Friday, October 3, 2014

Learning as an 'Akuna'....AKA a foreigner

So this week I managed to single handedly flood a small part of a village. I have to now pass through a village every day to get to the other base where I work. Each day I see a piece of land that no one was using and I always wondered why there wasn’t a house there. One day I decided to use that piece of land to turn around in a car I was using and got stuck in mud very quickly. Unknown to me there was a burst water pipe underground which has made the ground very soft. The car being stuck in the ground then made a great hole for the water to spurt from. This could then not be fixed for a few days. Therefore I did not make eye contact with the villagers for those few days. I am sure I wasn’t in their good books. But I learnt….I will now not be questioning why land was not being used. I am sure there is a good reason.

I have learnt the rules for the road here…use your horn to communicate; it is not just used as a form of aggression. Everyone but you has the right of way. Motorbikes will and do come from all angles, so if your car has side mirrors…use them! The roads generally do not fit two cars so if you see a car coming towards you, get out the way quickly because as I have said…everyone else has the right of way.




I have learnt that the British dry sense of humor gets lost and can often offend unless you are talking with a local who knows you well. Do not try and be funny to a stranger. Especially those in authority over you, like the police or immigration. This will not break the ice. Just no. Don’t do it. Believe me!

I have learnt the language (mostly) that is spoken here. The Portuguese is not really Portuguese you would hear anywhere else in the world. It is mostly pigeon Portuguese, which to me is perfect. I find learning languages really hard to learn. But my local friends here have been very patient with me, and still are.

I have learnt that long leggings are a big no no. Very un-cool. But you can wear bright pink and orange together, chequers and stripes and winter hats in 40-degree weather. Every lady has a handbag and that bag holds respect. No one is to look in that bag but her. If you need something from that bag she will be the one to get it, however close friends you are!

I have learnt that music from years ago is very big and is played all through the night. ‘I found a love in a hopeless place’ is everyone’s favorite. Closely followed by ‘shine bright like a diamond’. However I feel that anyone else in the world but me, knows what new music is a hit right now.

I have learnt not to take running water, electricity and a fridge of food for granted. That crazy stuff can and does happen, but God is always there with you in it so never fear.

I have learnt how to be ok with not knowing the latest trends and tv shows. I have learnt to be ok with eating the same meal 5 nights in a row. I have learnt about living and working in a community, when to open my doors and when to have boundaries. I have learnt how to live with nothing but trusting for needs to be met. I have learnt that in an atmosphere of worship, even those with deaf ears will feel the attraction to draw near into His presence..

This place has changed me for the good, has given me perspective and made me much more secure in myself. This place has made my relationship with God bigger and greater. I learnt that the big God I believe will be there for others, is there for me too. That He makes blind eyes see and deaf ears hear in the natural and the spiritual.


This is place is a great place of learning, particularly because I am a foreigner. However that is something I shouldn’t take for granted, but to use it to go low and slow, to humble myself and forever be in that place of learning.

This place is a gift and it is an honor to be here for such a time as this.



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