Lake Toba

Britteney and I began our amazing trip by flying into Medan, Sumatra, where we (eventually) met our van to bring us the 4 hrs+ of winding roads to Lake Toba. Upon arrival, we called the hostel owner and he asked if we'd met the driver yet. I said no, but we were not hard to spot in the crowd. A black and a white lady sorta stand out in North Sumatra. I mean come on, really. 

Passing the acres and acres of palm tree forests was so refreshing after the overcrowded, polluted East Java we were used to. This part of the country is scarcely populated, the air is so fresh, and we were just happy to be in a new place! 

Next, we hopped on the ferry over to the island in the middle of Lake Toba. (Lake Toba was formed by a volcano that erupted 74,000 years ago, wiped out the pre-human population in SE Asia, and then the crater caved in. Thus, a crater lake. This is the deepest lake in the world today, reaching 450 meters in some places. Yikes! Here's a link to the LEGEND OF LAKE TOBA as well. 

On the ferry to the island. For a landlocked midwesterner, I sure do love water! Also, I have not felt such a freshness in a long time as was felt crossing the world's deepest lake, knowing that my amazing vacation was beginning!
 

This place is so darn gorgeous!

Britteney and I getting ready for a day of 15 miles of hiking back and forth around Tuk-Tuk and Samosir Island! Whew! She was the best travel buddy, so flexible, up for adventure, and one of the funniest people I have ever met!

Here I am, getting ready to hike to that waterfall in the distant background!!! 

      Air Turjun (waterfall): This trail up into the mountains was lots of fun…if you are adventurous! We just kept asking locals where the trailhead is because it looks like you are walking onto someone’s road or into their yard…The trail up the mountain was hard (almost impossible) to find during rainy season as it was overgrown and there was a lot of runoff water. upon entering the trail, there was a huge puddle of water with big ol' cow pies, and Britteney was like, "Um, are we sure about this??" I was like, "YES! We are doing this, lady, you got this!" And that is how her running shoes ended up in an RIP state. Sorry about that, Britteney! We hiked up maybe 45 minutes, searching for the trail. This involved me gleefully smashing through brush trying to find the trail while Britteney thought I was crazy. I finally found a big, white water irrigation pipe that would lead us all the way up. The trail crossed the river, and after that the trail was impossible to follow because of mud, so we didn’t make it to the waterfall swimming pool, but it is promised to be amazing!!! Off-roading (hiking style) is my favorite, so I'm so fortunate Britteney put up with me doing it! 

View from halfway up, which is about as far as we got! 

KING SIDABUTAR GRAVE

The Batak king who adopted Christianity is

buried in Tomok, a village 5km southeast

of Tuk Tuk. The king’s image is carved on

his tombstone, along with those of his bodyguard

and Anteng Melila Senega, the woman

the king is said to have loved for many years

without fulfilment. The tomb is also decorated

with carvings of singa, mythical creatures with

grotesque three-horned heads and bulging

eyes. Next door in death is the missionary who

converted the tribe, the career equivalent of

boy-band stardom. (I borrowed this information from Lonely Planet!)

We were asked to put these shawls on in order to enter the burial place. 

Traditional Batak houses have 2 points at the end of the roofs. One is for the parents, and one for the child. It is the parents' hope that the child will have a better life (up and out!) than the parent. The Batak colors are also black (netherworld), red (this world), and white (the heavens).

Carving of the nativity...here we are in the tropics a week before Christmas, weird! 

I have a new goal: taking pictures of Bapaks smoking. Sorta strange
as I don't love smoking, but the way they take drags of their cigs is picturesque...

 The Bataks are Christians, which was so interesting for us, as we live in basically 100% Muslim communities. People wearing shorts, drinking beers with the tourists at night, waking up at a "normal" hour (7 AM+ instead of 4:30 AM for the first prayer time). We were not there on a day that we could go to church, but it would have been cool to have done so. Here are some shots of the intricate graves they build to honor their dead.

Christian Batak graves. This is for one person...

