October 9 - October 15, 2023

Monday 10/9: Jared had “office” this morning. I baked some bars and finished up my food to take to Kulna tomorrow. Did laundry and tried to keep the little girl happy. She just wants to be right where the activity is. She thinks it’s quite boring to lay on the floor and play with toys. She rolls onto her stomach and then thinks her little world has collapsed.😂 Did laundry. After naps we got the majority of our things packed up. If you haven’t tried using packing cubes you should! They make packing so much more condensed and organized. Went to Olive for supper. 

Tuesday 10/10: Well we were going to leave for Kulna after Jared was done with “dispensary.” However the lumberjacks were busy cutting down the trees right by our bedroom window until 2:30 AM. They kept hollering and branches would fall so no sleep for us! They were also testing the metro in Farmgate so it was coming and going every few minutes complete with the horn blaring. Needless to say not much rest was obtained. Jared was so tired in the morning that he went to clinic and forgot his keys and had to walk back home to get them. Then at devotions he got his words tangled up in the prayer. We decided to wait to leave until tomorrow morning when we were more rested. Traffic in Dhaka in the afternoon is a real challenge… lots of jams at that time of day so we were actually thankful that we had to change our departure time to tomorrow morning. Navigating the traffic with not much sleep isn’t conducive to Christian living. Took it easy the rest of the day. The past few evenings have been so nice. Feels like a “normal” Kansas summer evening instead of an inferno. We went up to the roof for awhile to watch the planes. It looks so different now to go up there with all the trees gone in our backyard!!! Gives my stomach the nerves to be able to see all the way down. Some of the trees were maybe 10 feet taller than our roof. Now we can see the coconut trees that were in the midst of the mango trees. They are so tall and beautiful! 

Wednesday 10/11: We all had a very good nights rest! Benadryl and Melatonin does the trick🤩 No lumberjacks or metro this time. We left Siza Court at 5:45 AM.🤭 The guards are always so excited when we go somewhere. Always want to know where, how long and why we are leaving. They stand and wave with their million dollar grins. “Sania Tata!” (Goodbye Shania!) We found a baby car seat for Shania here in our apartment in the archives. Even though we are in the mission where seatbelts and car seats are optional I just feel better if I know my children are safe when we are traveling. For sure with all the sudden stops and lurching we do. She did really well in the car seat. Got to Kulna around 10 right when the other kids were waking up. Trevor Elwood and Doyle were at Trevor’s office so Jared zipped over there. Trevor was sending a bus load of patients to Dristidon Eye Hospital. They came back and we had lunch around 2. It was my turn to do a meal so brought tacos, apples and caramel sauce and M&M bars. The children all spent the day in the sand and water! I told Layton no nap today cuz you need to run and play until you’re exhausted. Him and Brock went 90 mph all day long. By bedtime they were tired and sunburned! Layton feels pretty big now that he’s considered a “big” boy with Brock! In the afternoon Whitney and Brandi watched all the children while all us adults took a walk. We felt quite carefree without our children! We walked through the little village behind Trevor’s house. I just love love that walk. The path is all brick with grass growing up in between them. Rice fields are on either side. Total quiet other than the Hindu music or bells. We stopped and talked to some of Lisa’s friends along the way. This time we didn’t have to trudge through the mud! After supper all the kids went to bed and us “big people” burned the midnight oil and tried to solve the world’s problems. It was Jared and I’s turn for the non AC bedroom. It was quite comfortable and not even that hot in there. It seems cooler in Kulna than in Dhaka. 

Thursday 10/12: Doyle’s left and went home and the rest of the stayed at Trevor’s. Lisa’s American friend that married a Bengali came over for the morning. It was neat to learn to know her. The men took motorcycles and went to Santo’s job site. He is a contractor and his crew builds houses. Jared really enjoyed that! Then they went to see Liton at his dokan. Jared felt bad for how busy we were the last time Liton had tried to come to Dhaka so he made sure to go sit in his dokan with him for awhile. Liton is a barber so Trevor got a haircut while they were there. In the evening we all piled onto van rickshaws and went into Kulna and got fuska. That stuff is really growing on me!! (I described it in the post when we went to Kulna back in July.) This time no transformer blew or no cyclone winds came roaring through so we had quite an enjoyable time. We sat and embraced the feeling of sweat running down all our bodily crevices. We love riding on the vans. They are electric. Everyone went to bed in decent time! 

Friday 10/13: We were going to go home today but decided why not spend another day.🫣😁 We’ve always wanted to see Trevor’s Sunday school. They had the first Sunday school at 9:30. Maybe 50 kids? They use a classroom in a school right down the rode from them. Trevors have done a really good job calming that group of children down. One time they had 130. Around Christmas that group is an abosolute wild chaotic mob. Parents and children start to come out of the woodwork so that they can get a Christmas gift. So Trevor’s said “no more gifts at Sunday school.” That has really helped. They sang several songs, prayed and then Trevor read the lesson. They use big picture cards. Kobid came to translate. After that then they all colored pictures. Layton really enjoyed it. At 10:30 they had another Sunday school at a different location but I stayed home because Shania needed a nap. Church in the evening was at Santos. Jared had the opening and Elwood had the message. After church Sotti made us cha and some sort of snacks. One was a patty with dal inside it and another was a fried cake with dal flour and onions in it. So good😊 Sotti had some baby goats and ducklings. They were adorable. Shania loved the goats. She got all excited and started smiling and kicking. Brandi held her up close and she kept trying to grab the goats ears!! 

