Thursday, March 26, 2009
feeling frozen
no, not physically since it's starting to warm up here. rather i feel frozen mentally in a state of unknowing. on march 31st i'll have to decide what to do about next school year. right now i have two basic options. option 1 is to come back to mongolia for another year. option 2 is to return to the states and move to chicago to be near my boyfriend. i am realizing that if the decision were just up to me, i would have picked 2 long ago. but i feel like i need to wait a few more days to see if there is any major movement in my elic financial account that would be Father's way of telling me to stay in mongolia. as things stand right now, i have too much of a deficit to return. even so, i've been given the 31st as a deadline, so i feel like i need to wait until then to say for sure what i'll be doing this august. Father knows what i'll be doing, and i have to seek him. Will you join me in asking for his best?
Thursday, March 19, 2009
elic website update
Hello!
I have some exciting news about the ELIC website. It's recently been revamped and has two new features that might be interesting to you.
First, they've made a way that you can give a completely secure gift online. If you feel led to give to my account, here's the link:
http://www.elic.org/Content.aspx?content_id=131029&site_id=10332
Second, they've added lots of pictures from current ELIC teachers. Here's the link to the pictures of Mongolia where you'll see one of me with some other teachers on New Year's Eve. :)
http://www.elic.org/Photo.aspx?site_id=10332&photo_id=146954
I hope you are having a good week. Thanks to all of you who are lifting me up as I seek the Father's best for next school year.
Love,
Amanda
I have some exciting news about the ELIC website. It's recently been revamped and has two new features that might be interesting to you.
First, they've made a way that you can give a completely secure gift online. If you feel led to give to my account, here's the link:
http://www.elic.org/Content.aspx?content_id=131029&site_id=10332
Second, they've added lots of pictures from current ELIC teachers. Here's the link to the pictures of Mongolia where you'll see one of me with some other teachers on New Year's Eve. :)
http://www.elic.org/Photo.aspx?site_id=10332&photo_id=146954
I hope you are having a good week. Thanks to all of you who are lifting me up as I seek the Father's best for next school year.
Love,
Amanda
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
life with an infant
....or something like it.
every once in a while my cat, muji, decides that he wants to spend his night in much the same way a human infant spends the night - not sleeping. unfortunately last night was one of those nights and this morning hasn't proved any better. i went to bed just after 12 and was still awake an hour later because he was playing with something on my bed, chewing on my plants, and knocking things off the tops of my bookshelves. i finally grabbed him and pulled him in bed with me under the covers. he made his way down to my feet and sat there purring for a few minutes before making his way back out into wild freedom. it's times like that when i wish i had a bedroom instead of a one room apartment, since there is no where i can put him where he won't disturb me on nights like that. the part that is the most annoying though is that he woke up before 7 this morning in much the same mood and he's still chasing things all over the house with only intermittent breaks to come and play next to me on the bed. it's lucky for him that he's so cute or else he might have had a cold night on the balcony! :)
every once in a while my cat, muji, decides that he wants to spend his night in much the same way a human infant spends the night - not sleeping. unfortunately last night was one of those nights and this morning hasn't proved any better. i went to bed just after 12 and was still awake an hour later because he was playing with something on my bed, chewing on my plants, and knocking things off the tops of my bookshelves. i finally grabbed him and pulled him in bed with me under the covers. he made his way down to my feet and sat there purring for a few minutes before making his way back out into wild freedom. it's times like that when i wish i had a bedroom instead of a one room apartment, since there is no where i can put him where he won't disturb me on nights like that. the part that is the most annoying though is that he woke up before 7 this morning in much the same mood and he's still chasing things all over the house with only intermittent breaks to come and play next to me on the bed. it's lucky for him that he's so cute or else he might have had a cold night on the balcony! :)
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
urgent update
i sent this email out earlier today and thought i'd also post it here for those of you who aren't on my email list.
Hello Friends,
How are you? Is spring starting to reawaken the life inside you the way it is reawakening me here in Mongolia? Today I went out without my heavy winter boots and coat and loved how much easier it was to walk without that extra weight. :)
Unfortunately, I've been carrying around some other weight on my shoulders for a while and it doesn't seem to be lightening with spring's approach. My ELIC financial account has had a large deficit for a few months now, but i just kept trying to tell myself not to worry about it. I've always had faith that if the Father wants me here in Mongolia, He'll provide everything I need in order to do the work He's called me to. It's such a privilege to serve Him here by investing in students' lives, being part of the local fellowship, and shining his light wherever I go. It would be a joy to be able to serve here again next fall, but now it's looking like that might not be a possibility.
