Graduation! (A month late)

My Masters seems to be a distant memory already! The completion of my final project required major effort. I enjoyed my research and writing time overseas a little too much, and got behind on my actual development of my project. Upon my return last November, I had a new class to plan for, a chronic infection wearing me down, and my procrastination to account for! November and December were a haze of writing, planning, sleeping as much as possible, and a hopefully not too unhealthy balance of antibiotics and coffee. I remember being so anxious about completing my final project and even contemplated accepting an extension. However, thanks to support from many different directions, my final project was approved by the end of the fall semester, December 21, 2014.

It felt odd to transition into not having homework, but the class I taught kept me on my toes as far as researching best practices in ESL, methods in teaching literacy to adults with limited and interrupted formal education, and even additional research on the lives of refugees in refugee camps.

December graduates at our small school are invited to participate in the commencement ceremonies in May. That is what I chose to do. I graduated in December 2005 with my B.A. in Sociology and had spent my final semester abroad. It seemed silly to return to campus a full year after completing my last course on campus. This time around, I was still going to be in the area, so I decided to give it a go. By the time commencement weekend arrived, I would have preferred to cancel!

It was a hot day, with possible rain which never materialized. The humidity made our polyester gowns miserable, but we survived!

My academic advisor

Celebrating with Martha

The first order of business after the pictures was to take a cool shower and a nap! That evening, I was able to meet up with my dear friend Martha, who was my roommate for most of the time I was working on my Masters. She is nearly finished her Masters too, to be a Nurse Practitioner. We suffered through many crazy weeks together, cheering each other on to the end of the semester, only to take a deep breath before diving into another semester. We proof-read each other's papers, talked about ideas for research projects, and tried our best to balance busy work schedules, school and squeeze in some fun to keep us alive! 

Now, nearly a month has passed since graduation, and nearly six months since I turned in my final project. In December, I declared my desire to never write another paper, but those close to me know that likely won't be a permanent state. I don't have any plans to go back to school at this point, but I"m attempting to focus on foreign language study for now! We'll see where this goes!

English Language Moment!

In light of the busyness of the past weeks, I'm just going to take a second to share a little English trivia with you!

Bookkeeper is the only word in the English language that has three double letter spellings in a row!

The Weekend Reunion

This weekend has been a treat!  Two of my friends from London came from their current locations to visit!  Val and I have gotten together a number of times, but we have not seen Carmen since July 2011.

After a trip to DC to collect Cee from the airport, we made our way to my house.  Friday felt like a Saturday.  We lazed around (recovering from our late return to mine) and then ventured out to Barnes and Noble Booksellers.  After coffee and a yummy treat from the cafe, we wandered around the store for a bit.  We have a very relaxed relationship, a result of the amount of time we have spent together in the five years that I have known these girls.  We each went our own way in the store, not needing to always be together but inevitably ending up in the same departments.  Our final convergence happened in the International Travel department!

After leaving B&N and visiting two other stores, we drove across the river of an Egyptian restaurant on Paxton Street.  Sadly, we were the only patrons.  Our meal was wonderful though!  We got dessert from SweetFrog and then we went to a quaint little theatre to see Lincoln for $4.00.  Ticket prices have gone up since I was last there!  

Lincoln was very well done.  It seemed quite fitting that Cee (a Canadian) saw it in Pennsylvania, sandwiched between two of her favorite Americans.  Perhaps on our way to take Cee back to the airport today, we can stop in Gettysburg.

Yesterday was just a lazy day.  I had previously promised to pick up friends of mine at the airport, so I went to the airport once more on Saturday, but thankfully this was just to our local airport.  When I returned, my house had gained another Londoner!  Eli joined us for the rest of the day.  Our big adventure was just to leave the house to get groceries for dinner.

In the meantime, I had to decide if I would take the second course I mentioned in an earlier post.  Encouraged by wise council, I've decided just to take the one class for my next 8 week term.  The syllabus for the one course looks very daunting and it is Linguistics, which could be quite challenging.  I did well in my first course, and I want to continue to do well in this program.  

Well, I must be off to start our day!  My visitors are still sleeping but I need to get some coffee and maybe the smell of breakfast will wake them up....

Resettlement

Three weeks ago, I was enjoying 95 degree weather and the warmth of Mozambican culture.  I've traded palm trees for pine.  Pennsylvania has experienced its first snow and the weather outside, while not frightful, is definitely chilly.