Saturday 10/14: We left Kulna around 11. Layton was really tearful about leaving. He said “mom I don’t like Dhaka can’t we stay in Kulna.” So we had to have a lecture about “blooming where we are planted.” I feel sorry for him, a boy needs sand and water and a place to run and play. Stopped at Sampan for lunch. The other times we’ve went to Kulna and Golpagange it’s never been the right timing to stop there for lunch. The food was really good! They have a VIP room that has AC. They even had soft serve ice cream! The traffic coming into Dhaka wasn’t bad at all. It’s always very busy but we didn’t ever have to sit and wait for more than 10 minutes. Got home around 5. We came home and crashed. Bedtime was early! Jared said he couldn’t figure out why we were so tired and I told him we aren’t used to such excitement.🥰😂

Sunday 10/15: Jared headed off to the dispensary. He had 38 patients. I tried to get everyone else back onto schedule. Did kindergarten with Layton and then did laundry and bought groceries from the dokan. Shania is starting to eat quite abit of baby food so got some thawed out for her. The metro was busy doing test runs in and out of the station so Layton spent quite abit of the morning at the living room windows and back veranda watching the comings and goings. The foot bridge at Farmgate got inaugurated today. It strikes us rather humorous how anything slightly new is getting inaugurated by the prime minister even before it’s finished now before the election. Guess it’s another feather in her hat! Almost every day now there are processions and protests in preparation. They are always in a part of Dhaka aways from here so don’t worry we are fine! My stove has been coated in a layer of oil for the past how long. I took Lysol and a metal scrubber to it, and some time later it was much cleaner. Now if only I knew how to get oil splatters off of flat paint! Any suggestions? Lucky fries our Bangla food in oil so that’s the reason for the oil. I thought about painting over it but wasn’t sure if the oil splatters would just seep through the paint. This morning my kitchen faucet sprung quite a bad leak. It was like the underside of the faucet had rusted through. The caretaker called the plumber and he came later afternoon and replaced the faucet. So ends another week for us! 

October 2 - October 8, 2023

 It’s been a busy week! I told Jared I felt like I was trying to stand up in a swinging hammock.😂 

Monday 10/2: Jared was busy with preparing for the financial audits. We have to use a different accountant this year since we’ve used the same one for the last serval years so Jon thought the accountant’s office below the guesthouse would work fine. That is nice because it’s just a stones throw down the street from us. Jared took all the papers (receipts from Dhaka, Kulna and Golpaganj projects) over to the guesthouse. The accountants came and went through the papers. They spent all day there and then Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday were the same process. He had to be there most of the time in case they had questions about anything. We are really hoping it goes ok and doesn’t drag out to a year long process like last years audit. This is our first time using this company so Jared is worried it will turn into “a long and painful process.” You can pray it goes smoothly. Sometimes we wonder if it pays to pray that sort of prayer in Bangladesh but with God all things are possible. We found out we are supposed to call the clinic “office” or “dispensary.” Such legal technicalities! 

Tuesday 10/3: In the afternoon Elwoods flew into Dhaka! We were so enthused and have been counting the days to see them.😁 They had their usual problems trying to get through immigration. Elwood’s passport is quite a frightful mess with all his crazy visas from Bangladesh and/or the lack thereof. But after three hours they finally gave him a visitors visa on arrival. He had to call his “tour guide” and have him write up a letter for him and then Jared had to quick type it up and turn it into a PDF and email it back and so on. They spent night at Hotel Shuktara (another visa requirement) and then came to our place Wednesday! We all had lunch at the clinic together. Josna cooked up special food for Elwood’s. Beef curry, Dal, rice and chichinga mix. Then she also made little mashed potato patties that had onion and chunks of kaj morich in them. She fried them in oil until they are browned and slightly crispy on the outside. They were so good. I ate three and my stomach later regretted it but it was worth it! (Two way burn. If you know… you know.)Elwood took Jared to his tailor here in Dhaka. We have tried and tried to find that place. Used google maps, asked around at Farmgate. There’s literally hundreds of tailors in Farmgate. I guess the CSI men have been using this specific tailor since the 90’s. We wanted to make sure and use him too instead of trying a new tailor. Jared got measured for a new shirt while he was there. Looking forward to seeing how it fits! These Bengali shirts are designed for tiny petite men not big muscular broad shouldered men that enjoy food! We tried an XXL shirt for Jared from Aarongs but it’s so narrow across the shoulders. We spent the evening with Elwoods here at home just airing and sharing. When you’re in the mission you can never have too much airing and sharing. Elwood’s knowledge from being in the mission for years is appreciated. Thursday morning Elwoods left for Kishorganj and Jared went to the guesthouse to continue on with the audit.

 Friday 10/7: Had church. Natun wasn’t able to come due to the rain. It has been raining for several days now. It stops for a few hours but then comes back with a roar! At night especially the thunder creates quite a symphony. Needless to say we have been having the children sleep in our room as thunder unsettled even the bravest of men. (Side note: Hindus are terrified of thunder. They think it is one of their gods. One time Trevor’s were gone while it was raining and storming and when they came home their Hindu guard was inside the house. He said he was so frightened he felt better inside!) The rain has flooded a lot of Dhaka but we are high and dry here in Monipuripara. What a rabbit trail… anyways church was enjoyable! It was a shorter service since we didn’t have an interpreter. Jared talked about coming down out of our tree to Jesus like Zachaeus. Several patients were needing milk and meds so he got that for them while we were there. 

Saturday 10/7: Sumita came to clean, Lucky came to cook and Jon came to help Jared with the audit paperwork. It is still a struggle for me to have all these people coming to clean cook etc for us. Sometimes it feels like we don’t have much privacy. But on the other hand it is a huge blessing too because now that I’m doing kindergarten with Layton I wouldn’t ever be able to keep up without them. At lunch Lucky asked us if we were staying in Dhaka for 3 years or 5 years? 😀 we said “ami jonne na.” (I don’t know!) She said in a few months we might know how long to stay.😂 she said as soon as people can talk good Bangla they always leave and go back to America. 

Sunday 10/8: … Layton and I had a short kindergarten session. Haven’t had kindergarten the past few days as Elwood’s came and plus the young lady in this house has been extra fussy. Today I gave her some carrot baby food and she loved it!! The auditors were back at it with the paperwork. Since Jared had “dispensary” this morning I went and unlocked the guesthouse for them and then checked in on them every so often until he could could come home. The lumberjacks cut down the trees that are along our back veranda. So now we have all sorts of natural light that we didn’t have before. (We are trying to view it in a positive light. No pun intended.) This morning Layton pretended to be a dog groomer. He washed his stuffed pup in the washer and then put it up on a table and dried it off with a hairdryer. He said “mom you should really try to dry your hair with a hairdryer. I don’t think it would make it too fizzy.” 😂 

September 25 - October 1, 2023

Monday 9/25: Jared had clinic this morning. Layton had kindergarten… he was quite pleased with his ability to make number 10s. Right when Jared sat down to lunch there was a bunch of fighter jets flew over. Layton and Jared raced up to the roof and there was quite an air show. The planes were doing barrel rolls and other stunts! A bunch of helicopters were in the flight too. Shania handles the helicopters, passenger planes and BiMan planes but the fighter jets send her over the edge. She just screams! So as soon as I hear the “sssss” noise the fighter jets make I have about 2 seconds to grab her before they come thundering over!!! We haven’t heard them for several weeks now but they’ve been busy yesterday and today. Layton was so enthused to watch them. The air traffic continued to be heavy the rest of the day. When we went to bed at 10 the planes were still flying over every few minutes. After supper Jared tried to figure out what’s wrong with our RO water system. Until a mistri can come look at it we are being extra cautious and just drinking bottled water for now.

