It's been a MONTH?!

Sunday, 20 September 2009, 11:30pm in TARAZ:

Aite (said “ight” like in might) Celebrations!

WHAT A LONG DAY! Today is Aite, which marks the end of R@madan, the holy month for Mus1!ms. It has been quiet around Taraz since we arrived, as during R@madan, no Mus1!m eats between sunrise and sunset. The cafes havebeen empty and the nightlife has been lacking…

Today, we were invited to a Mus1!m friend’s house, where he and his family were celebrating Aite together. We celebrated with them, and were served some CRAZY Dungan national food (which included, mind you, my own bowl of meat, bones, and organs…set right in front of me

for my consumption. I said I was a vegetarian. That’s not completely true. And, I know I can’t avoid this animal forever (literally), I decided to avoid it for one more day.)

After dinner, Ruslan took us to see the house that he’s building for him and his younger children to move into when his oldest reaches the age at which he’ll inheret the house they’re currently in. The new house is beautiful, made completely of brick, and is set in the quaint Kazakh countryside. Even though we were full of only G-d knows what, the little neighbor came over and invited us into her home to celebrate Aite with her and her family. Of course, we accepted. It was wonderful to learn more about this holiday, about these Isl@mic practices, and about the culture and history of a country we now call home.The new house is beautiful, made completely of brick, and is set in the quaint Kazakh countryside. Even though we were full of only G-d knows what, the little neighbor came over and invited us into her home to celebrate Aite with her and her family. Of course, we accepted. It was wonderful to learn more about this holiday, about these Isl@mic practices, and about the culture and history of a country we now call home.

There is so much life in Ruslan and his family, and my heart aches for them to find the truth. We talked freely about our Father, and he listened with an open heart. HE is at work in Ruslan’s family. Please, join me in lifting up more open doors in this relationship.

After celebrating Aite with 2 families, we went to a Kazakh “Club”, and were able to fellowship with nationals with whom we are “like-minded”—this was incredible! We may never get to fellowship with them again, because of the unwanted gov’t attention we draw, but being with them and experiencing their passion was overwhelming, especially given that we had just come from Mus1!m Aite celebrations. HE is SO GOOD and is at work in KZ!

Thursday, 24 September 2009, 1:25pm in MIRKE:

I’m writing this update between classes I’m teaching at a sister school with Interlingua, in a village called Mirke (“Meerkaye”). This morning I taught

an eager group of 7-10 year old students. Have I mentioned I LOVE teaching? Because I do. First, I taught them the Hokey-Pokey, and then I taught them the Chicken Dance. I modified them both slightly to make them way more fun, and had a blast my self. Then, I led a few games that focused on simple

statements such as “My favorite color is” and “I like” and “I have never” etc. These children are so precious. Is this maybe, just maybe, where I’m supposed to be for a while?

Saturday, 26 September 2009, 8:40 in KORDAI:

We were picked up this morning at 3:45 am, and all 7 of us crammed into a car that wasn’t exactly huge. It was a six-hour drive over roads that called for a redefinition of “motion sickness.” It was truly the bumpiest ride I’ve ever taken (it didn’t help that I was in the very back corner of the vehicle), all the way through a downpour.We’re on our way home from the Dungan Village of Kordai (“cord-aye”). We were invited by our friend Ruslan, who is the vice-president of the Dungan Association. The Dungan people are beautiful people who have a very strong heritage in Kazakhstan, as well as a few other parts of Central Asia. They came from China, colliding with Arabic forces in Kazakstan. What started with a million people finished with only 3,000. The Dungan are the anscestors of these people—their grandfathers are Arab, their grandmothers are Chinese. They’re very devout Mus1!ms, and THEY ARE BEAUTIFUL.

I’ve enjoyed all of the time that I’ve gotten to spend with Ruslan. He reminds me SO much of my own dad back home—he’s tall, kind, gentle, and think he’s way funnier than he actually is. (Sorry, Dad, but you know it’s true.) He’s smart and enjoyed intellectual conversation as far as his English speaking skills will allow. He’s truly one of a kind, and his heart is open and I KNOW he’s searching. Please keep him in your thoughts…

We spent the day donning our head coverings, hanging out in the house of the President of the Dungan association. Since there was a lot of Koran reading happening, the women sat in a different house than the men, and it was wonderful to get to know some of the Dungan women. And with the women? Of course, the little ones. I held babies, I chased toddlers, I talked with children, and I loved every minute of it.

The food was pretty good. I did eat some mutton/mutton bones/intestine-cut-to-look-like-spaghetti-os soup. And while I didn’t exactly enjoy it, it didn’t come back up, which is more than I can say for the last time I ate organs.

After we ate and played with the little ones, we left the house to tour the village. On the schedule? The Dungan School, Dungan Mosque, Dungan Hospital, and Dungan Youth Center. The Mosque was beautiful, and currently under construction. We didn’t go in. Next, the school. Now seriously, when I go to these places, I feel like a celebrity. People pull out there phones and cameras to take pictures, people ask for pictures with us, everyone stares, everyone talks. It’s chaos. But, the chaos was good and I enjoyed the time I spent with the students. They’re hungry to learn, and I love that about them.

Next, the hospital. Not much to see, but the lack of technology blows my mind! Women come in here to give birth. They give birth on a cot, and then their baby gets his own mini cot. And that’s that. In this village of 12,000 Dungan people, there are 1,000 babies born each year. Apparently, there’s just not a whole lot to do around the city. J The entire staff gathered around us for a group picture, and then we left.

The youth center was empty, so we just took a quick look around, and then headed back to the house to get Ruslan, and begin our journey home. We drove 11 hours today! Tomorrow, we’re going to visit our fellow ESI teachers for the night in Shymkent…I can’t wait to see them!

So, goodnight to me. Good morning to you.