I just watched this trailor for Food Inc. this morning. What they’re talking about is, to a certain extent, a large part of what i like about living in Madagascar because there’s easier access to locally grown (blemished ) produce that, i’d wager, hasnt been grown with genetically modified seed (i could be wrong, i have no idea how to find out whether the seeds are g.m. though since i’m not an aggie or a scientist). I like to think that living here helps me live longer and healthier because i’m eating better food. It’s annoying at times because the produce goes bad quicker, but that in itself is an indication that it’s not modified to look great on the shelf for 2 weeks.

A big “woot!” to those of you who are currently preparing for a home-grown season of un-genetically-modified-seed fresh veggies and fruit and the subsequent season of canning and “putting up”. You are truly heroes of food

For those of you who are interested to know what kinds of produce we enjoy here i can list of a quick tally off the top of my head that i can find in the fruit/veggie alley just up the road from our house and/or at the public outdoor market:
just now we’re enjoying avocados
tomatoes
bananas
pineapples
apples
grenadelle… which would be passion fruit in english.
strawberries (but we have to freeze them for 4 days minimum to kill any trace of shistomyosis, that parasite that eats your brain. yum)
i’ve got raspberries in my garden
potatoes
carrots
green beans
mangoes
cacky
chou-chou
litchis (of course! cant forget those!!)
breadfruit
jackfruit
eggplant
green peppers
spicy peppers
plums/apricots/peaches
grapes
guava
custard apples
papaya
a type of squash that we use like pumpkin
i’ve got spinach in my garden, but i reckon it’s at the end of it’s season.
lettuce
i think leeks? i’m not familiar with that veg. so i’m not sure what it looks like. there’s all sorts of leafy stuff i cant identify.
Rhonda used to grow broccoli and cauliflower in her garden
corn (although i’ve never tasted good sweet corn on the cob here, sadly)
(small and potent) onions
garlic
cucumbers
zucchini
mandarins (in winter – june-aug)
lemons and limes
pok-pok (are those grown here locally or just in SA?)
mushrooms (although i’ve never been brave enough to buy them on the road)
peas
lots of herbs
…

am i missing anything?
Perhaps Madagascar Manna should have a recipe-a-day month on the topic of fresh produce and what to do with it… that way i’d have more motivation to make use of the produce that grows almost literally at my fingertips.

in my last entry i included the phrase, “the independence that comes from earning your own wage from someone you dont feel obligated to show yourself responsible to” in the list of things that we have in the Better life. I must have been thinking one thing and writing another, because not being responsible to those who pay our wage is definitely NOT something that is part of the Better Life. Interdependence is a large component of that kind of lifestyle and we’ve grown to appreciate it. Independence, what i meant by that phrase, is something people outside the Kingdom Culture think is a good thing. I disagree, based on what i understand the Bible to be saying about money and resources.

Secondly, i wanted to include, but forgot, that one of the aspects of the Better Life is a sense of Calling. I want to be sure that people dont mis-understand me when i talk about these kinds of things and then list examples that i am familiar with here in madagascar when there are many people living the Better Life in Canada and elsewhere, not being ‘foreign missionaries’. We’re not all called to the same thing. To be sure, we all need to follow our Callings so that we’re in the places God wants us to be, using the gifts he’s given us to use in that particular place. A sense of God’s Calling us to be where we are, in the workplace, in our communities, is a large part of Living the Better Life.

Thanks for all the comments on the previous post. Although i’m trying to live for Recognition of the One and Only, it does my heart good to receive encouragement from His people too.

I have a confession to make. We are really and truly content here where we are, with our life and our location and the circumstances we find ourselves in. A few years back i do confess that i had this scheme that we would move overseas as missionaries and then somehow find a company to work for that would pay us to live here so we wouldnt have to raise support (for our ministry with MAF). I thought, then, that opting out of the seemingly uncomfortable situation of being dependent on others for our finances was the better option. 5 years into it though i reckon that i can stare that Temptation in the face… and turn away.

It is a common misconception in the world today that more is better. Independence is better. “The good life” (money, position, recognition, and whatever else falls into that) is better. I’ve come to realize here that there is the “good life” and then there is “the Better Life”, and that’s what we’ve got baby! Contentment (in any circumstance, whether rich or poor, well fed or hungry), Position, and Recognition by the only One that matters in this world. There is nothing better than that, and i truly believe it. There are many people (many!) who simply cannot understand that concept at all. The idea of living in a poverty stricken country, surrounded by challenges and cultural differences – things that dont make ANY sense! – removed from family and friends and the comforts of “home”, and being content and happy with what you’ve got, so content and secure in fact that we can give a lot of what we have away is a foreign concept to many people outside the Kingdom Culture. (and perhaps to some within the Kingdom Culture as well, sadly).

Of course, it is entirely possible to have “the Better Life” in Canada, however i’m starting to realize that it might not be as easy a choice as it is here where we are confronted with stark contrasts on a daily basis. I’m realizing that those who do support us (our ministry with MAF) financially are undoubtedly living in a far more challenging cross-cultural experience that we are in many ways. It’s becoming slowly, and only partially obvious to us naive missionaries, removed from the “Babylon society” of Western culture that there are pressures, temptations, and conflicts of Kingdom Culture interests that we have not had to even think about while being here. It scares me, i confess. Does it scare you? To be sure, we are not immune from these things where we’re at. I reckon the virus comes from the very heart of man – every man no matter what class or socio-economic level he finds himself in. Ach, but the temptations seem more black and white here, less concealed in the garb of ‘good’, the “Better” cast more roughly in the shadow in a more affluent and hedonistic country.

I read something in Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver about produce that makes so much sense here: that you can tell the natural, “organic” goodness of a piece of fruit by it’s blemishes. The ones that look perfect have been made that way, disguised, as it were – but the cost of “perfection” is the inherent goodness of the fruit, the lack of nutrients and the addition of lesser things. The ‘good’ fruit looks nicer, but the ones with the blemishes are Better.

Anyway, all that to say, things look a lot different through Kingdom Culture lenses than through any other lens… Upsidedown, you could say. May we seek to wear those lenses more often.

Met girlfriends yesterday for cappuccinos at the Savanna Cafe. They have a beautiful terrace that overlooks the rice fields, so we sat there under the umbrellas and palm trees and sipped our drinks. Lovely.
 

So we can remember “happy Asher” i’ve posted some Happy Asher videos. Just now he is Miserable! All night, all day. <sigh>

On Tuesdays the ladies both come in the morning, and Irene brings her adoptive son Adrian to play. They usually have a grand time together playing in Malagasy while i’m off at the Beth Moore Bible study.

Climbing up the drawers to the top, where all the good stuff is kept (not anymore!)

For future reference i would like to mention here that i figured out the reason for the huge influx of water into the truck every time it rained. Yep. I am a mechanical genius.

As i i have a quiet moment alone while the boys are having ‘boys bath’ upstairs with their dad i can mention some irrelevant things that i may find interesting when i re-read this blog in a years time.

- we are counting down the 10 weeks until we leave for Canada with hesitant enthusiasm.
- i want to write an article for the Messenger about the trials of furlough for missionaries.
- I just did write a book review for a furlough preparation type book called “Families on the Move: Growing up overseas and Loving it!” by Marion Knell. My title for the review was “I’d rather have malaria than this any day!”, trying to communicate the fact that a) malaria isnt as deadly as many Canadians are taught to think and b) furlough is really quite terrible at times for missionary families.
- already mentally packing the boys’ travel backpacks with new toys and special things to keep them… calm.
- unenthused about ANOTHER Saturday without Josh. <sigh>. However, considering friends of mine dont see their husbands for half a month at a time! i reckon i wont complain too much. You know that story doesnt make us want to ever leave MAF, dont you? haha
-

It is a soggy morning today at 6:30am as Judah gets up to get ready for school. The rain that started last night as we were enjoying tea and toffee bars with an old friend who has moved away, was torrential, so loud upon our tin roof that we had to talk loudly over the thundering of it overhead. We were in need of the rain though.

Asher is feverish due to teething, i suspect. The red marks on his cheeks are the giveaway. He is, unfortunately for everyone in house, a VERY unhappy teether.   Josh is flying today with the Canadian Flyers to Moramanga and Tomasina. The twin otter. Apparently that’s an exciting thing. I am planning to do not much of anything today because i’m too tired from not sleeping during the night. alas. a little less excitement for those of us left at home. shame.