Tuesday 9/26: After kindergarten the children and I went to the plant dokan. It’s not really a dokan the plant man just has probably 100 plus plants just sitting on the sidewalk. I bought several and lugged them home. I have no idea what kind they are! They are green and that’s all that matters.😂 I showed the man a picture of a hibiscus flower and he got me one of those. There’s all sorts of old pots in the storage room so used those up! I’ve been slowing turning our back veranda into a bit of a patio. It’s been a fun project for me to work at slowly… I’m not much into plants at home but here the plants don’t take much to grow prolific so I’ll see if I can keep them alive. I washed the veranda windows while I was at so Sumita wouldn’t see the terrible mess Layton made on his last mud pie adventure. I got some tiny little pots for Layton’s carrot seeds that Lanae gave him. He tried to plant his in a cereal bowl and they aren’t looking so hot!  He’s learned that plants need a drainage system. 😁 So we will try again… Anyways it felt so good to have a project like that to work on. Something other than laundry and dishes! Had singing in the evening… sang some more Sunday school songs. After singing we went to Parktown for supper. We’ve been here long enough that our favorite rickshaw men know where we like to go and where our clinic and apartment is. When we were done eating one of our favorites was right outside the restaurant so we hailed him. He said “apnar basa?” (Your house) and 10

Minutes later we were in Siza Court! It’s nice to not always have to give them directions. We got sweet and sour shrimp balls for supper. They were spicy but really good! It’s fun trying new food things… 

Wednesday 9/27: Shania took a good morning nap without me holding her so was able to do some extra review with Layton in kindergarten. Had lunch at the clinic. Chicken curry… of all the kinds of Bangla food we’ve tried so far, plain ole chicken curry just honestly can not be beat! It will be fun to make it for our family back at home some day. We ate until Josna’s eyes shone. While we were at the clinic another air show took place.  Came home and took naps. Some probably wonder why we take naps all the time, it’s not because we are short on sleep at night. When it’s hot and there’s a lot going on we’ve found that a nap in a cool room keeps our mental health in decent shape! Call it self care maybe?!😂 Doyle had installed two swings up on the top of the guesthouse roof when they were living in the guesthouse so Layton and I went over there and he swung until his little heart was satisfied! We stopped at the small grass patch by one of the apartments so Layton could “weed” it. The guard gave him a mango seed that had sprouted that was laying in the grass so we brought it home and planted it. Layton is quite thrilled with his “garden” thus far. 

Thursday 9/28: The Muslim prophet Muhammad’s birthday. A lot of stores plus the metro were closed today. Josna says the “holiday” today was why all the planes have been flying over. The fireworks were going for awhile the other night as well. The newspaper said it was Sheik Hasina’s (prime minister) 75th birthday today as well. Sumita came to clean, she said she like all the plants I had put on the veranda because they “made good oxygen.” 😂 Around 1 the airplane show thundered overhead again. This time I actually got to see them. Several sets of three flew over and then the helicopters came in formation. The boys in this house think it’s the neatest thing! We went to Pizza Hut for lunch… on the way home we saw the most awful thing. A lady obviously dying was laying on the edge of the street mere inches from all the traffic roaring by. Her adult son was sitting by her begging for money. Stark reality. I thought of how we have hospice at home and how people are surrounded by loved ones… One just never knows what we will see when we go out and about. We saw several Eicher trucks full of people waving flags and chanting. Not sure if it was for the prophet or prime minister. We spent the afternoon under the fans, by 6 we were just over the heat so we turned on the AC in the bedroom and had supper in there because we were all feeling like limp rags. Supposedly the 2nd week of October it will start to cool. The thought of wearing a slip or socks seems plumb hilarious but I know eventually it will get cool again. 

Friday 9/29: Church this morning. Jared had the message on the Israelites and the golden calf. He asked what are the golden calves in our lives? Enjoyed visiting with the sisters and Natun after church! It always gives us such a boost. It’s easier for me to understand the sisters so that makes me feel good. It’s interesting because I keep track of words I notice them using a lot then I look them up when we get home and it’s really helped expand my vocabulary! I still have a frightful time with using all the right tenses. But I figure these Bengalis need something to laugh at.😂 Natun likes to walk home with us and carry Jared’s big umbrella. He says it makes him feel “important” to carry such a big umbrella😂 what a guy! Finally got it out of him that he was 28. Layton was hoping for another motorcycle ride but Natun didn’t bring his bike this time. Went and got groceries then went to North End. In front of North End they had one lane blocked off and were taking videos of a lady riding her bike back and forth. It was quite a set up. Camera men, the lady all dressed up in western clothes, quite an audience on the sidewalk… We stood there and hooted. What else will we see in this city?! It is never dull that’s for sure. 

Saturday 9/30: End of September… Lucky was able to come cook today! Was good to see her again. She hasn’t been able to come for several weeks due to her mother in laws death. She was showing Sumita pictures of her mother in laws coffin and body.🤢 I tried not to get to close as coffins give me the willies even though I’m a nurse. The RO water system mistri came to work on our system. We were glad the mistri could come fix the system. It’s been troubling for a while now. Turned out to have several leaks and other issues. We could barely fill one water bottle before the water would go to a drip. They put a bigger tank on it as well. We go through about 6 water bottles a day in our Gott jug, plus all the water for the ice. While everyone was here fixing, cooking and cleaning the rest of us tried to stay out of the way. I worked on organizing some kindergarten things for the next week. Layton and I puttered on the patio veranda. We noticed yesterday on the way to church that the man had a few “winter” flowers out for sale! The lumberjacks continue to work in the backyard. They are currently hauling out all the big logs. In the evenings they build a fire and burn all the branches. When we first moved in here we always got so annoyed when they would burn because the apartment would get smoky but now it doesn’t bother us. The smoke really cuts down on the amount of mosquitos! Layton says it smells like a hot dog roast. There’s a few big trees left right up against our veranda. Now with most of the trees gone, At night we can see the metro station and hotel Shuktara all lit up through the living room windows! Layton spent the morning making his Halloween costume. “That way I don’t have to worry about it later mom.” He got a box and cut holes for his arms and legs and claimed it to be a robot. Not sure what inspired the costume but it kept him busy and out of trouble so I didn’t interfere.😂

Sunday 10/1: Jared had a busy morning at clinic. We skipped kindergarten today. I had some things I wanted to get done before the winter company starts coming through Dhaka. Elwood’s will hopefully get here Tuesday for two weeks if all goes ok at immigration. Gave the playroom a thorough cleaning and decluttering. Feels like I might actually be making some progress in that room. Went through Layton’s closet to see what he needs for when it cools. He found his winter Jammie’s and wore them the rest of the day. He vehemently claimed he was not hot at all but I caught him rolling up the pant legs. 😂 Made room in his dresser for Shania’s clothes as well. In the evening, Trevor’s came over! It’s always a great time with them.😍❤️

September 18 - 24, 2023

 * I almost didn’t post anything this week. It all seems quite hodgepodge and like we were around the mulberry bush but this is how CSI Bangladesh works sometimes. So read at your own risk! By the end of the week the turn of events was rather hilarious.🫣🤭* 

Monday 9/18: Both children were back to them happy selves. We all slept in too! Layton had kindergarten this morning. After he was finished we went to carebox for a few things. While we were there we found gummy worms and marshmallows.😍 The gummy worms tasted fresh even. Often times the candy here is quite stale since it’s imported. I bought a bag for Layton and he promptly ate the entire thing.  At bedtime Jon messaged Jared and said “brother, NGO supervisor is planning to visit Golpagonj next week Monday. Please arrange eye camp so they can see your work. This is important to your visa.” Jared gulped and said “I’ll see what I can do.” The  Golpagonj clinic is currently closed right now because the dr is on maternity leave and Doyle’s are still here in Dhaka finishing up their language classes. Jared called Trevor and the two of them tried to figure out how to handle the situation. 

Tuesday 9/19: Had kindergarten this morning. Had a beautiful rain this afternoon off and on. It has cooled from what is was a few days ago. Singing was canceled this evening. Josna and Sumita had a neighbor die so they had some events to attend. Sumita says a lot of people die this time of year in Bangladesh. I wonder why? Has the heat from the past 6 months wore their bodies down? Lucky’s mother in law died on a rickshaw last week while coming home from the dr. Lucky asked Jared for her paycheck early so she could go back to her village for the burial. Jared worked on CSI payroll in the afternoon. Doyle’s came for supper one more time before they leave. Jared has been wanting me to make Aztec Chicken again so put it in the crockpot for supper. Was able to find Deetos at UniMart last week so we had a feast. Deetos are the Bangladesh version of Doritos. Except they are more spicy. We don’t have tortilla chips or corn chips here so we always use Deetos for “stack up” meals. After supper us adults were visiting at the table and all of a sudden Layton frantically came running and said “mom the clothesline fell down!” I said “it’s ok, we can fix it later.” He had such a frantic look on his face I thought maybe I should investigate. I went into the room where the kids were playing and here they were jumping on the bed and somehow had gotten the clothesline wrapped around the fan blade while the fan was running. Amaryllis had the presence of mind to quick shut the fan off. The daddy’s intervened and unwound the rope and told them no more jumping on the bed.😂 Trevor called Dristidon Eye Hospital this afternoon to see on how short of notice they can arrange an eye camp. They said they need two weeks… so this is too short of notice to do one next Monday. Now what? Another thing is that Doyle’s plan to move to Golpagonj on Thursday. Doyle doesn’t feel up to hosting an eye camp with hundreds of people. The crowds at these eye camps are out of control. Trevor’s last eye camp in Khulna in August was 900 people. Many prayers were ascending for wisdom on how to proceed with this project. Jared tried to explain the situation to Jon to see if we could get the NGO beauro to reschedule their visit. If they would wait a few weeks we could have a eye camp. He offered that we could go to Golpagonj and Jared and Doyle could show them the clinic and give a report about the last Kulna eye camp. Jon said “brother we must have eye camp.” Negotiating with the higher ups like this is almost unheard of here. If someone is of a higher authority then you, you do whatever they ask no questions asked. Finally by bedtime it felt like all three CSI men had reached a conclusion that felt good. Jared called Jon and gave him an update on the situation.

Wednesday 9/20: Kindergarten this morning…  Jared Jon and Doyle headed off to the NGO beauro to do some things for Doyle’s visa and then to have a chat with the head honchos about this eye camp “somaso.” (Problem) The man they needed to talk to was in a meeting so they weren’t able to. They found out that the high commission in Nova Scotia messed something up with Doyle’s visa. Jared was surprised that the immigration officials at the Dhaka airport hadn’t caught it. Nothing drastic but Jon is going to get it fixed. They submitted Doyle’s work visa application as well. Went to the clinic for lunch. Chicken curry… Layton had four helpings of the vegetables! You can imagine the sparkle in Josna’s eyes over that! During lunch it started pouring rain. Like absolute wall of rain. We waited for quite awhile before it let up enough that we could slosh home. The rain continued on for most of the afternoon. It really cooled off and there was such a nice breeze. At lunch Doyle thanked God for the breeze. I had to smile because a year ago I would have never once thought to thank God for a breeze for sure not in Kansas. But in Dhaka, we are so grateful for any bit of breeze. In the evening we went up to the roof to enjoy the cool breeze. Like Doyle said “it was ‘almost pleasurable.” 

Thursday 9/21: Jared went to the NGO office again to try and visit with the supervisor. He got there and the office was closed so no luck. Then Michael and his elderly parents came to the clinic since they are getting some medical help here in Dhaka.  Jared went to tell them hi and wish them well. When he got there they were gone but they said they would be right back. He waited and waited and waited and they never came. Finally he left and came home. Sumita came to clean. She had to leave early to go buy “choto Mach.” (Small fish). I guess Josna had made chicken curry, vegetables and dal for lunch for Michael and his parents. Michael called and told Josna he wanted small fish instead, so Sumita had to leave our place and go buy some to quick cook up when they got to the clinic. Later Josna told Jared that they had gotten the small fish cooked and lunch was all ready and then finally Michael and his parents came back to the clinic and said they had to leave on the train! So they didn’t even eat the food that Josna had spent so much time making for them. Spent the afternoon doing the usual. Doyle’s got moved to Golpagonj. Layton was quite sad. I realized he thought they had left for America like Kelly’s, so once I made it clear that they were in Golpagonj he cheered right up. In the evening it poured rain for hours. It’s rained more in the past few days then it did in the whole month of august! 

Friday 9/22: It rained most of the night last night. Heavy downpour with lots of thunder. We had both the children in our bedroom. The power went out for around 6 hours during the night. Thankfully the rain cooled things down enough that it wasn’t even that bad without the AC. Our IPS kept the fan going the whole time. Had some more stress today in regards to the eye camp. Jared cannot get Jon to understand that Dristidon cannot arrange eye camp on this short of notice. Jon said “brother please arrange Golpagange for NGO supervisors visit. Please treat them as very special guests and prepare fine lunch and good snacks. They will be there from 9 to 1.” Jared almost came unglued at this point. Jon is quite anxious about them visiting and worries they will tell us to leave the country if we don’t “perform” well at the visit and give a favorable impression. Trevor, Doyle and Jared spent a fair amount of time on the phone venting their frustrations to each other. By evening they were all able to laugh about it. Anyways…. Church this morning was enjoyable. Early in the morning Liton from Kulna called Jared and said he was in Dhaka again. Jared invited him to come to church. He agreed and said he was at Farmgate so that would be no problem. We got to church and waited and waited for Liton to come but no Liton. Jared called him and he said he was stuck in a jam. Natun thought it was strange where Liton said he was at. It certainly wasn’t anywheres near Farmgate. We finally started our service and sang four songs but he still never came so Jared had the message. After church Natun and Jared called Liton to see where he was. He said he was at our apartment. So we left and came home. No Liton anywheres. So we wait and wait and wait. Finally Jared says “brother where are you? We need to leave soon to attend to some business?” Liton said he was aways away and at 8# gate. So we decided to just go and do our business. We opened the door to leave and go get in the car and here stood Liton.😂 We couldn’t quite figure the situation out. Anyways… Layton was thrilled because Natun gave Layton a ride home from church on his motorcycle! He was pretty scared at first but Jared told him to ride like he was on a four wheeler. I wish I could have had a picture of that. A tall dark skinned Bengali with a ferocious wild mop of black hair on his head, a smaller long legged white boy with white blond hair, hanging on to the Bengalis shirt for all he’s worth and then the big smile on his face when they took off. Natun waited with Layton until we got home. He stopped and bought him ice cream at the dokan. Layton’s eyes just sparkled. He said “mom that was absolutely so much fun.” Natun is his uncle here. 

Saturday 9/22: Jared woke up to some messages from Jon. He’s in quite a tizzy over this whole NGO supervisor visit. Jared finally messaged Carl and asked for his wise advice. This morning Jared got our toilet fixed so we no longer have to flush it with a bucket. That porcelain throne flushes like a dream now I tell you! Layton came out of the bathroom carrying the old part that was taken out and proudly said “mom, me and daddy found the ‘poblem.” Never mind the toilet water that he was dripping everywhere. Clearly our standards of what is “clean” water has changed. 🤢He spent the rest of the morning making mud pies on the veranda. Sumita found this behavior quite intriguing. Later in the afternoon Jon came over to visit with Jared. Jared said it seemed like Jon just needed to talk about the upcoming visit. He said the last time the NGO supervisor visited Golpagange was when Kelly had just got here so 5 years ago. Jon said the visit caused quite an uproar just like it is this time. That was good to know! He gave Jared a detailed list on how the visit should be coordinated. The plan now is that Jared and Doyle will conduct the visit. The dr from the clinic and the man that helps us arrange Dristidon eye camps will be present to answer questions. I had to laugh because Jon clearly wrote on the paper “prepare fine lunch with good snacks. A great gift would be good also.” Clearly Jon is not leaving any stone unturned or taking any chances. This all reminds me of how it goes when a state health inspector shows up at the Manor. 

Sunday 9/23: Jon called Jared first thing this morning. He said he had talked to the NGO supervisor last night. Yesterday afternoon Jared had sent the NGO man a message welcoming him to come to Golpagange and letting him know when and where he would pick him up from. He said he would be looking forward to showing them our CSI program. Anyways, Jon said the NGO man asked him if when he gets to Golpagange if CSI would pay him a certain amount of money for a bribe. Jon said “no, foreigner will not do that.” So the NGO man decided he wasn’t going to go do a look see of our program after all if the foreigner wasn’t going to give him money. Jared messaged the other men… there was some relieved laughter. It was rather upsetting honestly… Trevor Jared and Doyle have spent the past week agonizing over this visit…  a few times I thought Jared and Jon were going to loose their mental marbles because of the stress. It’s been something that has been getting mentioned in every prayer we have around here. And then to find out that All this man wanted was bribe money?!!!! For what we do not know. We just shrugged and said “only in Bangladesh.” But we do wonder… “now what?” The rest of the day was uneventful. A quiet evening at home which was very much enjoyed by all.❤️

September 11 - September 17, 2023

Monday 9/11: The tree cutters were back with a vengeance today. More trees bit the dirt. Layton stood on the veranda and yelled “cannon ball!” at the men when one tree crashed down. Jared had clinic this morning. Busy as usual… he came home in a real downpour! I love the rain. One of these days it will be the last rain until next June. Ripon from Golpagange says it will rain until the 17th of September. The thunderstorm was spectacular. Layton was worried that the lightning would strike our apartment and then it would burn up. He has inherited my worrying genes it looks like. “Mom would lightening burn up cement? Would it catch a tree on fire? If the trees caught on fire would they light our apartment on fire?” He didn’t seem to relax about the whole matter until Jared came home. The rest of the day was at home. Jared went to KaWran Bazaar to buy some tools he needed to install the deadbolts on the clinic door. Moved Shania into a pack n play at night. She outgrew her little bamboo bed so just had her sleeping on a soft blanket on the floor. The past several nights she wakes up hollering because she’s rolled off the blanket and under our bed.😂 I wouldn’t be happy either to wake up under my bed instead of on top of it.

Tuesday 9/12: no kindergarten… Layton was up and awake for several hours during the night. I’m not sure what his deal was except that at one point he wondered when bacon would be available in Bangladesh. Due to the lack of sleep I figured neither of our brains were firing on all gears so no school. Had singing in the evening… It’s always our favorite thing of the week!! Sumita and Josna told us all about their trip to their friend’s burial. Apparently they will have the memorial service anytime from one month to one year from now. Afterwards us and Doyle’s went to Sky Restaurant. Hadn’t ever been there before. It’s on the 12th floor of Hotel Davenci in Farmgate. It was quite a trek. The roads were all jammed up so we just walked. Had to wind our way through mud and around rickshaws etc. Supposedly the Farmgate intersection area is one of the busiest in Dhaka. It wasn’t hard to believe that this evening. Thousands of rickshaws and so so many people. It was pouring rain but didn’t seem to matter to anyone. Shania exercised her voice and hollered because she was on edge from all the us horns and traffic noise. Thankfully we could take the covered foot bridge over the streets for part of the ways. The restaurant was really neat. Reminded me of how I’ve envisioned the inside of Rapunzel’s castle. There were large fish tanks that the kids were well entertained by😃 It was also very well air conditioned so we almost froze but boy did it feel good!! Once Shania cooled off she was in a much better frame of mind. 

Wednesday 9/13: in the morning Jared spent several hours installing some deadbolts on the clinic doors. I made some no bake cookies to take to Jon’s for a hostess gift. George invited us to come to Jon and Paninnas for lunch! George is Paninnas brother. He is the one that has been teaching Doyle’s language class. Layton was all excited about going to “Berninas.” She made so much food. Fried fish, egg curry, chicken curry and fried pumpkin. Along with copious amounts of pilau rice. She is a very hospitable host so our plates were kept full. I did my level best to not overeat but these people don’t understand the word “diet.”😂 However Layton ate and ate the fish which I was very glad for. When we had finally eaten enough to satisfy her, George took us to the living room. All of a sudden here came Paninna with banana cheesecake and ice cream and tea. Then after that had been served she offered us mangos yet too. We literally rolled out of there. It is obvious that their standard of living is a lot higher than most Bengalis. They had a washer and dryer, microwave fridge and freezer. Paninna took us up to her rooftop classroom and then out onto her patio where all her flowers were. They were so beautiful.she had probably 20 different pots and planters full of flowers and random plants. (Most were the sort of plants that I’ve seen my mom and Keisha have for houseplants.) We stopped at the clinic on the way home so Jared could get some milk for a patient. I think Josna and Sumita were a bit jealous that we ate with someone else today instead of them. We came home and turned on the AC and recooperated from the heat and our poor stuffed bellies. Miriam says the missionaries always gain 5kg while they are here from the food. I’m determined not to be that person but after a lunch like we had today I can see how easily that can happen! These dear people love to serve and they love even more to see a Bedesi eat their food. We were told today that “Duane brother ate much fish!” Alas the standards we have to live up to.😂 In the evening the children and I went down to ride bike. It suddenly started raining which quickly escalated into a roaring downpour so we hustled back to our apartment and stayed in doors the rest of the evening. 

Thursday 9/14: Jared and Layton went to the clinic and installed the last deadbolt. Jared was glad to get that done.  The rest of the day was uneventful… Jared worked on some more papers for Doyle. 

Friday 9/15: had church! Our last time having church with Doyle’s while they are here in Dhaka. We have really enjoyed the crowd boost!😃 After church we went to Lola’s and then to buy groceries. Went to one North End for coffee and the electricity and they said they could make us drinks as long as they weren’t hot or didn’t take a blender. Haha! So we went to the North End that’s right across the street and they had power. I love going there… feels like we can escape the foreign country vibe briefly and pretend like we are back in the states there. Sat for awhile and then headed home as both children and this mama needed naps! Went up to the roof after we all woke up and watched the planes for awhile. The rest of the evening was quiet… 

Saturday: Shania was very fussy… She wanted to be held all the time and no sitting down allowed. The princess must be jostled and walked. 😂 I will be thankful when this tooth comes through. Liton (brother from kulna) called and said he was in Dhaka somewhere and could Jared come see him? Where he was was quite aways away and Jared didn’t feel comfortable going without me and well… I wasn’t sure I could cope with a crying baby for that long in a van and be stuck in traffic. So Jared arranged with Liton that next month we would go to Kulna and Jared would come and spend some time with him. Felt bad saying no… At what point is it ok to say no due to a fussy teething baby and when do we just go and do?! Usually Shania is happy as a clam… At lunch Layton said he thought one of his teeth was getting loose. I told Jared “one child looses his teeth and one child gets them.”😂

Sunday 9/17: Both the children had rather unstable emotions this morning. I’m suspicious it’s due to the heat. 108* real feel today. After a good cry and nap time when they had both had a good sleep in an AC bedroom they were both much happier. This heat just kinda saps all the energy some days. Had kindergarten. I pulled something out of my bored box for Layton that really made his eyes shine.😍Jared was really busy at the clinic this morning. He is already up to 700 patients and it’s only quarter ways into our fiscal year. Spent the rest of the day just doing the usual… it was so hot today that I did laundry this morning and it was all dry by evening so for once I got it all washed folded and put away in the same day! Felt very accomplished! Who am I becoming?!😂

September 4 - September 10, 2023

  An eventful week… The first part of the week the mistri was finally able to come and hang the wallpaper in the bedroom. He did a very neat job. The next day Jared went and bought a new split unit. The guy came and installed it that afternoon yet! It felt so good to get our bedroom all put back together and now Jared has AC again for his long afternoons of paperwork! And this new AC doesn’t emit the awful odors that the old one did. Last Saturday the Dhaka expressway opened. We didn’t even dare try to go on it the first day! The paper said in the first 48 hours it had 22,000 vehicles on it. CNGs, motorbikes, and rickshaws are not allowed on it. On Friday we canceled church because Josna and Sumita’s friend passed away from cancer. This lady had been coming to our singing evenings up until a month ago. She was a fun lady to be around so saddened that she died. Sumita came on Thursday and told me about it. Her and Josna took the night bus Thursday night and went. Here in Dhaka when someone dies they take them back to their village for the funeral and burial. We weren’t sure if we should go or not. We ended up deciding not to go. Since we didn’t have church we didn’t want to just sit around and stare at our feet so we listened to a church service from home. It felt good to listen to church. It’s the first time we’ve both sat down and listened to it since we came. It gives me a real sense of security to hear church going on as usual at home. After that we hopped in the van and took off. Went to the airport on the new expressway! Wanted to see what it was like going there since we have several people to pick up there in the next few months. Between construction on the road and the airport navigating that area is like trying to go through a corn maze! Like any major road in Dhaka the on ramp to the expressway was jammed up  but once we payed toll and got going the traffic cleared out immensely. Not having to swerve around CNGs and lurch to a stop behind rickshaws was a dream! I told Jared it felt like we were driving on Kellogg in Wichita. Once we got on we didn’t stop one time! It took us maybe 15 minutes to get to the end of the expressway by the airport. And what do you know back in the jams we were! The expressway will have an exit that you will be able to get on that will go straight to the new airport terminals. They have made quite a-bit of progress on the airport! Layton was impressed that we were “four roads up” on the expressway! It was neat seeing all the sights as we drove along. Dhaka looks so different from that high up versus when your winding through traffic on the streets far below. Saw a huge golf course. We oohed and ahhed over the lush green grass!!!! Layton thinks it’s weird that Shania won’t know what grass is until we get back to Kansas! Saw some big stadiums etc. and of course thousands and thousands of apartment buildings that made ours look quite small and charming. After our joyride we went to Farmhouse. To celebrate Jareds birthday we all got ice cream. Layton was pretty sure he only needed fries and ice cream. That boy could be a vegetarian.😞 He needs some of Uncle Phillip’s meat influence to learn to eat meat. Went to Avenue and got some bath towels. You know you’ve officially arrived at being an adult when you’re excited about new bath towels. It’s pathetic. Bought groceries and came home. After supper we went to the guesthouse to sing with Doyle’s and just sit and visit. It’s good for us to go out and about here in Dhaka even if the driving is a hassle. When we get back to Siza court after we go out driving we realize how Monipuripara is actually quiet! I don’t think many apartments have a nice big courtyard like we have either. Plus we have a big roof to go up to where we can actually see the sky and the metro and the tall motels at Farmgate. Some of the parts of Dhaka we saw  are just miles and miles of 10-15 + story apartment buildings just crammed one beside the other. The sunlight can’t even get down to the road. There’s been some thought that we should move to a different apartment but we think we are at the best place in Dhaka!  I love our day and night guards that are ever watchful at our gate. They keep a close eye on Layton too. One day Layton was going around stomping on all the lids on the sewer drains and the guard told him that was not safe that he might fall in.😂 We have come to really love our little community here. Anyways… the rest of the week was uneventful. Lucky came to cook. Since it was Jared’s birthday I had her do okra and pumpkin in addition to the chicken curry since he really enjoys that. Doyle’s came for lunch then as well. One night this past week Jared and I were having our bedtime prayers. I must have fallen asleep mid prayer because the next thing I knew Jared was shaking me saying “are you ok?!” I said “of course I am what’s going on?” He was worried I had had a stroke since I quit talking mid sentence and fell sound asleep. 😂 I assured him my brain function was still intact. (As far as I know.) Sunday morning Miriam called Jared and said someone had tried to break into the clinic. Josna and Sumita got home from their friend’s funeral at 5 am and noticed something was awry and that the back gate was opened. We were right away worried about all the milk and meds. Jared went there right away. He said he’s suspicious it was some young kids. They messed up the doorknobs on the hallway doors and broke the lock on the back gate. Looked like they used crowbar. Jared got out one of his cards and jiggled the locks abit and the doors came right open. We had a good laugh because no kid here would have a debit card to use to pick locks. Thankfully the doors are very sturdy. Jared is going to install some deadbolts on the doors for added safety for the sisters. We should have thought to go over there and check on things since the sisters were gone but we didn’t even once think about it. So now we know… Spent the evening at the clinic while Jared did the doorknob fixing. The children and I went to the dokan and bought ice cream bars for snack at the clinic. Miriam showed up then too and joined the party. Shania always smiles so big at Josna and Sumita. She loves all the attention they give her. 

August 28 - September 3, 2023

Monday 8/28: No kindergarten this morning. Our bedroom AC quit working again. When we turned it on a putrid smell came forth. We felt bad asking Carl if we could get a new one but he said not to feel one bit bad that we had to stay cool at night! Anyways, Jared heaved the old AC out of our bedroom wall this morning before he left for clinic. A mistri came and hauled several bags of bricks up to our apartment along with powdered cement. I knew it did not even pay to try and keep Layton’s attention on school when there was a mistri to watch. And trust me I got a “no details spared” report on how the wall was patched! They did brick and mortar to fill in the hole and then plaster over it. I had to smile because when we remodeled our house in Kansas and we removed a wall unit, Jared framed it all in with 2x4s, added insulation, then drywalled, taped, mudded and painted it all! After the plaster dries they will put new wallpaper over it. Then we will get a split unit in there. For now we are all sleeping in Layton’s AC room. Jared had a busy morning at the clinic. 30 patients… I did the usual. I had to have a talk with Sumita and tell her that when Shania is napping in a room that she has to wait until after she wakes up to clean in there. It was getting to the point that I had to hold Shania for her morning nap every time she came to clean because it woke her up when Sumita would sweep. I appreciate that she does such a thorough job but if a baby doesn’t get a good nap it seems to affect the rest of the day. In the afternoon Jon was supposed to come over to go through all the audit papers that Jared has been working on. Jared had the papers all ready strewn out on our big dining table and then Jon never showed up. Anyways, we went up to the roof for our nightly walk. Layton took his bike up there and rode for awhile. He loves riding up there because then he doesn’t have to watch out for cars or people. Noticed that they are starting to take the scaffolding down off the sides of the Farmgate metro station. At night the whole station is lit up! 

Tuesday 8/29: Kindergarten this morning. Shania slept long enough that we were able to do more review of our letters and numbers. Later after kindergarten I went out to the veranda to gather up all the laundry to fold. I saw something that almost made me cry. There are a bunch of men slowly cutting down all the trees in our backyard. You might wonder why this would almost make me cry, but it’s our own precious little bit of “country” that keeps us sane. I’ve mentioned before that when it rains I always go stand on the back veranda and watch the rain pour through the “jungle.” We’ve noticed them trimming smaller trees and thought maybe that was all they were going to do but by the looks of things they are taking down the big ones too. They are using a tiny electric chain saw. I think I might pray that their chainsaw quits working!😂 Or else pray that they will leave a few big ones standing for my comfort. When Jared got home from clinic we all stood on the veranda and watched them working on the trees like the sad little Lorax himself. Had singing this evening which was such a joy! Sumita taught us a new song which was fun. We stayed and visited with them for quite awhile and then Sumita all of a sudden said it was time for us to go because her and Josna had plans to meet one of their friends. 😝so we left! Haha! Went to Shuktara for supper. On the way there we took a rickshaw, it was beautiful weather! Was really enjoyable to sit and chat with Doyles for awhile. Slowly ambled our way home. 

Wednesday 8/30: Kindergarten this morning. Next time we go to Doyle’s at Golpagange we are going to swipe one of their extra school desks. Our dining table is high enough that it’s kinda an awkward height for Layton to do schoolwork at. I tried to wad up a blanket for him to put on the chair to set him up higher but you can imagine how long that lasted with a squirmy 6 year old bum. Jared did the end of month paperwork… For lunch we headed to the clinic. Fried fish and egg curry. Eggs are quite expensive here right now. Layton ate three pieces of fish and 2 piles of rice. Josna was very pleased! When we were arriving at the clinic we noticed a lady and her daughter had followed us there. They came and stood in the room where we eat. I thought it was a patient needing milk, but all of a sudden Sumita told her to go out in the hallway. The lady kept trying to talk to Jared “boss boss.” So Sumita kept sending her out. Later Josna told me that that lady and her husband don’t work but they come to the clinic and beg for rice for their daughter. The funny thing is is that the lady won’t eat any of Josna’s food because it’s “Christian bhat,” not “Muslim bhat (rice)” But for some reason it’s ok for her child to eat Christian rice but not her. The lady and her child were well dressed and tidy looking. What was even stranger was the lady had perfectly straight WHITE teeth. Very unusual for here. Usually they are stained red from pawn or they have bad crooked teeth if they are really as poor as this lady claimed to be. Spent the evening at home. 

Thursday 8/31: Kindergarten this morning. Layton was less than thrilled about doing school. I told him we had to do on days when nothing exciting was happening so that when our friends come into Dhaka or we go to the village we can take off of school and be with them. He grudgingly admitted that was probably a good plan. I told him if he could get through kindergarten without too much griping and whining that I’d buy him the big remote controlled car that’s sitting at carebox. He eyes that thing every time we go there. (It’s actually hidden in my closet🫢😝) Once we get started with the day’s lesson his attitude usually changes and he thinks it’s fun. Had him make the letters and numbers that he’s learned so far out of play doh. He really loved that! If any of you former teachers have ideas on how I can keep it fun for him please message me. Jared took a motorcycle and went to Mohawkali to find some new wallpaper for the bedroom. He forgot his umbrella so came home soaked!! Us Kansas folk still aren’t used to carrying umbrellas this time of year. You would think after being soaked to the marrow of our bones several times we would remember. Jon came in the afternoon to go through all of the paperwork that Jared has been working on. 

Friday 9/1: Church this morning… Natun always cracks up at Jared and I when we stagger into the clinic dripping with sweat🫢 Jared had the opening and Doyle had the message. I don’t remember what it was about as I was in the kitchen trying to get Shania to take a nap. After church Natun noticed that one of our office chairs was broken. He laughed and said “An American ate too many cookies.” I said “no it was too much rice.” He just laughed and laughed and said “a Bengali would never break a chair by eating too much rice!” These people do think Americans are quite large.😂 Went to Lola’s for lunch. Came home and collapsed in the AC bedroom and we all slept the rest of the afternoon. This heat and humidity just drains a person. Real feel 105* and humidity of 75%. Not one speck of breeze either. We went up to the roof to see if we could feel a breeze but we just dripped away. The minute supper was over we went back into Layton’s bedroom and turned the AC on and spent the evening in there. 

Saturday 9/2: What a morning! The newspaper man came to get his money for delivering the daily star every morning, the caretaker came and got the rent money, then Sumita came to clean. When she got here, she said “boss why don’t you answer your phone? Miriam needs you!” Jared spent the morning tearing off the wallpaper in the bedroom, removing the light and trim for when the mistris come next week. He was absolutely soaked with sweat by the time he was done. It has gotten SO hot again here. But supposedly in a month and a half it will cool. We shall persevere until then as we’ve been dripping and sweating since April.😂 Like my brother Clarke says “what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger.”😂 In the afternoon Jared had to go to the pharmacy. The streets were packed with people and a procession. The Dhaka Expressway is being inaugurated today so wondered if that was the ruckus. Drums, loud music etc. The newspaper proclaimed that now on the new expressway:  “from Farmgate to the airport in 10 minutes!!” So the next time we go to the airport to pick someone up we will see if it’s American 10 minutes or Bengali 10 minutes.😂 The rest of the day was unremarkable. I cleaned out the freezer again because the frost built up so much the freezer door wouldn’t shut all the way. Plus the other week I was trying to make lemonade slushees and almost a whole pitcher of lemonade dumped out in the bottom and then a few days later the granola dumped out so we had a meal ready to go right in the bottom of the freezer.

Sunday 9/3: Woke up during the night to a real thunderstorm! Layton thought it sounded like we were back in Kansas. Today was abit cooler and the humidity was noticeably less. Did kindergarten this morning but didn’t get much accomplished as the wee lady wanted to be held and rocked quite a lot. Jared had around 25 patients at the clinic this morning. Spent the rest of the day doing the usual… laundry, making food, etc. I was informed while I was making burritos for lunch that “mom, you know my teeth are sensitive to black beans don’t you?” 🫣