When I'm not at the hangar... Part one: Cooking

Hi Family & Friends, With the beginning of Lent I was inspired rather than "give something up" to "do something better" namely communicate. After being Stateside for 10 weeks and having the chance to sit down with many of you, it became clear that you'd like to know more about what I'm doing and more importantly, what God is doing through me and often in spite of me, amen? One of the questions I heard the most was, "What do you do in your spare time?" In Lesotho we don't have a movie theater (anymore) the closest one is 100 miles from us - imagine driving to San Diego from Orange County just to see a movie! There isn't a Starbucks, it isn't advisable to be outside after dark, no public parks or cool outdoor malls to go to, most stores close at 6:00 PM and at the latest 8:00 PM. So the question remains... what do I do? I COOK. I cook all but one night a week and usually 3-4 mornings too; making nearly everything from scratch. There are very few pre-packaged meals (I never buy them), no Bisquick or other mixes - you know those items that fill the store shelves in the USA that are supposed to save you time? Yeah, we don't really have those. Preparing food takes time, sometimes it takes a lot of time. Fortunately I like cooking so it is a task I enjoy. I have become a fan of Rachel Ray's 30 minute meals and also of using my crock-pot/slow cooker. The internet is an endless source of culinary creativity for me, you know, so long as both the electricity and internet are working. If you have a recipe you love, especially if it is quick - please share it! You can email it to me @ kimberlybaker@maf.org - thanks! Also worth mentioning: Most of the food we buy, if not all, is imported which can make it expensive. There are foods here that are very comparable to things we eat, and this is true of most food. However occasionally there is something that is not even close. For example, mayonnaise. Best Foods/Hellman's mayo is what I was raised on - I believe you either are a mayo family or a Miracle Whip family. Imagine my sadness and shock when I discovered ALL mayo in Lesotho tastes like Miracle Whip, all that is except for imported Hellman's which costs close to $6.00 for a normal sized jar - not the economy size. That's some expensive mayo, but there are some things (at least for me) that are worth the splurge. The other conundrum: Sometimes things simply aren't available. Can you imagine walking into your local grocery store and mot being able to find fresh chicken of any kind? Not a whole chicken, no breasts, skinless or otherwise? It boggles the mind! There might be frozen chicken but if you were hoping to take it home for dinner that night - think again. Remember I have to do my shopping after work usually around 5-6 PM. Many things, staples like chicken, butter, cream, fresh milk, fresh fruits and veggies are often sold out or unavailable. It can make shopping and menu planning a bit of a challenge. It's a good thing I like a challenge ;)

In like a lamb...

Hi Friends & Family, Hard to believe I've already been back in Lesotho a month and we find ourselves in March! This last week was busy with lots of peaceful albeit spirited rallies and demonstrations culminating with Election Day on the 28th. Thus far it would appear that one party has a significant lead, but no winner has been declared yet. Things remain peaceful in Maseru - in fact it was like a ghost town on Saturday unless you went to a Polling Place. We continue to pray for a peaceful outcome once a winner has been declared - that could happen even later today. Thanks for praying with me for Peace in Lesotho. I'll keep you posted, it's a promise. Friday was a holiday and due to that, the matching meeting (where adoptable children get "matched" to parents) that I have been anticipating was postponed. I was able to speak to 'Me 'Marumo, the Social Worker handling my case, and she shared with me she hopes the meeting will be held in early March rather than waiting until the next scheduled meeting at the and of May. Once I know of the date, I'll be sure to share it with you. Admittedly, God and I had a heart to heart all day Friday as my expectations were "way up" and I was disappointed to hear of the delay. My prayer is that with a possibility of changing government leadership, the new regime may not be as favorable to adoptions as this current one... Once again, I find myself in a place where all I can do is trust and believe that God has a plan and that His plan is far better than my own. Learning to trust and having to wait have been so much a part of my missionary experience. Oh for grace... to trust Him more!

Raised from the dead... My Blog's Back!

