Checking in 6 suitcases with my dad We had quite the journey getting here and are thankful to say that we made it safely! On the 13th, my (Andrew's) parents drove us to O'Hare in Chicago. The airline we used was British Airways, so my dad dropped the three of us off with our 6 suitcases, 2 carry-ons, and 2 backpacks at the international terminal and went to park the car. We got inside to the front of the line, and the lady told us that even though our flight from Chicago to London was through British Airways, it was being operated by American Airlines. This meant a completely different terminal. By this time, my dad had come inside with us. So the four of us each took 2 suitcases, Yolanda and I each had our backpacks, and we headed down to take a train to the correct terminal. To do this, we had to take multiple elevators and escalators and we were thankful that my parents were there, so it wasn't Yolanda and me with 8 suitcases by ourselves!
British Airways has always had an agreement with missionaries that we are each allowed 3 free suitcases, which has been a blessing. However, since our return trip to the U.S. last December, they have discontinued that. The agency we went through for our tickets wasn't even aware of it. Now, we are allowed only 2 free suitcases for each of us, meaning that we would have to pay extra for our 5th and 6th ones. The last 6 months, we have been accumulating things and laying them in the suitcases, so we would be sure not to take too much. All of our clothes combined into one suitcase, and the rest were items that we got for this next year that could be bought more cheaply and more quality in the U.S. We had also received some more donations and literature we could put to use, which is heavy but we had planned to bring it all. Since we had everything already and our plane tickets were cheaper than budgeted, we decided to bring the extra suitcases on this trip, but in the future, we will just need to take 2 each.
Even though we weighed each suitcase at home before arriving at the airport, each one was overweight. The scales were certainly different. So we had to rearrange and leave a few items with my parents. But knowing that we were missionaries and that the woman's daughter had just done her first mission trip, she turned a blind eye to us still being minimally overweight. The prices for the extra suitcases came up differently in her computer, and instead of $200 for each additional suitcase, she let us through with only $100 each! The Lord certainly put her there for us.
British Airways has always had an agreement with missionaries that we are each allowed 3 free suitcases, which has been a blessing. However, since our return trip to the U.S. last December, they have discontinued that. The agency we went through for our tickets wasn't even aware of it. Now, we are allowed only 2 free suitcases for each of us, meaning that we would have to pay extra for our 5th and 6th ones. The last 6 months, we have been accumulating things and laying them in the suitcases, so we would be sure not to take too much. All of our clothes combined into one suitcase, and the rest were items that we got for this next year that could be bought more cheaply and more quality in the U.S. We had also received some more donations and literature we could put to use, which is heavy but we had planned to bring it all. Since we had everything already and our plane tickets were cheaper than budgeted, we decided to bring the extra suitcases on this trip, but in the future, we will just need to take 2 each.
Even though we weighed each suitcase at home before arriving at the airport, each one was overweight. The scales were certainly different. So we had to rearrange and leave a few items with my parents. But knowing that we were missionaries and that the woman's daughter had just done her first mission trip, she turned a blind eye to us still being minimally overweight. The prices for the extra suitcases came up differently in her computer, and instead of $200 for each additional suitcase, she let us through with only $100 each! The Lord certainly put her there for us.
Yolanda's birthday dinner with her family We had a wonderful visit with Yolanda's mother and brother. It was nice to have some time to breathe before arriving in Zim. While in England, we found out that all of Yolanda's hard work paid off, and she received an excellent grade in her final class! Her graduation took place last week as well, and we were able to watch it online and hear her name called, AND hear that she graduated with honors! We also celebrated Yolanda's birthday on the 22nd, and were glad to be able to be with her family on that day. The rest of our time there was low key, and we were thankful for that period to be able to transition to where we are now.
Part of our new garden We are definitely back in Africa! When we landed in Harare, we saw the sign on the control tower that says, " elcom to mbabwe." Obviously some of the letters on their Welcome to Zimbabwe sign were missing. When we collected our luggage, there was a line to get it x-rayed and then they went through each suitcase. An airport worker helped us through the x-ray and then took our carts with luggage and bypassed the station where they were inspecting each one. I told him that I could take it, but he insisted on wheeling it out of the airport. Again, I said that I could take it but, he wanted to wheel it a little farther before letting us know what a favor he did us by keeping our things from being searched. And he did, however, he was looking for a handout for his "services." So a couple dollars later, we officially felt back in Africa!
