Whithersoever thou goest

My home

I would feel a bit more settled with a good cleaning, with hopes that it may have a reduction of some of the wadudu (insects).

The days get into the mid 80s and the UV ratings get to “extreme” on Accuweather. So, I planned to walk to the “supermarket” on Saturday morning before things got too hot. I also hoped that a weekend morning would be less traffic on the Arusha-Moshi road that I walk along on a footpath sometimes what seems to be only 2 meters (6 feet) away from the motorcycles, cars, buses, and trucks. That was a good plan.

My goal was to get cleaning supplies. As I’m also walking the 25-minutes back, I buy what I can carry. I’m sure I looked strange with a mop, a plunger, and a broomstick ascending from my backpack. With a big, blue bag, I wonder how many tourists driving buy identified the IKEA trademark!

What a sight to behold!

This place is like a cross between a cabin and a rental home that has not been loved for a few years. I wanted to scrub the kitchen (at least start), get the cobwebs, spider cocoons, and bat/mouse droppings swept and mopped up, and set up my clothes washing system. Yes, not only am I doing dishes by hand (which reminds me to pray for the ELCA missionaries, the Fribergs, who are deep in the middle of Maasailand), but I also have to do laundry by hand. If I can manage it, then I don’t need to seek out someone to do my laundry. It does provide a job for someone, but with just me, my new system that I learned from YouTube could keep me from the effort to find a trusted person right now while I’m putting emotional energy into getting me settled.

So, this laundry system is pretty slick. I bought two new cleat mop buckets that telescope inside each other and have sturdy metal handles. I hand drilled (yes, I bought and brought a small hand drill just for this purpose) many holes in one of the buckets.

I have a laundry room with a large cement sink (that didn’t drain well, until I picked out a lot of gunk) with counters on either side. I put the “sieve” bucket inside the normal bucket and add laundry soap, water, and then some of my cleanest dirty clothes. With a new—clean—plunger, I agitate the clothes for a good 5 minutes. (I’m figuring out the optimal agitation time, but 5 minutes seemed to work fine with half a bucket of clothes.)

After agitation/plunging, I lift out the sieve bucket, and most of the water drains out. A few presses with the plunger while resting on top of the bottom bucket pushes out some more water. These clothes get dumped into bucket number 3 with some water to start rinsing. Replace the sieve bucket into the normal bucket with the soapy water. Repeat with more clothes, putting the dirtiest clothes in last. The rinsing process is similar, but all my 3 small loads fit nicely in the buckets for rinsing a few times.

Then, I take the sieve out of the laundry room door to the cement steps. Now I put the normal bucket inside the sieve bucket and sit on the top of the bucket stack, pressing more water out of the sieve holes!

The final step is tying the sturdy handle to a rope I threw over a tree branch in the back yard and twisted the bucket many, many times. Then the unwinding causes centrifugal force for a spin cycle, as water sprays out of the sieve bucket. A few times twisting and spinning gets most of the water out and saves the handwringing of each article of clothing! Now, hang up the clothes to dry.

For the socks and small things, I have a travel clothesline of braided think latex rubber tubing. So, no clothes pins needed. Just put a small corner in between the braided chord. As I did my laundry after my shopping, walking, and drilling holes, things were still a bit damp before the sun set at 6:30 (every day, all year round). So, I could just take the latex tubing inside with all the socks and small things still attached and affix it inside my house.

Overall, I’m pleased with the system, especially compared to the chore of hand scrubbing and hand wringing. I did add more holes on the sieve, so I should have even better results from my spin cycle next time.

Mungu akubariki! (God bless you!)

This first Tanzanian blog post is a little long. It took a while to get access to the Internet, and there is no Internet when the power is out (which it has been 4 times in 3 days).