My ELIC account has had a growing deficit throughout this school year, and I haven't focused on that very much in my communication with you. I was trusting that the Father knew about the deficit and would provide for it in his timing. It seems that the time has come now for me to specifically tell you about it. In fact, if my account balance hasn't risen significantly by March 31st, ELIC leaders and I will have to seriously look at me not being able to return to teach in August.
Please join me in lifting up my financial account and the decisions I'll have to be making in the next few weeks. Here are some specifics to lift up:
1. My account has a current deficit of close to $9,2000. This deficit needs to be much closer to $0 before March 31st if I'm able to consider coming back to Mongolia in August.
2. Next fall I'll have the opportunity to be part of a new teaching program that I'm really excited about. This program will give me the chance to invest in a whole new batch of students - secondary school English teachers. Isn't it exciting to consider that the truth and love I share with my students would then be passed on to their own students?
3. I'm seeking the Father's will and asking that He will make it very clear to me and everyone else - including you. I know He's going to provide my needs, if He wants me in Mongolia. If He's leading you to help provide some of these needs and you want to send a gift to my account, my number is Y62 and the address is:
(if you want the address, send me a message, and i'll get it to you. i don't think i should post it here on the web.)
Thanks so much for all the ways you've supported and encouraged me here. I have felt your love and care daily.
Trusting Him,
Amanda
Hello Friends,
How are you? Is spring starting to reawaken the life inside you the way it is reawakening me here in Mongolia? Today I went out without my heavy winter boots and coat and loved how much easier it was to walk without that extra weight. :)
Unfortunately, I've been carrying around some other weight on my shoulders for a while and it doesn't seem to be lightening with spring's approach. My ELIC financial account has had a large deficit for a few months now, but i just kept trying to tell myself not to worry about it. I've always had faith that if the Father wants me here in Mongolia, He'll provide everything I need in order to do the work He's called me to. It's such a privilege to serve Him here by investing in students' lives, being part of the local fellowship, and shining his light wherever I go. It would be a joy to be able to serve here again next fall, but now it's looking like that might not be a possibility.
My ELIC account has had a growing deficit throughout this school year, and I haven't focused on that very much in my communication with you. I was trusting that the Father knew about the deficit and would provide for it in his timing. It seems that the time has come now for me to specifically tell you about it. In fact, if my account balance hasn't risen significantly by March 31st, ELIC leaders and I will have to seriously look at me not being able to return to teach in August.
Please join me in lifting up my financial account and the decisions I'll have to be making in the next few weeks. Here are some specifics to lift up:
1. My account has a current deficit of close to $9,2000. This deficit needs to be much closer to $0 before March 31st if I'm able to consider coming back to Mongolia in August.
2. Next fall I'll have the opportunity to be part of a new teaching program that I'm really excited about. This program will give me the chance to invest in a whole new batch of students - secondary school English teachers. Isn't it exciting to consider that the truth and love I share with my students would then be passed on to their own students?
3. I'm seeking the Father's will and asking that He will make it very clear to me and everyone else - including you. I know He's going to provide my needs, if He wants me in Mongolia. If He's leading you to help provide some of these needs and you want to send a gift to my account, my number is Y62 and the address is:
(if you want the address, send me a message, and i'll get it to you. i don't think i should post it here on the web.)
Thanks so much for all the ways you've supported and encouraged me here. I have felt your love and care daily.
