Manliness

This past 10 months that I spent in the Kalahari Desert made me think a lot about manliness. Being one of the few girls in the camp and being surrounded mostly by men was something new for me. It's because of who these men are that I got to do a lot of thinking about manliness and femininity. It's because of what they said and how they behaved that I analyzed the values (concerning manliness and femininity) I was raised up with over and over again and I got to build my own system of values. And it is because of them that I know better now what I like and what I don't like, what I want and I don't want in a man. (By the way, I sensed that God is bringing me over and over again to the point where people's values and behavior challenge me to think and build my own system of values where I once just adopted my family's values. Not that I didn't know what I believed in before, but when I am challenged by a different set of values, I get to think over and over about my system of values and why I believe what I believe and even if it's not comfortable sometimes, it's really beneficial for me.)

I grew up in a family where vulgare jokes were not tolerated. Where flirting, playing with hearts, using double sense language were classified as non-Christian behaviour. I was raised up being taught that character matters the most, more than the way you look. Where talking about how good looking the girls are and talking only about that was not considered a good habit and showed something about a guy's character. I was surrounded by people who valued purity. My innocence was not taken as stupidness, nor my purity and determination to trust the Lord in the area of dating as a relationship problem.

The encounter for an extended period of time with some other set of values opposite to mine was a little shocking to me. Not that I have not met people doing the above mentioned things, because I had. And still I was shocked. I was shocked because I didn't expected it, not in that place, nor among those people. I found myself torn between the desire not to be different, to be able to be part of their jokes and conversations, and the holding on to the values I had. Sometimes, while listening to the endless talks about that girl and the other one they have seen on the street, I felt just like an object.

And you know what is weird? They almost made me believe that this is the world of men and I have to accept it. That they are all the same and I have to accept that I am weird. That I have to accept to feel like an object. That I have to laugh when they are saying vulgare jokes. That words with double meaning are something normal. That I have to get used to them turning their head on the street after some good looking girl and flirting around with strangers. That playing around with no intention of being intentional in a relationship is normal. They almost made me believe that one cannot find anymore men who stand for what they believe because the majority of them didn't really know what they believed in. They managed to shake my whole world... until I listened to a presentation that woke me up and made me realize that there are still upright people. Men who don't use dirty jokes, who do not turn their head on the street. Who do not flirt and play around with hearts. Who know what they believe and stand for what they believe. Men who are gentleman and make me feel a woman and not an object around them. Men who love Him and make Him the object of their conversations and not the good-looking girls.

The time I spent in Kalahari made me miss so much the company of dedicated people. People for whom God is not only a nice notion and Somebody you go to just when you are in trouble or in need. People who are interested in mission and not only adventures. People who want to obey Him because they love Him. People who know what they believe and stand for what they believe. People who are asking themselves: "What does God want me to do?" and who long to grow and learn more of His ways. People who live what they say they believe. People who will not laugh at me because I took my Bible with me on a 4 days trip and who will not call me Virgin Mary because of my innocence.

So, I thank God for sending me these challenges. They make me think... and decide for myself. And they make me appreciate even more integrity and faithfulness and purity.

More Pictures of Namibia

Here are the links for some more pictures of Namibia.

More of Namibia

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=49871&id=1176913306&l=8dc4dfd266

A trip to Swakopmund

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=49870&id=1176913306&l=e583efd771

God Protects!!!

Living in Omatako helps me realize more and more that without God’s protection we would be in great trouble. Just a few days ago, while I was hanging my cloths on the line somewhere next to my tent, I heard a local worker calling another one. Somebody asked what happened and I heard the word the no one wants to hear here: a snake. They looked for 3-4 minutes for the snake but since the grass was too tall and they couldn’t see anything, they decided it is not worth looking for it anymore. My first thought was to call Mario (who is well known here for his ability to catch snakes) to look for it since it was so close to my tent, but I just cast away the thought. Upon finishing my job, I headed toward the bathroom to take back the bucket when on my way I met Mario. “How are you doing? Are you OK?” he asked me. I really do not know why he asked because it was not the first time we met that day. So, as an answer to my question, I told him about the snake and that the workers were not looking for it anymore. I hardly finished what I had to say that Mario was on his way to the place that I showed him. Three other people joined him. They started looking in some pipes that was stored there. The very first pipe that they took and shook proved to have inside the so wanted pray. (Later on Mario said he took another pipe in his hand but something told him to check first another one.) It proved to be a black mamba, the biggest they have ever caught in the camp. People around say that its bite is deadly. You don’t even have time to go to a doctor. In the last 3-4 weeks we have caught a few spitting cobras and black mambas (a black mamba was caught on a shelf in the kitchen). No, you tell me that God doesn’t care and that He is not interested in our safety! I see it clearer than ever that He does. And that gives me pace.

