CONTRASTING EXPERIENCES

"having a bed to sleep in...
...having to  sleep on the floor
having to worry if you have enough food...
...being able to buy foor from the supermarket next door, whenever you want
having a big enough house to host 20+ people...
...looking for space to fit 5 people in a 3m^2 room/hut
having to wear the same set of clothes each day...
...not knowing what to choose from your closet
having two cars ready to get going...
...trying to find the shortes path to walk
having a thankful heart for every penny you find...
...freaking out where the 10 extra dollars went
having a warm or cool house depending on how you like it...
...coping with the freezing cold or dying heat
having to care for the people surrounding you...
...caring as little as you can about your neighbor
having to go to another family meeting...
...being able to meet the remaining family
having to try to get all children to school...
...irresoluteness of choosing the perfect school
having to remind yourself to be thankful for every little and big thing you've got...
...appreciating the little you've got."
~SAYA R.

I think often it's just a question of perspective, but I don't really know which life circumstances are easier to live in. It is shocking for me to catch myself thinking "I deserve this or that, I deserve living the life I am living" - eventhough I know better deep down in my heart. I know that this isn't the attitude I want to live life. Especially after being in Kenia for 3 months and experiencing to have little, sleeping uncomfortable but also seeing people having a lot less then me. Now being back in Europe it is hard to comprehend my experiences and how to deal with it wisely, to move forward.
I want to live a life being thankful for what I have, not wanting to have the attitude of needing more but praying "Lord, use my life to be a blessing and teach me how to use what I have wisely."

Meanwhile in Warsaw

buildings in Warsaw

As I wrote in my last post I am in Warsaw right now. It has been an awesome stay so far. Okay it has been wonderful and I do feel really blessed that I am able to be here and do the internship here.

Last week was more an oriantatin week of looking in which I want to go and what is possible. I ended up picking grade 5 and 11 Maths and grade 6 and 11 English, but I'm helping out in other grades and also in primary school (grade 3). I've even been able to teach my first 'real' leasson this past friday in grade 5 and have been able to help out in the other classes to and will actually help out in grade 7 in English talking about Canada what should be fun.

Apart from my internship my mom was with me the first week and we had the opportunity to go shopping in a really nice shopping mall called "Arcadia" - it's quite big, has a great food court, a big variety of shops and great window instalations. Also we had the opportunity to go to a ladies retreat from ICF Warsaw were I got to know some really amazing Ladies! Our speaker Karen was great as she was speaking about HOPE and it gave me many thoughts to ponder on and also tipps of how to get through pain, hurt or dissapointment (of which I am still batteling with). It was a great time of community and being able to enjoy some of polands beautiful nature.

two horses pulling our carriage

spring in Warsaw

After my mom left I just got busy with school and I don't even remember what else I did, days just seem to fly here, only 4 more weeks until I leave for home. So I have to try to get the most out of Warsaw and the people I got to know meanwhile. ICF also has lifegroups and one of them is on Thursdays called YAM which I have been able to go to twice so far. It's really cool to learn about the bible in this setting and just spending time with fellow believers. On Saturday we (some people from YAM) also had a little game night where we played "Castles of Burgundy" (a strategy game connected with luck) which was a lot of fun.
You can't believe how good it is for me to be in a community like this again, after leaving the international community from YWAM even though it is quite different here, but still a great experience. The other day I was able to go to the gardens on top of the university library here in Warsaw with Eszter from Hungary who I met through ICF, we had a really good time, and I am really thankful for the time we could spend together.

the view from the gardens

I'm excited for what is to come and what is awaiting me next, also how God will use all of my experiences in YWAM the good and the bad to glorify his name.

