a list of lists it is

I love lists… so much so, that today… I would like to make a list of lists. WHAT? Yeah. You read me. A list of lists it is.

A) Today was filled with small delights including, but not limited to:

1. getting things done that I’d been procrastinating for a while.
2. drinking Cherry Coke, a treasure occasionally found in the imported section of the largest grocery store in town.
3. eating Strawberries with chocolate frosting. We usually can not find strawberries in our town.
5. making a mental list of all the kids I’m waiting impatiently to hug and hold and play with when I get to the US this summer. It’s a long list. I’m gonna be a busy “aunt” … or ayi.
6. receiving emails from friends that make me laugh, not because they are funny but, because they are SOOO random. I stop and think, “Why are you sending me this?” And then I find pure delight in the fact that they/(maybe you?) do. Because it connects me to their/(your?) life, the little details. I love the little details. Send me the little details. :)
7. realizing that I’ve gotten comfortable enough with my “family” here that when I have a bad attitude, they see it. No fronts. Just the real me. (The bad attitude is not a delight… but ya know… being known – good, bad, and ugly – that is a delight, especially when they love you despite it.)

B)  Confessions:

1. A couple months ago someone pointed out to me that my MOST PLAYED list on itunes was full of Jimmy Needham. I’m not sure what this says about me but, I haven’t listened to Jimmy Needham since then. I like him. But he’s not my FAVORITE. I don’t know who my FAVORITE is. I don’t really have ONE. But anyway, I’m determined to get other things into my MOST PLAYED list. Jimmy can stay in parts of it. But he should have company from others.
2. I was not outside of the building I live in today for more than 5 minutes at a time. I spent the entire day in my, or someone else’s apartment. Those days are kinda nice now and then.
3. I am known among my “family” here as a bossy big sister. I think the key word there is bossy. (They love me.)
4. I spent $7 on a cd tonight on itunes and I think I’m gonna regret it. I like 1 song on the cd a lot, so I thought I’d like the rest and I really wanted some new music. I’m 4 songs into it. I only like the 1 song I already had. Woops. Maybe the 2nd half will be better?

C) One of the benefits of blogging and documenting life on the web is that you can look back at the things you’ve learned and the dumb/hilarious things you’ve shared with the world. I clicked the other night on my funny stories category and relived the following memories:

1. Remember when I almost lost Brady (that stupid dog)? And when I finally was able to get him home I, for some reason, grabbed a camera and RANTED about the whole situation:

2. Remember when I talked to a crazy homeless man about how Jesus had a male torso and because of that you can not get Jesus pregnant? Ya. A real conversation. Promise.

D) Can we all agree that my life is absurdly odd and peculiar? :) I love it though.

Can ANYONE be influential?

This week I taught a lesson about influential people. I asked my students, “Can ANYONE be influential? Or can only SOME people be influential?” I would say that out of my 300+ students only about 15 of them said that ANYONE could be influential. Most of them said, “We are just normal people. We can not be influential.”

I went for a walk to get ice cream with a fellow teacher (a local). She asked me some questions about my life – about the things I’ve done and the things I want to do. She said, “Ohhh. You don’t do these things for yourself, do you? You do them to help others. And for your God?” After I responded to that she said, “There are not many people like you in this country, but everyone in this country appreciates people like you. Maybe some of the rich people can be like you. The rest of us are just… trying to survive. We do not look for jobs that will help others. We just look for any job we can get. We just have to survive.”

Is it just me? Or do these things break your heart?

I’ve been thinking a lot about the things my students said and the things my teacher friend said and about my own experiences in life. I honestly have never thought for a moment that I did not have the ability to be influential. I’ve pretty much always planned on “changing the world.” Maybe it’s the American in me… Maybe it’s my parents encouragement of my dreams… But maybe it’s largely because I’ve studied the Bible and I see how God used broken little people to change the world… Moses – couldn’t speak. The Disciples – well, they had a whole mess of problems and came from various, often humble, backgrounds. And I guess it’s not that I plan on PERSONALLY changing the world but that I know that my God can use me in His plan to shake things up for His glory! 

I just can’t imagine what you live for if you think you can do nothing to influence anyone. When I think about this society, such a thought pattern makes a lot of sense. I see it everyday. The staying within the box. The “just surviving.”