From Omatako...

I know I have been saying lately that time flies away but I just can’t help myself saying that again. Almost 7 weeks passed since I stepped on the Namibian ground and it seems only like yesterday that I was in the airport saying goodbye to the loved ones. I know most of you are wondering how’s life in the desert and how do I find here. So, here I am to try to tell you about the challenges and the beauties of the desert life. As some of you already know, our camp is located in Omatako, somewhere in the North-East Namibia in the Bushman Land. 160 Km away for the closest town, we are pretty isolated, without cell phone signal or electricity. So, as you see, I’ve already got used to such condition. There are things that I experience again but there are also new experiences for me. Living in a tent is one of the new things I am trying out. My first tent was a small one, with a broken zip. No wonder that one night I woke up realizing that there is something heavy on my legs. Could it be a snake, or a dog, or another beast? You see, the boys kept finding snakes almost every day (black mamba, green mamba, cobra) and we have been also told that there are wild dogs around. I fearfully turned on my headlamp, scared to death at the thought of the things I might discover. Thankfully, it was only Luna, one of our dogs.  One other day I was cleaning my tent when I lift up a pair of pants to fold them only to discover a pretty big scorpion on them. Thank God it didn’t sting me. After only 3 weeks, I had the chance to change my residence. This time I moved into a big tent. In fact it is a married couple’s tent (there are 4 like that in the campus and I am the only unmarried person who lives in such a tent). I will have to change my big residence for a smaller one as soon as Sebastian comes but I am thankful I got to live in a wonderful place at least for a few weeks.

Living in the desert can be fun and can also be a challenge. One of the big challenges we have is not having a place to lie down when you feel tired. During day time is almost impossible to stay in your tent. At 50 something Celsius degrees, the temperature in the tent becomes unbearable. The same thing happens sometimes in the kitchen. I like heat and I am thankful that I can stand it.

So far, I have been working in the garden and in the kitchen. I am supposed to study the educational system in Namibia but we went to the Ministry of Education and they sent us to the regional offices. I am just waiting for a chance to go there, study the system and also the curriculum and try to make a curriculum for our kids. We have already 17 kids in our camp. We do not have an official school but we are trying to teach them a little bit.

Meeting Nora and going to Opuwo to visit the Himba land are two highlights of my staying so far. Nora is an Austrian teacher who was here for 8 weeks. I met her 2 weeks before she left. We both discovered we heard about Himba people and about a SDA missionary who is working with them and that we would love to find out more about this interesting people. So, as Nora’s cousin know the missionary very well, we give him a call to find out if we can go for a visit. Leaving for Opuwo was quite an experience. The car which was supposed to pick us on Monday or Tuesday didn’t show up. On Wednesday night we found out they are not going to Opuwo anymore but only to Tsumeb so we decided to hitchhike from Omatako to Opuwo (over 600 Km). The Lord was good and he arranged all the things for us. It took 6 cars and 12 hours to reach Opuwo and we reached safely. If only you could see the van’s drivers grabbing out bag and trying to persuade us to take their hike… That was really fun! As I was used to this from Guyana, it was not hard to ask them to leave us alone, to take my bag back and decide by ourselves which van we want to take. Getting to know Himba culture, visiting one of traditional villages, getting dressed (of better said undressed) in their cow-skin suits made the whole trip worth it. Then , meeting the 3 SDA missionaries that live in Opuwo and the 17 pathfinders they are working with, made it worth again. On Sabbath we had a picnic for girls. On Sabbath afternoon we went to close the Sabbath on a mountain with everybody. Friday morning we went jogging and ended up on a 6 hour hike being lost 2 times and with no food or water with us. Then on Sunday evening they had the Pathfinder investiture. Sabbath afternoon we had a Bible study with the kids. Sabbath morning I gave my testimony at the pathfinder Sabbath school group. So, as you see, we had an enjoyable trip.

