So this year's Christmas was quite a bit different for me. I have been totally blessed to have my parents here, kickin' it in Macha. We have had quite the interesting time, especially with the torrential rains we've been receiving (made the 2 hour drive out here turn into a 3 1/2 hour bumpy journey).

Along with them they brought 91 pairs of school shoes (money donated by friends and family) with them to hand out to the kids that I hang out with on Saturday mornings under the big old tree. I posted some pics at www.picasaweb.google.com/movingkaren/ChristmasShoes

Just came from my morning out. Sat at 9am any children interested meet under a tree at the malaria campus for the little singalong/bible study/English/math lesson time. It’s usually complete madness but for some reason this week there were only 30 kids and so I felt like we could actually chat a bit. Sue one of the malaria researchers started it about a year ago, and there’s about 3 Zambian men/women who help her and then myself and any other random people visiting. We then all troop over to Sue’s place for fun treats made by her husband Pete.

Most of you are at Keats this weekend, and my prayer is that it is filled with celebration and shared stories. I have been keeping a bit of a diary on Facebook, so I have cut and pasted most of my entries from the last month and a half about life here in Zambia. It's really excessively long, and I apologize, but I've tried to be as descriptive as possible about the experiences God has graciously given to me.

Sept 13 All in the Perspective:

A couple weeks ago I had the fantastic opportunity to walk the Camino, a famous pilgrimmege in Spain. And so while I was trekking along from little village to village, I was able to check my email along the way. About a week in I got an email from MCC (Mennonite Central Committee...a large community development organization out of US/Cda...they're big into peacemaking efforts) saying they had a volunteer position for me in Zambia. It was interesting timing considering I had another week to go, with lots of quiet time on my hands to ponder, weigh the pros/cons of this, and talk to God.

With all the talk going around about taking care of our "widows and orphans" I've been challenged on what this would look like locally. And so while we don't have orphanages that exist, we do have an overly taxed foster care system. I went to an info night for foster care last week, and just want to share some stats with you all to ponder...

In BC there are currently:
9000 kids in the foster care system
1000 of those are up for adoption
In 2006 90 new babes came in the system
70-80% of those have been prenatally exposed to drugs/alcohol

Hey Everyone...

So we'd like to get all the food organized for next week's fiesta celebration! So in keeping with the theme, we're having tacos/fajitas. We're asking everyone to bring their own utensils/plates and cups (if you can, maybe bring an extra set for any guests). Please reply to this entry so that we can make sure it's all covered. Remember we're aiming for about 50 people.

So Vancouver Church you're in charge of meat and drinks.

North Vancouver you're in charge of taco toppings and veggies.
sliced tomatoes
shredded lettuce
peppers
shredded cheese
salsa
sliced avocado

Yup, that's right, we've got something going on here on the south side! I don't know how "official" we are, but just wanted to put it out there that we're making it a go as well!