One can see here that there are multiple places to be buried within this grave. A body is put at the bottom, and then about a year (??) later, moved up to make space for when a new family member dies. 

Britteney posing by the lake while we wait for our lunch from the sketchiest waitress/cook ever. She was either high on the marijuana that was legal in Tuk-Tuk, or she was just plan strange. If I remember correctly, Britteney said something about crazy eyes and warnings from her mom to be careful around people with crazy eyes!!! 

The Batak roofs were originally the hairy part of a coconut tree, but due to
worries of fire and modern access to tin, tin is the way to go now!

The stone chairs, where Batak tribes met to discuss important things, such as punishments for law-breakers.
The Batak used to be cannibals in times of war, but that practice has long stopped.

 The nightlife at Tuk-Tuk was, well, rather scarce! Juan our hostel owner (pictured below), recommended we go to Roy's Pub. After an amazing dinner of pizza, we headed over, only to find we were some of the first people there (trend in my life anytime I go out...why don't people arrive until like 11 PM? I am TIRED by then!) Anyways, the local band was great, taking our Journey and Bob Marley song requests and singing with such gusto that we simply had to dance a bit! We also played pool, which is probably a very un-ladylike thing to do in our Muslim communities, so it made our pool-playing time here even better!

Our hostel owner, Juan, who was a hoot! 

From naughty to nice

Happy New Year! Blog posts to come about my trips to Sumatra and Singapore, I promise! 

Each semester we have a PC report we must do, and one component of it is "Share Your Story." In this section, we reflect on a challenge we had, how we addressed it, and what the results were. Admittedly, I thought there'd be more of these inspiring stories when I joined Peace Corps, yet not too many pop to mind. Perhaps with some more reflecting...??? Either way, this story makes me grin just thinking about these guys!

 January 2013, reflecting on semester one of teaching in Indonesia:

When I first arrived at my school and began teaching, I immediately noticed the lack of discipline and consequence for students, namely boys, who did not attend school. Even when they do attend, these boys in class 10-2 were disengaged and sleepy. They were frequently absent and there appeared to be virtually no way to get them to come. Parents didn't seem to offer punishment at home for those who didn't go to school (granted, my sample size is about 3, but of the many more that are frequently absent, I bet their situation is the same), and the school certainly didn't threaten them with any failing grades. This is the land where everyone passes, hooray! As an outsider whose focus is sustainability and community integration, there is not much I perceived I could do by way of issuing consequences that would a) have a lasting effect after I leave or b) be culturally relevant (like detention...it just doesn't exist at my school).

Thus, my counterpart Bu Umi and I focused on what we did have the power to do- encourage and empower! We began to very frequently engage and interact with the boys who were often absent, reinforcing that we valued their presence and participation when they were in class. When they answered questions, I responded with a goofy grin and a handshake or high five, which in turn was met with the whole class cheering. Bu Umi spent more time helping these boys one-on-one when it was independent work time.

The results are in, and this method of encouraging and empowering has been perhaps my biggest personal success as a teacher! Many of the "naughty boys" from class 10-2 now attend class every day and participate. Granted, it is rather exhausting to keep them engaged, because the material must not be too hard but still fast-paced to keep their attention. But virtually all of their grades have gone up, they are much more respectful, and try to do their work during independent work time. Bu Umi and I certainly cannot take all the credit for this change, as it namely comes from the boys themselves. Yet I still could not be more proud of them for the way they have begun to take their schoolwork seriously. All it took from Bu Umi and I was persistently giving them the message that we believe in them, gave them plenty of opportunities to try, and showed them that we respect and care about them. It is not too often in my young age that I have been in a position to be so proud of someone I want to cry, but Nahru, Nanang, Fais, Fanani, Ahmad and Amrul  have put me in that position, and I coudn't be happier!

Naughty boys from IPS-I who are, well, still naughty at this point. But I didn't have any pictures of the no-longer-naughty boys from class 10-2...