Another section! After 6 months of emails and skyping, it was great to see Janeece in person at the airport. We enjoyed catching each other up on what has been going on lately and all that has been happening. Janeece has definitely become accustomed to driving in Zimbabwe! There was an intersection we went through that was downtown Harare, and I mean DOWNTOWN. There were what seemed like a hundred people roaming up and down the street and crossing right in between cars. There were, as always, people selling things in between lanes. At this intersection, there was no traffic light, but plenty of traffic. When that is the case, they don't do as we do in the U.S., where we take turns like a stop sign. No. Everyone goes at once from all four directions. Each car is inches from touching. There were random people attempting to "direct" traffic, not police of course, just random people. As Janeece went through, she didn't even have to slow the conversation as she maneuvered her way to the other side. She has become quite a pro.
When we left Chinhoyi last year, the ground at our house was all brown, very minimal grass, and zero garden. We returned to find that Janeece had been very busy in this area. We have green grass throughout the yard, looking very neat, along with beautiful looking flowers. There is also a new garden going as well. There is everything from peppers, to tomatoes, to cucumbers, and so on, and so on. There is a lot out there! We didn't have time to get that started while we were here the last time, but this will save us lots of money on vegetables, as well as being able to maximize the herbs for the natural medicine side of JM2Z.
Janeece has done a tremendous job of taking care of things around here, overseeing some construction projects, maintenance, updating, and keeping the bills and finances organized on the Zim side. She was also able to get involved in the community in various areas, teaching a Bible class, being in a small group, involved at the church she attended. It sounds like she has made quite a few friends, but at the same time, she is now ready to go back home. She will be back in Indiana for 6 months, before heading out on her next assignment. What a blessing it was to have her here!
We are now getting back into the rhythm of things. We have seen some changes with slightly lower gas prices, improved sections of roads, even two new road signs. The biggest shock is that we have had electricity for ALL but a couple hours of the three days we have been here. I'm not sure what the deal is, but we'll take it for as long as we can! Of course we have other issues, a leaky toilet, a short in an outdoor light, a pressure tank for our water supply that is acting up. However, things are night and day from when we arrived a year ago. We are unpacking our suitcases and also all the boxes we brought a year ago that are still sealed. Please pray for us as we continue to get settled and reacquainted with life in Chinhoyi. We are excited to see how God uses JM2Z in this next year in this community.
When we left Chinhoyi last year, the ground at our house was all brown, very minimal grass, and zero garden. We returned to find that Janeece had been very busy in this area. We have green grass throughout the yard, looking very neat, along with beautiful looking flowers. There is also a new garden going as well. There is everything from peppers, to tomatoes, to cucumbers, and so on, and so on. There is a lot out there! We didn't have time to get that started while we were here the last time, but this will save us lots of money on vegetables, as well as being able to maximize the herbs for the natural medicine side of JM2Z.
Janeece has done a tremendous job of taking care of things around here, overseeing some construction projects, maintenance, updating, and keeping the bills and finances organized on the Zim side. She was also able to get involved in the community in various areas, teaching a Bible class, being in a small group, involved at the church she attended. It sounds like she has made quite a few friends, but at the same time, she is now ready to go back home. She will be back in Indiana for 6 months, before heading out on her next assignment. What a blessing it was to have her here!
We are now getting back into the rhythm of things. We have seen some changes with slightly lower gas prices, improved sections of roads, even two new road signs. The biggest shock is that we have had electricity for ALL but a couple hours of the three days we have been here. I'm not sure what the deal is, but we'll take it for as long as we can! Of course we have other issues, a leaky toilet, a short in an outdoor light, a pressure tank for our water supply that is acting up. However, things are night and day from when we arrived a year ago. We are unpacking our suitcases and also all the boxes we brought a year ago that are still sealed. Please pray for us as we continue to get settled and reacquainted with life in Chinhoyi. We are excited to see how God uses JM2Z in this next year in this community.
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