It's the little things that make all the difference...

I (Liz) have been reflecting recently on how easily we can accustom ourselves to different circumstances. I know that we, as humans, are very adaptable. (This for some is an argument for our survival in evolution but I prefer to think that it is because we are the pinnacle of God’s creation). Sometimes an accumulation of small details in your life suddenly make you sit up and take notice of how different your life has become and how your routines are changing. This is especially apparent now that we have moved into our house and we start to ‘own’ our experiences here a little more – we are no longer putting our lives on hold and are finally able to literally and figuratively unpack our suitcases!

We heard from a friend recently who is living in a small village in Cameroon, West Africa. Her nightly routine now involves brushing her teeth by lantern, tipping ants out of her cup of filtered water and washing the dust of her feet in a small bowl before climbing under the mosquito net into bed. Now, everything is relative, we are living in a city (albeit a small one) and are not ‘out in the bush’ so our adaptation has maybe not been so severe! It is, however, sometimes the subtle differences that seem all the more strange.

Our new routines include having a shower in the evening as the water heater takes hours to be ready. There is not enough time for this in the morning! Now I am wishing I’d brought my hair dryer! As Matt already mentioned we are making it a habit to boil our milk when we get it and to wash all our fruit and veg in filtered water. We have to sweep and mop the tiled floors in our house regularly due to all the dust. Matt baked our first rolls of bread recently as you can’t buy good bread here and I am handwashing our underwear as it is not cultural to let the house help do it. We are discovering there are many jobs to do when you have your own house in Tanzania! Aside from this we are getting used to the sounds of a goat and chickens in the garden, wind in the banana trees (I still think it’s rain!) and waiting to be let in/out of the gate by Mama Oscar or Celestine, the guard.

Our walk to work is very odd because it reminds me of the walk I did to my job as a Teaching Assistant in Sheffield. It is a similar length (just over 2 miles) with many strenuous ups and downs and some beautiful views. At the moment I am even still wrapped up against the cold when we leave home but warm by the time I arrive. Unlike walking in Sheffield, however, I do not have to stop to wait for traffic (most of the time!), I greet most people on the path in Swahili, children run up and say ‘Good Morning!’ then run away giggling as I respond. I try to avoid the paths with the most dust and I cross a rickety bridge over a stream. I love this connection with the things I have always enjoyed and my new Tanzanian experiences. This makes me realise how amazing it is to be here! They say that it takes 6 weeks to form a habit so I’m sure these things will all become very normal soon but I hope we don’t lose too much wonder at the ‘differentness’ of it.