I departed Sweden on Monday, with the help of Anya and my dear friend with a big car, Johanna, I got my 4 large checked bags checked and delivered to Tanzania. (Traveler’s tip #1, take a picture of your bags you will check.) Fortunately, I had 2 of the plastic trunks from when we moved to Tanzania, so they are good for shipping as well as storage (duct taping over some vent holes to try to keep the vermin out of my dry food storage and other items).

With all the hassle of a lot of luggage, international travel, security checks (a bit of a formality for arriving passengers in Addis Ababa), I experienced a lower state of unsettledness than usual with all the hassles of travel–and this is a big move! Then, I received a text message from Marta in Norway who said she was praying for me. I know that others were aware of travel and praying too. What a blessing! (Travel tip #2, if you are traveling heavy to Africa, Ethiopian Airlines has 32 kg bag options at a bit of a higher cost, does not weigh carry-on bags, nor seem to mind if you [other travelers, not me] have 3 large carry-ons, yet be prepared for a crowed airport and an introduction to “This is Africa” in Addis.)

Helpful information in the Addis Ababa bathrooms!

The challenge was getting through visa processing and then customs at Kilimanjaro International Airport. I didn’t say I was here for tourism, but I can’t say I’m here for research yet, because my research visa hasn’t been approved (a process I started literally at the end of April). So, I said I’m here for cultural exchange and learning Swahili. When I mentioned doing language learning, the visa official wanted me to pay for a business visa. But I said, I’m not doing business. I’m doing cultural exchange and that includes learning language. So, a supervisor agreed that I didn’t need a business visa, and I ended up with a “leisure and holiday” visa, as I leave on 13 November, 77 days from my arrival (as I’m going to present a paper at a conference in the USA) as part of this project.

Three lines and $100 later, I picked up my luggage. But the trunks are suspicious, as they are not typical tourist baggage. However, everyone’s luggage goes through a luggage scanner upon arrival, including carry-on backpacks. So, 4 of my bags were required to be open. Strategically, I had put clothes and my Swahili dictionary, and ordinary things on top. A customs official, a courteous women, asked me how long I am staying when she saw kitchen utinsels. I said I leave in 77 days. She asked why I’m bringing kitchen things? I said, I have a place on the Tumaini University Makumira (TUMa) campus, but it has no kitchen things, no bedding, etc. She also noted that I had a steel box in a suitcase (packed in tourist-looking luggage), which I explained is a way to keep things safe, when it is chained down. That made sense to her. So, she seemed satisfied, but noted that I had 2 laptops to her supervisor. Yet, with some chatting in my basic Kiswahili and telling her that I used to teach in Monduli, she was kind, and I ended up without any additional custom’s fees, which I’ve heard can be about 40% of the perceived value.

Dr. Daniel Kosia and his younger brother were my wonderful welcome crew and luggage wrestlers! (And that’s my front door! Another picture will come when I get WIFI.)

My former colleague at the Maasai Girls Lutheran Secondary School in Monduli, Dr. Daniel Kosia, is now the head of the science department at TUMa. He has been a HUGE help to facilitate communication. He and his younger brother (half-brother?) Joseph, wrestled the luggage into Daniel’s small SUV. Daniel took me to my house on the TUMa campus, where I actually visited on Easter, probably 2023 or 2024! It is where the ELCA missionary, Nancy Stevenson, lived. She had a day for the children from the TUMa community on Easter, and invited Anya to join in. I learned how to harvest papaya that day. The tree is still there, and hopefully, I will have some sweet paypays later.

I’m so far glad that I brought a bunch of stuff that I knew I would need, or would make things easier to get going and dealing with some of the quirks of this old house. It will take a considerable amount of processing and methodically plodding through the set up. I still will need some things here, like hangars, a mop, a fly swatter, etc. I’ll have more details later, especially about my planned system for doing laundry by hand. It is about 25 minutes of walking along a busy road to where I can find an ATM (no longer one at the TUMa gate) and go to a “supermarket” that is about the size of a tennis court. Tonight, Daniel re-introduced me to dala-dala travel (privately owned vans that serve as public transportation) with the current prices (a trip to the grocery store is 500 Tanzanian shillings or 2.5 sugar bananas).