I love airplanes and flying but I wonder if they have hindered our appreciation for the transition between one place to another.  I've never crossed the Atlantic by any means other than an airplane.

It is a bit surreal.  In January, I would have said, "I live in London."  On the last day of January, I boarded a plane and seven hours later, I was in the USA and I had officially moved.  The trip from Moz took a full day of travel.  The transition is more startling.  It only took a day to go from one place where clean water is scarce to another place where we are focused on buying excess material goods with our excess income.  

A longer journey would not change the differences between locales, but perhaps the time to reflect would change the traveler.   

Planes come equipped with a personalized entertainment system for each seat.  (As a child, I can remember having a TV screen for the entire cabin.  If you didn't like the movie, you listened to music or slept.)  You might watch movies for the duration of a 19 hour flight from South Africa to the USA.  An ocean liner today can cross the Atlantic in a week.  When Henry Hudson crossed from Amsterdam to New York (in 1609), the crossing took two months.  

Imagine a relocation journey taking two months.  Days of ocean and waves and no land in sight.  No entertainment system.  No wi-fi.  No seclusion except in thought.  As an introspective person, I love the idea of having days to just look at the waves and the clouds and simply ponder.  Time to consider where I've been and wonder where I am going.  Time to write in my journal until I run out of words or pages.  

I cannot explain my thankfulness that this past year has included time to consider my options.  Had I needed to go from my last job, which finished in May, to looking for another job immediately, I would have been incredibly frazzled.  Instead, through generosity and grace, I was able to take the time necessary to consider my next steps.  I've been back in Pennsylvania for three weeks.  In those three weeks, I've purchased a vehicle, gotten car insurance (for the first time on my own!), made decisions about where I will live, applied to academic programs, started job applications, took my computer to be fixed (which isn't possible but I am going to attempt some data recovery), and am considering my options in the areas of phones, computers, and more practical things like mattresses and winter coats.  While it is sometimes overwhelming to make all of these decisions, it is possible because I have had time to consider my options, needs, and my Provider.  

The title for this blog, The View from a Thousand Hills, comes from Psalm 50:10.  The Lord says, "For all the animals of the forest are mine, and I own the cattle on a thousand hills."  This verse reminds me that my future is in good hands, and those hands are not my own.  

Caminho da praia (beach walk)

Mom and I studied our Portuguese this morning, reviewing numbers, articles, the alphabet, diphthongs, nationalities, and a few other odds and ends.  Anybody walking by must have thought we were a little bit louco (crazy) when we starting singing the alphabet song with Portuguese pronunciation.

After exercising our brains for the morning, we took a walk down to the beach.

I've been down to the beach before, but this time, I actually walked into the Indian Ocean.  It is winter, and it was a little chilly.  As you can see from my apparel, the weather isn't too cold however.  

The beach is very pretty, but there is a lot of rubbish that isn't visible in this picture.  Because this is a port city, the water can also be rather yucky.  Some days it looks lovely and blue, but other days it almost brown.  The better beaches for swimming are north and south of our location.  Mom and I are a little limited in our activities while Dad is away in Maputo.  He has the only working vehicle, so we are staying within walking distance of home.    

Wandering on foot through cities like Paris, Edinburgh, Dublin, Madrid, Rome, and of course, London, helped me to appreciate the perspective given by walking tours.  Pedestrians need to take a bit more care here.  The chapas (minivan taxis) don't seem to feel the need to yield.  Most roads in the city do not have lines painted, so traffic determines how many lanes there are and in which direction they travel.  It is acceptable to proceed to the middle of the road if one side is clear, wait for traffic to clear from the other side, and then continue the rest of the way across the road.  Despite the obstacles, which include holes in the pavement, tree roots, rubbish, stray dogs, and fruit stands, I really enjoy these walks.  There are numerous homes from the colonial period, which some beautiful architecture.  These homes have numerous staircases and verandas.  Most of the verandas and windows are enclosed, some from the original architecture and some for modern security.  Regardless of the state of repair, each of these homes are unique, in contrast to the block apartment buildings from a later era.  

