Great is Thy Faithfulness

I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ.
Philippians 1:6

This Monday is a special one because not only is it blog day, it's my cousin Christine's 21st birthday.  Christine is one of those people that everyone likes just by being herself.  She is honest, kind, dependable, hilarious, and has the best heart of anyone I know.  I am lucky to call her my cousin and also my best friend.  Christine was one of the few people who knew, just by talking with me about my trip to Tanzania last year, that I would be coming back long term.  She gets it.  She has a passion for doing what is right and what sets your soul on fire, not just what is easy or what is expected.  We have spent countless hours commiserating over American norms, politics, navigating cultural differences, and the constant pursuit of what and who God has planned for our lives.  Christine has been attending Lake Superior State University in the upper peninsula of Michigan for the past three years so we are no stranger to the long distance friendship.  But being so far away on such a special day is hitting me extra hard.  So Christine, if you're reading this, know that I love and miss you so much and that I hope you have the best 21st birthday!
There was a lot going on in Morogoro this week.  Our students began taking their midterm exams on Tuesday, we hosted guests from the Methodist Church's General Board of Global Ministries office in Atlanta on Wednesday, and I got hit with round two of Malaria on Thursday (only 4 strains this time).  Thankfully, exams are now done, our guests visit was successful, and I am feeling more like myself.  The guests from GBGM came with a team of doctors from Dar es Salaam to visit our Methodist owned health center here in Morogoro.  The heath center works hand in hand with our church and school and serves not only the Morogoro community, but the Maasai communities of Mangae and Mtipule.  We were so happy to have the people who are supporting our facility here to see the work being done and to listen to our needs and provide possible solutions.  It was a very productive visit.  
As we were touring the facility, one of the women from the U.S. asked me how I ended up teaching in Morgoro.  I explained to her that I was here last summer for two weeks and fell in love with the place and the school and the kids and I knew that I needed to teach here more than anywhere else.  Her immediate response was, "Yeah, kids in the U.S. are so rude right?" Screeeeeeech! Woah, woah, woah, let's pause for a second.  Did she really think the reason I left the comforts of my home, my family, my wonderful job, and my church was because kids in America are rude?  "Well, no." I said, awkwardly laughing.  I just smiled and nodded as she began to backtrack and explain herself.  While most people don't openly express this, I think some people believe in part that I am here because I didn't like my job. 'But Allee, you just said you would rather teach there than anywhere else.'  Yes, I know.  But in order to understand what that means for me, you have to understand the order of events that took place and the gravity of a calling that God places on your life.  
Before I came to Tanzania I never would've considered leaving my job.  My music teaching position in Plano, Texas was truly a godsend.  After my cancer treatment caused me to delay my graduation from May to December, I knew my chances of finding a teaching job that started in January were slim to none.  So when the Plano Fine Arts director contacted my student teaching supervisor asking to speak with me about a long term sub job with the potential to fill the position permanently at the end of the school year, I was completely shocked.  I went through the interview process, was observed by the principals, met with the other Specials teachers, and within thirty minutes of that final meeting, they called and offered me the job and I accepted immediately.  McCall Elementary was my first teacher home.  Over the two and a half years I was there I learned more about teaching, about kids, about the importance of a team, and about myself, both as a person and as an educator, than I ever imagined possible.  I got to work with the most amazing Specials teachers.  We were a team who truly cared about the wellbeing of our kids and about the wellbeing of each other.  We spent just as much time talking about our work as we did about our families and our struggles and our loves.  We each played a role in what we considered to be our 'specials family' and we fit together so perfectly.  I loved my kids.  All 560 of them.  Even the "rude" kids and the shy kids and the smarty pants kids and the crazy out of control kids.  There was something about every kid that I loved.  And the day I told them I was leaving was harder than any day of bad behavior or poorly executed lessons.  
So why did I leave? If it wasn't the kids or the demands of the job, why did I leave Plano, Texas to teach in Africa?  The honest, simple answer is because this is where God has called me.  He spoke to my heart over that two week mission trip.  His spirit moved throughout this place and I could feel it in every experience I had here.  The sadness I felt getting on the plane to return home was unlike anything I had experienced before.  I had found where I belonged and I didn't want to go back to the life I was living before. A life that was full of love and joy and friends and colleagues, I life that I loved.  I knew the person going back to that life had changed, and that life would not fit anymore.  Like the pair of jeans you keep even though you know they're too tight, I could've tried to squeeze back into my life.  I could've tried to make it work because it was a really good life.  But I would've been uncomfortable and it never would've fit the same as it did before.  
God paved the way for me to be where I am today.  When I faced obstacles and I felt the doubt creeping in, I would remember that I already said yes to His call, and that's all He's asked me to do.  He's going to straighten my path.  God is faithful to His people.  I say this, not because God did exactly what I wanted Him to do.  That's not how this faith thing works.  I say God is faithful because He called me to do this life changing, world shaking, somewhat frightening thing - moving to Africa - and when I said yes, I knew I was not doing so blindly.  I said yes knowing that God would be beside me the whole way, asking me to depend on Him.  So I am where God has called me to be.  Has He called me here forever? I don't know.  Am I worried about it? No, not at all.  I'm just walking with and listening for God every day.  Because after experiencing how great God's plans for me are, why would I want to live any other way?   

Mungu akubariki,
Allee