In recent years I’ve become skeptical of Operation Christmas Child. Every year in November there are blog posts that circulate arguing that they’re a bad idea for the sender (who spends a lot of money feeling like they’re making a difference in the world but maybe their time and money would be better spent elsewhere),… Read More My Observations: Operation Christmas Child in Mongolia
I spent an hour today looking at Target.com and Amazon.com and putting things in my cart that I know I’m not going to buy anytime soon. They’re not things that I need; they’re just things that I miss. Like Brach’s conversation hearts. It’s the Sunday before Valentine’s and I have seen NOTHING related to the… Read More I Miss Things
English has a lot of idioms and metaphors that involve animals: “It’s raining cats and dogs!” “He’s as sly as a fox.” “She’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing.” But animals represent different characteristics in different cultures so a couple weeks ago I asked my language teacher what some Mongolian animal metaphors are. Some are similar… Read More Animal Metaphors in Mongolian
A recent study showed that immigrants who were given smart phones with a data plan adapted better to their new country while remaining connected to their loved ones in their old country. We are so thankful for our smart phones and data plans (which are way cheaper than in the USA) and the apps that… Read More The Most Useful Apps for Expats in Mongolia
It was in the -30’s Celsius (-20’s Fahrenheit) when we left for school this morning. Winter in Mongolia starts earlier, lasts longer, and is much colder than where we lived in Michigan. Mongolians have many practical adaptions to help them survive and thrive in cold, long winter. One of those adaptions is looking at winter… Read More Today is the Beginning of the Third Nine.
Sometimes your kind act will be lost on the person who is affected by it. But, sometimes your kindness can change the trajectory of a day. Sometimes it can help lighten the load just enough that someone who is struggling is not crushed. And you may never know the impact. … Read More Three Kind Strangers
Here’s some Friday morning fun with words for you. When translating, there’s literal translation, where you say exactly what the individual words mean in the same order they’re presented in the originating language. Then there’s dynamic translation, where you convey what the words mean, rather than the precise terms or precise word order. Translation is… Read More Fun with Words
We were told we have yellow skin. No one has white skin, that’s ridiculous. Mongolians, mostly, have brown skin. Mongolians with very dark skin are considered black (as are most people of African descent) and Mongolians with lighter skin are yellow. We stick out in a crowd, especially in late fall and winter when there… Read More On Being Yellow
“Mongolia has a lot of holidays!” my mom said when I told her we had last Monday (the 26th) off of school and work. “Not really,” I said, then thought about it. We have had a lot of holidays this month, but it’s because we combined two cultures. We got to celebrate Chinggis Khan’s Birthday, Thanksgiving,… Read More November is For Holidays!
Every four years the International Conference of the Wesleyan Church gathers to talk business and policy, to network, to share stories, and to encourage each other regarding how God is moving around the world. Without getting too nerdy, the ICWC meeting in May will involve hundreds of global leaders for the Wesleyan Church. It’s… Read More $6,100 gets Naraa a Seat at the Table
Remember that post where we shared how excited we were that we figured out how to pay our bills? The next month, the process changed…but just a little. And this month it changed again. Living in a place where everything is different–subtly or overtly–can be disconcerting. It’s empowering when you figure something out. It’s a… Read More It changed. Then it changed again.
In the last year we travelled around Michigan, drove to Georgia, flew to California (twice), flew to Oregon, and drove to Nova Scotia via Ontario, Quebec, and New Brunswick before moving to Mongolia. As we were finishing up partnership development we stayed in people’s spare rooms, basement, guest houses, and hotel rooms. We’ve gotten… Read More Our Top 5 Gift Recommendations for Travelers