There are two different types of stop signs here.  They are essentially the same, except they differ in size.  As Dad told me, the smaller ones are optional and are regarded as a "Yield" sign.  Some intersections have traffic robots (lights), but often, only the post remains and the actual robot is missing (or not working).  If a driver is at such an intersection, he needs to make a decision.  His options are as follows: 1) try to see a robot facing another direction, 2) guess when the light is changing, or 3) proceed whenever traffic allows, or 4) disregard the light entirely and proceed whenever he sees fit.  Roundabouts, or rotaries, are a much easier solution to traffic patterns.  I say "he" for the driver because most women do not drive here.  Orlando, our language instructor, told Mom that he once saw a female taxi driver. 

As you can probably tell, I'm enjoying getting to know Moz.  One sweet gentleman told me, "Welcome!  Enjoy your time here.  This is now your country too."  I wish I could know he would get the same warm welcome if he visited my country.   

  

Fora e marinha (Outside and Sea)

Today is a gorgeous day in Sofala Province.  Mom and I decided we needed to have our breakfast outside to enjoy the lovely breeze.  There is a daycare or a school nearby and we can hear the kids playing outdoors.  I thought I would just send a few pictures of our peaceful pequeno-almoço fora (breakfast outside).

This is our view from Mom and Dad's veranda.  As you can see, they live in an enclosed complex, as most people do here in Mozambique.  I think some might feel claustrophobic to live within walls, but it feels normal to me.  It is a standard security measure here.  The tenants prior to Mom and Dad added nicely to the garden, leaving a peaceful green space for them to enjoy.  

This is not your typical garden gnome.  This is the skull of a sea turtle, tartaruga marinha.  Sea turtles live in all of the world's oceans except for the Arctic, but like many creatures, have been hunted for food to the degree that their populations are dwindling.  In some cases, they are hunted for their shells as well.  (I should add, this skull was in my parents' garden they arrived.  I'm hoping it was just found on the beach.  Hunting of most species of sea turtles is illegal.)  Did you know that sea turtles can live eighty years or more?  I also learned they are immune to the sting of the box jellyfish.  Sea turtles can then eat the poisonous jellyfish, which helps to naturally control the jellyfish population.  

I really love learning about natural systems.  The balance in the world is so delicate.  It is amazing when it functions as it should and heartbreaking when the natural order is disturbed.  Consider these examples of the connection of the sea turtles to their world.  Sea turtles return to the beach to lay their eggs.  Some even return to the specific beach where they were hatched.  The nutrients from the nests they create and from the eggs they lay help to fertilize the sand dunes and beaches, which in turn provide better growth of vegetation.  The vegetation is vital to prevent erosion.  I read that on one 22 mile stretch of beach in Florida, sea turtles lay 150,000 pounds of eggs annually.  If that number diminishes due to hunting of the sea turtle or her eggs, the beach will also be affected.  A sea turtle will lay about 100 eggs in a nest.

Sea turtles also eat the sea grass on the bottom of the ocean.  Sea grass needs to be cut back in order to grow.  The beds of sea grass are where many types of sea life lay their eggs.  Fewer sea turtles would mean less growth of sea grass.  This would then impact other marine life, including some which are a food source for humans.  

Well, now you've had your lesson in ecosystems for the day!  I hope it has been a helpful reminder to take care of our world.  

Day 10

It took guesswork to start this post.  Lately, when I use something google related, it is all in Portuguese.  That makes things rather fun.

Well, I'm well into my second week here.  It feels like I've been here longer, but not in a bad way.  The time has been full, but full in an African way, not an American way.  If you've lived in Africa, you know the difference I mean.  It hasn't been a booked scheduled of running here and there, but it has been busy nonetheless.  Portuguese lessons haven't gone as I planned.  Mom and Dad have been faithful, but I've already missed two lessons.

I arrived in Mozambique pretty tired, and when jet lag, incredibly high pollen and dust counts, migraines, and two mosquito bites in an uncommon time for mosquitoes, are all added in, I feel pretty drained.  I'm not quite sure what is wrong with me, but it's not awful and Mom is a great nurse.  I'll be fine in no time.

I still managed to get to quite a few things with Mom and Dad.  I've been on fruit market expeditions, sewing classes, lectures, spare tire hunting, grocery shopping, and by now...I still feel lost in this city.  It is rather confusing.  I'm impressed that my parents have learned their way around without knowing most street names!  I had to laugh when they were speaking with another American here, asking Melanie where Mom could buy cloth for her sewing class.  The directions were entirely landmark based, including a "blue shop," Melanie's office, and the grocery store.  The funniest part was when they realized that there was more than one "blue shop" in the city!  Most buildings here are painted a faded yellow, so a blue shopfront does stand out.

