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?” 🫣

August 21-27, 2023

 Well what to say about this past week… life has been real… no sugar coating! Started kindergarten with Layton. It would be impossible for me to do a three days a week all day school day like at home. So every morning when Shania takes her hour long morning nap we work at it until she wakes up. Doing a little bit every day seems to work pretty well thus far. Definitely still working out the kinks… he is left handed so neat penmanship is a challenge for him. I’m really hoping we can find a teacher for him for first grade though. That would be a first in Dhaka to have a teacher though… Everyone that’s been here has had small enough children that they never needed a teacher while they were here. Some days I am rather doubtful about my kindergarten teaching abilities and Jared tells me “if a 18 year old can do it you can too!” I say “a 18 year old isn’t also taking care of a baby, cooking and doing laundry at the same time.”😂 I’ve been having Lucky cook extra food when she comes to cook on Saturdays. That way we have plenty of leftovers for the next day or two so that I don’t have to worry about cooking much on days when we do kindergarten a little longer in the mornings. Layton said “mom, do I have to raise my hand like I did in Sunday school?” I said “do you think we should?” He said he didn’t think it was necessary! Some days the attention span is surprisingly well… other days he would much rather stop and talk about how gears work and how the metro runs off of electricity then count to 100 and say his alphabet. Had to make a rule that we only talk about kindergarten while we are having the class. 🫢 

Our Dhaka brother continues to not attend church. We have invited him to come over to our house and from time to time Jared messages him to see how he is doing. He sometimes doesn’t reply and other times replies days later. Do we keep on? The one time he replied he did wonder why we were having church on Friday again and said he thought our new interpreter was no good. However Josna and Sumita are quite pleased with Natun’s punctual arrival to church and his interpretation skills. (Plus he helps them with their phones!🫢😀)  We are suspicious our brother is jealous of someone else taking over “his” job. We are paying Natun to interpret for us since he isn’t a member and that causes our brother offense. We don’t pay our own members to interpret since then we aren’t sure if church attendance is  from the heart or because of getting payed. Other churches here pay their members to attend and get baptized so that they can boast of great crowds so that’s why we don’t pay our members when they interpret. Obviously if they are hired by CSI like Josna and Sumita that work at the clinic or the kulna brother that interprets at the clinic for Trevor then they get payed. But it’s because they are working directly with and for the clinics… it’s not tied to their church attendance. I’m not sure if that makes sense or not.  

Kelly’s flew out Friday morning! They were so excited to go home. It was so fun to hear what their children were most excited to do when they get back to America!! 🥰 sounds like school is the most anticipated thing! Layton had some tearful moments telling Krista and Thomas good bye but he got over it pretty quick. For sure when he heard that they live in Idaho. He said “Just like Kinsey except in a different town!” We had them all over for one last Pizza party the evening before they left! That evening when Jared was coming home with the pizza from Pizza Hut he saw a bunch of men beating a little boy in front of the mosque. No idea what or why! Causes a sick feeling in the stomach to observe this types of things. 

Shania has really gotten chubby lately! Everyone comments on it and pinches her legs. It’s such a joy to see her so healthy and thriving. She has really started screeching and making a lot fun noises when she’s happy. One day Layton said “mom can’t you tell her to tell a different story? She just says the same thing over and over.”😂 Some mornings it is quite a scramble to see who gets to her first when she wakes up… Jared or Layton! 

Jared has been quite busy with going through all of the receipts and expenses from Golpagange and Kulna for the yearly audit. Makes sure they are all signed appropriately and all areas of the budget are accounted for. They are hoping to try a different accountant this year. He’s also been getting some things ready for Doyle for when they go to Golpagange. Name badge, stamps etc. The day he went to get the stamps made, he arrived where the dokan was supposed to be and here the dokan was flat on the ground. So he will need to find a different dokan. Sounds like Doyle’s plan on staying here another month or so to finish up language class then they will head to Golpagange and settle in for the next three plus years.😀 We have really enjoyed having them in Dhaka with us! 