It's hard to remember sometimes, but even the murid yang paling nakal (the naughtiest student) is gifted in so many ways that you don't always get to see in the classroom. This guy can's speak a lick of English after 11 years in school, learning English every year, mind you, but he's an amazing musician. 

...And this is where the boys are supposed to be practicing what to do in Mecca, though it obviously shouldn't involve a blanket on one's head...

SHOCKER! (and a semester test for you!)

I have been in Indonesia about 8 1/2 months now, and there are some things that began as a shocker every time they happened or every time I saw them.

I take it as a sign of cultural adaptation that I no longer am (too) shocked by some of the strange things that happen. If there is indeed something utterly odd, usually I just chuckle to myself and say, "Oh, Indonesia!"

Enjoy the memories of my weird encounters of 2012!

Seeing monkeys in random places...

Cow skin that appears in my food...which I casually do not eat. Ever. 

Way too much attention that appears at unexpected times...

Monster tall.

Street musicians that wear Teletubbies outfits. The first time I saw this I was blow away!
Teletubbies in Indonesia? But now I've learned it's the most popular (read: scary-looking)
street musician costume in my area...

Huge piles of shoes everywhere to sort through to recycle.
I've since learned that this is unique to my village, awesome. 

Inappropriate shirts worn by children. I also saw one that a Muslim girl was wearing that said
something about drinking and being merry. That one clearly wasn't translated for her...

Indonesia: totally normal to wear masks out when in transit. I'd personally go for gloves
 if I was gonna cover up, cause people here do not wash their hands often enough...

Men showing affection by touching. Definitely different than in the US, where
masculinity is often associated with not touching anyone other than a high-five or bro-hug.

Personal grooming in public is more normal than in the US. My neighbor was trimming
 her eyebrows on her front porch while chatting to me a few days ago. 

Mass amounts of food (usually) no longer leave me in awe of how much time that took to cook,
cause food in these amounts are just cropping up everywhere!

My friend Rois (biggest xenophile I've ever met!) frequently brings me foreigners to meet, because why would I not want to meet other random white people?? Usually it's harmless, but it's still a little weird, let's be honest!

Garbage strewn everywhere, yuck! I still have yet to throw anything away casually
on the ground, and here's to another year of keeping it that way! 

The living room becomes a garage at night...or 24/7!

Ants are all over the place, gross! I can't say that I totally am used to these guys
 all over, but I've learned preemptive measures to avoid them visiting! 

And for kicks, here is a semester one test for you (all of the students from elementary school to high school test every day for about 7 school days), based on the answers my students gave on their tests! Be it noted that my test was not in this format, nor was it 5 random questions. These are just random gems from a bunch of different places!

A: General review

They are to be going is fruit rais. [Just take a sec to try to figure that one out. Answer is at the bottom of this post...]

That is clock past 9. [It is 8:45. Seems we'll have to work on time again...]

B: How are you?

I am supper.         [Really, you = dinner?? I think you meant "I am super."]

I am borken heat.        [Borken heat? Wow, it really is a bad day if you are borken heat. Translation: I am broken-hearted." Whoever taught my students "broken-hearted" is my enemy, because that's all they resort to when I ask them how they are. Including the 14, 15 and 16 year old boys: "Miss, I broken heart!"

He is not bed.    ["I am not bad."But apparently everyone here feels "bed" and sleeps in a "badroom." ]

C: What do you want to do after you graduate?

I want to nurse. [Well that is dead honest. Usually we say, "I want to have children" but whatever works! Haha, but really, she wants to become a nurse.] 

I am be an architecture. [Some days I feel like I'd rather be a building, too, dear student. But I think you really want to be an architect.]

I want to doctor. [Again, working on the difference between the noun and verb, here!]

D: Introduction

I am 7.  [If you are 7 you are a brilliant kid because you are a 10th grader. What you really mean is, "I am the 7th child in my family."]

Two brothers want two sisters. [Hopefully those two brothers "want" two sisters from a non-related family, otherwise that's a genetically questionable sentence, cher student! The real answer? "I have two brothers and two sisters."] 

