I want to ride my bicycle...

...I want to ride it where I like.

Last year, I wrote this post. Now here we are, nine months later, and I have a bicycle. As it turns out, Con #6 (the most significant con) turned out to be very insignificant. That is because my bike was free.

After months of wishful thinking about owning a bike and several weeks of actually searching for a bike, my dad suddenly remembered that a Murray cruiser had been collecting dust in my grandmother's garage. We immediately went to check it out, and now I am the proud owner of that Murray cruiser.

So here he is...

Big thanks to my generous grandma for providing me with a free bicycle.

Summer literature

Before my tonsillectomy, I made a trip to Half-Price Books and Borders to acquire some reading material for the recovery period. My book collection is much too large to begin with and I buy a lot of books that I don't end up reading, but I have a plan this summer. I am going to create a reading list and stick with it. My list will include the many books that been accumulating dust on the shelves, yearning for a young lady such as myself to read them. Then, at the end of the summer, I will collect a bunch of my old books and sell them to Half-Price Books.

Books will be read. Money will be made. It's gonna be great.

Here's the reading list (or a draft of it):

1. Through Painted Deserts (or finish it...I have read half)

2. Jesus for President

3. Wuthering Heights

4. The Alchemist

5. Love in the Time of Cholera

6 . The Unlikely Disciple

7. The Choice

8. Water for Elephants

9. Radical

10. The Shack

11. Mere Christianity

12. Traveling Mercies

13. Jesus Wants to Save Christians

14. Good Chuck Palahniuk novels (I'm taking suggestions here because I've heard some of his books aren't as good as other)

15. The Stieg Larsson novels

16. Reason for God

17. Same Kind of Different as Me

18. The Reader

We'll see where it goes from here. I'm open to opinions and suggestions.

EDIT: I forgot a few. Added three more. Also, I won't be able to finish these this summer. Starting July 12, I'm taking an ENG class at UK, so I don't have have much time left for pleasure reading. So this list will be ongoing for quite a while.

Naminala, Guereo.

I miss Africa. So much. Some days are good and I have enjoyed many things that I missed about America, such as coffee, salad, grass, my bed, Target, etc. Other days I think about Guereo 24/7. It's so difficult being away from our house and family there, the BCM team, all the children (especially Lil Mama, Ada, Hadi & Abi, and Nyaga). I went to World Market yesterday with my mom and searched everywhere in the grocery section for Biskrem or Ananas soda, but had no luck. But every time I saw something that reminded me of Africa, my heart ached. Living in Kentucky when part of my heart is half a world away sucks sometimes.

After I recover from my tonsillectomy, I plan on writing the long summary/what I learned in Africa blog that I've been avoiding.

Yes, you are our glory and our joy!

It is hard to believe that my trip is more than halfway over. The family we are living with has become our Senegalese family and it will be really sad to leave them. My favorite part of the day is after dinner when we sit and drink soda, talk, dance, and sing with the family. Yesterday they said that we were Senegalese now, and my heart melted.

Ive experienced so much these last few days that I have no idea how to sum it up. I am seeing God in so many new ways. Some cool things that happened since my last post:
-I held a newborn at the medical clinic.
-Went to a Senegalese wedding (and took a picture with the bride)
-Went to the elementary school and taught some English
-Had our own church service on the roof
-Learned some Senegalese songs
-Went to the river and had amazing prayer time and relaxation
-I may or may not have gotten married on the beach.
-Had Mambaye record me, Bekah, and Kait singing Come Thou Fount
-talked about Yessu

We have had some amazing, sacred moments here. We have friends here asking many questions about what it means to follow Jesus. Keep praying for us, as well as the people of Guereo.

Amazing Grace

My encounters in Senegal never cease to amaze me. Yesterday when I was beginning to feel tired and hot, we sang Amazing Grace as we walked and I felt instantly uplifted. Chi kanum (later), we took about 50 kids to the beach, and had a blast. The little girls loved burying me in sand and putting my hair in lettes (braids). There are so many amazing details to write about, but French keyboards are confusing and Babakar is waiting to use it. Hopefully we will make more visits to the internet cafe in the next week.

Ba Chi Kanum.

Greetings from Guereo!

My heart is so full right now. I have been in the village for two days, and I am in love with this place. The night sky is gorgeous, not anything like the sky we see in Amerik (America). I love the people here so much, especially the entourage of children that follow us wherever we go, but it is so sad that they dont know Yessu (Jesus). Even so, seeing these kids light up when we smile at them and hold their hand is the most satisfying thing in the world. Baay, Yaay, Hadi, and the rest of the family has been so hospitable to us. They are constantly trying to serve us, even when we are content. I love the coffee, tea, and soda here and the food is pretty nexxna (good), too. I dont even have words to express how much I love this place. Hopefully I will have another day of computer access to update again.

Ba beneen yon.

Yacine

Assala Malekum from Africa!

I am safely in Senegal. We're staying at a missionary's house for a few hours to get some sleep before heading to the village. Their house is beautiful and I absolutely love it here thusfar. Unfortunately, people are waiting to use the computer, so hopefully a longer update will come later.

It's about that time.

May 10th has arrived. In twelve hours, I will be boarding a plane to Washington D.C. After changing flights in D.C., I will be arriving in Dakar, Senegal! My bags are packed, my iPod is synced, and the camera is charged.

I'm going to try to update as much as possible on here (we're supposed to have internet access). Please feel free to leave me comments. Or you can send me e-mails at jpsmit6@uky.edu. I would absolutely love to hear from friends and family while I am gone!

Be praying for our group, as well as the people of Senegal. Pray for their hearts to be open to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Ci turu Yeesu Kirist

"What are you doing this summer, Jazmin?"

"Well, I am going to Africa."

I've had this conversation probably over 50 times in recent months. At first, I announced my trip to Africa so casually. Now, when I tell people about this trip, it comes out in a panicky voice masked by an excited smile. It's real now. I'm leaving in less than three days. I'm absolutely filled with joy and excitement, but the panic and fear is still there.

But none of my fears and worries matter, because my God is so good. I have faith that He will provide. It's going to be frustrating at times, especially with the language barrier, but we've been called for a reason: to make His name known. We may not be able to flat-out tell them who Jesus is and hand them a Bible, but we CAN show them Christ. Respecting their faith and showing them Christ in us through our actions can make a larger impact than we sometimes realize.

So what am I up to this summer?

Well...

I am going to Africa in three days. Senegal, Africa, to be more specific. I am traveling with eight others and I can't wait to spend two weeks with them. I am living in the village for twelve days, learning the Senegalese way of life. I am going to speak very broken Wolof and probably do a lot of pantomiming to communicate with others. I am going to love on children and work in a medical clinic. I am going to build relationships and show people who Christ is.