before a concert at the German embassy

Mombasa-Germany-Home and more

In my last post I posted one of my adventures, my dance adventure in Mombasa, but I had many more really awesome experiences in Mombasa, of which I could write many more stories.
One for example is we had the opportunity to go to one of the big trash dumps in Mombasa. We went there multiple times and by the end of our time we could actually see a change in the people we encountered and I know we left something behind. And through us going there now other Christians have the courage to go there and go there regularly do build deeper relationships and deciple the new Christian believers. And now to one of the most craziest stories in my life so far...
The first time we went to this trash dump we split up into smaller groups with a translator to be able to talk to a couple of people and just try to get to know them a little. I was walking around with ine of them and after talking with some ladies I wanted to talk to a man who had a restaurant, but he sent me and the translator dirctly to his wife, who had given birth to a child sometime that past night. I was kind of surprised and didn't really know why he wanted me to meet his wife and new born child. Well it turned out that they wanted me to give there son a name. As you might understand I was quite overwhelmed by this honor. So I decided to guide the conversation in a different direction to "not have to" name the baby, because for me this was a huge responsibility. But after they kept on asking me to name the Baby I finally gave in - meanwhile myhead is going what name should I pick which had a deeper meaning. So after a while I decided to name him David after my dad and after David in the Bible, because he was the lowest in the family and didn't really have a great starting point in life but ended up to have a really important and crucial role for the future which is now our past. Additionally to that David from the bible is concidered a man "after God's own heart", and that was something I wished for this child and prayed over it. What was even more fascinationg for me was that the second name they gave him was Peter, so this little baby boys name is David Peter to huge names in the bible and for me a huge blessing! And I really hope that he will one day be a man who will make a differnce, and will be able to bring hope to many more people in Kenya.
Here are some pictures from my stay in Mombasa:

a picture from Baby David Peter

blossoms from a Frangipani tree on the YWAM compound

a boat by Pirates beach in Mombasa

sunrises in Mombasa

one of the last days in Mombasa

Well after our amazing time in Mombasa was over I had the opportunity to still meet some friend in Nairobi the day we flew out and back to Germany. They we're amazing! They treated me with amzing breakfast, a crazy and really adventureous Safari walk (we got to see lions - my favourite animals - lying around 3 meters away from us, only separated by a fence) and a great lunch + Java's later by the airport.

the 8 year old orphan cheetah brothers

The flight back to Germany was good, againd a big thanks to Emirates for their great service! My family awaited me at the airport which was really nice and I was really happy to see them again after 3 months. We swopped suitcases so I had warm clothes for the cold weather in Germany. From the airport we took the train to Nürnberg. There we went to the ICF which was so friendly to take us in for the last 2 weeks. It was so nice to have a really warm shower again and we had a great kitchen, one everyone would dream of having themself at home.
The last two weeks with YWAM were O.K. eventhough I was really, really happy when I finally took the train back home after graduation. The night of graduation it self was really nice and I had a great talk with two really awesome ladies!

The next day it went home, back to my family + 1 and it was cool to have bed to myself again etc. All in all it was a good time, where I can say and I hope that I will be able to say that I can truly see Gods hand in everything. Something I really had to learn was that even when nothing seems to go right, you feel left alone, you're disapointed and/or hurt there is a God who will always be there for me and I can trust him no matter what, and I have to let go and forgive and not hold fast to things that will only amage me in the end. God will help me through it and is faithfull in bringing people in my life that will help me get through challenges. (Thanks to everyone who has helped me through challenges and everyone who just listened-THANKS) A vers that keeps carying me trough challenges is Proverbs 3,5+6:
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on you own understanding, in all your ways submit to him, and he will mak your paths straight.

a german TukTuk

snowback home in the mountains during a walk with a new friend

After having time to realx a bit, meet up wikKth friends and go shopping in Austria with my mom, my sister and I went to Cologne to celebrate my birthday and Christmas together. We had a great Hotel with amazing breakfast and we could just hang out together which was really awesome! (Thanks for everything sis!)

Kölner Dom by night

on a bridge in Cologne 

On our way home I got to know two cool ladies, we had great conversations and I even was able to meet up with one of them again just 2 days ago in Paris. Which leads me to my next adventure: FRANCE - Paris
We as a family went to visit my sisters exchange family in France (near Paris) to finally meet them and just to get to knwo them. They were extremly hospitable and generous and we had a good time even though we didn't completly spoke the same languages :). I could pretty much see all the attractions there are in Paris, starting with the Eifel Tower, Sacre Coer, Mon Matre and L'arc de triumph to the Notre Dame, Verailles, the Louvre and Mona Lisa inside of it.
I can say I've seen a lot of Paris and if I am honest I don't quite understand the big hype around Paris, yes it has really famous architecture and art, but there are somany other cities in the worls that are much more beautiful and have sometimes even more to offer. Also Paris reminds me a lot of Rome and to me Rome has a bit more flair then Paris.

by the Pantheon

Versailles

by the Louvre with one of the amazing ladies from the train

We arrived at home yesterday evening and now I am already in Warsaw, ready for my next adventure: an internship in the German school here to double check if I really want to become a teacher (in an international setting). So let's see what this adventure has instore for me and what will happen next. Up to date I have been to six different countries alone this year, and I wouldn't have expected that at all last year... I was in Kenya, Germany, Austria, France, Czech Republic (on my way to Warsaw) and am now in Poland. Crazy how things work out and how God puts things in place!