E: How does she feel? 

She is board.   [She is bored. That's pretty close, correct when you pronounce it, anyways!]

She is bork.    [She is bored. What the heck is bork!? I don't know, but I like it.] 

She is boark.   [She is bored.] 

The answer to that mystery sentence from part A? "They are going to eat fried rice." 

We Are The Light of the World

I am so thankful that my life is never short of inspirational people who continue to challenge and inspire me and equip me to better serve those around me.

                                                                         ~  ~  ~

In a pleasantly-unexpected email, I was invited to read Kathryn’s new “Blessings Blog,” in which she intentionally takes time out of each day to reflect on what she is thankful for. She hits the nail on the head in that we are abundantly blessed each and every day despite our shortcomings. I so appreciate her efforts to bring to light the little things people take for granted, when truly we believe all those little good things come from God.

                                                                         ~  ~  ~

During IST I was met with some harsh criticism on my character that was both humbling and hurtful. The important thing was that I left the situation feeling that I learned how I could improve my character. 

This being said, in the midst of being taught this lesson, I slipped into my old habit and wrote an email that I’m not proud of (prompted by frustration at our differences) to some of my siblings. After hitting send, I was hit with that sick feeling of, “What have you done? That was a terrible thing to say.” I couldn’t take back what I’d said, so I was left to wait in anxiety of how they’d respond.

My brother’s response to my email was met with tears of thankfulness that he was compassionate and so open in his response to me. I still maintain today that I didn’t deserve such a kind email after what I said, and I will not soon forget the things I continue from people who I don’t normally go to for deep conversations. If you are reading this, Brian, know that that email has still left a big impression on me. 

                                                                         ~  ~  ~

Yesterday a dialogue was started on our PC Indonesia FB group about calling ourselves “volunteers” if we still make decent money. Without going into the details here, my friend Joe advocates that we abandon this title. In our dialogue, he said two things that struck me: “I try to do my best to read the perspective of the poor and pass it on.”

Joe also shared with me something his professor said: “People will hate you for these opinions, but people who matter continue to starve if these opinions go unheard.”

At first I read this as, “the people who will listen need to hear these opinions so they are motivated to do more.” Yet when I read it again, I realized the other, perhaps more important meaning: “the people who we are called to serve need us to speak out with them even if others don't like what we advocate for.”

Joe did go to a Catholic university, so it wouldn’t surprise me if his professor was drawing from Jesus’ teaching about being hated for one’s revolutionary opinions:

 “You will be hated by all because of my name.” Matt 10:22

“You will be hated by all nations because of my name.” Matt 24:9

But what Jesus is teaching and what Joe is practicing is this- it doesn’t matter what other people think. As Dr. Seuss said, “Those that mind don't matter and those that matter don't mind.” Sorry, Dr. S, but I’d have to disagree that people who oppose your viewpoints don’t matter, but the point is to follow your heart if you know that what you are doing is serving a greater good and bringing about truth in the world.

Joe is constantly reflecting on some really awesome questions, I encourage you to look at his blog, "Thoughts from Indonesia." 

                                                                         ~  ~  ~

The last person I want to give thanks for today is someone that I actually don’t know. "Kenny's Russian friend" did something I wish I had the courage to do. Instead of walking past the person who was sitting in the subway tunnel asking for money, Kenny’s friend stopped to talk to the person. She wanted to know about this person and give the person her time and attention, something that this person usually got from no one. I don’t know if Kenny’s friend gave the person something to eat or drink or money or just talked. At the very least, this young woman recognized this person’s humanity in a way that most people didn’t.

“Whatever you did for the least of these you did for me.” Matt 25:40

I am often torn when I see a person asking for money, something that is very frequent here in Indonesia. 

My American-ness tells me, “This is an able-bodied young person who is old enough and capable of working. Why is he playing a guitar in the middle of the road and soliciting money from passerby who don’t enjoy his 3-stringed, usually less-than-great music anyways?? We have to show him tough love and not give him anything so he finds some legitimate work to do.” 