Clinic was busy as usual this past week. The past two months came up to a total of over 400 patients! 

Thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes! I sure didn’t expect to hear from so many of my friends since we are across the pond. It was fun talking to you all and hearing news from home. Seems like so much water has went under the bridge in the past almost 10 months! To celebrate my birthday we went to Farmhouse Burger and got our favorites… Burgers and truffle fries (fries with Parmesan cheese on top). Then we ordered shakes! So good… tasted like peanut butter pie. I threw my diet to the wind and ate with abandon. No regrets… I’m only 32 for one year anyway. 

August 14 - August 20, 2023

Monday 8/14: Sumita came to clean this morning. We visited quite abit. She wondered what our house was like in America. I told her it was “choto.” (Small) I told her Layton slept on the couch most of the time and she wondered if we would need a new house since we have two children now instead of one. I said no we would make it work! Jared was busy at clinic. Spent the rest of the afternoon just doing laundry and the usual mom things. It’s so humid now that I have to hang everything under a fan to dry. Doyle’s and us spent awhile up on the roof this evening. Talking and watching the planes fly over. It’s so fun seeing on FlightRadar where they are coming from and where they are going… The guards have started locking the door to the roof around 7, not sure why all of a sudden they are doing it so early! We like to go up later in the evening to see the lights and feel the breeze. Jared is thinking of seeing if they will let us have a key for that door. 

Tuesday 8/15: Clinic was canceled today. It’s National Mourning Day. Sheik Hasina’s (prime minister) father and family was assonated in Danmondi in 1975 on this day. Her and her sister were both away in London visiting at the time of the assignation so they are the only remaining living family members. Dr Elizabeth wanted clinic canceled… Jared tried to convince her to still go ahead and have it but no luck. She didn’t think anyone would come. He spent the morning at home. Had the AC mistri come and look at the AC in our bedroom. It’s more of a heater than an AC. Glad it gave out now when it’s a bit cooler than when it was 115*. We slept quite well last night though with two fans going so maybe we are more acclimated than we think! The mistris thought it was a leak in a radiator hose so they hauled it off to their shop. Jared told them not to spend too much because it is still the original one that Carl put in! Before lunch Jared ended up running to the clinic to tend to some matters with a patient and to give Josna more grocery money. (CSI pays for their food expense since they cook for us and the patients.) In the evening we had singing and then went to Parktown for supper. We walked from the clinic to the restaurant in hopes that the children would wear off some energy and sit nice and it seemed to prove effective. We ordered five plates of fries, one for each child so they could have something to eat while we waited on our main entrees to arrive. The poor waiter looked at us like we were crazy. He said “five?” I think he thought we had gotten our Bangla numbers mixed up. Finally Jared pointed to the word “fries” on the menu and held up five fingers! Oh we laughed… then by the end of the meal every single plate was wiped clean of fries so I wondered what the waiter thought then?😂

Wednesday 8/17: Had lunch at the clinic… Josna made shrimp curry and egg curry. The egg curry was sweet, I love it! Josna’s black eyes just shown when she saw Jared taking three helpings of the shrimp! Then Amaryllis and Rafael both wanted 2nd helpings of rice and that made Josna’s smile even bigger. 🥰 In the afternoon the AC mistri called and wondered if he could bring the AC back? We weren’t expecting it back until next week. They installed it and boy howdy does it work well! It had our bedroom chilled down in no time. 