Omatako and Opuwo - Pictures

I still did not get the time to write a few updates but I posted some pictures hoping that I will soon post a few things about life here. Last weened Nora, an Austrian friend and I went to Opuwo where we visited the Himba land. So, enjoy the pictures!


Omatako

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=45183&id=1176913306&l=7bc424a0cb

Opuwo

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=45185&id=1176913306&l=ac91103582

Namibia...

Here I am, in the wonderful land of Namibia. I have landed at 7 PM this morning. It’s 9 PM and it seems I have been here for at least 2-3 days. Dan Serb was talking today to Sebastian and I asked him to tell him hi and that I arrived safely. When he told Sebastian: “Raluca arrived safely this morning” I was thinking in my mind: this man doesn’t know when I arrived here. Everything is so familiar and we have gone from here to there the whole day so I have the impression I’ve been here for a few days. Yes, I’ve enjoyed every single minute since I arrived here. Meeting old friends (just a few for now) and being able to face another culture makes me so glad. When we were coming from the airport I was so happy to see again baboons (this time not in the jungle but along the road). I’ll be here in Windhoek until Friday morning when we will take off for Omatako where our camp is. So, I will hopefully be able to be back with news in 3-4 weeks.

Time for a Double Celebration

“My God is great/ When He is four days late/ He’s still on time..” This is what says a song about Lazarus’ death and I Have to admit that it is so true. We’ve all passed through hard times when it seemed that God forgot about us and our problem. We’ve all been there, felt what means to be “forgotten” by God. I’ve been there myself so many times. For the past 6 weeks I’ve been waiting, and waiting, and waiting. Only four weeks ago my visa, along with the visas of 3 other friends, was denied. Plane tickets were canceled, money was lost, and we were confused but not without hope. Though it was not easy to wait, the fact that there were 4 of us in the same “pot” made things easier. At least we could encourage each other. After two weeks, two of my friends got their visas. I was happy for them but I couldn’t help the fear and doubt that invaded my soul. I just couldn’t hold back my tears for a whole morning. Why, Lord? Why do I have to wait? Why me? Do You have something else for me? Do You want me somewhere else? These were the questions pounding in my mind, questions without answers. Though I found it hard to accept that God wants me somewhere else, I just prayed that He will close the door to Namibia if He doesn’t want me there.

At the beginning of this week I told the Lord I just cannot wait any longer and I am willing to wait until the end of the week. If He still doesn’t provide the visa for us, I have to start looking for some other place where I could serve. Wednesday night I called Florin. He had no answer for us… The week was coming to a close and we still didn’t have any answer. Thursday evening I found Sebastian online and I started chatting with him. “Did you hear the news?” he asked me right away. My heart started racing. I knew it was something about the visa but I didn’t know if it’s good or bad news. “You’ve got your visas!” was his answer when I asked him what the news is. I just couldn’t believe my eyes. It seemed too beautiful to be true. I called Florin right away and he confirmed the good news. Though I do not have all the answers to the question: “Why did it take so long?” I have a few. In fact, this is what kept me and what made me hang in there: knowing and finding reasons why God has kept me back. It just “happened” that Sandro and I were the two who were left back (who else could have helped Sandro get his transit visa for Germany?), it also “happened” that two Fridays ago I was just leaving the house to go visit a friend for the weekend when a received a phone call and I was invited to speak at a Mission Festival. Then, there is this friend who, upon hearing we are still in the country, said she wants to send us some money… And, I can still go on like this with small, personal things.

Three days and I will finally be on my way to Namibia. I don’t know what God has in store for me there. I don’t know if I will find more answers to the question: “Why did it take so long?” but at this time I do not care if I do or not… All that matters is that He answered and granted our visas, and we will soon be on our way. I’ll be happy to find more reasons but if I don’t, I’ll just trust Him that He knew what He was doing.

November 10 is the beginning of the Namibian adventure… On November 9, exactly four years ago, I started my first overseas mission trip to Guyana. I had no idea at that time that, instead of spending 6 months in the mission field, I will choose to do this for as long as God needs me. I can’t believe that it is four years since my life is not the same, four years since I started to learn to love a simple life, since I found new dimensions of life, of the love for people, of the trust in God. And I know this is just the beginning.

I’m so happy God chose to celebrate with me the four years that passed since I fist left for the mission field by giving me the desire of my heart: the Namibia visa. So, it’s time for a double celebration.