The Journey from Mbeya to Mpanda

It took us two days to drive from Mbeya to Mpanda with the Lang family.  The first day was Mbeya to Sumbawanga and took about 7 hours and 45 minutes.  But considering the number of potty stops we made, we're estimating driving time was more like 7 hours.  The second day was Sumbawanga to Mpanda and took us about 5 hours total.  Once we (and the big truck!) arrived, then it was time to unload everything and get some sleep. 

Tim and the truck after day 1 of driving.  We don't have pictures of post day 2 of driving that are accessible at the moment, so just imagine double the mud/dirt. 

 

This is the trailer that the Langs were pulling.  It had a number of our suitcases and action packers as well as a bunch of their stuff.  We also had a big Fuso truck (a lorry) that was carrying most of the Lang's furniture as well as our mattresses and large appliances.  But for some reason I didn't take pictures of that... sorry.

 X-- GIRAFFE CROSSING--X  Part of the road from Sumbawanga to Mpanda goes through Katavi National Park.  We were bummed to not see much wildlife until we came across this big group (herd? flock? troop?) of giraffes.  We had to wait until they moved out of the way.  There were also zebras and monkeys in this stretch of road. 

 The Langs were in front and waited for this lone giraffe to leave the road before we went on. :)

 The giraffes continued to watch us as we passed.  You can see a few zebra rear-ends in the back right of the picture, too.

 As we were leaving the park, there is a bridge that crosses over this river.  We said, 

"look, Micaiah, at the hippos!"  

"I don't see any hippos, Mama.  All I see is a bunch of big rocks... WAIT, those ARE hippos!!!!"

Indeed they were hippos!  Lots of them.  We were quite safe on the bridge, but what a sight!!

Now we're in Mpanda looking for a house and just itching to get all unpacked.  We don't have a lot of furniture already, so once we know where we'll be living we'll still have to have that made.  But in the meantime, we've been staying in a nice guesthouse (despite the loud music next door!) and will be moving in with the Langs in a day or two.  They're house is starting to come together and all their un-packing is going well.  We're thankful to have friends here who have made the long journey with us and will continue to journey with us in the coming years as we serve together in Mpanda.

-JLR

Rivervalley Campsite

We stayed at Rivervalley Campsite for about two weeks while we took a Swahili Refresher course.  One of the downfalls of our time there was bad internet connection, so there is a lot to post now.  But I think the pictures tell the stories better than I can...

Micaiah turned 6 1/2!!! I know, I know... it isn't THAT big of a deal except that it was also the 6 month mark since she had her ears pierced, which meant that she could now wear dangly earrings!  We celebrated by letting her wear a pair of my earrings as a special treat. :)

This is a sausage tree.  I was thankful to know enough Swahili to talk with the ladies who wash the laundry at Rivervalley.  They warned us to walk quickly under the tree so we didn't get hit by falling "sausages"!

This is what they look like on the ground-- Micaiah could hardly lift it!

This is Tim and I in class with our teacher, Kiobya.  There was another student (Simon) with us for the majority of our two week refresher course.

This is Micaiah in her Swahili class. :)  She did informal Swahili with one of the caregivers the first week, then the second week she joined some of the other kids (and their tutor!) in a class with a teacher, Joyce.  As you can see, they may have had a bit more fun than us-- they even got to play hangman!

This is Micaiah's class. Laura (the tutor), Luke, Micaiah, Nikki, and Joyce (the Swahili teacher).

This is Joyce (Micaiah's Swahili teacher).

This is Micaiah with Polly.  Polly is the laziest guard-dog known to man. :)

 Micaiah had an accident while we were at Rivervalley.  It gave us a good scare, actually.  She was hopping around on these stumps when she changed directions and slipped and hit her head on one of them.  She had a big bump on her head and-- more frightening-- the symptoms of a concussion.  She was threw up several times, was really sleepy, had somewhat blurry vision, some slurred speech, etc.  But thankfully we were able to get some good medical advice and didn't need to use our emergency evacuation plan!  Micaiah woke up in the morning as if nothing had happened.  Praise God for His protection and for healing our little girl!

