Friday, November 16th:
Nelsons and I taxied together to fellowship this morning. I did a little "nursery duty," watching Katie (one of the baby/toddlers in the group) since her mom was helping another expat in the delivery room!
The lesson was once again applicable to the things I've been studying lately. We talked about Galatians 4:8-20. Paul admonishes the Galatians about turning to idols and enslaving themselves to "weak and beggarly elements." The false teachers had affected them, perhaps flattering them in their observations of the law. But Paul beseeches them to become as he is - not looking to the flesh, but having confidence in Christ alone. It was a good reminder to make sure that when others make much of us, it ought to be because of Christ in us and not because of anything else. I can get wrapped up in trying to please others, forgetting that God is already pleased with me because of who I am in Christ.
After fellowship, I taxied home with one of the girls at the fellowship. She is new here and it was nice to get to know her a little better. When I got home, I did some studying before the Bishop's picked me up to go to a basketball game! At 4pm we headed off to the Duhok Club to watch the top division Duhok men's basketball team play Baghdad's South Oil team. Our van was brimming as Andy and Lisa had invited some of the neighbor kids to come along. When we walked in, it was hard not to feel a little out of place. Out of 400 spectators, Lisa and I were the only women there! We had a good time though.
Duhok is in the white. There are two guys from America on the team and two others who have spent time in America. Andy has gotten to know some of them ... a good connection for the Bishops' future basketball school!
It was a close game! In an effort to not completely scandalize ourselves, Lisa and I would grab the other's arm each time we were tempted to jump and shout like we would at a game back home. The tension was almost unbearable, finally by the fourth quarter, we were standing with everyone else ... in the last three minutes Duhok pulled ahead and managed to win the game! In many ways, the game felt like a regular basketball game back home (apart from the obvious lack of women spectators.) A few other differences included: no snack bar at the entrance (which was surprising since they love their snacks here), plastic seats with backs instead of hard bleachers, clapping rhythmically as OUR team shot their free throw instead of doing that to distract the other team, no instant replays, and fans calling "walking, walking" (when they meant "traveling.") Andy drove home like he's been driving here for ages (and that's not an easy accomplishment). I was invited for dinner and enjoyed hanging out with the family. Lisa and I chatted for a long time about what we are learning spiritually and what the Lord is doing in our lives. At 9pm, it was time to go and Lisa offered to drive me home. I was able to show her how to pull the clutch out to the "sweet spot" so she wouldn't roll back. All those years of Grandpa's training (when he would stop on the middle of a hill and tell me it was my turn to drive) paid off tonight! Lisa was so excited, and I marveled at God's goodness and providence in using such a random assortment of experiences to prepare me for my time here!
Saturday, November 17th:
Woke up early this morning, not sure why. I was able to get some schoolwork done before heading off to the basketball clinic. Instead of rain we had plenty of sunshine and I felt refreshed! It was fun to see how much the girls have improved in a few short weeks. When it came time to scrimmage, we looked more like a basketball team than a bunch of girls scrambling for the ball! Next week is the tournament!
After a hot shower, I made chicken stir-fry for lunch, then dug into a couple projects. From 3:30 to 5:30pm, I was in the kitchen, baking two different kinds of cookies. My plan is to take them to school this week to celebrate Thanksgiving with my students. After cleaning up the kitchen, I finished the rest of my schoolwork (writing letters to parents about their students' behavior, performance, etc., finishing the vocab quiz, and preparing a Thanksgiving activity for tomorrow).
