Things of the Day by Jill

Photo of the day: My little Belgian student. We talked last week about the Bible story of Paul and Silas in prison and how when they were afraid they prayed and sang songs and knew that God was with them. She shared this morning that last night she was afraid of a noise in the dark. "I put my blanket over my head and prayed to God and then I knew that Jesus was with me. I felt better," she said.

My Belgian Sweetheart. I know, not the most flattering of pictures, but this captures her personality so well!

Story of the day to remind me that I am living in Kenya: Yesterday it was approaching evening so I pressed the light switch to turn on the overhead light. After 3 seconds it crackled, popped, fizzled, and rained sparks until it finally blew the fuse. I stood frozen in the corner of the room for almost half a minute. Just for moral support I knocked on our neighbors' door. Together we investigated the light bulbs and found that they had not even been broken or burned out! We flipped the fuse and tried the switch one more time. A larger burst of fireworks showered this time before we quickly turned it off again.

I called the landlady to explain the problem.
Landlady: Hello?
Me: Hi, this is Jill, the tenant in flat 4. There's a problem with the light in my house. It sparked when I tried to turn it on. I think something is wrong with the wires.
Landlady: What? Is this Lara?
Me: No, this is Jill from apartment 4.
Landlady: Oh, so you're back from America?
Me: No, we never left to go to America. We went to Djibouti though...anyway we're here.
Landlady: Oh ok. So what happened?
Me: Well, the light in my living room sparks when I turn it on. Maybe water got into the wiring or something.
Landlady: (Silence)
Me: Sparks, like....well, like fire.
Landlady: Oh! Well, let me call the electrician. What time will you be home tomorrow?
Me: Not until 5:00.
Landlady: Ok, I'll tell him to come at 3:30 then.

Huh?!

I hung up the phone, not sure if she just didn't understand the 5:00 part, or if she was thinking that if she told him 3:30 he'd actually arrive by 5. Needless to say, he didn't show up today, which is mostly what I expected.

p.s. This is one more reason why I'm excited to focus on learning Swahili this summer. Although English is one of the national languages, it just doesn't get the point across sometimes.


Quote of the day: Nita sent me an essay by Leigh McLeroy, and I love this quote:
"There will always be a tree that isn't mine, but I would be more foolish than Eve to miss the forest longing for it."