  



Everyone has been really sweet.  Many people I have met have spoken a bit of English and most are keen to learn more.  A conversation doesn't get very far, and I often find myself wishing I could learn Portuguese more quickly.      I have found that I can follow a slow conversation in Portuguese and get the gist of it, thanks to the Spanish I know.  However, Portuguese pronunciation is very different.  I struggle with the sounds of the words more than remembering the vocabulary.  My parents have taken to introducing me in Portuguese.  I rather like being called Esperança.  Most faces light up when they hear me being introduced with a Portuguese name.

There are so many lovely people here.  I've had fun seeing the little kids, mesmerized by these strange looking people, sneak up to Mom and I.  Mom said she had one little girl try to rub her skin to see if the paleness was real. The women have been very friendly as well.  We've made conversation as best we can, between various bits of English and Portuguese.

It is winter now.  The temperatures have been in the 60s and 70s.  The hot water in our shower has to be used with caution, because it boils in the water tank during the day.  With a winter this mild, this is a growing season. Mango trees, among others, are in blossom.  Fresh fruit is easy to come by.  Mom and I were at the market the other day and we saw pawpaws the size of my head.  We've had pineapple, watermelon, and avocado aplenty.

And it's Ramadan now.  There are about four mosques in this city, one not too far away.  If the windows are open, we can hear the call to prayer.

I love how life goes on around everyone's personal lives.  Last week, Dad needed to get a spare tire for their vehicle.  The other tire had been punctured a while back on a trip in the bush.  We went to several different places before finding a place with better quality for at least the same price as the poor quality ones.  Dad needed to bring the vehicle in before lunch because in the afternoon, the manager would be at the mosque.  And Dad needed to bring the vehicle in before or after our language lesson.  And so, a time was worked out that would accommodate both schedules.  No appointment formally scheduled, no contact details exchanged, nothing written down.

We have several pets at the moment.  Truvia is a tiny little gecko who is migrating through the house.  He earned his name because he is smaller than a packet of truvia sweetener.  He does have a much larger brother (as yet unnamed) who lives in the ceiling and sometimes creeps down through the tiles to say hello.  There are a few stray cats who wander through the yard and enjoy taking a nap on the chairs on the patio.  And of course, we have at least one big, flat spider.  I don't know what they are called (I attempted to ask Mr. Google for their name, but a search resulted with WAY too many pictures of spiders for me to sort through), but they live on the walls for the most part and eat mosquitoes.  Mom always refused to remove them from my bedroom as a child, reminding me that they would eat the mosquitoes and for that reason, they should be considered friends.

Day 5

Moz is difficult for me to describe.  It might take me a while to do so.  In some ways I feel very comfortable here, but in other ways, I feel distinctly uncomfortable.  Life is not easy here.  It is easy for me, but not for so many people.  There are a number of structures damaged by the events of the previous decades, but there are also new buildings yet to be used, or old buildings restored.  Many seem to want to advance but at the same time, they are content that life will go on regardless.  

Apartment block next to a destroyed building

Fruit and Veg sold on the streets

Street Vendor selling Cokes and candies 

I had my first language class on Monday, with the next one tomorrow.  Portuguese confuses me, because it looks like Spanish but doesn't sound like it!  The grammar seems to be fairly similar though, which will be helpful.  Our instructor is a very nice young man, with a good grasp of English.  He is very wiling to teach a cultural lesson along with a language lesson.  I think both lessons will be beneficial in the long run.

Vocabulary Lesson

Today has been dedicated to a final paper for a course I'm taking.  It's due on Monday, and I'm a bit embarrassed to say I've been procrastinating.  I've really enjoyed the course, but writing the paper has not been an inspiring task for some reason.  (Normally I do really enjoy writing, even if it is a formal assignment.)  However, in my reading, I came across a most impressive sentence regarding the identity of the woman mentioned in Revelation 12.

"In any case, it seems obvious that the vision intends a multivalent mythological symbolization of transpersonal divine realities." (Elisabeth Fiorenza. Revelation: Vision of a Just World (Proclamation Commentaries) (Kindle Location 1262). Kindle Edition.)

I'm such a nerd.  I love sentences like that.