thoughts one February day...

Hello all!
Its been awhile, I'm sorry about that. So much has happened just in the last two weeks... I don't know where to begin! It seems like there is always something happening here. The missionary family here is really connected and we get together often. I love that about this place. I get to interact with so many different believers from all over the world here in Tansen. I can't describe the joy that I feel when we get together and I get to interact with others. This is a huge deal for me because I am most definitely an introvert. But, when you are in a forenig country that is not English-speaking and you get together with English speakers.... you talk as much as you can! :)For example, last week I got to hang out with some girls from Norway. So cool! I learned all about Norway and its people and its beliefs... totally loved it!
Let's see, I think the biggest event over the last two weeks was the Bhaj- which was the hospital's annual picnic. There were easily over 100 people there, mostly Nepali. Lots of awards, presentations, eating, skits, singing, and games. Now me, being a typical American, was thinking 'picnic': Okay, we get there, we eat, then we sing a little and play some games, then go home. No problem. Well, it started at 12:30 pm. We didn't eat until 4 pm! Man, Nepali's like to talk! And the funnest thing was watching them accept their awards for 5 years of service, 10 years of service, retirement, etc. They would walk up proudly and accept the award, bow towards the crowd, and then display their award and gift to everyone; walking around and making a big deal of it. So not what I am used to! The best part of it all was the background music. They stuck on what I would call Childrens' Sunday School music! So as these proud Nepali's accepted their gifts to "Father Abraham, had many sons..." I was just trying not to laugh. What an experience! Oh- the fun of being in a foreign country.
I am starting to understand the language more. I can't really get past "How are you" "Hello" and telling people where I am from, who my parents are, what I do, etc on the speaking side... but I am starting to be able to pick up what is being said. Its really fun when you realize how much is beginning to rub off on you.
Big News: On Saturday, the Beine family and I are heading for Pokhara, a little touristy town (with ice cream and steak!) on a lake about 4 hours from here. I am totally thrilled and plan on buying most of my souvenirs and gifts there. Then, from there (this is the best part), we are going to a wildlife refuge in Chitwan. We are staying 3 days/2 nights in the park at a resort! We are meeting two other missionary families there and I am fully prepared to have a blast! There are rhinos, elephants, tigers, and lots of other 'jungly' animals. Check it out here: http://www.islandjungleresort.com.np/island/index.htm
I think one of the hardest things about being in another country is being away from my family. I am not normally the 'drama queen' type or very moody, but here it is a whole different story. Some days I am up, and somedays I am down in the dumps. Two days ago, I was in one of those slumps. I just seemed to sink deeper and deeper, and I wanted to feel depressed. It was horrible. The next morning (yesterday) I woke up in prayer, and then opened my e-mail to find that five people had sent me encouraging and just really wonderful e-mails that totally lifted my spirits. Then, I opened up my Bible and had a great time just soaking up Scripture. I think it turned out to be one of the most productive days I have had here in Nepal so far. God is great!
Well, I probably won't be on in the next week because of my upcoming adventures. :) I will definitely post some pictures and a lengthy blog when I get back from Pokhara and Chitwan. I will only have a couple days until I turn around to head to Kathmandu for a wedding reception... another most excellent adventure! So my prayer request this week would be for safe travel and good health. The capital city has been having violent strikes this past week so pray for safety especially, that the strikes do not affect us in our travels.
Blessings and peace be upon you.
Psalm 121 I lift up my eyes to the hills— where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip— he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD watches over you— the LORD is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will keep you from all harm— he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.

Oh- really quick- my didi (hired help) just came over because she had made a new dish for us to try. It had pineapple, beans, and something else that I have no idea what it is and watched me eat it to make sure I liked it. It was really funny to watch her watching me while talking in Nepali. I have no idea what she said, but it was good and I think I communicated that to her. :) I am so grateful to our didi's. They rock!

The Bazaar (as promised)

Psalm 100

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with Thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