Thursday 8/17: At noon us and Doyle’s headed out and set forth to have fun on the city. We boarded the metro and rode clear to the end at Uttarra North. We had some problems getting our metro passes to work on the way there, but on the way back they worked fine. Found out we didn’t need one for Jonas, Rafeal and Shania! The cars were pretty packed until almost at Uttarra. We got off and noticed some neat little cha dokans and restaurants along the road there by the metro station. We went and sat in one of the restaurants and all got some cold Cokes. Doyle noticed a sign advertising the Metro Rail Information Centre. We hired two easy bikes to ride on. Layton was so excited because he’s been wanting to ride on an easy bike! They are much more tipsy than a CNG. Uttarra is clear on the very north end of Dhaka so they have easy bikes there. I had to smile because Jared had to sit up front with the driver. He totally dwarfed the small little Bengali man that was driving. Another thing we noticed is how much quieter it is there than in Monipuripara. Fewer apartments, people and vehicles. They have cows and goats in the medians. Got to the information centre and what a pleasant surprise!!!!! It was a clean building with AC in it. And of all things there was a TRASH CAN by the door. I felt like I had stepped into another land. The trash can alone made my day.😂😂 Plus the men working there all spoke English! We watched a short film on the metro rail history and progress. Then they had a metro rail train set set up that was running. The kids loved watching it go around and around! But the best thing of all was they had a real life sized metro car set up that the kids could go play in. You could go up front and see where the conductor sits! Layton was in his element! Figuring out what switches did what. There was a hand held mic hanging by the dash and he said “Amaryllis, this is what you use in a combine!” When we were leaving he said “I had so much fun I just couldn’t help myself!” I was thrilled that he had so much fun. Sometimes my heart just aches that he is cooped up in this apartment and courtyard so much. It’s why we go to kulna and Golpagange so frequently so he can get out and play in the grass and dirt for awhile instead of being cooped up in this concrete jungle. Anyways… the metro wasn’t nearly as full on the way back. We were all able to have a seat instead of standing. We noticed the first car of the metro was for women only!! Got 4 rickshaws for on the way home. On the way there we took CNGs. Got stuck in traffic. Being stuck in traffic in a CNG on a hot day makes one either go insane or get sanctified I’m not sure which!! So we decided rickshaw on the way home would be better because then at least you can feel the breeze as you’re going! 

Friday 8/18: Had church this morning… Beforehand Jared told me “the well is dry.” But he had some inspiring thoughts on “where is our treasure?” Had fun visiting with Natun and the sisters. Natun told me that between Jared, Doyle, and Krystal, I’m the only one that is a thorough bred American.  After church we all packed up and headed to Danmondi. Gulsan was having a large political march so we didn’t step foot over there. Wouldn’t you know it… we stopped at the guesthouse to get Doyle’s and Jared said “this AC isn’t working, what is going on?” Sure enough the van AC was broke AGAIN. Never mind how much money we put into getting it fixed when we were last at Kulna. Jared and I literally look at things and they break here. Very frustrating. Anyways… like Lisa says “only in Bangladesh.” We went to Herfeys for lunch. The kids used the play place to within an inch of its life. Went and found a neat coffee shop called Prezzi! It was really cozy in there. It overlooked the main street so the kids played I spy and counted all the CNGs that they saw! We sat and visited for quite awhile there. Their menu was very American. They had cinnamon rolls, cheesecake, brownies, lots of different kinds of soups and sandwiches and even salads! We noticed they had several kinds of poutine even so we will definitely go back to try that as that’s one of our favorite foods. It’s always so neat to find new places to eat at. The building had a small Artisan on the lower level so I bought some more dresses for Shania. I’ve been looking for drool bibs for her but no luck. They informed me they wouldn’t have socks in stock until November.😂 The little dresses I find her here look just like little mennonite dresses. Maybe abit more lace and trimmings! I have to be careful though because sometimes the dresses have buttons for pretties and they are GLUED on instead of sewn on. She tried to pull them off and right now everything goes in her mouth. So I just take them off right away. Anyways… We headed to UniMart. I might also add that the horn on the van has quit working as well. This makes for a very handicapped van in Dhaka.🫢 But never fear, Doyle and Jared hung their heads out of the van windows and made enough racket and noise to make people well aware that we were coming. It appeared to satisfy the inner little boy in both of them. Got our groceries there, seems like we always somehow leave with a cartful. We made our way back to our apartment with the men loudly “honking” out the windows.😂 When we got home I was holding a sleeping Shania and carrying groceries with my other hand. All of a sudden what should I hear but “didi!!!!! Bossssss!!!!” I had been spotted by the trash lady. She came a running and grabbed the bags and hauled up them up the steps. I was once again instructed to not carry bags and “babo” at the same time.😂 I do like to keep her guessing at what next ridiculous thing I will do while I’m holding my baby. 

