Settling in Cameroon

One week ago at this time, we were probably somewhere in the air over the Sahara! Our first week in Cameroon has gone very well, and we are happy to finally be in Africa.

After well over a full day of air travel, we were happy to be greeted by some good friends at the airport (including one we hadn't known would be there to pick us up!) They helped us with our luggage and brought us back to their home for a nice supper. Over the next few days, these friends helped us in many ways: giving us bread to eat, bringing us laundry soap, helping us move from one house to another, and helped us in so many other little ways!

The very morning after we arrived, we began our orientation course. The orientation course runs for the morning, and part of the afternoon, each weekday. Here are a few of the things we have done so far in our orientation:

• Learned about cultural values, particularly ones that differ from our own cultural values, including issues of hospitality, expectations, lifestyle and money.
• Gone shopping with experienced shoppers (bargainers!) and learned how to buy fruits, vegetables, rice, beans and spices at a booming outdoor market that is full of fresh fare of all kinds.
• Spent a day with a Cameroonian family, visiting and learning from them.
• Had several health lectures about preventing, identifying and treating maladies that are present in this area of the world.
• Listened and discussed about spiritual warfare and how to maintain overall spiritual, physical and emotional vitality while on the mission field.

John and Sam have spent time under the care of some wonderful ladies who care for the children of those who are in the orientation course. John's basically spent hours upon hours playing outside and he loves it! I feel content that the time he's now spending playing outside makes up for all those hours I was packing and had to keep John holed up inside the house. :)

During the rest of the time, while we are together as a family, we have been trying to spend plenty of time helping the boys adjust to being in a very new situation! This has been a time of many transitions, especially for John, who has not only moved from America to Africa ("Akfa," as he calls it), but also from a crib....to a "big boy bed" covered with a mosquito net over it. John really does like this new bed, which he calls his "Skeeto bed!!!" and he is especially overjoyed when we join him in it to play or sing songs. I think that to his mind, it is basically a cool fort that he gets to sleep in and likes to play in as well.

Relationships with people are important here in Cameroon. Not that they aren't important everywhere! It's just that, here, when people see each other out and about, they take time to shake hands and stop for a conversation with one another. We are practicing doing this, and in the process, getting the chance to know some new people. Although we will only probably be here in Yaoundé for four weeks, it is fun to get to know some new friends.

God is already giving us an increasing awareness of our need for Him, by putting us in situations where we are more aware of our insufficiencies. So, it is exciting! We anticipate the upcoming weeks and months to be a time of learning--not only learning a new culture and language, but also learning that God is all-powerful, faithful and loving to His children.