Starting school, some key verses

School is starting next week. My classes are Health Policy and Management; Chronic Diseases in developing countries and Women's health (policy controversies). I'm pretty excited about these classes and am hoping to give them the time they deserve, especially since there are only three of them. Did I write that in an earlier post? I imagine I may have. The great thing is that two of these classes are electives (I could choose them for myself, I wasn't obligated to take them for the degree.)

I wanted to share my hope for the future with you. There are a couple of key verses that I've been thinking about today:
Proverbs 31:8-9 "speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy."
and
James 1:27 "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."

We have been re-reading A Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren, and on day 2 it emphasizes that we are unique, and that our strengths and weaknesses are created specifically to make us, and also ultimately to give us a purpose that fits us. I think this is true, and really encouraging. I hope you're encouraged by that, too. It's good for giving wisdom about what of ourselves to let go of and what to hold on to.

Walden Pond

Walden Pond is a beautiful (large) pond near Concord, Massachusetts. It's about 20 minutes from our home, and as soon as you're there you feel like you're in another world. Eug and I managed to get away and have an awesome time there today, before the semester begins. Thank you so much for your prayers for me and for our lives here in Boston. Here are some pictures to share the beauty of Mass...





Eugene guiltily feeds an ant he threw into the lake...

Thinking on the Past Week

We haven't submitted my Green Card application yet, because there are a few things that take some extra time. But it's almost there! I think I've been a bit overwhelmed with the process. Eug and I are going through it together, but it's also something you kindof have to deal with alone. It's a very big deal for me, because I never wanted to have residency any place other than South Africa. We're really grateful to have a lot of people praying for us. It's a very concrete test of faith for me. I've been having to think about the basics and trust in God's goodness, absolute power and His personal and current concern for changing our lives and characters, because I cannot reach further than my own limitations without a foundation of faith. Sorry for the cliches, I guess I'm just discovering their truth. I am slowly realizing that complaining is mainly a problem if it erodes faith and makes me forget your purpose and perspective. If it does that, that's serious because it strains my relationship with God, my willingness to take things a step at a time, and my ability to trust God to hear me. Anyway, if you are struggling with this too, send me an e-mail so I can pray for you and we can encourage eachother.

I'm working through with my Wits thesis, a little bit at a time. I'm trying something new, to practice writing: doing an epilogue to try to capture the experience and limitations of my research.

Teachers in Durban expect a high standard, but were aware of the worst. I think this is a situation that is unique to South Africa, because apartheid made teachers aware of what was out there (as good a school education as one can get anywhere) yet largely made that kind of education unattainable. Now teachers have those high expectations in mind-- perhaps they went to those excellent schools. I interviewed teachers at the schools with the lowest fees, and often, the fewest resources. The teachers were also highly aware of the poverty that surrounded many of their learners. What is problematic is that in school teachers are prepared for schools with resources, not necessarily "trained for the worst".

I think if I were faced with a situation that was far more gruelling and far more difficult than I expected, I would feel really discouraged and just try to get through the day. If it was something I was expecting and used to, maybe it would be easier to think long term, and think about a "better way". Not that there is any "easy" in having a class with 70 learners. There's no utopia, but I think we can do better, even in tapping the resources in our country to better serve the needs of the majority of schools. There is a need for basic resources and more teachers, who are better paid. There is also a need for male teachers.

Newport, Rhode Island

It's getting close to time to start university again. I honestly don't particularly want to start again, but I'm glad that the end is in sight.

Yesterday our church group went on a trip to Newport, Rhode Island. It's a beautiful place, the ocean is really shiny. It's famous for having a lot of huge mansions, and Americans (and tourists) go to Newport just to drive past. Above are some pictures.

We saw a Llama. That was pretty cool. There was a stage when my brother kept bombarding me with Llama pictures (actually, as my desktop background) and I didn't really appreciate them as a species for this reason. But they are growing on me. We also went for a cycle around the area.

I'm reading The Idiot, by Dostoyevsky, right now. I'm not very good at going into details on books but by mentioning them here I might get better. The book is amazing because there are a thousand different ways to interpret the characters, particularly the Prince (the Idiot himself). I imagine there are people who have spent their whole careers understanding the characters-- for me I appreciate the fact that it is so subtle. The characters have a life of their own.

I was really impressed by an organization called Cradles to Crayons, based in Quincy, Massachusetts. I went for an orientation for our organization to partner with them and I was blown away by the simple effectiveness of the concept. They have a warehouse and a lot of credibility amongst large rich companies and also just regular families in Mass. With this, they field a massive number of donations for everything children may need-- clothes, shoes, school supplies, toys. They use volunteers to sort the stuff very efficiently, then they take orders online from partner organizations who work specifically with children who may need help. I imagine there are similar organizations in South Africa, but if not I think the possibilities are really amazing for imitating their model to fit the specific context of Durban or Cape Town, etc.

Beautiful Summer in Watertown

I managed to spend a few minutes in Mt Auburn cemetery today, and wanted to share a few photos. The one photo is a photo that we took for our wedding in the winter-- you can compare the scene if you've seen the wedding photos around that little lake. It's pretty beautiful hey?! I also am going to post 3 pictures to The Concrete Gardener.

More soon!

Praying: Green Card

Above is an picture from BBC news. I really liked it because it's a very peaceful view of Lake Kivu, between Rwanda and Congo.

I wanted to ask you to pray for my green card application. A green card basically allows you all the rights/privileges of citizenship in the US, except voting rights. Eug and I apply together on my behalf.

I don't mind too much what happens, but it's easy for me to get frustrated about it, as it is so complicated. It's not so much about the outcome (though that's important too) but the process that we have to go through. It's the type of thing that tends to make me bitter, but I don't want that. Thanks a lot.