Easter

     Easter has always been a pretty special time on the Holloman Farm.  My children loved waking up on Easter Sunday morning to check out their Easter baskets to see all the candy the Easter Bunny had left for them.  Most of the time there would be a small pile left over (each child had to get the same amount, you know).  That little pile would always be stacked at Gary's place at the table so he wouldn't eat up the candy from the kids.  The kids finally got too old for me to do Easter baskets.  That didn't stop me having fun, though.  It seems there was alway a family serving at our church that had children.   It became a tradition to have them over to our house for Easter dinner after church.  Then we would hide/hunt Easter eggs with their children.  Most of the time the Easter Bunny would leave an Easter basket at our house for those children.
     Another tradition was taking the annual Easter picture of our family and any family that happened to be sharing the special Easter dinner with us.  Sometimes it was hard keeping everyone dressed up for the picture so we would have to take care of pictures just as soon as we arrived home from church.  It's fun looking back at all the famiy Easter pictures to see how styles have changed and to see how quickly my kids grew up.
     This year I missed the traditional Easter picture, special dinner shared with friends, and the egg hunt.  However, I can't complain about my Easter here in Senegal.  It started out with attending a wonderful time of games, food, and fellowship on Saturday shared with so many friends serving here in Senegal.  We were also joined by many new friends from Mali who are staying here until they are free to return.  I got to watch children of all ages hunt for Easter eggs and then watch a game of egg toss.  Easter Sunday was celebrated by attending the International Christian Fellowship worship service.  What a blessing to be able to share in the singing, Scripture reading, and message celebrating Jesus' resurrection.  Following the service I went out to eat with many of my new friends from Mali.
     So, I did get to have an egg hunt and special meal with friends this year.  Maybe I didn't get to have my annual family picture but I did enjoy being a part of my new "family" here in Senegal.

A Relaxing Day at the Beach

This past Saturday we decided to plan an outing to the pool/beach for the kids as well as a time to get some grocery shopping done.  It was a perfect day to go to the beach.  The temperatures have started rising so it was plenty warm.  The water in the pool and ocean is still pretty cold, though.  I did get my feet wet to cool off but was not brave enough to get completely wet in the water.  It was nice just to sit around and relax and enjoy watching the kids have fun in the water.  One of E's friends went with us.  It was his first time to play in the ocean.

The Visitor!

A few days ago I was sitting in bed reading on the computer when I saw something out of the corner of my eye scoot into my room under my armoir.  I thought it was my friendly little gecko (who is as afraid of me as I am of him).  In a few moments my "friend" decided to leave my room.  That's when I discovered it was not a gecko but a rat (not a very large rat but a rat none the less).  I quickly jumped up and closed my bedroom door.  There is no space between the door and the floor so I figured the little guy wouldn't be able to get back in my room and become my bedfellow.  I had no idea where he went but at least he was not in my room.  The next night, as I was sitting in my chair in the living room, my "friend" came scooting around the corner, ran under my couch, headed to the piles of boxes stored under my steps.  Needless to say, I slept with my door closed again that night.  I didn't have a rat trap in my house but I did have some rat glue.  My housekeeper helped me spread the glue on a piece of cardboard.  I added some peanut butter and flakes of oatmeal in the center.  We had already moved most of the boxes from under the stairwell and put them in the garage.  So now I had a nice open space to place my cardboard to see if I would catch the rat.  I checked periodically all day long but there was nothing.  I didn't even see him run around the room before I went to bed.  Since I felt pretty comfortable about the rat glue, I decided not to close my bedroom door last night (it's too hot with the door closed).  This morning I got up, dressed for my morning walk, and sat down in my chair to check emails.  I heard a squeaking sound so I grabbed the flashlight and headed to my cardboard "trap."  Sure enough, there he was, stuck to the glue on the cardboard!  My plan was to leave him there until the kids got to school so N could dispose of it for me (the rat was still alive).  However, I wasn't sure that the glue would hold him that long.  So, I got a broom handle and started scooting the cardboard (and rat) out the door.  Unfortunately, his tail was stuck to my floor.  I managed to unstick the tail and push the cardboard out my front door into the courtyard.  When my housekeeper arrived I showed her the rat and we both did a lot of cheering.  We left it there so N could dispose of it when he arrived for school.  At least I now know the rat glue works.  If I have another "visitor" I will be prepared.

More Faces/Bodies

Since I was in a reflective mood on Sunday I wrote and posted pictures of the beautiful people that I have encountered here in Senegal.  On a lighter note, I thought I'd post a few more pictures of faces.  This time they aren't people, though.  There are animals everywhere you go, even in the big city of Dakar.

Senegal's version of Texas Longhorns

Buck-toothed fish

Smiling sheep

Sheep (ears are hanging down)

Goats (ears stand up)

Horse eating a snack while he waits

Faces

     Last Thursday as I sat on the bench in Tening's booth I could not help feeling the tears well up in my eyes as I watched the ladies shopping for items to be used to prepare their meal. They are such beautiful people living a life that is more difficult than the life that most people in America experience.  

     All of these people were created by God yet most do not have a relationship with their Creator.   What can I do?  I can barely speak the language.  The only thing that I can do is smile and shake the hands of the children when they greet me, smile and greet the ladies in the market, and continue to study the language so that one day I may be able to share stories about the One who loves them and died for them.

Babies

Children

Ladies

Men

     What about where you live?  Do you see the beautiful faces of those around you?  They were also created by God and need a personal relationship with their Creator.  You don't have to move across the ocean and live in a different country to share God's love with those around you.  Give a smile and greeting to those you pass in the office, store, school hallway, and restaurant.

"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."  1 Corinthians 10:31

Fish Market

   Every few weeks T makes a trip to Mbour to buy fish at the fish market.  If I need to go to the bank or do any grocery shopping, I get the "privilege" of going along.  I don't mind eating fish in a restaurant, I just don't like the idea of cleaning them and cooking them myself.  So I spend my time at the fish market telling people that I don't like fish when they try to sell me their fish.  It is usually bustling with activity:  unloading the fish, people trying to sell their fish, those offering their services to clean the fish, plus all the people who are there to buy the fish.   There are many varieties of fish from which to choose.

   
     Seeing all the fish and people, you can just imagine what it smells like as you walk around.  Unfortunately, I can't capture that in a blog post.  You will just have to use your imagination.  This is just one of the interesting things about living in Senegal.

Campaigning Days

     This week has been the last week of campaigning before election day today.  The current president made a visit to our town on Tuesday.  He's not very popular with the people so it didn't create too big of a stir.  However, Wednesday was a different story altogether.  The wife of one candidate, who is from this town, came to visit and speak on Wednesday.  Tents were set up on the street outside my house with chairs and a sound system.  Ladies came dressed in their finest outfits to see and hear the wife.  I stayed inside my house but I would sneak peaks at the crowd off and on.  You could hear the chatter of women's conversations as they sat and visited waiting for the arrival of the candidate's wife.  Of course, there was some singing and drum playing off and on throughout the afternoon.
     The candidate himself came to visit on Thursday.  There was a parade and large gathering in the center of town to hear him speak.  This was the most excitement our town has had since I arrived in October.
     Today has been pretty quiet since it is election day.  It has almost seemed a little too quiet.  We are all anxiously waiting to see what the results of the election will be.  Senegal has been a peaceful, stable country throughout the years.  I'm praying that it will remain that way in the days ahead.