We've now been on our mission for just over two months. Sometimes we can't believe where the time has gone - and others we wonder "is that all?" :) We are coming up to speed on our responsibilities supporting the full time missionaries; we continue to struggle a bit with the language comprehension - the mix of French with Lingala and Swahili creates different accents and pronunciations. And very few of our missionaries speak any English, and even fewer of the people we interact with around the city.
Being with the full time missionaries is really our greatest joy, they are such incredible people. We've watched as they have gotten a little less shy and intimidated by the "Americans", and as they've warmed up it's become even more rewarding to work with them. The language barrier makes the work slow and the conversations pretty limited. That will change over time, we know.
Sadly, it just isn't safe for us to wander around this city. Even driving to and from the office we have regularly been targeted by traffic police who feel like we must be violating some law or something so we need to pay a cash fine on the spot. We've gotten pretty good at ignoring them, but it creates a sense of pressure and anxiety.
When we get to our apartment we are confined there after dark, generally 6pm - no going out to visit people, no shopping, can't really even go for a drive because of overall safety concerns. And even if we could drive somewhere, the traffic can make a one mile trip take over an hour. So every night we have hours and hours to fill - lots of study time! The good news is we get along really well as a companionship! And, in addition to reading, we are learning new card games to play, and we brought a portable hard drive with about 300 movies on it! But we'd be lying if we didn't say that sometimes it's very lonely and boring.
The internet here is very very slow - sort of close to the old dial up speeds - and it is limited. It's a metered service so we have to watch data consumption for fear it will be throttled or turned off until the following month. We have been unable to find a way to purchase additional services, we don't get straight answers. We've actually been without internet for probably 15-20% of the time we've been here.
We love our ward - everyone has been very friendly; Suzanne regularly shares her musical talents and will be playing for the choir in an upcoming stake conference; and a lot of the children have adopted me - not sure if it's as a grandpa or an elf for Santa Claus!
We really don't mind the stares and the curious looks that we get without end. Children in particular are generally in awe and stand with their mouths agape when they see us. A grocery store owner wanted a picture with Suzanne. Motos drive by and heads turn and gawk. But when we say hello/bonjour, people are quick with a smile and a warm hello in return.
Unfortunately, we have not found there to be a lot of typical "touristy" things to see and do - limited shopping, few museums, no entertainment options or parks or zoos. There are tourist books that say these things are available but the locals tell as that is not really true, that it's dated information. And many of the "sites" are outside the city, again long drives into what may not be safe areas and likely traffic jams.
The people here continue to amaze us. They are hard working, humble, and almost uniformly kind. If it weren't for them - along with our wonderful missionaries - I'm not sure we could deal with the new kind of "hard" that we had not really anticipated - the feeling of isolation.
We are the only full time missionaries in our office serving now 240 missionaries. We are the only full time senior couple in the entire mission, and one of only three we know of in all of the missions covering the entire country of DR Congo. But these good people, most of whom lack a lot of the "pleasantries" that we take for granted in the United States, recognize the peace and hope and life that the gospel of Jesus Christ brings to them. This is what keeps us going, this is what sustains us. We can do hard things - hard just comes in a lot of different shapes and sizes!
C'est un grand jour d'etre un missionnaire!
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