I suppose that’s some of the beauty of Jesus. He takes us out of our “just surviving” and puts us into a life of “changing the world” – if we let Him.

other people’s shoes

I’ve been talking a lot about stories lately, or my whole life… ya know, whatev. One of the things I love about stories, non-fiction and even fiction (particularly if it’s, at least somewhat, realistic fiction), is that there is a potential to take us out of ourselves and into the story – into another person’s world. I love that. I think we NEED that. Not because we need to “escape reality” – although it is sometimes nice to kind of “get away” through a story - but, there can be a higher purpose. Stepping out of our lives and into other people’s lives helps us to develop a better understanding of the world, of humanity, and the way we all fit together. Because, we do. We really do all fit together. There is one BIG story going on in the world and, whether we see it or not, it’s all connected. We would do a much better job of playing our part in the BIG story if we had a better understanding of the other characters.

It would do us a world of good, or I should say, it would do the world a lot of good… if we would be more intentional about placing ourselves in other people’s shoes… taking time, making effort, choosing to think and imagine and empathize with others so that we see them as PEOPLE, real people… not as just as Other or enemy or ______. We do not need to become them, or agree with them, but just set ourselves and our agendas aside and TRY to understand them.

A sociologist named Sam Richards did a TED talk recently about empathy. In it he performed “a radical experiment in empathy,” asking his audience to try to understand the motivations of an Iraqi insurgent; not to agree, but to understand.

Honestly, doing such things is difficult. It takes intentionality and effort. It’s draining. It’s emotional. And it’s definitely not about fun or escaping from reality. But it is dealing with reality and trying to understand all sides of it, which is always – in my opinion - beneficial.

Here’s the video. See what you think. (I think that this is not just true and needed when it comes to politics or war as in his particular experiment. I think it also applies very strongly to following Christ and sharing the gospel. Think about that too. If you want.) :) 

For more thoughts on this TED Talk from a person smarter than me (who I stole the video from) … click here.

3 parts of my day

1. It is soooo hot. Remember how I said the weather was beautiful? Did you know that before that we had MONTHS of gloomy? Well, apparently we only get 1.5 weeks of beautiful weather here this year. The FURNACE of this furnace city has been activated and simultaneously my allergies have been activated. I want to pluck my eyes out they burn so badly. I don’t remember feeling like this last summer so I hope it goes away really quick like. [Although the heat will surely stick around.]

2. A family of foreigners that live in our city are gone on a trip. They have a dog. So, tonight another girl and I went over for the nightly walking of the dog. On our way out the gate of their apartment complex a man was walking in with two 5 foot long snakes in his hands. He was holding them by the head, away from his body… and TOWARDS our bodies… with the rest of their long bodies dragging on the ground behind him. We were startled to see two snake heads coming at us. Clearly. We jumped. We screamed. We freaked out (ourselves) the dog and her hair stood straight up. Then we laughed, hysterically. And the ten locals watching it all happen loosened up, smiled, and tried not to laugh. And the guards who see us everyday and are a bit more comfortable cracked up at the white girls who totally flipped out at something they thought was totally normal.

3. I went to get a… I’m not really sure what to call it in English… It’s between an icee and a snow cone. So, I went to get one of those today after class. I was so hot. And my eyes were burning. And I just really could NOT think. An hour or two later I got a text message from a student/friend saying, and I quote, “You lost something right? my classmates picked up it. don’t hurry, i will give it to you later, because i have workes,ok?” I was confused. What did I leave? Where did I leave it? I had only gone to teach and to get a drink. Then I remembered walking home, with nothing in my hand but my drink. Yeah. I left my teaching folder with my attendance records at the drink shop. My friend/student later called to tell me she was coming to my apartment with it. I told her I was not home but at dinner and I could meet her at the front gate if she called me when she got there. A while went by and there was no call. I wondered why. Then she came into the restaurant. How did she know where I was? And told me she was sorry she could not give it to me now. The classmate who had picked it up took it with them to a shop and accidentally left it there. They went back to get it and the shop was closed/locked. They will go back and get it when the shop is open again and bring it to me tomorrow. I find so many elements of this story entertaining. Like the fact that she called to tell me she was coming to my house WITH the folder, right then, when she clearly did not actually have it in her possession. Listen to what they mean, not what they say - is the reality of life here. You just have to laugh at it. 

3 books | Go read.