I thought I would start us out with some encouragement from the Scriptures today. :) As it is, people back home are just waking up on Monday morning and I am just going to bed on Monday night! But I did promise some pictures from the bazaar yesterday- so you shall have them!
The bazaar is about a 1o minute walk from here. Very pleasant, gorgeous views of the valley. When you walk over by the hospital is when you get the views of the Himalayas, for those of you who wanted to know. You can't see them unless you go further up the hillside, and if the day is a clear one. Anyway, I'm getting sidetracked. The bazaar. There are 3 roads in Tansen. The high road, the middle road, and (you guessed it) the lower road. I happen to live off the middle road so if I just take my path up to the middle road and follow it you run right into the bazaar. You have to squeeze through a small tunnel right before you get there. *See picture below* Through the tunnel, you come out onto Steep Street. Why? Because its hecka steep! If you fell, you would probably fall all the way to the bottom. Last time I was there I saw a boy skipping down the road and was like 'Whoa- what a brave kid! I hope that he is really truly skipping and not trying to slow down because unless he runs into something to stop himself, he's going to be skipping for a LONG time!' *See picture of Steep Street above right* Off of Steep Street is Straight Street. This is where my favorite shop is. :) The man who runs it speaks English pretty well and has a fantastic selection for Nepal of chocolate and juice (my 2 weaknesses)! It is called 'The Himalayan Coffee Shop'. I haven't actually bought any coffee there because I brought some from home, but the name reminds me of Starbucks in the States so it is a comfort thing for me. Don't get me wrong, I love stopping at little hole-in-the-wall places... oh wait, everything here is pretty much a hole-in-the-wall! But I also love buying from small vendors along the path for milk and eggs. Here's a picture of the shop.
It still astounds me that a town of this size can be built so high up on a hill. It's so steep, if you fell you would fall for awhile. I laughed when I first started corresponding with people in Nepal because everyone advised me to get evacuation insurance 'in case I fell down a mountain'. I was like, 'yeah right, fall down a mountain-haha funny'. So I got the evacuation insurance and now that I am here, it totally makes sense. I could in fact, fall down a mountain. Other things that still make me chuckle is the fact that the Hindu's have to wake up their gods and put them to sleep at night with a bell. Hinduism is the most common religion here in Nepal. So, every morning you hear bells go off and every evening you hear them again. Personally, I could never trust in a god who I had to put to sleep and wake up again. What if you needed them in the night? Hmm.... And yesterday, Mr. Beine had to shoo off some Nepali women who were picking flowers from his yard for the gods. He said, "Please don't do that" and they said, "It's okay, it's okay" to which he said, "No, it's not okay". They reassured him that it was 'for the gods' but he still shooed them off anyway. Hehe- its kinda funny when you think about it. And today, the boys and I did Valentine's Day Crafts this afternoon to music on my laptop, when I heard another kind of music. I looked out the window with the boys and a Nepali man was serenading me with music and some sort of instrument. I don't know if he was looking for money.... but it definitely was amusing. I think Kimberly might have filmed him sitting in front of my house, singing away. :) It wouldn't surprise me if he wanted money, we get at least 3 visits a week by beggars. Since we are 'bedeshi's' (Westerners) we are seen as being rich. Sadly, I am not- but I don't know how to tell them that because I don't speak Nepali. We normally send them off with food and a smile.
Well, I am rambling again. I did tell you a little bit about the bazaar and there are some pictures, so hopefully you aren't too disappointed in me.
I hope that this week is a joyous one for you!
Blessings-
Alexa

Happy February!

Well, it is February now... the month of Groundhog Day, President's Day, Valentine's Day, and Joshua Beine's birthday! I have been incredibly blessed these last couple of weeks. I have met and interacted and fellowshipped with so many wonderful people, its really hard to put into writing my thoughts and feelings. Last night, all the 'bedeshi's' (missionaries) got together for an English service. There were Australians, Koreans, British, American, Nepali, Swedish, and Norwegian families present. How cool is that! I especially love all the accents. :) Then most of us stayed and had dinner there at the guest house, where visitors or short-term missionaries (1-6ish weeks) to the hospital can stay. It was a fun time.
Let's see, the boys and I are on week 3 of homeschooling. I don't think I have talked much about this but after one week in the tutorial (missionary) school, the boys and I along with their parents and much input from our fellow missionaries, decided to come home. There were lots of reasons, one of the main ones being that Nick- the oldest Beine- was not able to come with us to the school. As such, he was left home quite a bit especially when Mr. Beine had not joined us yet. In the end, it has been a great transition. Now I am just settling in with teaching the four boys on my own. I converted my living room into a school room where the youngest 3 and I meet everyday. Nick has his own desk at his house where he works, but still joins us in the morning for the pledge, devotions, a journal write, and morning announcements. I have finally gotten us into a routine! Its been fun to see the boys in this sort of setting and learn about their different learning styles. I have some deep thinkers! But most of all I have noticed that man these boys love to talk!!! I am an introvert by nature teaching in a class of extroverts. How did that happen?!?
Anyway, we still join the missionary school and another homeschool family for p.e on Wednesday and an assembly on Thursday. We led the assembly last week and decided to do a patriotic/ United States theme. The boys sang songs, did a little devotion, recited memorized parts of the Constitution and Declaration of Independence, and even performed a skit about Francis Scott Key (the author of the Star-Spangled Banner). I was so proud of them that day! Each one of them did an excellent job. :) We had a great time being creative and using our talents to make the assembly a special one. Most of the time, we simply share what we have learned that week and show some of our work. The kids love it and really take ownership of what he/she has created or learned.
Well, tomorrow I am going to try and write again. I went to the bazaar two days ago and took lots of pictures that I would love to share with you all! For now, some prayer requests would be:
1. One of our didi's (hired help) husband of 30 years has been having an affair that she just learned about/ witnessed with her own eyes this week. Please pray for her during this rough time, as she has three children at home to support now on only her income.
2. We have a little boy at the hospital with tetanus and pneumonia, who has been here over 3 weeks. Yesterday we had a day of prayer and fasting for him because he has been steadily getting worse. I would ask you to pray for speedy healing for Narayan- and for all the doctors/nurses who have been caring for him.
3. For good health! I still have not gotten really sick yet which is a huge blessing. However, I got hit hard this weekend with home-sickeness. I think the 'newness' of it all has finally worn off and I long for the comforts of home and a hug from my mom!
Smiles and Hugs!
-Alexa
P.S. You may have noticed my differently-colored/designed blog. I decided it needed more COLOR... and so I have added it. I feel much happier now. :)