NEWSLETTER: June 2017

30 June 2017: Not much new, except health news....

Where to start??? Should I start with June first? It was a typical Thursday morning. I was checking email quite early to see if anyone had read last month's newsletter yet and then.... Just kidding. I'm not going to recap the month like that. It's been a unique month.  I'd say that there are two things that dominate my memory of this month: business and sickness. Interestingly enough, the two are probably related. Because I have been unwell and missed some days working, it makes me feel busy and behind in my tasks. A glance at the office life:  We are having a conference in August for our entire region and I've been helping with that. I'm also still learning about my new role as personnel coordinator. Although, I've had the title for just over a month now, even today something new came up. Earlier this week I was telling a friend that I find it a little easier to manage if I put my conference "hat" on at times and other times put a personnel "hat" on to help me focus. I still absolutely love those that I work with here. It is such a blessing to have people to look forward to interacting with as we all seek to further the Kingdom with our own unique skills. A glance at personal life:  Just a day shy of halfway through the month I went to the airport with a group of friends. However, one of us actually had an itinerary and the rest returned home. The life of a missionary truly has revolving doors around every corner. I had to say see you later to one of my closest and most amazing friends here in Kampala and it was difficult to say the least. She'll be back in January though! I have been blessed to spend time with new people and start some new friendships. It'll be exciting as those new friendships grow. I continue to love my church family here and the group of ladies that first introduced me to that body of believers. I didn't cook much in the states (for various reasons, but usually because amazing roommates cooked already)....so I still feel very accomplished when kitchen adventures are successful. A glance at health:  I've actually been unwell for a little while. Being in the large, capitol city of Kampala, there is ample healthcare available. And there has also been ample friends available to help in so many ways including: the ones that can give me the right look to convince me to go to the doctor, the ones that bring me food, and the ones that make me laugh are always not too far way. The conclusion is that I probably had a viral infection and it settled in my chest. Unfortunately, it settled in a way that caused some minor irritation near my heart. There's no quick fix but it is simple. So with enough time, rest, and consistent medicine, I'll heal. I've spent some days working from home (or friend's homes) to allow a little more fluid schedule and encourage the resting aspect.

TOP PICTURE: a flower after some rain on the office compound It seemed odd not to do any pictures so just the one. But if I had included pictures it might have been.... -pictures of coffee I'm drinking. There were two times this month when someone [very unexpectedly] made me some coffee. And apparently that's one way to make me smile among other things once the caffeine hits my veins. -pictures of the whiteboard in my office....I spent some time to clean it really well and haven't put information back on it yet. But some of my coworkers keep drawing or writing on it and that's way more exciting. -picture of gluten free tortillas that I found at a market here as well as pictures of the amazing creations I made with them -pictures of my friends pretending to read and analyze my results when I went to the doctor -pictures of the flowers growing on the balcony or the ones I bought for the table and never figured out what kind they are -pictures of my computer at home and friends homes as I worked in different places recently Click HERE and PRAY for the unreached of Africa!!! Prayer Requests:  improved, continued, and good health including a malaria-free July which I can't say about the last two years. pray for the short term program happening now in Uganda as 9 guys dive deep into cross cultural living and learning about missions pray for rest and encouragement for my friends that have had some stress filled days in recent weeks pray that I find joy in the small things like when a friend brought me a beautiful bunch of little bananas that were just such a perfect, happy, yellow (also another picture I could have included) pray for acceptance and thankfulness when my friends want to help and I just want to claim some independence again