Humbled

Hello all! I’m afraid I don’t have anything really exciting to share with you this week, so you get my mirror flapping story… Okay, so when I had my SUV I was driving home from work one night and my mirrors starting going crazy. They were seriously flapping in the breeze! Well, I thought to myself, this is definitely a hazard not having any mirrors- especially in this country! So, when I got to work I marched into the car place to see what to do about this problem. I was told that the maintenance folks were in, so I was to take it to them to see if there is an easy fix before they will switch out the vehicle for a new one. Okay, so I head over to maintenance to find the 3 workers sitting there eating. It was only 10am! It must have been their break time, and they were not about to help me, so I sat in my car and got ignored for about 10 minutes! Okay, so they finally got around to helping me, and I finally understood what it was they wanted me to do (their English with a heavy accent is extremely difficult to understand). Well, it took them all of about 2 minutes to say, yep it needs to be sent downtown for repair. So, back I head to the car place. Before handing over the keys they send an inspector out to make sure the car is clean, fueled up, all the personal belongings are out, and you hand them the proper paperwork. So, the inspector walks out and the first thing he said (pointing to the mirror) was, “is this what is wrong with the vehicle?” I replied yes, and it needs to be sent downtown for repair. The inspector said, “hmm, no it doesn’t, let me show you.” He proceeds to show me a button that I must have hit accidently and if you hold that button down it will lock the mirror in place, so the flapping will not happen anymore! Neat! So, my vehicle did not need maintenance after all. What makes me the most nervous about this story is the maintenance people didn’t know the simple fix and they are the ones who are constantly working on the vehicles. Leave it up to an inspector to know more than the maintenance guys! Not so sure I feel really confident when my vehicle is in the shop! Well, I don’t have the SUV anymore. I was given a car, which has a lot more power than the SUV and it has a CD player and not a tape player. Yes, the SUV had a tape player- nice, huh? So, there are some benefits to having a car. Here is a picture of me and my car…

Well, I was humbled last Sunday and realized how extremely blessed I am. Church is good, there is a pretty good size group which I was surprised to see. About 25-30 people show up each week. I can hear myself sing though and I don’t like that!

Anyway, I met a guy at church and learned that he lives in the same area as me. Well, his normal ride was not there, so he asked if he could catch a ride from me. So, on the way home I learned his story. He is from India who has been here for the past 3 years. He works at the same location as me, but is not offered the same “luxuries” as I have. Specifically, he does not have a car, he does not have his own place, and he has to go through a lot more hassle to go to work and to leave work then I do, and I’m pretty sure he is earning next to nothing in pay. He walks a few blocks each morning and catches the bus at 4am. He gets to work and pretty much works from 6am to 6pm where he catches the bus home and does it all over again the next day. The only day he has off is Sunday and that day he still catches the bus, but then hangs out all day until church. Church meets from 4:30pm until 6:30pm. He has been getting a ride home from the group leader who has to get special permission each Sunday to leave the area, take him home and head right back. That is about an 1-1/2 hour round trip drive! So, here I was pretty sad that I don’t get to go shopping very often or get to do a whole lot of sightseeing since the only day I have off is Sunday as well. I at least get some holidays off and I’m not so sure my friend does, I have a car so I can go out if I choose, I have my own place so I can enjoy some peace and quiet and my friend shares a place that has one bathroom with 7 people. Oh, and I’m only here for a year. :^) So, I stopped being sad for myself and realized how extremely blessed I am- spoiled even!

My friend got baptized on Christmas Day 10 years ago and is a faithful member of the church. He does not celebrate that anniversary, he does not even celebrate his birthday. He really doesn’t have a great life and I asked him what was next for him. He doesn’t know… he said it is hard to get to a place where his quality of life will improve. Makes me sad.

The more I’m here the more I learn about some people in this country who really don’t have a great life, yet it is a better life than if they were in their own country. These people make probably about $150-$200 per month and some send money home to their families to help improve their life. Wow! It makes me wonder why I have been so richly blessed in my life! I got word that my shipment of household goods is here and ready for delivery. Yeah! That means I might see my stuff before Christmas! Also, since I will actually have a day off here this next week, I hope to have some pictures and good stories for you! Talk to you soon.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!