My Christian-ness tells me, “Lend expecting nothing back.” Luke 6:35 

What to do?

Kenny’s friend would probably ask the person to sit by her on the bus and talk to her. I continue to be inspired by this story when I recall it. Like Kenny's friend,  How can I live as an extreme example of Jesus’ love? Right now, I do not give as freely as I should or could.

                                                                         ~  ~  ~

All this being said, I am doing my best to be a positive influence to the people around me. Granted, they don’t know that my motivation comes from my Christian faith nor do they need to because they’d freak out and think I’m trying to convert them (which is definitely not the case! If anything, they're trying to convert me!) In my eyes, the important thing is the intention in my heart. Kathryn’s thanksgiving reflections, Brian’s compassion, Joe’s thoughtfulness, and Kenny’s friend’s bravery stand as examples of how I can better serve the people around me with a more pure heart.

                                                                          ~  ~  ~

This song has been a joy to listen to these last few days. It is yet another reminder to be a better person because I stand for so much more than just myself. I will be seeing Kari Jobe when I go to the Hillsong Conference in July in Sydney! Please watch the YouTube video, too, for a beautiful example of someone whose style of worship is so pure. 

Kari Jobe

Her song is related to Matt 5:14, 16, "You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden...so you light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly [God]." 

"We are the light of the world"does not mean that we are the best and brightest, it simply means that we know the truth about how awesome God is and we were made to let that truth shine. In everything we do and say, we are to reflect the love we've been given. 

Admittedly, I often fall short. Fortunately, I am given a new chance each day and forgiven so frequently by everyone around me. 

"We Are" by Kari Jobe      

We are the light of the world,

We are the city on the hill.

We are the light of the world,

And we gotta, we gotta, we gotta let the light shine.

We are the light, we are the light, we are the light,

So let your light shine brighter.

A small task made BESAR (big)!

Oh man! Sometimes the simplest things in Indonesia leaves one pulling out her hair! Take buying tickets for my flight from Medan, Sumatra to Lake Toba. I'm leaving in 4 weeks for my Medan-Lake Toba-Bukit Lawang National Park-Singapore 2 week adventure!!! WOOOOOOO!

This is the world's scariest small plane I will fly in in 4 weeks. Am I freaking out already? Yes. Woud Mom die if she had to get on this plane? Yes. Might I die from fright...yes. I may ask Dr. L for some sedatives just in case!!! But the perk is that we're flying through/above mountains that are guaranteed beautiful, if not the most scary and stressful $75 round trip of my life. 

Little task made larger problem #1:

So I wanted to buy these world's scariest plane (only according to me and probably mom) tickets like a month ago. The first time I tried, the internet wasn't working. The second time, couldn't pay because my bank thought someone was stealing my money. The third time I tried, the lady from the place booked for me, but then I was informed after the fact that I had to pay within 24 hours at the bank, and I didn't make it because I read the email 12 hours later and then missed the cut because I was teaching. Frustrating.

So today was the day it was gonna happen! I had already withdrawn 1,500,000 Rp (150 USD) for my ticket and Britteney's. I didn't have to teach until 10:15. I woke up at 6. I booked the tickets by 6:30. I called the company to confirm that I had to pay at my local bank, not a ticket counter in a big city (this was done in Bahasa Indonesia, success!!). And then I saw it. The cut off time this time was two hours instead of 24 horus. FOR GOSH SAKES, SUSI AIR! Throw me a bone! (Julia Zwak, I expect a good lie about where that phrase came from, please!)