Hi Friends! In an effort to stay in better communication with you, I'm reviving my blog. Perhaps you recently received an email from me about my desire to stay in touch and to provide you with better communication. If not, and you would like to receive it, please send me an email at kimberlybaker@maf.org and I'll be sure to include you. I asked for feedback and several of you responded - thanks for taking the time! While several were happy to get a quarterly newsletter and monthly email, there were some of you who responded, "Whatever you take the time to write I'll read" or "The more information and stories the better" I'm humbled that you care so deeply about what happens in the day-to-day and for those who want "all the details" this blog is for you! In my monthly newsletter I'll likely be referencing some of what I write here, so you'll likely see some duplicate information - hope that's OK. The monthly email will be a bullet point type of format where this blog will give more of the nitty gritty/nuts and bolts type of information as well as anecdotes, stories, random thoughts, ramblings, pictures, etc. Here's an example of a picture from yesterday:

The Sesotho word for curse/witchcraft is Muti... this headline refers to a couple who took the lives of 4 children in order to buy a curse from a local sangoma/witchdoctor. Hard to believe in this day and age of technology, social media, etc. that there are places where human sacrifice is practiced... but it is. Please join me in praying for Lesotho, that light would shine and dispell the darkness that holds the Basotho in chains of hopelessness and deception. Thanks once again for your feedback, your prayers and your support... tell me what you want to know and I'll do my best to write about it! Until ALL have heard, Kimberly 'Mamosa

Auntie Duty & a Carol

Hi family & friends,

I'm writing this from the Westom house because I have been staying here with their 3 lovely girls - gotta love being an Auntie. Brad and Kristian Westom have gone along with Kevin Borror to the AMC - Africa Manager's Conference. This year the conference is being held in Istanbul, Turkey and they have invited the MAF International Teams, The MAF Eurasia Teams and some staff from HQ - a big group!

So my roommates for the next week are:

Karisa - 13 Elisa - 11 Brianna - 8

The Westom girls are home-schooled so I get to be a babysitter, a teacher and a cooking instructor. This evening we had hamburgers and chips (french fries) for dinner - Elisa said I should start a cooking class :) It is a nice change to cook dinner and have someone there to appreciate it! For the next 3 nights the girls will take turns making dinner with some supervision :) It is fun to play games, read stories, have play dates, etc. I have a ton of respect for Moms - it is a full time job and then some! Luckily for me, the girls are incredibly helpful, they are very obedient and a ton of fun to be around. They are enjoying having me here too - but I know they already are missing Mom and Dad, and that is as it should be. Tonight after I finish this post we are going to play "Danger Uno" - which is like regular Uno except for one important detail. The winner of each round gets to make up a new rule for the game. For instance... everytime a 5 is played everyone has to get up, leave their cards behind and move to the seat to the right where you get all new cards. It makes the game interesting to say the least. These girls are really creative so who knows the crazy things we'll do this time!

As for the Carol

Yes, I know it is a bit early to be thinking about Christmas music... but in this case I do hope you'll oblige me.

Christmas Eve will find me, where the love light gleams... I'll be home for Christmas, if only in my dreams...

This year my dream will be a reality - Yes, Virginia... I'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS!!!!

I will be traveling back to the USA in mid December and spend a week in Nampa, Idaho at MAFHQ. I'll go through some re-entry counseling and I'll also be interviewing with the Candidate Committee as I have been asked to become a career staff with MAF. I have really enjoyed my time here and I believe God has affirmed His call for me to serve Him here in Africa. I would appreciate your prayers as I enter into this next phase of missionary service. After this it is on to the OC to be reunited with family and friends... I can hardly wait! So my friends the countdown begins and in eight short months I'll be seeing you face to face - yippee! I'll get you more details about my furlough schedule in future communications; but I would love to connect with as many of you as possible!

Thanks as always for your ongoing prayer support. If you would join me in praying over this time of transition I would be so grateful! It is crazy to be thinking about Christmas when Easter is just a little over a week away. In fact next week will mark my first anniversary living in Lesotho and will also be my first African Easter. I'll be going on a holiday to Cape Town to see amongst other things, penguins! I'll make a posting about that in a couple of weeks but for now...


He is Risen, He is Risen Indeed!

Love from Lesotho,
Kimberly

I'm a very poor blogger

Hello friends and family!