Trusting Him,
Amanda
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
saved by the...
lack of electricity
yesterday i had to teach two evening classes but i really wasn't feeling well. i had the beginnings of a head cold that was making me feel kind of dizzy and hitting me with random nose runniness. all i wanted was to come home early instead of teaching. just a few minutes into the first class, the electricity went out at school. we worked until it was too dark to see, and then i went home. it's it amazing how the Father takes care of me even in such an unexpected way. :)
yesterday i had to teach two evening classes but i really wasn't feeling well. i had the beginnings of a head cold that was making me feel kind of dizzy and hitting me with random nose runniness. all i wanted was to come home early instead of teaching. just a few minutes into the first class, the electricity went out at school. we worked until it was too dark to see, and then i went home. it's it amazing how the Father takes care of me even in such an unexpected way. :)
Sunday, March 1, 2009
tiny muji
MVI_0745
Originally uploaded by mongolmanda
i found this old video of muji when he was just a little kitten. he was so cute i just can't resist sharing it with you. :)
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
tsagaan sar
today was the first day of the mongolian lunar new year. here it's called "tsagaan sar" which means "white moon". it's a three day holiday when people visit family and honor their elders. i had the privilege of going to my friend's grandma's today. we ate mongolian potato salad, mongolian meat dumplings, and some roasted sheep meat. tsagaan sar is usually a time when people are forced to eat dumpling after dumpling after dumpling. thankfully today there were many people visiting at the same time, so i was able to get away with only one dumpling. it was tasty, but i'm still thankful it was only one. :)
here's the roasted sheep rump sitting on the table.
this is called "ul boov" and it's a stack of bread like things called "boov". it has sugar cubes, nuts, mongolian butter stuff, and cheese curds on it. families put this on their table for the 3 days of tsagaan sar, and the number of layers shows how respected the family is. (at least that's how my mongolian teacher explained it to me, but it's very possible that i'm missing part of the explanation) it's always an odd number of layers. i thought that no one eats any of the sugar or nuts until after the 3 days of the holiday, but today some of the kids were allowed to eat things. i have a feeling the exception was just because they are so cute. :)
here's the roasted sheep rump sitting on the table.
this is called "ul boov" and it's a stack of bread like things called "boov". it has sugar cubes, nuts, mongolian butter stuff, and cheese curds on it. families put this on their table for the 3 days of tsagaan sar, and the number of layers shows how respected the family is. (at least that's how my mongolian teacher explained it to me, but it's very possible that i'm missing part of the explanation) it's always an odd number of layers. i thought that no one eats any of the sugar or nuts until after the 3 days of the holiday, but today some of the kids were allowed to eat things. i have a feeling the exception was just because they are so cute. :)
Friday, February 20, 2009
conference time
i asked you to be thinking of me and my fellow teachers during our conference. thanks so much for lifting us up. it was a great time of singing together, hearing 2 guests teach us from the Word, and spending time with other teachers. i didn't hear of anyone getting food poisoning, so thanks for thinking about us in that way.
this is my fabulous teammate aleta with me at the hotel where we have our conference.
the hotel is the tall white hotel directly behind the smaller white hotel with the green roof. the conference hotel is about 2 steps away from the chiang mai night bazaar and 2 blocks from the most delicious banana roti in town. :)
the hotel has an open air terrace on the fourth floor where we had dinner every evening. i loved watching the sunset over the mountains as i finished my dessert.
on my last day in thailand i went to starbucks and discovered this - a coffee jelly frappucino. it's a very, very good thing that i didn't know about it earlier in my time there or else i would have probably wanted one every day!
this is my fabulous teammate aleta with me at the hotel where we have our conference.
the hotel is the tall white hotel directly behind the smaller white hotel with the green roof. the conference hotel is about 2 steps away from the chiang mai night bazaar and 2 blocks from the most delicious banana roti in town. :)
the hotel has an open air terrace on the fourth floor where we had dinner every evening. i loved watching the sunset over the mountains as i finished my dessert.
on my last day in thailand i went to starbucks and discovered this - a coffee jelly frappucino. it's a very, very good thing that i didn't know about it earlier in my time there or else i would have probably wanted one every day!
first few days in chiang mai
we took a rather luxurious bus from bangkok to chiang mai. chiang mai is about 9 hours north of bangkok, so we had plenty of time to enjoy the scenery from our perch on the top level of the bus.
there's a peaceful little cafe called the bird's next near the guesthouse where we stayed. they had fresh yogurt, homemade muesli, and fresh fruit for breakfast. yummy! i just had to take a picture because it's so beautiful.
in many parts of asia "squatty potties" are the norm, so i guess some people have been confused with western style toilets. haha
scenes of bangkok
the grand palace in bangkok. my sisters said this looks like it could be in disneyworld. i think they have a good point. :)
i have some amazing news about my ankle. i only have a partially torn ligament, and it doesn't need surgery. :) instead i just did a week of physical therapy at an incredible hospital in bangkok. these are the pants i had to wear every day during the therapy sessions.