I’ve been reading. A lot. No joke about the a lot part. I haven’t become a recluse. I promise. But I’ve read 10 books in the last 8 or so weeks. [Some of the books have been short, so don't get too impressed - if lots of reading impresses you.] I’m always reading more than one book at a time and I try to do a bit of a rotation as far as what types of books I read. I categorize books as: learning about Jesus books (spiritual), learning about the world books (global issues/culture), various learning books (history, biographies, science, etc.), and novels. I’m basically always reading several books at a time but not more than one from each category at a time. [Although, if I'm reading a book WITH someone over a long-ish period of time it doesn't count as the one of i's category.] Novels are a treat. I have to finish at least 2 books between novels. This is mostly because a novel captures my attention and I neglect all the other books I’m reading. {This is not a new routine/method. I’ve just been reading faster lately, with more discipline.}

Would you like to know some of my favorites so far on this recent reading adventure? (It’s also a competition with Brittany. I’m ahead but she’s catching up. I shouldn’t be writing this. I should be reading. I want to win.) [How nerdy do you have to be to have a reading competition, for fun, with your friend???] I’ve written posts about a couple of them already so today I’ll share 3 more books, from 3 different categories.

1. Just Do Something: How to Make a Decision Without Dreams, Visions, Fleeces, Open Doors, Random Bible Verses, Casting Lots, Liver Shivers, Writing in the Sky, etc. by Kevin DeYoung (a Jesus book – spiritual)

This was a short read, only 128 pages. I think I read it in two sittings. And then I re-read the parts I had highlighted. I think it’s important to hold the sovereignty of God very highly. I also believe it is really important to accept our own high level of responsibility to make choices and take action. It’s sometimes very hard to wrap my mind around how the two work together, though I believe strongly that they do – without contradiction. I REALLY appreciated the way that DeYoung communicated how the two go together. I shared this quote in a post previously: “God does have a specific plan for our lives, but it is not one that He expects us to figure out before we make a decision.” Waiting for a booming voice, a neon sign, an arrow on the ground, or – as the title names – liver shivers, from God to make choices or move forward with things is dangerous. If you’ve ever been confused about how you were supposed to decide where you should live, what job you should take, who you should date/marry, what church you should go to, or ya know… any of the stuff that we tend to all struggle with … I suggest this book.

2. Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn (a world book – global issues)

This book took me a few weeks to read. I couldn’t read too much at a time because it’s not exactly light hearted. It deals with different problems, crises, tragedies that women around the world – in developing countries – face daily including: slavery, prostitution, rape, honor killings, maternal mortality, issues of family planning, lack of available education and the reasons behind it, etc. It’s filled with information, statistics, and stories of real people behind the facts and numbers. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I’ve been increasingly compelled to become more aware of THE WORLD, all of it/as much of it as I can, because as a Christian I’m called to love the world and it’s impossible to love what you don’t know. Right? This book really helped me to “get to know” women all over the world. I care about all of the topics in the book [As a Christian how could I not?], but some of them are things that I am becoming increasingly passionate about and issues that I’d like to find ways to get more involved in. It’s my guess that anyone who reads this book will find something that they REALLY can care deeply about and that you can discover a way that you can LOVE the world and meet needs.

3. Divine by Karen Kingsbury (novel)

Honestly, the only reason I read this book is that it was free on kindle one day. (Sorry, it’s not anymore. Back to $9.59.) I had never read anything by Karen Kingsbury and all I knew is that she writes Christian novels… and, while there are some good Christian novels, there are also some really really bad/cheesy/I-don’t-want-to-waste-my-time-on-this-book Christian novels too. [A lot of them.] But a friend said she had enjoyed her books, so I tried it. And I actually really really liked it. It’s not a totally feel good story. It’s actually really sad and filled with a lot of pain, like life can be, but there is also a lot of really beautiful redemption that takes place. It deals with issues of sexual-slavery as it happens even today and even in America, as well as abusive relationships of various types. I couldn’t stop reading. [I told you, novels suck me in!] I finished the book on Saturday and days later I still find myself thinking about the characters. I’m not sure if it was actually that well written or if I just have this odd way of always putting myself into stories and feeling what the characters feel… and then thinking of them like they are my friends… I’m pretty sure I even dreamed about them. [Don't make fun.]

So there you have it. Go read. It’s good for you.