So with my cut off time 8:30 AM, I planned to leave at 7:30 to get to the bank at 8 because it doesn't even open til 8, so really Susi Air was giving me a half hour time frame! 7:15 rolls around and crap! I still gotta make a worksheet before I go so I can photo copy it! 7:45 AM OMG! I run downstairs and breeze pass my host mom. I have 45 minutes to bike 4 km (2 miles, but a bumpy road, so usually about 25-30 minutes) and then wait for my number to be called at the bank. I made it to the bank in 20 minutes flat and ran in. Alas, sweaty and puffing I passed the security guard that I thought was cute. (But then I got a better look and he's probably like 35 and that's a little old!) I have 15 minutes to make this transaction happen. But I look around and see that is not gonna happen. Who knew the bank in my little town would be so hopping at 8 AM. Well, I guess these people have been up since like 4:30 for morning prayer, so...

Incapable of figuring out how to take a number for waiting in line, the bank lady helps me. Then I pick up the phone again to call and plead with Susi Air to extend my time frame. The man on the other end of the phone was like, lady, just text me your confirmation number and I pleaded, let me try once more! Almost 10 minutes later and me trying again and again to correctly pronounce my confirmation number (Y like "ya," W like "watermelon," Z like, well, Z...), I get my time extended. The Indonesian speaking man was rattling off "Alpha" "Beta" "Yankee" code names for the letters, but I was not that fluent in secret military speak.

Get off the phone, handsome but too-old-for-me security guard knows that I'm flustered and confused. Fills out my transfer money sheet for me. SUCCESS!

Off to get my bike handlebars adjusted. Done in 7 minutes flat. MIRACLE.

Little task made larger problem #2:

Now to copy my worksheet. I go to the toko to copy it. Can't do it ibu (ma'am) (darn it, do I look like a ma'am??). You have to go to the warnet (internet cafe) first to print a copy of the worksheet from your flashdrive. So I go to the warnet 100 meters away (at least it's close). Print. Return to the copy place and get my copies.

Visit the local little (shady) hospital to try to meet the dentist so I can get my teeth cleaned. But I want to meet the person first to judge how legit this place is. I remembered Joe G's experience with PC in Guatemala and how he was Med Evac'ed for some strange dental things...but alas, I have to teach in 45 minutes now and I can't wait for dokter gigi (dentist) any longer. Another day, bu!

Return to school and teach. Almost fall asleep standing in class because MY COUNTERPART IS THE MOST BORING TEACHER OF MY LIFE. But I had to wait my turn for teaching, and I did it without freaking out, so I was as patient as a god today, some applause, please!

Plan a lesson with my other awesome counterpart.

Home to workout, only to remember my 13-year old host brother left the room in front of mine a disaster when he came back for 4 days from his boarding house, so instead I have to clean up his mess.

Small task made bigger problem #3:

Procuring turkeys for PCVs Thanksgiving on Saturday.
Option #1: Order two 13-lb turkeys for $25 USD a piece at a warehouse (Bahasa Indonesia over the phone again...exhausting!). Downside: Warehouse is located far from most stuff in Surabaya; we'd have to pick it up on Thursday so it can defrost, I can't get there until Friday afternoon; my friend who works at the PC office could get it but Thursday is Thanksgiving so she's off.

Option #2: More expensive turkey (one 13-lb turkey $36 USD) at a grocery store close to the PC office, they will defrost it for us and we can get it Friday. Order 2 over the phone again in Bahasa Indonesia.

Consult teman turkey/team turkey Brian, who said let's do the cheap way, the PC staff member agreed to do it. AND WHAT A SAINT SHE IS!!!

So now I have 4 turkeys, 2 of which will be cancelled tomorrow lest I turn into a turkey!!!

Turning into a turkey? It's happened before. 

Moral of the story? Whether you want to go to the bank to pay a fee, photo copy so worksheets, or call for help over the phone (using Bahasa Indonesia, AHHHH!), little things here sometimes take a lot of effort. I long for the simplicity of running errands in the US!!! But today, I was totally calm, cool and collected..Not to mention I miraculously accomplished so much in one day. Usually the way things work here, I could have accomplished one of the above errands on a given day. Today's efficiency was a gift!!!!!