i love all the bright colors of bangkok traffic.
bangkok, january 09
i apologize for such a long delay since my last post. i kind of left you hanging and you may be wondering if i made it back from thailand. :) well i'm happy to say that i made it back and had a fabulous time. i took a couple hundred pictures, but i'll just share a few of them with you here.
here is my boyfriend, jim, and me in seoul, korea. he lives in chicago, so we don't get to see each other during the semester. but...he was able to take a few weeks off work to meet me in thailand, and we were really happy to see each other. we both had a long layover in seoul, so we went into the city for the day.
this is my favorite teashop in seoul. i have always gone there when i've been in seoul, and it was a real treat to go there with jimmy. :)
here is my boyfriend, jim, and me in seoul, korea. he lives in chicago, so we don't get to see each other during the semester. but...he was able to take a few weeks off work to meet me in thailand, and we were really happy to see each other. we both had a long layover in seoul, so we went into the city for the day.
this is my favorite teashop in seoul. i have always gone there when i've been in seoul, and it was a real treat to go there with jimmy. :)
Thursday, January 8, 2009
going to thailand
tomorrow evening i will get on a plane headed to thailand. first i'll stop for the night in seoul, korea. i decided to use my frequent flier miles to book at room at a nice hotel near the airport. last year korean air put me up in this same hotel for free and it was one of the best nights of sleep i had all year. even though my bed here is great, i'm looking forward to that lovely soft bed there.
but that's not what i'm looking forward to the most. i'm looking forward to friday at 6am when jimmy's plane arrives in seoul!!!! i'll be waiting for him at the airport and we'll spend the day in korea together before getting on separate planes (sheesh, how annoying. haha) to reach our next destination - bangkok, thailand.
i'm looking forward to the next month but there is also some nervousness for me. on monday, january 12, i'll be seeing an orthopedic surgeon about my ankle. i have a pretty strong feeling that i'll have to have surgery to repair the damage from an old fracture and constant walking in mongolia. please be thinking about me and asking that the doctors i see will have wisdom in knowing the best course of action.
ok, one other thing to be thinking of with me is our conference from jan 28-feb 5. there will be a lot of opportunities for us teachers to hear from the Father, and i'm asking that we will all be ready to hear from him. also there is always a lot of food poisoning and other illnesses that seem to affect a good percentage of the teachers. please ask that we will all be healthy and have safe travels. thanks!
well, i'm headed to bed now and in some ways it feels like i'm a kid on christmas eve. :) i'll write again after i return from my adventures.
but that's not what i'm looking forward to the most. i'm looking forward to friday at 6am when jimmy's plane arrives in seoul!!!! i'll be waiting for him at the airport and we'll spend the day in korea together before getting on separate planes (sheesh, how annoying. haha) to reach our next destination - bangkok, thailand.
i'm looking forward to the next month but there is also some nervousness for me. on monday, january 12, i'll be seeing an orthopedic surgeon about my ankle. i have a pretty strong feeling that i'll have to have surgery to repair the damage from an old fracture and constant walking in mongolia. please be thinking about me and asking that the doctors i see will have wisdom in knowing the best course of action.
ok, one other thing to be thinking of with me is our conference from jan 28-feb 5. there will be a lot of opportunities for us teachers to hear from the Father, and i'm asking that we will all be ready to hear from him. also there is always a lot of food poisoning and other illnesses that seem to affect a good percentage of the teachers. please ask that we will all be healthy and have safe travels. thanks!
well, i'm headed to bed now and in some ways it feels like i'm a kid on christmas eve. :) i'll write again after i return from my adventures.
