Undeserved honor

One of the undeserved honors I get as a member of the JCS leadership team, is to represent JCS at recognition events.  

One of the JCS projects, started by a missionary from Brazil, is called UB United.  Mongolian, Christian coaches manage a football (soccer) training program at 3 public schools.  World Vision provides the equipment and uniforms and the schools provide the gymnasium, field and kids.

This week I got to present medals to the students who did well in the outdoor season.  Football moves inside now until April.  There are both boys and girls teams.  Bible studies happen on Saturdays at neighboring churches.  (I'm the tall, bald one in the center-back wearing a Mongolian del-sweater.)

Loong laundry

Fall cleaning in Mongolia means getting the ger (felt tent) ready for a cold winter.  Gers are wrapped in long "walls" of felt that need to be washed once in a while.  Where do you hang a 60' (20meter) strip of felt?  On the fence.  I don't see this very often in the USA.

Leaves are Falling

Trying to rest away a cold on this Saturday when our solar powered wind chime wakes me up. Squinting, I look out the window to see for myself that the sun is shining. And the leaves are falling. One by one limp gold medallions drift past our square of glass 5 stories up.Today the wind will sweep ‘our’ tree clean of its color.

            Last year, autumn was short lived. The leaves turned color, fell and were replaced by snow all in one week. Winter has come more gradually  in 2010 (tho we have already had two days of snow). I’ve enjoyed watching the graduation from Christmas green, to lime to lemon to butter scotch.

            When I was in high school I promised myself I would communicate with those around me about worthy topics, issues more important than the weather. That broken promise comes to mind frequently these days. My opinion has changed. I believe, now, that there is a measure of camaraderie that  surfaces under shared sun or clouds.

            Last night I walked home through the rain. Avoiding puddles was a challenge as was steering clear of mighty muddy splashing waves being cast by passing cars and buses. As I walked over a bridge and then in front of a bank that is bordered by half a block of marble sidewalk, getting a brown shower seemed inevitable. I had to choose my zigzag route carefully as did the smiling pedestrians heading the opposite direction. But we all giggled as we passed each other as though we were sharing a carnival ride.

            How cold was it?

            How cold will it be?     

            It is windy, snowy, dry, or just plain beautiful.

The temperatures unite neighbors of a community giving us instant commonality.

            Here in this crazy climate, the weather is often something to endure, to survive. Both the extreme hot of summer and cold of winter often kills. Last winter, millions of livestock were frozen solid leaving herders penniless. Friends of ours were lost in a snow storm that killed one of their fellow travelers. Drought, sand storms, flooding, earthquakes, hurricanes, blue skies. Weather affects our lives, it can cause disaster or delight. We cannot manage it but we can talk about it.

Busy Busy Ladies

2 weeks ago Liz and her ladies were in the countryside learning from a similar project. The air was fresh the hospitality wonderful. We learned a lot that we'll apply to our production.  Last week we attended a seminar called "How to Start a Small Business" sponsored by Gender Equality. There were many 'new' ideas presented that impressed them, like the importance of being friendly to make a sale and the idea of saving money. Thursday, we displayed our jewelry at a product expo put on by World Vision. This was a great opportunity to compare our product with others, to see packaging ideas and to practice new found salesmanship skills.
Today we joined half a dozen other women's issues focused groups for an all day street fair of sorts. It was especially aimed at educating the public about trafficking threats. The district in which we live and work is one of the largest in the city. And we learned today that it is the fastest growing with many people moving in from the countryside. This nomadic trend results in lots of unregistered kids who can't attend school without the registration. Of course, kids from the country would likely be more naive and more needy of friends making them vulnerable to 'friends' with ulterior motives. Besides all these special events, we shipped off a package of 50 pair of earrings and 33 bracelets. Phew!

Green Thumb

We've been enjoying the product of Jim's green thumb this month. He planted Cosmos on our balcony. Its blooming really late and since it snowed this morning, he moved the planters inside. We have also collected a large jade plant, a bonsai, 2 spiders, several English ivy, and a few others. Nice to have some growing greenery.

First Snow 9.25.10

View from our living room window. Just a dusting this morning and melted by noon. But everyone says winter is on its way. What happened to Fall? In fact there are still yellow green leaves on the tree outside our bedroom window.

Countryside

Some things are very different in the countryside. This is Gobi Altai's garbage truck.

9.5.10

Ramblings

7 days of work at the shelter under my belt after 6 weeks in the U.S.

Already, there have been days of much laughter, chatter, times wasted, beads rolled and products created. Lots of listening, increased understanding, plenty of confusion and some bonding. In the context of poverty, money is the central character even tho mostly absent. It is elusive, desired, idolized, much pondered yet seldom seen. Without cash, a body is hungry, cold, sick, stuck, and distracted. There is never enough. To buy: meat, school books, coal, cinema tickets, cigarettes, shoes, jacket, water, soap, flour, oil, make-up, dental appointment, pencils, glue, bus fare, pills . . . endlessness. Are we creating opportunity or dependency? Are we teaching character and work ethic or are we being manipulated and bossy? Do we offer another chance or draw the line? Love and grace are easy words to say and much harder to live. Am I working for the Lord or for reward? Do I pray as much as I complain? Do I focus on history or possibility? When I look at the ladies, do I see need? A face?  A challenge? A friend?                                                Yes 

Ulaanbaatar "suburbs"

From a hilltop North of the city, you can see the sudden transition from 21st century skyscrapers to 13th century gers (felt tents).
40% of the residents of Ulaanbaatar (UB), (400,000 people) live in gers surrounding and within the city.  No plumbing, refrigeration or solid walls.  It gets to -40F every winter.

No checks or credit cards accepted

So if you need to pay a big bill in the countryside, you can't use a check or credit card.  The largest bill in Mongolia is a 20,000 Tugrik bill worth about $17.00.  So you need to take a LOT of bills.  Try finding a wallet that can carry this.  Of course, inside your del (Mongolian traditional robe) no one would notice, except to say,"You've gained a few pounds!"  Clever Mongolians.