Have had a vision, an epiphany, of what i could do here in this place, something that fits my skills and my joys, something that is scarily beyond me and yet so fantastically challenging… I’m afraid of what i do not know, i am afraid of following a dream that might be too big for me to do (alone). I suspect it is the Lord who has sent me this gift, and it is to the Lord i must turn for confirmation and inspiration. He is navigating me towards an unknown, thrillingly scary precipice path that overlooks vistas of such awe-inducing beauty and majesty that i’m a bit freaked out about the whole thing. I’m afraid of falling off. And yet, Peter could walk on water if he only kept his eyes on Jesus without looking down to admire his feet (his feat).

Dear Grampa Peters,
Thank you so much for the money you gave to us at Christmas time. We have spent some of the money on new bamboo deck furniture and some fabric to cover the cushions i cut out of an old foam queen mattress (because i’m thrifty like that). We found a guy through Mme Fanja (our afternoon lady who seems to know everything and everyone!) who makes bamboo furniture and other things. We paid just over 100,000 Ar (50$) for a set of 3 chairs and 1 longer couch. I got to select the style, size/dimensions, and colour and the guy lives nearby to where we live, so picking it up once it was completed wasnt a huge problem. Now i just need to buckle down and sew the cushion covers (i’ve done one since we got the furniture mid-February). We’re already enjoying the new set on the deck though.

Thanks again Grampa!
Love Jocelyn and family.

---

In other news, Josh is off today because he’s been flying weekends recently (boo-urns!) and will be gone this weekend on the men’s retreat at Ile aux Nattes… ahem. Judah piped up to Josh this morning over breakfast that it wasnt fair that he got to go to Ockie’s place without us. Indeed. Some of the men’s retreat attendee’s wives were suggesting that since the men significantly increased precidence, perhaps the women’s retreat next year could be held in Mauritius. haha.

We went out for lunch because he was at home. It was nice.

I’m planning to do Easter preparations/crafts/decorating this weekend as a pass-the-time-without-Dad activity. Does anyone have suggestions on fun things to do/make?

We’re talking recently about being more intentional about how we spend our family time, especially time with Josh since he seems to be the person most in demand and the person we (ie. judah, asher and i) all fight over when he’s home. Does anyone have suggestions on how to up quality time when the quantity is lacking?

The weather has gotten gusty and cooler in the last few days. I’m loving the chance to wear pants and long sleeves.

I’m hoping to order some French Leapster games online in the next week or so to send with incoming neighbours from Canada. If someone knows a cheaper-than-online-prices-place i could find such (ie. cheaper than 25$ per game – egad!) i would really appreciate the advice of where to look. This is in preparation for our LONG plane voyage coming up in June. blech/yeah!

I’d also like to know if you or anyone you know has ever put their blog into hardcopy. It’s a project i’d like to start sometime soon, but would like some advice from anyone who has done it before. Are there sites/programs i could use to schlep the whole file into a compatible-with-printing format or must i cut/paste everything manually from the blog into a pdf format? What’s the best site to use for printing books at good quality for good price? I’m also thinking of changing from xanga to a more user-friendly blog host like WordPress or Blogger. Although i was hoodwinked into paying for a “Lifetime” membership at Xanga for the purpose of getting rid of those dodgy ads they had (which no other blog provider had and didnt make their customers pay for the absence of ads…) i stayed because i value continuity and wanted all my blog archives in one place. But now i’m annoyed enough to think of switching. Will that confuse you if you have to go somewhere else? Do you have suggestions on where to go?

I sent out our March Newsletter “Cyclone Season” yesterday. If you’d like to receive it via email let me know and i’ll add you to our mailing list.

Phew! That’s a lot of questions for, and requests for advice from, the readership… I’m looking forward to the replies of my regular commenters and would love to hear from the rest of you too!!
 

We had a real tea tea-party this last week. The boys were very tickled about it.

asher poured himself some cereal…

Morning sandbox time. And my new plant. Woot!

Our secret fort. Can you see it? The striped plastic serving as roofing is kind of a dead giveaway.

Josh has a stomach bug now for the last few days. This afternoon at lunch Josh said, “my stomach is in bad shape”. To which Judah responded, “do you mean like a triangle?”

Judah was just accepted to the French Elementary School this last week. Woot! We were reading his kindergarten report card with a dictionary in hand. I plan to sit down to get through the acceptance email and instructions with a dictionary also, so i dont miss anything. ha.

Josh is flying again tomorrow (Sunday). I’m sending Judah to church with friends so he can go to Sunday school. Single parenting with Asher at church is a pointless activity so i’m opting to stay home.

