Nice insults and odd flattery

It all started back in April when Liz and I met James and Sara at Southern Adventist University in the lobby of the conference center. . . Sara told us that she usually ‘stocks’ up on weight in the states because she looses so much while she is in Tchad. Yippie I thought and so during the summer I ate my fair share of Moowalla’s ice cream and my fair share of sweats, all because I was going to loose weight when I got to Tchad.

Then once I arrived at my new hut I was greeted by my family and treated like an important guest from far away and given all sorts of good and expensive things to eat, such as what I call a cup of warm creamer and sugar. Yes, that is right I was given a cup of fresh milk with sugar that had been heated up over the coals to make a nice afternoon snack. Don’t get me wrong either, it was very yummy. But after checking my self on the hospital scales and seeing how much I weighed in kilos, which at first sounds great, then translating that to pounds I realized this cup’o’creamer every day has got to stop! So after a month of adding on the pounds I put my foot down. And when I did we all sat around and discussed my current weight and how much I weighed when I got there. IT was all nice and culturally entertaining.

Since that time I have been working hard at exercising more and trying to eat better, which can be hard because I don’t cook for myself. But my famil has been great and they fix me tasty tomato salads and I don’t drink anymore cups of creamer :o) I also walk more especially when I go visit Gary and Wendy or Anne and Rich. I ‘work’ in my garden and I water my flowers. Which here requires that I draw water from the well and carry a 5 gallon bucket around a couple times every day. All said and done I have gotten past the extra African weight. Which leads up to the title of this blog. . .

I was in the compound the other day when a neighbor girl was talking to Twi over the wall by my hut when she made the comment to me saying I was looking smaller than when I arrived several months ago. Oh, thank you I thought in my head. That’s a good sign. Then she continues on to say, I want to be big like you one day! Well, I guess I can’t complain with those kinds of insults and flattery. Tis’ better to smile and be happy then try and explain our odd American culture. But next time I talk to you don’t get mad if I ‘insult’ you or give you ‘odd’ flattery :o)