Thoughtful Thursday....

I have taken a break from posting over the last week because we are having some computer problems. Our external hard drive that has all of my pictures, doesn't like Africa. So I thought I would take this post and share some of my thoughts from today.


This week I have had a few "pity parties" as my mother calls them. What is wrong you ask? Lee has been out of the house quite a bit, we are having difficulty with parenting, learning language is a struggle, it is so hot, I miss my friends and my family, Quelimane is completely out of Coke Lite, and life is just plain hard in Africa sometimes! Then God spoke to my heart about my self-serving attitude!


This morning I was talking with my language teacher Suzana....someone I love so much. We were having a conversation about animals....which ones we like to eat :) and which ones we don't. That led to us talking about the animal we most dislike. I said rats. You see, I was raised in the suburbs. We don't have rats in the suburbs! I am afraid of rats and I generally don't like them. Well, we have rats in Quelimane.....big rats...the size of small cats. I see them running across the street all of the time....I hate them. So, I declared that I hated them the most. Suzana proceeds to tell me how she hate the rats, too. But, she hates them because they keep her awake at night....chewing things inside of her house. Yes....inside her house! She said that the other night they chewed a plate that was left on the table that just had some crumbs on it. That's why she hates rats! Oh, how my problems were put into perspective! 


(One day soon I will post pictures of Suzana's house. I think her house is a fairly nice house for a single mom here. I certainly would not expect to see a rat on the inside!)


Then, she said something else that hit me hard. She said the animal/creature that she hates the most is the mosquito. That is the thing she is the most scared of. The mosquito has the greatest chance of killing her children. What a thought! Such a tiny creature....such a huge fear! 


What is wrong with me that I can think my life is so hard, when those around me are suffering so much more than me? Lord, continue to break my heart for others.

Tracy