Changing Seasons

I woke up this morning and suddenly, without warning, winter had come to Namibia. Usually you sweat through the night...but today, the cool morning was welcoming. I put on a sweatshirt to greet the day. The change in termperature reminds me that we have come full circule, of time's passing. I have now been in Namibia for eight mnths. The time before I left, staging in Philadelphia, training here in Okahandja - all seem like a lifetime ago. Namibia has now become home; I feel comfortable here, have developed a Namibian family and community of friends, and began to know the contours of the culture and norms.

I feel happy here, and grateful for this time. There is a quote, "It is no mistake that we have been brought here together; what we have will help each other." And I see that with every stage of life.

So now I look forward to the next 18 months of service. What can I hope to learn? To accomplish? Where can I best be of service? I look forward to the challenges, complexities, and joys that lay ahead. As the title of Jon Kabait-Zinn's book suggests, "Wherever you go, there you are."