Celebrations

My village is never short of celebrations and/or gatherings. You gather to pray if: someone dies, someone is born, someone is getting married, someone is going on the hajj, someone got back from the hajj, it is someone’s birthday (though last week was the first Indonesian birthday party I’d heard of), for the weekly prayer gathering time, for a holiday, for someone’s new house, for a new musholla (small mosque) opening…you get the point!

Gosh darn it, I hope I look that regal on my wedding day!

                                              

The process of these gatherings is always the same…

Nurul and THE SPEAKERS. Small lady, big sound!

Prep:

- Big speakers (usually borrowed from my rich host family) are turned up to full-blast so any music or speaking or reciting Al Qur’an that is done automatically makes me want to scream, “Doesn’t that hurt your ears!? And it doesn’t even sound good!”

Yupi, a distant relative who love to give me free salak and
oranges at the pasar. Prepping the take-home boxes for her
niece's wedding with over 250 guests...

- Cooking for mass quantities of guests for at least 5 hours (usually more like 10+ hours) before guests come. Add hours and days accordingly based on guest size (weddings have over 300+ guests, all of whom eat there and then take food home…)

- Move furniture away and put down rugs that the guests will sit on.

- Slap on your nicer hijab at the last minute so you look pr woman esentable to guests!

For my friend Indah's wedding, I was strategically
placed at the very front of the receiving line. To flaunt
the white lady or so the Indonesian girls wouldn't have
to stand in the sun and get darker?? Hard to say. But the
result? I was in the sun for only like 15 minutes and the
sun burnt me through the mesh holes of the kebaya...an
interesting tan, to say the least! 

The Event

- Welcome guests by extending your hand. The guest will take it and not shake it like we do in the US, but just give it a quick grasp. Some people, often men (maybe because I’m a?), don’t even really squeeze your hand, they just do an open palm touch, like holding hands with a teenage boy during the Our Father at church situation. If the guest is younger than you or you are important for some reason (old, rich, teacher, respected, etc), the guest will bring the host’s hand to the guest’s face, lips, or forehead. This is called “salim” and most children (as young as possible through adult children) will do it every day with their parents when they leave the house to go to school or work. Then the newcomer will proceed to shake everyone else’s hand and I’m not kidding you even if there are like 40 people crammed into one prayer circle I am prodded to shake everyone’s hand. Maybe it’s cause I’m a random white lady and people want a good look at me? Cause I’ve definitely seen other people just shake a few hands and then sit down. 

The mysterious food baskets!!

- At some of these events, women come with baskets of food. At first, I was confused: “How is one family gonna eat 100 baskets of food from the guests!?” Then I asked about this and learned that the women all bake and bring snacks, and when it is time to go, the hostess distributes the snacks into take-home bags, so really it’s like a cookie-exchange! You come with your cakes and you leave with a couple of other ladies’ treats!

- Guests will sit down and usually, if there is praying, that happens first, and usually just a few minutes. Then the guests are forced to eat and it doesn’t matter if you just ate at 5 other homes, you better eat or people will be upset. I have learned to plan for this and purposely do not eat beforehand!

I told you, this food prep is serious business! (Wedding) 

Vats of food!! (House warming)

Host brother's 13th birthday party. 

   

The take-home food bags ready to go!

- After you eat, and sometimes before you are even done, the host will hand you your second meal to go, all wrapped up and ready for the motorcycle ride (or bike ride!) home.

- Guests immediately leave, after shaking everyone’d hand on the way out. If I’m lucky, I leave, too. The whole process is relatively painless and usually happens in under a half hour. But sometimes I get stuck because I’m the lone white lady who “bisa Bahasa Indonesia?!” (can speak Indonesian) so the trapped bule (foreigner) proceeds to answer questions for a while, despite sweating like a hunting caveman and being tired. 

Fahris' 13th! 

First birthday party he's ever had...I helped him with the decorations, all of which
the guests (13 and 14 year old neighbors) found to be very odd decorations! And
check out those rugs to sit on!!!

Effie as the emcee...hilarious! 