So half a year has elapsed since my last posting - I was really hoping I'd be better about blogging. Please forgive my silence and bear with me as I make an effort to improve!

So since July much has happened and too much to blog about but here are some highlights:

AUGUST: Family Conference in South Africa with MAF South Africa and Mozambique
SEPTEMBER: Language classes in Maphutseng (Place of the Big Pumpkin) Living in a village no electricity or running water for 3 weeks - loved it!
OCTOBER: MAF Half Day of Prayer, Tamara & Danger's Wedding (My first Basotho wedding) Jen Prickett comes for a week long visit, Women Missionaries in Lesotho Retreat
NOVEMBER: Deb Schuermann comes for a 2 week visit, Pilanesberg Game Park Safari, Sani Pass Trip, Accident with Refuoe, Thanksgiving celebration with all American missionaries living in Lesotho
DECEMBER: First ever MAF All Girls Sleepover/Chrstmas Party, Christmas with crocodiles, hippos and turtles (oh my) in St Lucia, MAF Team New Year's Eve Party, Caring for Refuoe and her family in the hospital
JANUARY: Refuoe flies home to Mokhotlong on an MAF plane completely healed, Leading worship on a praise band@Maseru United Church
FEBRUARY: Watching the Superbowl @ 3am, Clarens trip for a Mountain Bike Race with Bryan & Teresa, Begin my M-F gym routine, Seeing U2 Live in Joburg... so cool!
MARCH: MIS Orphanage - a visit with HIV/AIDS orphans with Shelley, An incredibly HUGE full moon, My second Basotho wedding but this time the King and government officials were in attendance, The gym continues... My first MAF flight!!!!


You can see it has been a full half a year with safaris, trips, ministry opportunities, etc. I imagine most of you get my newsletter and if so you have been able to read the story about Refuoe in detail. If you don't, please let me know and I'll add you to the email list and send you a PDF copy of the latest newsletter which shares the story in detail. March brings the Autumn with it and the temp at night is cooling down. I'm hoping this means the mosquito population will soon die off. As it is... my legs resemble something of a dot to dot - - I itch everywhere!

Life here continues to be amazing, difficult, joy-filled and honestly there isn't anything I would rather be doing than being a missionary in Africa. I'll post a few pics for you to see some images of the past 6 months. Hope you enjoy them!

Love from Lesotho,
Kimberly

Licked by a Lion...

Hi friends,

Well the last couple of weeks have been full and very fun! I was able to get through the month-end reports and entries and I believe I was successful. It was quite a triumph to get through everything by myself... now I feel confident that while Sharol & Kari are away I can get things done and keep the ball rolling. To celebrate I went out to lunch with Sharol and Amanda - their treat! We went to Mimmos for pizza - yum! I have the best teammates here in Lesotho and I'm so very grateful for them.

Aside from work duties there has been quite a lot of time devoted to keeping up with the World Cup games. Since South Africa is hosting it we have seen almost all the games on the local television station - it's been so much fun! A few of us on the team and from our national staff at the hangar started a Fantasy World Cup League. While I didn't win... I also didn't place last so it was fun and made watching the games much more exciting. However nothing can compare with actually going to a WC game - yes it's true I was able to attend a game with 3 of my teammates. We call ourselves the Arrival Centre Posse since we are all living on the same street in an area called Arrival Centre. None of us has children, Justin and Amanda are married 2 years now and Bryan and I are the singles on the team. They are great and we have a lot of fun together... no matter what we're doing. World Cup was especially awesome - the noise level from the vuvuzellas was off the charts! I took ear plugs and was glad I did. We saw the Germany vs. England game - it was such an exciting match!

On June 30 the American Ambassador to Lesotho, Ambassador Nolan, hosted many of us for a reception in his home in honor of Independence Day. It was a fun time with many expats from all over the world. Weird though to celebrate here rather than going to the parade in Huntington Beach and then staying at the pier to see the fireworks. It was a week of feeling very homesick and yet grateful to be here. It is hard to put into words how I feel... I love it here and I'm so glad to be able to call Lesotho home... and yet I miss my home in California so very much. I'm often asked what I miss most and I can say without reservation that it is you. I miss my family, my church body and my precious friends... the people I love and that love me. While I am typing this let me take the opportunity to thank you all for your notes, emails, skype visits, packages and most especially your prayers. You are the best source of support and I know I'm doing so well due in no small way to your faithfulness in praying for me. I appreciate you so much!

