Muck & Mire

The fun 'feet' blog picture we've been using as a header has bothered me for a few reasons. Don't get me wrong - it's cute and fun, but it was taken during a lovely vacation at the beach in Kenya. And while, I like to look at it and remember our lovely vacation at the beach, our life here in Africa does not boil down to a vacation on the beach.

And it's not in Kenya.

Let's just be abundantly clear, life in Congo is grimy, dirty and full of bugly realities (as many of you notice on facebook). I had to remind the boys to wash their hands this morning before breakfast because they had been touching an almost-dead rodent. When we wash these feet, the tub turns brown with dust and mud for a moment. Life is messy.

Everyday.

In every way.

Life is messy anywhere in the world because of humanity. People hurt each other. Lies. Hypocrisy. Selfish gain. Vain conceit. Here we add to those mud, bugs and life without vacuums or wipes. Messiness of another layer. Speaking of layers, most people here put curtains over their bookshelves because the dust accumulates so pervasively that a book can be ruined without ever being used. I store our future school books inside two XXL Ziplocs in a sealed plastic trunk.

Convinced?

What better blog header than mud?

Mucky reality.

And a pineapple in our backyard.

And a friend's brightly colored skirt.

There are gorgeous things that come out of the mire!