(Travel tip #3, keep flashlights handy. The first evening, I kept wearing a headlamp, just in case, as it is pitch black when the power is out. Tonight, I had unpacked my hand crank flashlight, which is on an lanyard around my neck–no batteries so cheaper and better for the environment. And remember to flip off the lights you turned on, so if you go to sleep in the dark and the power comes on in the middle of the night, there won’t be lights on. When there is power, the refrigerator hum is constant, so it is my clue that I have lights again!)

After a day in my house, I was told that I had an Ethernet cable (no WIFI, so I had to go to the library to download pictures from my phone for this blog). So, I have internet access, but sometimes there is a ruckus on the roof with the monkeys chasing each other! What an interesting world.

Animal watch: Lizards, greater hornbill birds, vervet monkeys, Colobus monkeys, a 3 inch (7.5 cm) cockroach, and 2 dead dogs on the road walking back from the grocery store.

A vervet monkey on campus

The Marie Curie Fellowship Begins

On 1 August, I flew from Sweden, where I spent much of the summer with Anya, to Stavanger, Norway. My Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship has begun. With a few weeks here to get connected with my employer, VID Specialized University, prepare for time in Tanzania, renew some contacts with colleagues face-to-face, and get in a few hikes in beautiful Norway.

Today, I had my new employee orientation day, so my meetings are done. Now, I’m in transition, with plans to arrive in Tanzania on 29 August.

With blessings,

Beth

After church this morning, I biked to the university area of Uppsala. The Royal Mounted Band was making a special appearance.

Yes, the cathedral is getting some roof repair, but it does clearly give a point of reference to show that we’re in Stockholm. This is the band that usually plays for the changing of the guard at the royal palace in Stockholm.

Then I joined the crowd in walking a couple blocks to the botanical garden, where there was a nice display of playing and riding. There was a nice description of the troupe, the music, and some reference to what I think (because of limitations with my Swedish) is that this royal mounted band is in process of being considered for a UNESCO World Heritage listing for cultural significance.

It is feeling like fall now with cooler temperatures and more rain. The week ahead is forecast with rain on most of the days. I give a mid-term exam in Intro to Old Testament and the first papers for the hermeneutics course come in, so I’ll have plenty to do and won’t be sad to be missing beautiful weather.

With blessings,

Beth

Yesterday, Saturday, I took Anya to the airport to see her off and help with the luggage. Our last moment was a short prayer and also words that expressed how proud I am of her and that I know Dad would be too. So, that started a few tears for both of us, but because I know it is so wonderful for her to return, to London where she is thriving, it is not hard to be happy for her.

She was thrilled to be recruited to apply for a tutoring position because of her strong grades last year. She interviewed last Monday on Skype, and she was informed that she was hired on Tuesday! So, she is excited to start on a positive note. This will be a little income, but mostly a way to build a resume’ as well as really cement her math concepts through teaching them to others.

Anya is in the same housing unit in Kensington, a Christian ministry for international students connected with the Anglican church. She actually has the same room she had last year but a new roommate. However, she met her roommate last spring, a young woman from South Korea.

I am already missing her, and not because she was enjoying a new found interest in cooking! That was very nice, but it is just wonderful to have a comfortable conversation partner, someone who knows me, and someone with whom I know I shouldn’t have to try to speak Swedish!

Sunday: 17 pointy hats in; 18 pointy hats out

This morning, after a visit to the gym, I biked to the Uppsala Cathedral for a bishop installation as part of a “high mass.” The new bishop is a son of my Swedish tutor’s friend. They were roommates in boarding school in India when they were 6 years old. The new bishop is an alum of Johannelund, but I don’t know him. For me, it was an opportunity to see the pomp and circumstance of a bishop’s installation, where the procession started with 61 people, not including all the choir members, and a total of 17 pointy hats.

