(Well, I should be writing a newsletter but blogs are so much more fun!)
Why, After 25 Years,
I Still Feel Like I’m Camping Over Here
It is not likely that you have ever been on a camping trip
or a vacation excursion that seemed like it never ended. Probably more like the
opposite – one that you WANT to last forever. Well, maybe you should consider
mission work in a tropical country because that is what our life feels like
sometimes. Let me explain.
1)
Well, it is warm. I never camped in cold
weather.
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| RFIS after a rain storm |
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2)
The scents and smells: The smell of where you
grow up is… home. When you go on vacation you smell different things; plants,
foods, even the air smells different. Yes, sometimes you have the smell of a port-
a-john wafting through the air. The smells here are unique to this place: the
grass, the rain, the flowers, the palm oil in food, the compost, and, yes, port-
a-john smells in the streets. There is nothing like a hyacinth here and nothing
in the world compares to the scent of this flower
or a Queen of the Forest tree
in the evening. And the air is often laced with the smell of campfire smoke.
3)
What about odd habits people display when
camping? Brushing your teeth outside; showering or bathing in a building
outside of the house or tent; walking back inside with a towel wrapped
somewhere visible, either around the waist or
draped on an arm, head; cooking your food outside. We see all of these
things (and more) pretty much every day.
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| Pretty sure I have a pic of Emelda cooking corn at this fire pit but can't find it now!! |
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4)
Sounds: Can you hear the crowd laughing five
campsites away? Can you hear a child being disciplined? Or the radio a little
too loud? The shouts of an impromptu soccer match in the nearby field?
5)
Tasting and sharing: have you invited your
camping neighbors over to share your fire and have a hot dog? I can stop at my
neighbor’s and taste her meal almost any day. And that music I often hear from
a distance – that is because people are sharing. They are happy with their
radio and want to bless you. (Nope, I don’t often appreciate the blessing since
I grew up in a quiet world.) The taste of a fresh mango! Nothing like it where
I come from. Peaches are close, but, no.
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| Channah picking the mangoes pictured |
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What about those interesting tastes you only got
when you went on vacation or when visiting someone a distance away, what were
they? Some for me were: a certain store’s ice cream, Aunt Betty Ann’s macaroni
and cheese, salt water taffy. Well here, even the “normal” things taste
different. Did you know that peanuts taste different, even from different
regions within Cameroon? Garlic, onions, tomatoes, celery, chicken; they are
all different here. Not to mention the rest of the exotic tropical fruits God
put here.
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| Pineapple growing in my yard, spicy peppers above it |
If you are interested, ask me about Josiah’s first trip to the U.S. and bananas.
6)
Sights: I sure didn’t grow up with Palm trees
visible outside my window but here, they’re everywhere.
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| This one makes me think of Florida and a college evangelism trip. |
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| These useful beauties are visible right outside my kitchen window. |
And now, whenever I see
an evergreen here, no matter how often, especially the ones that look like white pine, I cannot help
but think back to Wildrose Court. I also did
not grow up with grasses four feet high all around me, though I did see that on our trips to the beach. I only ever knew poinsettias that were inside
plants bought at Christmas time and though they are not very common, the
beautiful plant does grow seven feet high in some yards here. Ok, so maybe I never saw poinsettias growing
wild around my campsites in the U.S. but there sure were unique plants I enjoyed in those locations. And now, even after so long here, the plants around me still seem so exotic.
And how
many of you saw uniquely colored or shaped houses en route to your family
vacation spots? The interestingly painted houses here certainly make me recall
those drives.
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| artwork on the entrance to a hair salon |
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| businesses along the road |
I really wanted a picture of a house around here that has three shades of green (not complimentary) on it. Or another one from my old neighborhood that is... well, more shades of bright green. But I don't have those photos so here are two others.
When they began finishing the houses and businesses in the new
developments along the road leading east out of Yaoundé, I swear there was
nothing but pink (Pepto Bismol pink) available at the paint store.
7)
More sounds: outdoor sounds- constantly! Crickets, wind, rain, other people’s
barking dogs, certain bird sounds that always make me think of the beach, and
oh, that season when the frogs are loud and annoying outside my window! More birds. (When I catch that lovely bird outside Channah's
window that likes to come visit the guava tree I'll add it, in the
meantime, enjoy some pictures below of birds in
another region of Cameroon that our friend Bob has taken.)
So, there you have it. I have
spent the last 25 years camping.
Bob's photos
Met this adorable child, Luke. Oh, yeah, He's our grandson, and his parents were around too but I don't have any pictures of them!
Fourth of July celebration at the Ag Center in Carroll County 
Kevin and I had never been to a Hard Rock Cafe, but enjoyed this noisy lunch with our kids and Daniel's friend Alicia.
Ummm, did you know that July 30th is National Cheesecake Day? We missed the date but you really should go to a Cheescake Factory on that day if you can tolerate the crowds. Their cheesecake is probably 1/2 off.
Channah's request since long before we boarded a plane this summer was to go horseback riding again. We arranged to do this with Josiah at a farm not far from Lookout Mountain.
Caleb and I had one and a half days at his new school. We arrived early enough in the evening to catch a local baseball game. He was slightly out of his element since it wasn't soccer but I loved it! While he was at the school the next day I went wandering. 
