First Impressions

This is my stream of consciousness-tyle first impressions back home.
These people are so beautiful! 
In America we kind of hide our poverty.  You cannot avoid it here.  It clamors at you.
The food is awesome and I missed it.
Maya wins the popularity contest without trying.  Even when she's grouchy and fussy people eat her up here.
It is noisy here (and I love it).
Maya does not love the noise yet.  Especially at bedtime and the early call to prayer.
These folks LOVE fireworks and will use any excuse to celebrate LOUDLY!
Maya does like fireworks.  Nary a tear was shed even though New Year's Eve was nearly as loud as the 4th of July in the U.S.
Constant hot water, smart phones with internet access, moisture barriers in homes, central heat and air--such luxury we take for granted in the States.
My home does not seem as homey as I remember it.
This place drives me to need Jesus more and I love that.
My brain has been rotting for 6  months and Arabic is slow to come to mind.
It took me about the first 4 months in the U.S. to stop doubting myself every time I flushed t.p.--and now I keep forgetting that you CANNOT flush it here!
It is hard to explain to a one year old that she is suffering from jet lag and that she is simply very tired and that it will go away soon.
I am glad to be back in the land where we actually use those appendages attached to our butts for getting around town. (i.e. walking, if that wasn't obvious)

More to come on our wonderful celebrations of Christmas and special final time with family before coming back.  We have so much to be grateful for.  Our flight back was not without drama, but in spite of bad weather, a forced four hour wait on the tarmac, missed flights, and desperate airport running (while carrying a car seat, two carry-on's a purse a diaper bag and pushing a stroller) we ended up making our long flight to London and then were re-routed there through an extra country and then on to our final destination.  Something like 32 hours, I think, but Maya was wonderful and we had plenty of room on the long flight and understanding people around us.  This was crazy--we ran into folks that we know in the airport!! I can't remember which one, but we were in Europe, for sure. Are you kidding?  What an encouragement--these are the kinds of folks who can challenge and encourage you in a five minute airport conversation--thank you Lord for that gift!  At one particularly challenging moment of Maya-wrestling I was about to reach the end of my rope.  I may have started crying.  She was probably fighting sleep and wailing.  I glanced out the plane window and was instantly amazed at the number of stars I could see.  It was truly infinite.  Unbelievable.  Gorgeous.  Then we witnessed a few moments later the most amazing lightning storm (the one that kept us on the tarmac for four hours earlier).  It was like a light show/lazer show/fireworks show all rolled into one.  And it had the majesty and handiwork of God written all over it.  Kind of like a few days earlier when it snowed on Christmas morning.  In Mississippi.  I feel very blessed for the way the Creator of the Universe has taken time to speak encouragement straight to my soul in all of these ways recently.  He is speaking, if only I have the ears to hear and the eyes to see. . . He is so kind.  I do not deserve and could never earn the favor He shows me.  I am so grateful.