Bishop installations are honored by the presence of a representative of the royal family. Today, it was both the king and queen. They can been seen in this video at moments about halfway through, when the new bishop turns to face the congregation and everyone stands. The queen is in tan to the right of the king.

https://www.facebook.com/KyrkansTidning/videos/414075249245971/

I’m not rattling around home alone after Anya left. I have a “inneboende” or a renter in my home, Ida. Ida is a former student who is now in the priest training program for the Church of Sweden (which calls their pastors priests). She is in a wheelchair outside the home and a walker in the home, so when she was looking for a place to stay, I knew that my ground-level condo would work for her. It would also mean that I could practice my Swedish more often. Now that Anya is gone, there will be more Swedish spoken.

So, life continues on. Thanks for checking in on me.

With blessings, Beth

I wish I had a gift of hospitality. I have been on the receiving end mostly here in Sweden, but with a not-so-cozy student apartment, it hasn’t felt very hospitable. Perhaps my introvertedness and lack of capacity of social Swedish tips my desire to be more hospitable into a dormant mode.

My condo is still not very warm and friendly inside either. Here’s the general sense of hand-me-down furniture (except for the ping pong table).

However, I do have a nice deck, and the previous owners left their deck furniture and grill. So, I invited Eleanor, who teaches in the Semetic languages department (and chair of the department) at the Uppsala University to join my temporary German family for dinner. It was a beautiful evening.

With my German family, we shared waffles on the deck.

So, we’ve had some nice gatherings on the deck. And I finally figured out how to hang my hammock.

Yesterday, I read a few chapters of Robert Alter’s book, The Art of Biblical Poetry.

Today, Sunday, we gathered at the Uppsala cathedral for the ordination of 2 Johannelund students and my boss, James, the rektor of Johannelund. James was ordained in the American Baptist denomination and served as a pastor in the USA, but the Church of Sweden does not recognize that ordination. So as rektor, it was prudent to be re-ordained as a Lutheran. (I don’t like the theology behind this, but finally “they” will let James serve in clergy roles now.)

I will grade all day Monday, then have 2 days of faculty meetings and 2 days of an overnight personnel “retreat” that isn’t a retreat. All of these are full of Swedish. Yes, a long week ahead.

With blessings,

Beth

Today is a “red day,” which means a national holiday. I’m catching up on some grace days early in the month when I went to London, so I did some work today, including reviewing a bachelor’s thesis. I was well done, but I have some questions and suggestions for the defense next Tuesday.

This past Tuesday was my last lessons for the academic year. The students had their presentation on their exegesis (interpretation), but I have them appropriate their interpretation for application in a lesson plan. The first part of a lesson (the “hook”) is what they presented.

After lunch, they took the exam. Yes, that means I have exams to grade as well as 5 thesis to read (2 bachelors, 2 magister [1-year program], and 1 master’s). In case you are wondering, everything is in Swedish! So, the chore of grading is magnified by slogging through the Swedish.

After the exam, I stayed on campus for a lecture by Dr. Bruk Ayele, the President of Mekane Yesus Seminary in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. I have have met Bruk a couple times before and had dinner with him at a friend’s house last Sunday, but this was a very informative time with a overview of the programs and various challenges.

The dad of my German family/housemates has arrived for the weekend. He will head back to Germany shortly, but he prepared a way for the daughter to count the days until they are all together in Germany with a modified Advent calendar, a papa kalendar.

We are getting along these 6 weeks of overlap, and a few days with the dad, who is a joy to rally in ping pong. The mom and dad had some time together last night, and I helped out with reading Bamse, a children’s comic book, with the daughter. She was helping me with my Swedish. I realized how it was easier for me to read a bachelor’s thesis than a children’s comic book, as there is so much of language in the comic that is idiomatic and vernacular expressions! But it was a good time together and a good exercise for me.