 

And for some good measure, the day I taught about Thanksgiving in English Club. Don't let these awesome pictures fool you, as a whole it could have been 100x  more fun and engaging. I lectured for a long time about the Native Americans and English and how it was a similar take-over with the Dutch and Indonesian ethnic groups. Many different ethnic groups get a label slapped on them, like the Lakota, Dakota and Cherokee become Native Americans and the Javanese, Sundanese, and Dayaks become Indonesians Also, I really tried to push the idea that the Europeans were jerks to the Native Americans, thought not sure how well that got across...anyways, then I ended with a quick story about how in the beginning, the Native Americans helped the Europeans and then had a big meal together, thanksgiving, before sh*t went down and the Europeans turned bad. I may have thrown out the word genocide, but clarified that this genocide was manifest differently than others. Land, food, and other essentials were taking away so Native Americans had no chance, while in other countries with genocide people were systematically hunted down and killed. (Though some battles between Europeans and Native Americans aimed to do that, too. And I'm also not very educated on the whole history of Native Americans versus Europeans, so in this case Native Americans very well could have also been systematically hunted down and killed, too). It's complicated and a crappy situation that may have left my students really, really confused now that I think about it, because why would we be celebrating this terrible relationship between the Native Americans and Europeans? I hope I was clear that the celebration happened first, then all the bad stuff...

  

Post Miss-Sarah lecture, we had like 5 minutes to make hand turkeys or the famous (maybe infamous, it took sooooo long!) turkey boxes I made for teacher's appreciation in high school.

   

Kris, "I am thankful that I got a present."

Chindy, "thankful for enough money." (I may have prompted that one!) 

A new month and praying for a fresh start...

The last 2 weeks have been a little rough, to be honest. There were some harsh judgments of my character, judgments by me on others’ characters, and a severe lack of progress at school. 

October finished harshly. 

I am learning to be patient, something at which I have never been good. I am learning to take time before responding to a stressful situation. Bart, an ID-4 who has been here for 2 1/2 years now (CRAZY, MAN!) calls it "5 F-ing Hours." No matter how much you want to scream at someone for what is going on, he waits "5 F-ing Hours" to respond, so he has had time to cool down. Now for those who know me well, 5 hours would be like 5 days in my world. I hate conflict so much, I can last about 5 minutes. So Bart's 5 hours is about 30-60 minutes in my world. But biting my tongue for those 30-60 minutes the last few weeks (and even drafting emails before sending them so I can reflect on what I'm about to say!) has been such a good learning experience. I have avoided a lot of drama (albeit there still WAS a lot of drama), managed to remain composed in a society were that composition is of upmost importance, and, frankly, I have managed not to openly yell at anyone...though today's IPS-I (social science class) got a stern, "Wow, we learned this for one day and you practiced it and still no one can say one sentence?! Wow." I have no problem showing disappointment. 

So needless to say, all this drama has me asking, "It is worth me being here?" "How much difference have I made?" "How much difference can I really make?" 

I am tired of being called fat. I am weary from being reminded how different I am, I have been brought to tears at the lack of understanding of the language around me, and I am frustrated from pouring my heart and soul into teaching and cultural integration only to have few people seem to recognize how hard it can be for a lone American here.

Last night at my church’s worship was the first time I almost broke down here. There is something about worship that allows your heart to finally get a word in and you are finally in tune with your emotions rather than lost in your thoughts. In that moment, I realized how much I miss home. I miss worshipping in my language. I miss chatting with my friends and it being effortless. I miss having people I love to comfort me when I am sad and lonely. I miss being able to call people up at a moment’s notice when I need them. I miss hard work being recognized. I miss simple things, like not having to boil water before drinking it, eating food that I like, not having to brave the storm of 15 little kids yelling at me until I say hello as I just try to make my way to the shower during their tutoring time.

As hard as these 2 weeks have been, I try my best to stop and put it all into perspective. I was sent here and I have a purpose. I am learning so much about myself, my culture, my faith. I am here for a reason, even if that has not been revealed to me yet.

Despite all of the lonely, tough times...

here are the reasons I remain hopeful and trusting: