KILLER BUFFALO???....WTH!

Hey Folks! I want to start off by saying thank you to all of you who have shown me support these last couple of months, and especially these last couple of weeks. It means a lot to me when I open my email and there’s a message from homeJ
I am currently living in a small village outside of Muheza with a family that only speaks Swahili. So far most of our conversations have been sign language and grunts…but oddly enough we have been able to communicate more and more each day and we are learning from each other. The mother is 6 months pregnant and they have decided to name their child “Shani”, it means God’s Mysterious Gift in Swahili. I was so honored! I have to admit that living in this village is so relaxing and it’s beautiful here. I take showers outside at night and it’s just warm enough that I don’t have to heat the water and you can see all of the stars in the sky, it’s breath takinG, almost like Christams lights in the sky. The shower area has a bed of coconut shells that message and exfoliate your feet, after walking all day this feels like heaven. None of the windows have glass so the breeze blows through at night while you are sleeping…..aahhh! While walking to school I pass chickens crossing the road (no pun intended), goats nibbling on grass, and bulls roaming free.
Now I’m going tell you a little story that includes a water buffalo and an innocent young girl named Shani…LOL . So I was taking a picture of this water buffalo, the guy said it was fine as long as I didn’t have the flash on. I proceeded to snap shots without any flash, I noticed that the buffalo stopped eating his grass, and looked at me like I was a tasty new form of lettuce, he started to walk,….run a little faster so I proceeded to run….OMG! I saw my life flash before my eyes and the next thing I know this buffalo is coming for me. I ran into an area that was gated and got away. From that day on I decided that taking pictures of animals up close is probably not a good idea. Everyone needs their privacy J I have also stopped eating chicken, because of my new friend. His name is kuku, and he is a little baby chicken. He is so cute but I know he will eventually grow up into an adult chicken and fly the coop….LOL. He was just walking around the village and he wasn’t in a line with the other mother chickens and their babies so I just took him in. Now days I eat mostly rice beans and fruit and vegetables. Fish is available in small doses so I just do without meat most days. The mangos, oranges, and coconuts are so good. I eat them almost every day. Also I’ve switched to this new perfume, I don’t think it’s French maybe you’ve heard of it, No-Bite with 40% deet. I wear it every day, all day it has a fresh scent and does wonders for my skin…LOL. So as you can see I am doing fine and I will do my best to keep you posted. I have 7 more weeks of training to go and it’s going to get rough so keep those prayers coming!
Word for the week:
Kiswahili: maji
English: water
Take Care and take time to look at the stars, at that very moment I may be looking at them with you!
Shani :-)