First day in Lusaka

At two in the morning we sat in bed and ate peanut butter-banana sandwiches and watched some magic school bus. We kept telling Lucas it was time to go back to bed because it was the middle of the night, but he kept saying “But I'm not tired?! I'm really not tired!” We finally fell back asleep after a couple of hours and slept late. We sat around the breakfast table with the Hilty's eating toast and cereal, drinking coffee and tea. Ian is only two, maybe six months younger and he love to sip hot tea with his breakfast already – a true Zambian. It's great to see the Hilty's and reconnect with them. The kids are so cute and I have been so glad to see Ireen and Ian after being here last year. Lucas and them spend most of the afternoon and evening rolling around in the yard, tackling each other and wrestling. They also love to ride “motorcycles.” Meeting the rest of the team was great and felt so connected with them already, after a year of reading their blogs and praying for their families and ministries. It was great to hang out with Steve and talk about Oikos and Bellingham. Today we drove out to Ciynajano to walk around the grounds and see the development happening out there. It's amazing!! I am so excited for the possibilities out there and for the potential of that ministry. It was even better than I remembered it. Tim let Tricia drive the 7K dirt road out to the farm to help her feel better about driving on the left side. She did a pretty good drive on that wreck of a road but on on the way back to town, Tim drove it in half the time. We're running on empty now in the early evening and Luke is especially cranky, tired, and a little too rough with the kids. The sun is setting and the crickets are chirping and doves are cooing. Sitting on the Hilty's front porch, the city – dirty with dust, soot, smoke, and garbage, crowded with people and so much hurt and need and suffering, seems a million miles away. It's almost unbelievable; it could be a September evening in quiet Californian town. And the Hilty's new place is definitely a refuge for their family. I love it. Time to go though and so some parenting. Goodnight. 11 July 2010