Happys and Sads, Part Dieci

Yikes, the last time I blogged was almost two weeks ago…

Even scarier, the last time I did a Happys and Sads was May 1st!

Despite my inability to blog regularly while I’m here in Southeastern Nepal, this monthly edition is my favorite to write, and is one thing I’m determined not to neglect. So here goes. Happys and Sads of life since I’ve arrived in Nepal.

Name: Elise Leighann Jordan

Year: Done with 1, Waiting for 2

Program: Master’s of Science, Global Health

Weeks Completed: 3 since I’ve been in Nepal…

Focus: Hearing and telling the stories of Bhutanese Refugees

Sads:

-Cockroaches. There is nothing positive to say about these creatures.

-Skeeters and those nasty bites they leave you with.

-Laundry that is never fully clean.

-Hands that are never fully clean.

-Floors, feet, everything that's never really fully clean.

-The smell of sewage everywhere in the streets here, because the sewage kind of is everywhere…

-The unrelenting heat combined with fickle air conditioning.

-Monsoon season. Wet, soggy, muddy, hot, monsoon season.

-Occasional access to internet that is sometimes strong enough to Skype chat, but never to Skype call.

-The absence of any type of digestive normalcy in our group. Enough said.

-Very little sleep.

-Beds that make us achy.

-Long, exhausting days--meeting in the mornings at 7AM and often working till midnight.

-Hearing the stories of refugees day in and day out and having to wrestle with how unjust it all seems. Then having to wrestle with how little I can do to help them.

-Never having time to blog.

Happys:

-Getting to know the amazing women on my team—And then becoming friends with them. And then becoming good friends with them.

-Following the blogs of my other MSc.GH friends who are spread out all over the world right now doing groundbreaking research.

-Steph Glover and her ridiculously kind guest blog. I’m honored to have had her words fill the pages of my blog for a change.

-My beautiful Emily Morgan and her priceless wedding that I’ve loved reliving through the pictures that people have sent me, and the emails from home.

-Green hills and fields as far as the eye can see—that is until they reach the foothills of the Himalayas.

-Cows everywhere.

-Goats that roam the streets like dogs.

-Snuggle movie parties with six to a bed.

-Watching and becoming obsessed with this fantastical Bollywood film. Who cares if it is 3 hours long? Or incredibly cheesy? Or in Hindi with no English subtitles?

-Scarfing down the food in the refugee camps at lunch each day—the best meals we eat here by far.

-30 cent DVDs.

-Bucket Showers. For some reason, they just make me happy.

-The sweet family who lives in the guesthouse where we’re staying and the relationship we’ve formed with them despite our inability to communicate through words.

-Realizing the depth of communication that you can attain, even without words. Especially if there is a lot of laughter involved.

-Seeing lightening bugs here for the first time last night and feeling a little closer to the summer in the South.

-Getting emails from friends and loved ones.

-Getting my first ever “Smilebox” from my dear friend Jen. If you’ve never gotten a Smilebox, you are missing out on a delight. If you don’t know what a Smilebox is, no worries, neither did I…until today.

-Watching Kerri Strug’s 1996 gold medal, broken ankle, toughest, most spectacular vault of all time over and over again on youtube with my roomy Dominique--reliving the greatest moment I remember from my childhood as a gymnast.

-Listening to my favorite playlists and sharing music with my friends here on our long rides to the camps.

-Creating a Brooke Fraser fan out of one of my teammates. Who’d have thought?

-Discovering a small community of Christians in the smallest camp here, and feeling the bond of being brothers and sisters in Christ despite how different our worlds are. Because, somehow, we all know that this isn’t the world we were made for anyhow.

-A trip to this place last weekend.

Ilam is a town of tea farms in Eastern Nepal. These two pretties are Tulsi and Kiran.

-A trip to this place next weekend.

Pokhara

-A day to myself today to Sabbath, listen to an awesome sermon, spend time praying and enjoying intimate time with God.

-Time to blog. Finally.

I miss you all. And I miss talking to you through this strange little blog of mine. I’ll be posting regularly again soon. And in the mean time…watch out for some more guest bloggies!