With blessings,

Beth

The days are quite long now, with the sun rising at 3:48 am and setting at 9:43 pm with lots of dawn and dusk beyond those times. I’ve taped up a black-out curtain on wall because the black-out roller shade let too much light through the gaps.

The spring weather has been nice recently.

My condo gets the morning sun, and a sliver of afternoon sun. I still haven’t figured out how to hang up my hammock.

Steffi and Sophie (9 y.o.) are the mother and daughter of the friends I bought the condo from. Florian, the dad, has found a job and an apartment for them in Berlin already. The 6 week overlap with Steffi and Sophie is going really well, way better than expected. They have been good conversation partners–mostly in English, but I’m working on some Swedish too. Today it was a discussion of higher ed testing in Swedish contexts. Steffi has been teaching at the Uppsala University, so she has a different experience for me to compare and learn from. She is also an award winning teacher, so I’m grateful for the opportunity to learn from her expertise.

The past couple days has turned wet and cold. The rain has collected the pollen from the air and on the sidewalks.

I invited a few friends and students over to watch “The Princess Bride” last night. One was a student who will be going to the USA and work at a Bible camp that one of my friends serves as director. So, this was a little American cult film culture connection. Then we watched the Australian cult film, “The Castle.” Wonderfully wacky night with plenty of treats. I made my caramel/chocolate/pecans bars with a modified recipe, adapted to what I could find in Sweden.

In church this morning, the text had the line, “Herre, vi sjunger ditt heliga namn.” I would translate this into English as, “LORD, we sing your holy name. Yes, this phrase has lots of cognates, such that you probably wonder why I’m struggling to learn Swedish. However, my point here is that Herre/LORD is NOT YHWH’s/Yahweh’s name. The multi-faceted meanings and covenental context of YHWH is so powerful and full of promise, I am disappointed that there has been so much circumlocution (walking around the name–especially its pronunciation), that people think that Herre/LORD is YHWH’s name. Don’t mess this up!

On a positive note, I was invited to dinner after church to the home of Staffan and Ingela Grenstedt. Staffan was my host in Ethiopia my first time. Today, they invited me to join Rev. Dr. Bruk Ayele, the President of Mekane Yesus Seminary in their home. I’ve met Bruk a few times before and have a high regard for him and all the challenges of his work. Today, I was blessed to hear more of the stories of generosity during the great famines, the communist regime, and at one point a gun held against his head challenging his profession of faith. So, I am blessed to share in these stories.

I haven’t been writing much. Some of this is a little funk. So, I thought perhaps I need to use this as a means of reflecting upon gratitude. I think that some of the lull is the little amount of teaching in the spring, and teaching keeps my focus and stimulates the core of my calling. However, I have a lot to do the next few days as the end of the term approaches, so somehow I have to muster my A-game.

With blessings,
Beth

Finally, I am back after a hiatus. Half of the hiatus was not planned, but some technical change on the side of the blog host company prevented me from logging in due to some security issue. Now that is fixed. Half of the hiatus was due to the busy time of packing, finalizing the sale, moving, unpacking with two 5-day/4-night trips to London!

I am getting more settled, but there still are boxes to unpack and some rearranging needed to make things more practical. I also need to keep exploring in order to remember where I put things!

The friends that I bought the condo from are in transition. The dad is in Germany doing a job hunt. The mom and 9 y.o. daughter are here through mid-June, so that the daughter can finish the school year. This is going quite well, better than expected, as it seems to be a mutual blessing with an extended orientation on all the systems here.

I will work on getting some photos posted soon, now that most of the boxes are out of the way.

The Good News

Today, I received an email from my PhD student colleague, who now is teaching OT in Norway. She informed me that my book was reviewed and posted on the last list of reviews published by the Society of Biblical Literature. I am very pleased with the review and the appropriate critique. What a nice bit of icing on the cake of this rich experience!

I believe that you can read it at this link without a login.

https://www.bookreviews.org/pdf/12015_13402.pdf

With blessings,

Beth