This is Harold.  Harold is a very large tortoise that was found at Rivervalley.  The kids were given the big responsibility of taking him food every day-- a job that they loved and took very seriously. 

 These are the three very responsible tortoise-feeders. :)

 

This is Laura.  Laura came to Tanzania to help another family with their homeschool/lessons while the parents were in language school.  Laura (and the other family) graciously agreed to let Micaiah join them for school time and helped supervise Micaiah's modified homeschool assignments while we were in Iringa.  We enjoyed many laughs with Laura and these two especially became very close!  There were some very tearful goodbyes when we left.

Tim on the zipline at a nearby campsite!!! After a decent hike to this part of the river, we enjoyed going across and back on this awesome contraption.  So much better than a bridge!

Micaiah and I went together.  Safety first.  She's quite adventurous and thought this was as good as or better than the roller coasters she went on this summer at Six Flags. :)

Don't worry, this is just a posed picture.  I put her out over the air, but she was only a foot or so from the platform. :)

We really enjoyed our time in Iringa.  It was good to see our friends Will and Amanda again and to get to know their daughter Carrie as well.  It's nice to visit places that we have already been and share those memories together as a family.

-JLR

Ready to Go?

Surely I must be forgetting something.

We have our bags packed and are working on weighing them so they are just under our 50 pound allotment.  We're making sure they're labeled and that there are extra zip ties inside just in case they get search and need to be re-sealed.

But I must be forgetting something.

We leave tomorrow (lord-willing!!) and will spend today saying goodbye to family.  We spent a good portion of this past week traveling around and saying goodbyes to friends, but we're thankful to have almost all of our closest family here in town to visit and to say goodbye tomorrow.

But I still can't shake this nagging feeling that I'm forgetting something.

Our goal was to have some well-protected margin in our last two weeks here in St Louis.  We packed for 4-5 days straight and got a majority of it all done.  These past few days have just been finalizing the details, packing our hand baggage, etc.  It feels strange to have leftover time.  I think they call it "margin," but it's such a new concept to a type A person like me that it feels odd-- like I'm always forgetting something!  Once I'm able to shake this feeling, I'm confident that I will like this approach much better than the rush-around-like-a-chicken-with-my-head-cut-off approach... yeah, that wasn't working for me. :)

But what am I forgetting??

-JLR

Building a RAFT

If you've been around the world of missions for long, you've probably heard the term RAFT in connection with healthy transitions.  We first heard this term in our orientation and were really able to understand it more in reading Third Culture Kids: The Experience of Growing Up Among Worlds by David C. Pollock and Ruth E. Van Reken, published by Intercultural Press. The book is an amazing resource if you have TCKs and haven't already read and memorized everything in it!

We've been using the RAFT model during this transition.  RAFT stands for:

Reconciliation

Affirmation

Farewells

Think Destination

I can summarize on my own, but since my own copy of TCK is currently packed in a box in our garage awaiting our journey back to Missouri, I will instead point to this great blog from another Member Care worker in Japan who summarizes each step very well.  

As we've been working through RAFT for this transition, I was most confused by the "Think Destination" step.  I understand that we're leaving Canada and that we need to tie up loose ends here.  But it's hard to think about whether we're preparing ourselves for Missouri or for Tanzania.  Will our RAFT last through 3 (or so) months of transitions?  Or do we build two (or more!) different RAFTs?  We've done a bit of both, but I expect that may be more confusing than it needs to be.  Surely this isn't an uncommon thing, so if anyone has any ideas, we're very open to them!  

Maybe I need to develop a HOUSE-BOAT model...

-JLR

14 Days To Go

Today was a bit better emotionally.  Still many tears, but there were lots of practical things to keep my hands busy.  That gives my mind (and my tear-ful eyes!) a bit of a break from thinking too much.  As we're now in the final two weeks (!!!), we will start packing things up bit by bit until we've pulled all of our personal stuff out of this place and it becomes merely a guesthouse.  I'm kicking myself that I didn't take more pictures of the inside the way we had it set up.   

