa) drove Salt Lake City to Nampa, Idaho non-stop. Five hours. Yessssss.
Yesterday morning we finally got to SEE Moab, UT, where we had overnighted, but since we didn’t arrive until 11pm, we didn’t actually see the landscape. It was gorgeous. And if I had my camera cable, I would show you pictures. In the words of my son, “maybe later.” The red rock and amazing formations could not be captured in a picture, though. And the gorgeous sunny day was a perfect compliment.
We drove four hours to Salt Lake City where we met an old friend of mine from school for a quick lunch. It was neat to catch up with her and talk about the beauty of Salt Lake City. We did a quick detour into the city to drive around the Mormon Temple (wow – pics to come later) and then back to highway.
Five hours later we landed in Nampa, ID, which is like our second home. At least it feels like home…this is our third time here in 13 months, so it was nice to finally be on familiar territory and weird to think that our next two drives will be four hours and then we’ll be back in Auburn/Tacoma.
We arrived just before nine and are staying with old family friends of mine. They were wonderful enough to accept us into their home at last minute! Levi loved the plethora of toys they have in a special room just for their grandchildren, so he feels right at home there.
This morning we had a quick morning at home and were off to MAF headquarters. We visited many people we’ve gotten to know over the months with this organization and got tours of the planes currently out in the hanger being repaired/updated to be sent out into the field. Now we’ve set up camp in the break room/chapel area and I am finally writing to YOU. Levi is sleeping in the nursery room they have here, complete with portable baby monitors. Amelia took her nap in there earlier. Have we mentioned how wonderful MAF is as an organization? They are fantastic and if anyone is looking to get into worldwide missions, we highly recommend them!
Today we discovered that a few more people have jumped on board as monthly partners – so amazing and a huge blessing!!! The one time gifts are equally necessary and just as awesome! Thank you! We are now at 75% and so close, it feels almost real. Today we talked with the travel department and she anticipates that we’ll have our visa applications ready to turn in by early next week. The first step with the DR Congo is a letter of invitation, so we have to wait for that, but we’ll be ready when it comes! Are you wanting to partner with us? Go HERE to give online or send a check to MAF, Attn: Donor Services to PO Box 47, Nampa, ID 83653 with LIND – 8806 on the memo line so that it all goes to our account.
Tomorrow: Chapel at MAF HQ and off to our first and last stop on our road trip…
Day 31
Today was awesome! So amazing to see the Lord working through the people around us and in situations where we might have lost hope. We kept missing our connections in Santa Fe, so we thought it might be a lost weekend. So, we were quite surprised this morning when we met several people who we’d hoped to connect with earlier and made a few new friends as well. We had an excellent worship and then talked to SO many people after church at our table. (Setting up our table had not been planned, either – what a blessing!) Levi found a few friends to keep him entertained, which is always our biggest struggle: keeping an eye on Levi while we try and have meaningful conversations. It was simply perfect and we were totally blessed! Then, bonus, we were invited out to lunch and had more great fellowship with three couples – all of whom were very familiar with mission work. It was so great. Thanks, Christ Church Santa Fe, for the amazing morning!
After lunch we immediately hit the road. Our ultimate goal is back to Nampa, ID, but that’s nearly 1200 miles and we’re not really in a hurry, so we are currently in Moab, UT for the night in an adorable little hotel. All four of us are awake at midnight…ugh…but we’ll get over it.
The drive today was, ummmm, interesting. New Mexico is gorgeous and has great rock striations. I got a few pictures, but I doubt any of them do the rocks proper justice. Then, as it got dark, we drove into Colorado…and the snow. And then the snow got serious. We managed through a snow/hail/freezing rain/thickest-fog-we’ve-ever-seen storm. We were just about to give up about 100 miles short of our goal (Moab), when we pulled into a little town that had only one motel. It was…creepy. Too creepy to try. But, the fog had lifted and the snow had nearly stopped. Thank goodness we didn’t try Creepy Motel, the road cleared up just outside town and we made it! It helped the kids were [finally] asleep and we were simply fighting a bit of road fatigue. But, with clear roads, it’s not too hard.
We have a nine or ten hour drive tomorrow, so it will be a long push, but we are excited to be back in Nampa. I think our goals there are to stop by MAF headquarters and see a couple we missed on our first time there a month ago. I think we’re only staying the one night and then headed west.
Tomorrow: Salt Lake City stop and then MAF home!
The Lind Family 