 

I’m having a difficult time setting myself down to write anything. I apologize. I really believe it’s due to some spiritual attack, as strange as that may sound. I have finally committed to getting back into writing and now i cant find the resolve to actually do it. Hence the abundance of videos. I suppose some might prefer the videos and photos to the blathering. I’m actually talking about other writing though. Book reviews and articles for venues other than my personal blog. ha.

Caught Asher playing with an earthworm today. He was so tickled by the squirming and jumping little thing he squealed with delight every time it jumped and twisted in response to his prodding, picking up and putting down. When i ran in to get the camera to take a video i came back to find him with the thing in his mouth…

Judah and i were talking at bedtime today about how daddy needs to go away in a few months for some meetings in Kenya so he can get better at his job. After pondering this a while he said to me that i was already quite good at my job, so i neednt go away for meetings. (ha. thanks buddy.)

Asher is cutting his two bottom teeth on either side of the two middle chompers. Hence the sleep-less nights recently. (gah!)

I wrote a long and involved treatise on why i celebrate lent… and then lost it. probably to your benefit. in it i quoted Beth Moore’s Daniel introductory session, Doris Longacre Janzen’s More with Less Cookbook, and some books on Sabbath… in addition to some academically and theologically suspect websites on the origins of lent. I dont care anymore to write about it. sorry. but i have been convicted to spend my Lenten season focusing on the freedom to NOT buy things i do not need and on the sufficiency i have in the Almighty and what he has already blessed us with. Beth Moore’s Daniel series is just so fantastic. and especially during the Lenten season. I’m sorry that Josh cant take it with me.

A month after our anniversary and i still havent really touched the E-Book reader Josh bought me for a present. He’s monopolized it to read his own books.

Hopefully our newsletter will hit newsstands (figuratively speaking) next week. My writers ‘block’ seems to have had ‘far-reaching’ effects. I’m hoping to start going on more flights on my own while Josh stays home so i can write about what’s going on ‘out there’ for the benefit of the “wider MAF community” (aka. the MAF home office in England). Looking forward to this new challenge, but a bit nervous about the logistics of how that will work out with things/children at home.

The rain is ridonculous. Our secret fort house in the back is still lacking the plastic roofing that i did buy on Monday, but Josh hasnt put it up yet and therefore the house is flooded with a foot of water every morning. Boo-urns! Our real house is suffering the effects of the rain also – moldy smells abound. Deck chair cushions remained stacked indoors for days, cluttering up the space and providing endless cluttery fun for the boys who love to jump on them and whack each other over the head with the foam. (i’m talking mostly of Josh and Judah here). Our truck has a leak somewhere and after a good rain i can hear buckets of water sloshing around under the floor mats. the MAF garage is so busy, however, that they dont have time to check it out… but when they did hoist it up to see under the truck on Monday for a quick look-see they also found another problem with the ______ (i dont remember the name. the seal that connects the wheel to the axel?). Sigh.

Reading Three Cups of Tea just now. Amazing. Also, Sabbath Keeping by Lynne M. Baab as a Lenten read, Hold onto Your Kids, Gordon Neufeld and Gabor Mate; Families on the Move: Growing up Overseas and Loving it! by Marion Knell (which i WILL write a book review for for the Messenger, i’m committed!) Josh is reading some Clive Cussler book on the e-reader. (bah!) Also, still reading Wizard of Oz to Judah. Almost done.

Was just chatting with someone in Canada who just went to bed for the night, and we’re already in the next morning. Despite the years we’ve spent overseas, that concept is still weird to me. I quite wish we could just be going to bed right now in last night because last night was, in a word, terrible. Agh! I dont know what Asher’s deal is, but he wakes up at times and just screams. For hours. He’s not in pain, because when i come in to lie down with him he’s quiet. It’s like he’s just not sleepy and therefore angry that he’s confined to his bed, in the dark, with no juice or milk to suck on… ALL NIGHT! Like, is he not tired at all?! Did that travel mug of tea he pilfered from the neighbour keep him up? Teething? Hungry? Gah!! I actually thought i might have a bad night of sleep due to nightmares after watching a ‘water movie’ (i hate water movies), but no, i didnt sleep enough during the night to have any. I took the night shift, which means Josh was good enough to take the morning shift with the boys (of course Asher wakes up chipper as a lark!) and he and Judah have gone off to church already.

Judah singing along to his Maranatha Kids Praise tape on his walkman.