I joked with Blu after last weekend that I am going to get a shirt printed with the answers to the following questions, because I was asked them so much this past month!
When do you go back to Zambia?
We leave on Monday, January 4th, and will arrive on Wednesday, January 6th. We will arrive with our family, Carolyn, Diana, and Kailyn & Jamee (2 college volunteers staying for 6 months).
How long have you been in the USA?
We got here in August, taking a 5 month furlough.
How do your kids adjust to the USA?
Our kids do amazing at jumping back and forth between cultures. They have friends in Zambia; they have friends in the USA. In Zambia, they play soccer, play in the dirt, paint rocks and try to sell them to unsuspecting neighbors, crochet, read books, do homework, and spend about 12 hours a day with their friends. In the USA, they play soccer, football, ballet, gymnastics, iPads, do homework, build forts with their cousins, and hang out with grandparents. They are completely comfortable in both worlds, but if you asked them, Zambia is their home. They asked us a few weeks ago if we could skip Christmas and just go on back!
Are you ready to go back?
The answer to this one might not fit on a t-shirt. ;) We have lived in Zambia for almost 9 years. Many people glamorize the missionary life, but in all honesty, sometimes it is just downright hard. In August, I was burnt out and so ready for a break. In early September, someone asked me, "Don't you just love your life over there? You must just completely think it's so amazing all the time!" I almost laughed. It takes me awhile to get my breath back and to get my head in the right place. Both this furlough and last, it has taken until the end of November before I can even think about going back. Then, I can almost physically feel my mind start to shift and look to Zambia again. Then, as you prepare to go back, it's hard to describe the feelings. I told Blu the other day that it is like standing in the middle of a football field, and emotions (balls) are coming at you from all directions. You can't figure out which one to catch and if you try to catch one, another one hits you from behind. Excitement, fear, anxiety, sadness, joy, the longing for life in Zambia, the longing for the life you could have in the USA. I'm not trying to be dramatic - I'm just trying to answer the question. So, am I ready to go back? Yes, I am. There are tons of other emotions that go along with that, but Zambia is where we were created to be, and 24 little Zambians are waiting for us. #21days
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