Well... now that I have blathered on and gotten all mushy... I suppose I ought to tell you about being licked by a lion.

Yes, It's true! I had the wonderful opportunity yesterday to drive into South Africa to a town called Ficksburg. They have a small airport there and next to it is a Lion Sanctuary/Game Park. I took Karissa Westom, one of my nieces on the team, as Saturday as her 13th birthday and we had an Auntie date, just the 2 of us. When we pulled up to Kenyana Lodge the first thing we saw were 2 very cute lion cubs... see pictures on the right. There were also a few juvenile lions who were 6 months old. It is funny typing that and thinking my kittens are 6 moths old also... but there is a vast difference!!!! The owner's daughter, Jamie, gave Karissa and I a tour including allowing us to go into the cubs' enclosure to feed them their milk - how cool is that?! So we spent a little while playing with the cubs and then we were off to see the adults. They have 2 lions which are a little over a year old, their names are Caesar (he was born in July) and Liu (lion in Afrikaans) They were like huge house cats! Jamie was petting them through the wire fence and they purred and whined for her to feed them. I too was able to pet them and Caesar even licked my hand. So yes, I have indeed been licked by a lion - not a cub but a juvenile lion! It was a moment I'll not soon forget!

Interesting to me how life is always a matter of perspective. I was in awe while standing in with the lions thinking I would have never dreamed I'd have the opportunity to do this in my life. Jamie on the other hand thinks it would be incredible to see a killer whale or dolphin. I told her if she ever has the chance to visit the USA while I'm on furlough I would be glad to take her to see some dolphin and maybe even a killer whale. I also had a chance to share with her the reason why I was in Lesotho - I get asked quite often about why I'm here - especially by Afrikaaners who assume I'm Afrikaans until I open my mouth to speak. My accent (or lack thereof) is a dead give away! Well that and the fact I'm not speaking Afrikaans.

I would ask that you join me in praying for more opportunities to share why I am here and in so doing, share the reason for the Hope that I have. I have had a few meaningful discussions with people about my faith and I look forward to more opportunities as I continue this journey I'm on. Thanks for your prayers and I'll be back in touch soon with some more stories.

Love from Lesotho,

Kimberly

A Rose by any other name....

It is a famous line from Romeo & Juliet... "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

While I believe there is wisdom in these words I believe sometimes having your name changed can be a great thing - and very meaningful.

Just recently my name was changed... or to be more precise... I was given a new name: Mamosa. In the Basotho culture names are very important. Women in this culture are often given as many as three names in their lives... which define their place in life. Every Masotho is given a Basotho name and most given a Christian name as well. Upon marrying the bride's new family (in-laws) give her a new name. She might receive yet another name at the birth of her first child. So now that you know this cultural nugget of truth I can explain the meaning of my new name.

Ma at the beginning of my name infers "mother of" Usually this is used when someone has had a child or if there is a history of naming your first child after another relative. This then could mean that I should name my first child (should I have children) Mosa... as Mamosa means mother of Mosa. Now for the second part of my new name. Mosa means goodness or kindness. So Mamosa means mother of goodness or kindness. A pretty wonderful name! But I was curious since I don't have a child, and since I'm not married why I would be given a name beginning with "Ma"

The answer to that question was a huge blessing to me... this is how it was shared with me by one of my co-workers, Thoahlane. He works at the MAF hangar with me and was a part of the group who chose this name for me. He explained it like this...

Yes, although Ma means mother of it can also be used as an emphasis... we chose Mamosa for you because to us you are like the Mother of all kindness. It means we think you are the epitome of being kind and good.

HOW COOL IS THAT?!

I hope I can live up to this and I know if my Basotho brothers and sisters are seeing goodness or kindness in me then they are seeing Christ who is in me. It is a huge honor to have been given a name as that means they believe they know me well enough to give me a name that reflects who I truly am to them.