Friday, December 26, 2008
boxing day
it's now "boxing day" here in mongolia. for those of you who don't know boxing day, it's a canadian holiday on the 26th. when i was a kid i heard people talk about boxing day and thought they were talking about the sport. i couldn't ever figure out why there were no boxing matches on tv that day. then i realized that the boxing mentioned was more like "boxing up the christmas decorations". however, i can't imagine wanting to put away the decorations until at least after new year's day.
it's been a real treat for me to celebrate christmas here this year because i have loved ones in america who are celebrating half a day behind me. i was able to call my family on my christmas eve AND their christmas eve. and i talked to them on my christmas day AND their christmas day. i watched a christmas movie via skype with my boyfriend on my christmas day that was still his christmas eve. and today (still christmas for him) we just watched a marathon of "the office" christmas episodes. i'll celebrate christmas on sunday with my local fellowship here, and then on monday evening our ELI team will have another party. i'm really enjoying the chances to continue celebrating and remembering the beauty, glory, joy, and overwhelming LOVE that the Father shared with us when he gave us his SON.
it's been a real treat for me to celebrate christmas here this year because i have loved ones in america who are celebrating half a day behind me. i was able to call my family on my christmas eve AND their christmas eve. and i talked to them on my christmas day AND their christmas day. i watched a christmas movie via skype with my boyfriend on my christmas day that was still his christmas eve. and today (still christmas for him) we just watched a marathon of "the office" christmas episodes. i'll celebrate christmas on sunday with my local fellowship here, and then on monday evening our ELI team will have another party. i'm really enjoying the chances to continue celebrating and remembering the beauty, glory, joy, and overwhelming LOVE that the Father shared with us when he gave us his SON.
christmas in mongolia
in case you are wondering how i spent my christmas day here, i'll give you a little overview. it was nothing like the way i usually spend christmas, but i was joyful and remembering the Reason even so. i woke up and called my family. they had sent a christmas package that i received last week. i hadn't open the individual presents, so i waited until i could be on the phone with them when i opened them. it was fun to be able to thank them immediately and wish them a merry christmas. my sisters gave me "a charlie brown christmas" on dvd, so i watched that later in the day when my friend, muugii, came over.
every thursday muugii comes to my house so we can read the Book together in mongolian. since yesterday was christmas, we read luke 2 and matthew 2. it's really fun for me to be able to read these two chapters in mongolian, because the story is so familiar to me that i understand almost everything i'm reading. :)
muugii had an exam at 1, so she left earlier than usual. i called jimmy on skype and we wished each other merry christmas and then watched "the polar express". we will see each other in about two weeks, so we'll exchange gifts then. :) when the movie was finished it was time to teach. i headed to school and had fun teaching my students a little bit about christmas. we sang "the twelve days of christmas" and i was able to tell them that the reason we exchange gifts at christmas is to remember the gift the Father gave to us. it's exciting that at this point in the year they understand me well enough that i think most of them really "got it". :)
i had to teach another class at 7:20, but i had enough time to go out for a bit. i bought myself a little christmas present and then decided to find something yummy to eat for dinner. there's a restaurant called "banana mala" that has always intrigued me because it claims to serve "malaysian, singapore, thai, and chinese food". i decided to check it out and was thrilled to have some delicious "tom yam" thai chicken soup. if i can't have turkey and all the trimmings with my family on christmas day, then thai food is definitely what i'd choose to have instead. :) here's a picture of me and a picture of my lovely dinner.
every thursday muugii comes to my house so we can read the Book together in mongolian. since yesterday was christmas, we read luke 2 and matthew 2. it's really fun for me to be able to read these two chapters in mongolian, because the story is so familiar to me that i understand almost everything i'm reading. :)
muugii had an exam at 1, so she left earlier than usual. i called jimmy on skype and we wished each other merry christmas and then watched "the polar express". we will see each other in about two weeks, so we'll exchange gifts then. :) when the movie was finished it was time to teach. i headed to school and had fun teaching my students a little bit about christmas. we sang "the twelve days of christmas" and i was able to tell them that the reason we exchange gifts at christmas is to remember the gift the Father gave to us. it's exciting that at this point in the year they understand me well enough that i think most of them really "got it". :)
i had to teach another class at 7:20, but i had enough time to go out for a bit. i bought myself a little christmas present and then decided to find something yummy to eat for dinner. there's a restaurant called "banana mala" that has always intrigued me because it claims to serve "malaysian, singapore, thai, and chinese food". i decided to check it out and was thrilled to have some delicious "tom yam" thai chicken soup. if i can't have turkey and all the trimmings with my family on christmas day, then thai food is definitely what i'd choose to have instead. :) here's a picture of me and a picture of my lovely dinner.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
2-58
IMG_3967
Originally uploaded by mongolmanda
thursday afternoon, second year, group 58 students. they seem pretty disinterested on thursdays but were a lot of fun at the party.
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