Cause I heard Jesus He drank wine
And I bet we'd get along just fine
He could calm a storm and heal the blind
And I bet He'd understand a heart like mine...
Give a hand to Miranda Lambert a/k/a Mrs. Blake Shelton, folks! I find a never-ending source of amusement in how certain things work here. Last weekend was supposed to be Daylight Savings Time. It was to take place in the wee hours of Saturday night, like back home. However, early Saturday evening the word went out that the groundhog didn't see his shadow or whatever some poobah decided was the reason to postpone it for a month. Apparently, it was determined by something to do with the lunar calendar. Well, that makes sense - it's not like they don't know in advance exactly what is going to happen ahead of time...oh, yeah, they do. Some people weren't entirely thrilled with the last-second change of plans. That however, pales in comparison to the most important Muslim holiday, Aid El Kabir. I can't tell you exactly when it will be next week because that too will be determined the night before, which really screws with travel plans.
Let's flip the script a little bit. How would you like to be a good Muslim lad, a very fine, upstanding pupil, about to take a trip to the United States, the one he knows all about via popular culture. As I type this, a small group of GWA student leaders is in the D.C. area. I was chatting last week with one of them, a great young man, if not the most worldly one. I had way too much fun ribbing him about what was in store for him with those wild American girls who do nothing but party all the time, just like he sees in the media. Later, he did mention he was nervous about meeting his host family. Would they have a problem with being a Muslim, as might concern his not eating pork or drinking alcohol, for example? We actually did have some interesting talks about his being a stranger in a strange land, something I've learned a bit about over the past year.
Finally, why in the world did I purchase a white lab coat a couple of weeks ago? Well, I finally got to put it to use for the first time on Tuesday. I got some chuckles yanking my Mom's chain in not telling her what the coat was for. I explained that where I was going I had to be approved by the woman in charge, and that my being a man was most unusual, unheard of at this place (which was true). Tuesday night, I told her that there was a tremendous amount of screaming and yelling, but that I should be ok (which was also true).
What's up is that I volunteered my first time at an orphanage in the city not far from where I live. The youngest children are there; they go to other places when they get of around school age. The white jacket is what employees wear as a uniform. A very large majority of the newborns and toddlers there were male. Boys will take your inheritance; girls won't, plus the girls can always work as cleaners or the like. That's how it is. I had a ball, though there was one laughable incident. Given my previous work experience, I've fed countless people of all ages with all kinds of challenges. But I've never fed a bottle to an infant. I was holding a newborn when a staff handed me a bottle. Two of my colleagues saw the panic in my eyes, and before I could think of what to say in French, they told the staff, basically, I didn't know what to do. A third colleague, a mom, gave me the short course as to what/not do. I'm looking very much forward to going back soon.
I'll fly away from it all one day
And I'll fly away
These are the days that I will remember...
And I bet we'd get along just fine
He could calm a storm and heal the blind
And I bet He'd understand a heart like mine...
Give a hand to Miranda Lambert a/k/a Mrs. Blake Shelton, folks! I find a never-ending source of amusement in how certain things work here. Last weekend was supposed to be Daylight Savings Time. It was to take place in the wee hours of Saturday night, like back home. However, early Saturday evening the word went out that the groundhog didn't see his shadow or whatever some poobah decided was the reason to postpone it for a month. Apparently, it was determined by something to do with the lunar calendar. Well, that makes sense - it's not like they don't know in advance exactly what is going to happen ahead of time...oh, yeah, they do. Some people weren't entirely thrilled with the last-second change of plans. That however, pales in comparison to the most important Muslim holiday, Aid El Kabir. I can't tell you exactly when it will be next week because that too will be determined the night before, which really screws with travel plans.
Let's flip the script a little bit. How would you like to be a good Muslim lad, a very fine, upstanding pupil, about to take a trip to the United States, the one he knows all about via popular culture. As I type this, a small group of GWA student leaders is in the D.C. area. I was chatting last week with one of them, a great young man, if not the most worldly one. I had way too much fun ribbing him about what was in store for him with those wild American girls who do nothing but party all the time, just like he sees in the media. Later, he did mention he was nervous about meeting his host family. Would they have a problem with being a Muslim, as might concern his not eating pork or drinking alcohol, for example? We actually did have some interesting talks about his being a stranger in a strange land, something I've learned a bit about over the past year.
Finally, why in the world did I purchase a white lab coat a couple of weeks ago? Well, I finally got to put it to use for the first time on Tuesday. I got some chuckles yanking my Mom's chain in not telling her what the coat was for. I explained that where I was going I had to be approved by the woman in charge, and that my being a man was most unusual, unheard of at this place (which was true). Tuesday night, I told her that there was a tremendous amount of screaming and yelling, but that I should be ok (which was also true).
What's up is that I volunteered my first time at an orphanage in the city not far from where I live. The youngest children are there; they go to other places when they get of around school age. The white jacket is what employees wear as a uniform. A very large majority of the newborns and toddlers there were male. Boys will take your inheritance; girls won't, plus the girls can always work as cleaners or the like. That's how it is. I had a ball, though there was one laughable incident. Given my previous work experience, I've fed countless people of all ages with all kinds of challenges. But I've never fed a bottle to an infant. I was holding a newborn when a staff handed me a bottle. Two of my colleagues saw the panic in my eyes, and before I could think of what to say in French, they told the staff, basically, I didn't know what to do. A third colleague, a mom, gave me the short course as to what/not do. I'm looking very much forward to going back soon.
I'll fly away from it all one day
And I'll fly away
These are the days that I will remember...
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