I'm here!

I’m here!! What a journey... Lots of things came up along the way—not least of all the disappearance of my beautiful Canon Powershot camera (a gift from my father for this trip) and my ipod. (Please pray. As much as I am trying to deal with this disappointment in a godly way, I can’t deny how very, very much I want to see my camera found…It was so dear to me, and there’s a chance Lufthansa can retrieve it.) God was gracious, though, and we all got to the camps safe and sound. Our rickety plane touched down in Tindouf at about 2:30 a.m. in front of a one-room “airport” (which is open only three days a week). Once we made it out of there, we were met by “Protocol” and loaded into an SUV. An hour of bumping and lurching through the desert, and we arrived in the camps. My roommate, Sarah P., and I were dropped off in front of our new home about 4:00 a.m. We were met by Barika, our new ‘mom’, and her sleepy 3-year-old daughter, Selma. Our conversation was brief and broken—the dialect of Arabic I know is very different from Hesseniya, their dialect. A few moments later we were shown our room—the only ‘real’ one in the house—which is furnished with a few mattresses, a carpet, low table, and lots of spiders. A few hours later we awoke—the visiting had begun by neighbors, our teammate Phil, and the rest of the family. Shabab, a 19-year old cousin, as well as Akheera, a 21 year old, also live with us. After a breakfast of bread and coffee, we chatted a bit then headed off to the school for meetings and orientation. My roommate and I received new Saharawi names already--mine is Aziza (it means "darling") and Sarah's is Miriam (the equivalent of Mary). :) I like them! It’s been a busy, dusty, crazy day. I’ve already begun growing closer to my new “sisters”—I spent the afternoon in ‘conversation’ with them. It isn’t easy—a fusion of Arabic, Hessaniya, English, and Spanish—but we give each other a lot of grace, and share a lot of laughs. Little Selma is my new playmate. After hiding behind the curtain for a few minutes, she warmed up to us. Now she’s almost always tangled in my mulfa, and I even got a “busa” (kiss). I miss home. I’m thirsty and hot and intimidated. But I’m in the right place. Bismallah, el rahman el raheem.