We're here! 4 days and what seems like 50 plane rides later, we're finally in our final destination. We got up at 4:15 this morning to get to the airport in time to catch our flight. We had a connecting flight in another city and arrived at our destination 3 hours later. I had to cover my head with a veil as we exited the plane. We got to get off the plane right onto the tarmac. I was very excited about this because I've seen it in movies but never got to do it before!
We are instantly struck by the heat. 43ºC today. It's stifling. We drove through the town on our way to Treven & Melanie's home and just briefly got a glimpse of what will be our home for the next 3 weeks. It's dry and desolate. The riverbed is completely dried up. Herds of skinny cows are walking in the fields and we drove by mud huts and people in the streets selling their goods by the side of the road. We got to Melanie and Treven's home and just laid down and took a nap. The heat really wipes you out. While it was 43 outside, it's a few degrees cooler inside, about 39.
We are also welcomed into the town by a friend, "H", who is a follower. T&M shared a bit of his story with us, how he became a follower a couple years back and just recently made the decision to be "washed" as we are commanded to do in Matthew 28:19. His wives had threatened to leave him and his family threatened to disown him if he took this step. H went ahead with it anyways and his family followed suit a while later. He even was the one to "wash" his own brother!
After we had finished our evening meal, some friends stopped by to visit. They spoke to us in the local language and taught us a few phrases and how to complete the traditional greeting. Basically this is asking how you are, how your body is, how your family is, and you just respond with "Everything is well", and then continue to have your visit together. The women were very welcoming and had just come by the house to greet Stephen and I to their town.
We are so excited to be here. And were excited to see the kids too! They were pretty stoked to get to see their Mom again after two weeks away and all the gifts that arrived with us. Micah even had a bit too much excitement at one point and fell asleep before dinner!
One prayer request, Stephen woke up from a nap in the afternoon and suddenly wasn't feeling 100%. Plus he has a rash on his torso. He's convinced it's just a heat rash, but please pray that that's all it is - and that he will feel better tomorrow after a full night's sleep.
This was a very full day - even though all we did was fly and lounge around the house! But seriously... lots to take in and think about and adjust to the climate while we're still getting over jet lag. Sorry for the lack of photos in this post. Hopefully I'll be able to get some photos in the coming days while still being aware of cultural boundaries. Thank you so much for your prayers. We'll write again soon,
Carlin (and Stephen)
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