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| At the airport in London with a sleeping Joel |
But this morning, I was not going to miss a shower. There was no hot water, but there was, at least, cold water, so I got into the shower and rinsed myself despite the frigid temperature. I turned the water off, shampooed my hair, washed my body, and turned the water back on. But nothing came out. The water was gone. With shampoo in my hair and soap on my body, I found my way into the kitchen and grabbed a bucket of stored water. It was just enough to rinse off, and I finally felt clean. Cold, but clean.
What I did not realize was that this was the last bucket of stored water. Because we had been gone for a month, we had not stored enough water, and it was all gone. There was not a drop in our house. Nothing for brushing teeth, nothing for washing hands, nothing for cooking. I had used the very last of our water to rinse off the soap.
Fortunately, there is a borehole on the campus where we live, so I got ready, and grabbed an empty bucket, and left the house. On my walk to the borehole, I ran into some friends I had not seen in awhile, and also saw my boss, who happened to be visiting another colleague. We had a great conversation, and then I proceeded to the borehole. I filled my bucket, and began to walk back to our house. It was not a long walk, and the water was heavy, but I enjoyed the sunshine and greeting my friends on the way. Needless to say, by the time I arrived home, I was thoroughly warmed up from the cold shower.
At home, we purified the water, brushed our teeth, and had breakfast. It felt great to be clean and rested, to be home.
Just taking a shower, just getting water to brush our teeth, just making breakfast, can be challenging. We are out of gas for our stove, and a city-wide shortage of gas has prevented us from refilling our tank. But this morning, there was electricity, and we have a back-up hot plate, and so I was able to make french toast. It was delicious, and we even had maple syrup that we brought back with us from Michigan. A good morning.
During our month in the US, many people that I met with commented on how hard life must be for us in Zambia. There are certainly aspects of life here that are harder for us; water is a huge issue during the dry season. But, I didn't have to worry about rushing, so I wouldn't be late for work; people here understand if I am late, and there is a culture of grace that surrounds us when things go wrong. And on the walk to get water, I could stop and talk to my friends, run into my boss, enjoy the warmth of the sun, and the friendliness of my neighbors. This morning didn't feel hard; it felt blessed.
While we were in the US, I could not believe the number of people who offered their time, their money, their kindness, and their support to us. The generosity that we encountered in churches, among friends, and from family, was overwhelming and beautiful. So many of you came to worship services, presentations, and meals, to hear about our work in Zambia and to offer encouragement, kindness, money, and prayers. We were prayed for in beautiful ways, and I felt showered with the warmth of love and the power of generous lives.
Life here is good. It is beautiful and lovely and hard and meaningful. And so much about our lives here is good because of our partners in Zambia, and because of our partners in the United States. There are miracles that happen, and they happen when we travel together (if you heard me preach last month, you heard me say that a lot!) In any case, my shower this morning reminded me of a few things: I have to walk for water on occasion, many people have to walk for water multiple times a day. My walk is short, theirs is often very long. I have a way to purify the water, others do not. And later today, the water came back on, and my children we able to bathe in warm water. We are blessed - our family, and many of you in the United States. But when we share our blessings, when we walk together in the warm sun, when we stop and talk and listen, life abounds; we are refreshed and renewed as living water flows from generous hearts and shared lives.
So, thanks so, so, so, so, much to all of you in the United States who supported us over the past month (and over the past year), who offered your time, your money, your support to us. It was such a blessing to see you, and your kind words and encouragement and prayers mean more to us than I can describe. It feels nice to be clean, it feels great to be rested, and it feels amazing to witness the love of my friends in the US, as I am blessed to walk again with our friends here in Zambia.
