Guinea Pigs

Amahoro!

I told a lot of you that I would be video blogging…well the internet situation is not quite ideal for uploading videos. So hopefully I can be almost as entertaining through a written blog. Here we go.

I am in love with Burundi. It is the 2^nd poorest country in the world, and about the size of Maryland. Quite beautiful, mountains on one side and Lake Tanganyika on the other. This month has been wonderful! I got here with the team on June 1, and was able to spend two weeks with them and with the people of Burundi. We traveled to Cibitoke and Gitega, spending much time with the kids of Homes of Hope, and also doing ministry in the community. I absolutely love these people. They are more a blessing to me than I could have known.

So far, living in Burundi has been filled with many adventures… Spiders, crocs, rats, hippos galore. And I am loving it. It is home for me. With all of the sweat, cold showers, and rice and beans. The Burundi zoo. For those with weak stomachs, or largely into animal rights, you can skip this paragraph. Here we go. When you walk in, there is a large tank filled with cute fluffy black and white guinea pigs. For 5,000 fbu ($3.50), you can buy one to feed to the animal of your choice. Gotta love the food chain. There is a choice between a crocodile, leopard, or python. I think Jeff actually got a video of the leopard crunching the skull of a guinea pig. I left at that point. As much of an adventure as that is, the crunching kinda makes me nauseas…. J We had a really good one at one point, the croc chased the guinea pig for about 10 minutes…that guinea pig was fighting for his life. I almost wanted to save it, just because he was so clever. But alas, the croc won, with a large snap, and a small squeak. Next was the chimp. Her name is Tina, and she has an attitude. JD ended up giving it his thermos full of hot tea. She opened it and drank it down, stirring it until it cooled down. Smart thing, she is. And then she threw dirt on me. I think she wanted more tea.

I started work at the office this last week, mostly dealing with communications. And really whatever they need me to do. I have so far responded to several emails from people that want to come for short and long term mission trips. A lot of them are bringing people with medical backgrounds, and they want to serve in the communities around Burundi. This is one of the most valuable ways to show the love of God to me. True servanthood. Summers are very busy around here. We have new teams or individuals coming practically weekly to serve. It has been so good to jump in with both feet. God is doing such an amazing work through the ministry of Burundi Youth for Christ. Many children that had no parents or home now have a mum, papa, brothers and sisters, and a place to call home because of this ministry. God is using this ministry to change the country, and it is amazing to watch! You may visit www.burundiyfc.org to learn more.

I am living in a house to myself for the most part. The guys- JD, Jeff, and Zachary live in the house directly behind me, I am either at their house or they are at mine the majority of the time. They are pretty much hilarious. Getting used to the not so abnormal bodily functions, terribly off key singing, and conversations that girls just don’t have. But I love it. When you are the only girl, you just kind of have to jump in there I suppose. Zach thought I REALLY jumped in there the other night, my leg made a noise against the couch and he thought I had farted….yea right.

We are collecting insects just for fun. Thus far we have a huge scorpion, 2 millipedes (in hopes that we can watch the scorpion eat them), and a very big spider, all in a pitcher with a lid. Gotta love the bugs. Hoping to find something giant soon.

Until next time.