Saturday 8/19: The car mechanic came and picked up the van and its grocery list of woes. I really hope nothing else breaks this week. Currently we are flushing two toilets using a bucket. Jared is going to look at them and see what the issue is. Did several large loads of laundry. Sprayed our bed down with bug spray. We keep waking up with chigger bites all over us. They itch worse than mosquitoes. Spent the day getting things ready for tomorrow. Going to start kindergarten with Layton. I know it’s ahead of his class at home, but he needs something to do so figured we would just work at it at a relaxed pace. He’s very enthused!! Doyle’s came over in the evening for dudh cha. 

Sunday 8/20: Jared was busy at clinic today. 30 patients… did kindergarten with Layton until Shania woke up from her morning nap. He needed to go ride bike and get some steam out so called our class quits for the day! He had fun telling Jared the number rhymes when he got home from clinic. The rest of the day was busy with the usual mom things… laundry, making food, etc. The car mechanic brought the van back and it appears as though the AC might actually be working now.🫢

Types of Transportation 🛺

Several have asked what all types of transportation we use in Dhaka. I found these pictures on Google Images and thought I’d write up a post about them all! 

Rickshaw… the most common and what we use the most often. They are best for shorter distances but the rickshaw men will take you long distances if they are in the mood and you pay them well enough! This is what I bumped home from the hospital on 3 days post op from having Shania. Honestly I am quite proud of that little fact.😂

CNG… we take this for longer distances. It’s our least favorite! In the summer when one is in these stuck in a traffic jam.. one is unsure if one is in an Instant Pot or an actual vehicle. They lurch through pot holes like none other. They can weasel their way through traffic like none other though so they are a quick mode of transport if the streets are clear! They have an ear splitting horn that they use freely. 

Easy bike: These aren’t that common in our part of Dhaka. Once you get closer to the edge of the city they become more popular. They are all over in the villages. Trevor says they can be quite tippy and don’t do well with heavy loads. (Read: Big Americans.) They are usually bright colored and quite decked out! 

Vans: These are usually electric and more common in the villages. When we go to Kulna we always ride places on these. Just plop on like you are riding on a tail gate! The ones here in Dhaka are peddle powered and used mostly for hauling heavy loads, usually heaped very high with plastic barrels. The reason there aren’t a lot of the electric powered east bikes and vans here in Dhaka is because the electric grid work isn’t enough to charge them all. 

These rickshaw buses are typically used to carry school children! One day we saw a bunch of boys playing UNO while they were being taken to school! There are so many school in Dhaka. They all wear school uniforms. The blue and white or navy blue and light blue like these children are wearing are very common. Layton asked me if he would go home from school on one of these in Kansas! 

Some call these suicide buses! We haven’t ever utilized this type of transportation. Usually cram packed with men and they barely slow down, people just jump in and out while they are still going. 

Double decker buses… The man in the doorway is the one who collects the fare. Usually more people in them than one thinks is possible. Jared rode one of these one day with Elwood. 

And last but not least… just a regular old humble bus! These drive like max. Saw one that said “king of the road.” That would explain it. When we go to Kulna or Golpagange these buses just swerve around us and lay on the horn. It appears as though they own the road. They drive with great speed, so it is not uncommon to see people vomiting out of the window. When you drive up beside one it’s always good to lay on the horn while you go past otherwise they will just suddenly start pulling into your lane and almost shove you off the road.