First week's work and how to take a shower in 28 steps

Every morning this week we have started fairly early. This is mostly because of a (annoying doesn’t begin to describe it) rooster who decides to start its cock-a-doodle-doo at 2:40am or 4am or whenever it wants. Then there are the church bells that give rhythm to the village, getting them up at 5:40am, a snooze reminder at 6am, and a warning at 6:15am, and then to work at 7am. Sydney has been waking up around 6:30am. By this time, it is very light outside. Being 4 degrees south of the equator, we have a 12 hour day year-round from approx 6 to 6. The internet has been working quite well during the early morning hours. So between that and getting breakfast ready and having personal time with the Lord, it is soon the hour when people come in a stream to the house. Some are looking for a job, others are selling pineapples, peanuts, eggs, passion fruit, bananas, freshly-caught fish, etc. It is the market right at our doorstep! If only they would come after breakfast instead of, usually, exactly when we are sitting down or starting to eat.

Sydney has been taking morning naps, and during this time, Ryan and I have been going up to our house to unpack and arrange the house. We had a carpenter come to replace a ceiling tile, an electrician to help Ryan work on electricity, etc. There have been definite ups and downs during this process. I would describe it like replacing the belt on a vacuum. Imagine you are taking it apart and putting it back together, only the instruction manual has been lost. So you fiddle and try, you ask around, and maybe you look up something on the internet. Once you’ve found the correct order to remove panels, the correct flat-head screwdriver with which to unclip the latch, and the plastic piece that fell on the floor, it seems like a relatively easy process. The next time you have to replace the belt, it only takes a short time. Now, imagine doing this kind of process for every aspect of life: how to get clean water, how to make the electricity work, how and who to hire for house-help, how to get internet, where to put garbage, how to get more phone minutes, how to get food, how to cook food, how to greet people on the path. Yes, we have to try and fail, ask other missionaries or Congolese, sometimes look up solutions on the internet if it works, text a friend in Kinshasa.

As the number of unknowns has decreased this week, so has the amount of stress related to lack of knowledge of expectation or lack of control. At times, it seems like nothing is working and we are so frustrated. For example, we are unable to locate some of our shipment, and our pack n play was a crucial part of this. The difficulty of helping Sydney to take a good nap spills out into the day, even though we, thankfully, have the help of Nancy and Megan to watch her while we work. Secondly, on the first day of work at our house, my Chacos broke. Yes, the sandals that have a lifetime warranty and are supposed to be the best thing since sliced bread. Then one evening we spent 3 hours trying to upload one or two pictures to attach to an email. These are some of the down moments.

At other times, there are incredibly encouraging moments. For example, we found out the charger/inverter at our house will likely last for the interim until our 6-month delayed solar energy system hopefully arrives. We look around at our house and marvel at how much great wooden furniture is still relatively intact compared to the damage which could have been done over the last 15 years by termites. We enjoy the newly-tiled floor, take a swim in the refreshing water of the Kwilu River, find an infant life-vest that fits Sydney perfectly, just sitting in the bottom of a drawer, and I could go on. I think I will. This is the biggest house we have lived in since we got married almost 7 years ago. When I was feeling especially lonely for friends we just left in France, I got a text from one that is now living in Kinshasa that she’d be able to loan us a pack n play until we find a solution for sleep for Sydney. When I was feeling out of touch with the reason why we came and had some anxiety about starting back at the hospital after a year out of medicine, I met one of the interns while walking home and his enthusiasm and thankfulness that we had come to teach them was so very uplifting and encouraging, just when I needed it. There have been incredible answers to specific prayer requests.

Let me end this blog post by describing how one might take a shower here. Remember the vacuum analogy as you read this.

28 Steps to taking a Shower in Vanga

1. Decide you stink, or are hot, or both
2. Turn on the faucet in the bathtub to determine water pressure- it is dribbling
3. Decide to use the camp shower
4. Find camp shower in boxes that need to be unpacked
5. Fiddle with camp shower for a few minutes
6. Ask husband to come help you know how to fill it- he quickly shows you how to unhook and open the top
7. Start filling the 4 gallon bag
8. Wait because it takes awhile with the dribbling.
9. Spend a few minutes closing and rehooking the bag, not quite knowing the process because your husband unhooked it so quickly
10. Stand up with the quite heavy bag of water, heave it out of the bathtub with the intention to put it outside to heat up in the sun
11. Realize that the top just unhooked and you have just spilled 2 gallons of water on the floor
12. Husband is quickly back in the bathroom, bringing good towels
13. Ask husband to bring bad towels as the floor is dusty and now muddy
14. Rehook the camp shower, better this time, and place gingerly back in the bathtub in case of further spill
15. Help husband mop up the 2 gallons of water with bad towels and wring them into the tub
16. Finally, gingerly, take the camp shower with now 2/4 gallons of water outside and into the sun
17. Wait at least 2 hours for the sun to heat up the water
18. Realize it is too late in the day and the shower will have to wait
19. Overnight, the guard is terrified of the mystery black blob in the middle of the patio, and does extra surveillance (he told us today J )
20. Next day, after working up a sweat and allowing time for the sun to reheat the water, decide it is now time for a shower.
21. Gingerly take the camp shower inside
22. Realize the hook above the bathtub is too tall and call husband over
23. Husband realizes the shower nozzle wasn’t closed as it sprays him as he is hanging the camp shower. He shows you how to close it
24. Rinse the tub as it is muddy from husband’s shoes
25. Chase and kill a spider which had taken residence in the tub since yesterday
26. Get in and use the cold water to wash muddy feet
27. Open the shower nozzle and take a warm shower with water pressure!!
28. Praise the Lord for a warm shower, for a husband who insisted on making what seemed like a silly purchase at REI over a year ago, and for being clean and cooled off. J

And that is how it really happened. It was one of the best showers I have ever had.