We spent some time packing up Micaiah's room this afternoon.  Her attitude was beyond amazing.  There were things that she definitely wanted to keep, but so many others that she was willing to let go.  I kept hearing her say, "I think my friend, ______, would really like this... it would help them remember me."  Oh sweet girl!  Like anyone could ever forget you! 

And yet, I think that's my fear, too.  Being forgotten.  Out of sight, out of mind.  Funny how something as "simple" as an international move brings such deep fears to the surface. 

We also watched Les Miserables this evening.  I've known the general outline of the story, but had never read the book or watched the movie.  (I know!  Shame on me, right?)  I was stunned by the depth of the characters and humbled by the example of mercy.  And the story so naturally translates to spiritual truths...I've been bought at a very high price... do I pour that love onto others as well?  Or do I judge them with the law?  Does the fruit of the spirit in me show that I am a changed woman?  Such good questions to think about. 

-JLR

Birthday Fun!

This past week has been birthday week in the Roth house!  Micaiah is now a big 6 year-old! 

I have been super-impressed with the gifts she's gotten this year.  If you know me well, you know how irritated I tend to get when people give us or Micaiah big, bulky, or unwanted gifts.  Don't get me wrong-- I appreciate the generosity very much.  But at the same time, we travel a lot, so such gifts tend to be impractical.  Not to mention the constant sorting and paring down we do of the toy-bin.  And I am the one who has to tell her that she can't keep it all.  She just doesn't need so much stuff.  None of us do, really.  Back to the point... I have been really impressed by her birthday gifts this year!  She got a new Bible (that we asked for), paints/paper, doodle/logic books, a Webkinz, books, a savings bond, a certificate for a "fun outing," a dvd, new rain boots, and her ears pierced (our gift to her).  What a great variety! 

Thanks to all who have sent/given such thoughtful gifts that still keep in mind the nomadic lifestyle we live.  I appreciate you more than you can know!!!

-JLR

The New Year

2011 has not gotten off to a very good start for us. We were traveling over the holidays and got to see our families in Missouri. The trip was good-- much better than we were expecting, to be honest. But like any trip, we were exhausted and anxious to get back to our home here in BC.

When we arrived at our house here in BC on Jan 5, we soon realized that there had been a break-in over the holidays. So while we were looking forward to unwinding, unpacking, and sleeping, our first afternoon/evening back in Canada took a very unexpected turn. We dealt with police reports, visits from our landlord and locksmith, and the start of the very long process of changing personal information that was stolen. We were discouraged to say the least.

We were finally making some headway with getting our house back in order yesterday when we noticed a foul odor in the house. We couldn't pinpoint it, but it seemed to be near the vents. We called the gas company and were advised to leave the house until it could be checked. After more than an hour of waiting in our car (parked on the street) after Micaiah should have been in bed, we were finally cleared to return to the house. While there was no major leak, they said the fan on our furnace had burnt out, causing the smell to be distributed through the vents when the furnace would try to heat the house. They turned our furnace off. They also noticed a small leak on our gas line to our fireplace, so the gas had to be shut off. We were so tired but managed to borrow some electric space heaters and did a family camp out in the living room. Funny, but that's been one of my highlights from this past week-- Micaiah loved the idea of moving the mattresses into the living room and all snuggling in together!

It is so amazing to see what a positive attitude can do in a situation like this. Here I am all discouraged, tired, and in tears and my 5 year old is praising God and just giggly over the fun she gets to have! Tim, too, has been reminding me that complaining does nothing to actually change the situation. Well, nothing but discourage others! So as we've been reading Scriptures on complaining, worries, anxiety, fear, etc., we've decided as a family that we're going to choose joy. Especially when it isn't easy! Because that's when it truly does transform you.

So maybe my past week hasn't been what I would have chosen, but I still have a Good God who loves us and takes care of us. But maybe it's easier to say that when my daughter is screaming "O happy day!" at the top of her lungs. :) Thanks, God, for the many blessings you give me each and every day. And thank you that your grace is enough to get me through the trials we face each day as well.

-JLR

Back Home

I struggle with the idea of home. There are very familiar places that feel familiar, but is that the same thing as "home"? A couple weeks ago I set out for a Member Care course that was being offered in Pennsylvania. Thanks to a busy schedule and the start of classes for Tim at TWU/CanIL, my family (Tim and Micaiah) wasn't able to come with me. So I set out by myself. The course was amazing and I learned a ton, but I missed my family. When we were finally reunited two days ago at SeaTac Airport, I couldn't have been happier! Home for me is definitely wherever those two are!

Since arriving back at our house here in Canada (we are fortunate enough to be renting the same house two years in a row!), I also feel more "at home". It is difficult to live in transition all the time, so maybe one aspect of "home" is stability and feeling like it is a place to settle and put down some roots.

The past few days have been a whirlwind for us as a family! I arrived at Seattle on Sunday and we spent the afternoon driving back to Langley and doing some shopping. My family did a good job of eating decent food while I was away, but I could tell Tim was anxious to give back the burden of meal planning and food prep. :) I'm happy to have it back, honestly, and I'm looking forward to trying some of the new recipes I've collected... not to mention the three new cookbooks I will be working through this year! Yay for More With Less, Simply in Season, and Extending the Table!!! I can't WAIT to try all the recipes!!!

In other news, we also officially started our Homeschool Kindergarten year on Monday. We're two days in and loving it! It is going so well, and I think being able to create a "desk space" for Micaiah is helping her get into it as well. She has a calendar and a schedule on the wall by her desk and I made a name sheet for the top of her desk... you know, the kind with your name printed neatly on the lined sheet with decor on the edges?? She lit up when she saw it. She was still very sad that she wouldn't get to ride a bus to school. But even if she went to a school here she wouldn't ride a bus since the elementary school is within walking distance.

Micaiah is getting so big! I know I keep saying this, but it is really hitting me hard. To make things even more real, she lost her very first tooth this afternoon. My how time flies. I remember when she got that tooth (at four months, mind you!) and I couldn't believe how fast my BABY was growing up... so much to be nostalgic about. :)

Anyway, that's about it for now. I have a few more things to blog about in the near future, so hopefully it won't be so long between posts. :)

-JLR

Five People Who Annoy Me on Planes

I just finished seven different flights in about a month. Four of them were around 9 hours in length. With these experiences freshly in mind, I’m honored to present:

Five People Who Annoy Me on Planes

1. The Rush-an. These people will knock over little old ladies to get on/off the plane first.

2. Cologne guy. They need to have a separate section for these people in the back of the plane.

3. B.O. guy. Put on some cologne. Seriously.

4. The Natural Lighter. The whole plane is dark. Except for one window. WHY won’t you use the overhead light to read? Do you not see people trying to sleep?

5. The Cell-Phone Addict. WHAT is so important? Turn off and put away the phone when they ask you to. And quit hiding it under the chair like you’re in 4^th grade. And you are not the exception.

What annoys you about certain people on flights you've been on?

-TR

Goodbye

We said goodbye to Tim today-- he's on his way to Tanzania for almost a month. While he's there he'll be joining a language survey and also doing some research for his MA thesis.

I'm not sure if it's fully sunk in yet that he'll be gone for so long. In our 7.5 years of marriage we've only been apart for a maximum of 5 days at a time. I could probably count those separations of 3-5 days apart on one hand! I'm sure some of you think we're wimps or codependent or something, but our family philosophy has always been to do our work together-- that we're BOTH missionaries working on the same team. And Micaiah, too, for that matter. She's a part of our family and we want her to understand why we do what we do.

Yet, there was no way we could justify the expense of us going with Tim, especially considering we'd just spend most of our time in a guesthouse somewhere in Tanzania. We would be in the way on the survey and only distract him from his research. Still, a part of me was so sad seeing Tim get into the queue at the airport knowing I wouldn't be going with him!

Safari njema, Timo. Tutaonana mwezi ujao, Mungu akipenda!

-JLR
ps... I told Tim he could post on here from Tanzania if he wanted and/or was able... just a heads-up to watch for who is writing each post so you're not confused!

Camping Trip

I've been really bad about posting pictures in the past few months. Here are a few from our camping trip to Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park in SE Missouri. Micaiah was an awesome helper as we set up our tent. We went with my sister/brother-in-law and a bunch of friends, so there were plenty of friends for Micaiah to play with! The park had been flooded a few years ago and just opened up this spring. We could still see where the flash flood had gone through and destroyed so much of the beautiful landscape. If you're not sure what Shut-Ins are, it's basically a part of the river where the water gets trapped. There are lots of huge rocks with water flowing over them and pouring into small waterfalls and pools... it's basically a naturally formed waterpark! On the way home we stopped by Elephant Rocks State Park. It's very close to Johnson's Shut-Ins and is basically the large rocks without water. So much fun to climb and explore! I think this is the famous "fatman's squeeze"... fortunately we all made it though just fine. :)
Thankfully Micaiah has a little superwoman in her blood... she held up these boulders, no problem!

-JLR

House-sitting

We had a great opportunity to house-sit for my sister and brother-in-law while they were out of town for their family vacation. I can't tell you how amazing it is to have breathing room for a few days and be able to cook for the 3 of us! It's hard to live with people constantly no matter how much you love them, so it's definitely not a slam against those who generously offer us their spare rooms or feed us meals. :)

Tim is counting down the days until his trip to Tanzania, so it was a good chance for him to work on his word lists without distractions. We were also able to get a few trip-related errands-- like getting his international driver's license-- done. Only a few more things to check off the list before he leaves in 11 days!

Anyone looking for a house-sitter? :)

-JLR

Patriotism

I went to a very disturbing 4th of July church service this year. There was almost a cult-ish feel for a good portion of the service as we (well, those around us anyway) sang songs that had nothing at all to do with God. In fact until about 3/4 of the way through the service I don't even know that I heard God mentioned specifically. Thankfully the final 1/4 of the service was more God-centered and we (all of us this time) sung songs of thanksgiving to God. Before you start to think I am being unfair or unnecessarily harsh, you should know that my in-laws felt similarly uncomfortable about much of the service, and it's their church.

One of the good things about such a disturbing service is that it has had me searching Scripture, praying and thinking about what true patriotism is. How can I thank God in a way that isn't idol worship or country worship? I spend a good portion of my year(s) outside of US borders, which makes it difficult to hold the same sort of national pride as my friends and family here. But I am thankful for my country. I'm thankful for those who have served and who continue to serve today in all levels of government and military.

Have you thought of these things? How do you maintain a healthy national pride without it crossing the line into unhealthy territory? (and that does NOT only apply to Americans!!!) Tim also found this LINK from Relevant Magazine that is very insightful.

-JLR

ps... I can't wait to see the rest of the World Cup games even though the US is out... go Netherlands!!!

Unpacking my suitcase...

... seems like a waste of time. I mean seriously, we're hardly in any one place for more than a week. The task usually consists of putting my clothes in a drawer only to pack them up a few days later. But there's something about feeling "moved in" that can only happen once your suitcase is unpacked and sitting in the corner. So I'm putting it to my readers... to unpack or not to unpack??

Also, does anyone have any tips on how to keep the toiletries bag functional? Travel-size shampoo bottles aren't really helpful when traveling for more than a couple days, but the full-size ones take up so much room. Plus the rest of the toiletries, the first aid kit, the general meds... it fills up fast.

Too much packing on my mind as we leave for KC tomorrow. :)

-JLR

Immune system

Why do we get sick every time we come back to Missouri? Maybe it's more about being in a new place with germs our immune systems are not used to. I don't know how to handle this. I'm all for the philosophy that uses purell and anti-bacterial sparingly because I think they create supergerms. Plain old soap and water usually seem to do the trick. Micaiah ate a lot of dirt in her first 5 months in Tanzania (not under my supervision!), and we often point to this time as the reason she doesn't often get sick-- her immune system is generally very strong! But at the same time, it doesn't seem to help against bacteria and viruses in the US... why is that?

Have any of you done research on this sort of thing? Is there a way we can guard ourselves against getting sick all the time here without living in a clean-freak bubble? Is it a matter of eating some Missouri dirt, too? Or because of our many travels, are we just doomed to a life of getting sick in every new place until we build up immunity only to start over every time we move?? Ugh.

--JLR

TCK book

We have been looking for this book for a while and recently just added to our Amazon order. It came in the mail this week and I am just kicking myself for not getting it sooner! It is truly an amazing resource for us as we help Micaiah transition between cultures. Having not been MKs or TCKs ourselves, we don't know the issues she's dealing with, so I'm eager to read up on it so I can understand her and the many things to watch out for in the coming years. It also includes the R.A.F.T. model for transitions, so I am enjoying reading more about that.

If you've never heard of the book or the term TCK, you can read more about it and/or order it here.

-JLR

Gullible

Yesterday as we were driving, we saw some amazing trees. They were tall evergreens that had no branches on the bottom 2/3 of the trunk. As I was marveling about these interesting looking trees, Tim said something to the effect of, "oh aren't those cool? They're called Mini-Skirt Evergreens." Really? Typically I'd rush into the other room and google or wikipedia it (are those really verbs now??) before I could be labeled Gullible, but we were stuck in the Interstate in Washington and I had no internet access. I tried to immediately call his bluff-- and I ALMOST had him when I caved. I don't know. He does read a lot of National Geographic...

I was pretty convinced that I was right about the whole Mini-Skirt Evergreen thing being a bluff, but then this evening I checked it on Wikipedia. I hate that I had to check to be sure. While I'm not the most gullible in my family (my little sister takes the cake for that one!), I must admit I have a gullible streak. Shameful. :)

-JLR

Road Trip

Tomorrow morning we begin a road trip from Langley, BC, Canada to Missouri for the summer. We have scheduled several stops along the way and we're looking forward to seeing a few familiar faces along the way, as well! One of the things I'm most looking forward to is seeing our friends in Loveland, Colorado again. While we don't have a lot planned in terms of sight-seeing along the way, I imagine we'll try to make a few short stops along the way. I've also heard that the route we're planning to take is absolutely breath-taking.

Road trips... yeah, I don't think I'm a fan. It's a long time in the car and my neck and back usually start hurting after just a few hours. If it weren't significantly cheaper to drive, I'd definitely be happy to hop on a flight! One of the things I guess I AM looking forward to is to do a lot of old-school road trip games with Micaiah this year. MadLibs... license plate games... I spy... Alphabet/sign games...etc, etc. Tim's working on some good mix CDs, so that could be fun. I guess (like usual) it comes down to deciding to have a good attitude about it all.

Anyone have any good old-school road trip game ideas?? Family favorites?? Let me know and I'll add it to my list!! (I think we'll stop for email at least once along the way, so feel free to send the ideas even after tomorrow!!)

-JLR

North Cascades

In Early May we enjoyed a 3 night getaway to the North Cascades in Northern Washington. The break was exactly what we were hoping for-- just a few days to reconnect with each other after Tim's busy semester and to spend some time exploring God's creation. We may not have the benefit of a stable home and all that provides emotionally, but God HAS given us the gift of travel. It is our prayer that we would never take for granted the fact that we get to see such amazing, diverse parts of His creation!

Here are a few pics of the mountains and our hikes. We took a long walk along the Skagit River, a long drive into Mount Baker/Snoqualmie National forest (with a few stops at overlooks), and a super-long hike up a mountain trail to the start of a beautiful waterfall. We also did a fun nature-trail to learn about some of the trees in this region. The rest of the time we played games in our little cabin and enjoyed cooking/cleaning/reading together as a family!

The River Walk
Mount Baker/Snoqualmie National forest
Waterfall Hike (with amazing views!)

-JLR