As I was folding my laundry today I realized that I have adjusted to a different kind of normal. In Nashville, I was not afraid to get dirty or afraid of bugs – but I did prefer my house to be bug free. Back in Nashville we would periodically have an ant or fly infestation. I distinctly remember several times when I was on the verge of freaking out because the bugs had taken over my kitchen. The one time we had a mouse that kept taking snacks and running across all of our kitchen ware, making sure to leave little footprints all over everything – I thought it was really gross and strongly suggested that Bryan purchase every mouse killer that the store had so that we could get rid of the pest.
Now I live in the middle of rural Ethiopia, far away from all of the comforts of shops and grocery stores. I walk 100 yards to put my laundry on the clothes line that is covered in dust and ants. When I take the laundry off the line I attempt to shake off all of the ants, but it is truly a lost cause because I always find at least 2 ants crawling up my arm or on my shirt 10 minutes after I finish folding the clothes. No matter how many times I attempt to remove the spiders from every corner in the house, they come back the next day. I have become accustom to seeing weird black grasshopper-like bugs sneak in the house every night. Today I kindly asked the cockroach I found on my backpack to seek another place to hang out. Yes, I think I have settled into this new kind of normal.
Now I live in the middle of rural Ethiopia, far away from all of the comforts of shops and grocery stores. I walk 100 yards to put my laundry on the clothes line that is covered in dust and ants. When I take the laundry off the line I attempt to shake off all of the ants, but it is truly a lost cause because I always find at least 2 ants crawling up my arm or on my shirt 10 minutes after I finish folding the clothes. No matter how many times I attempt to remove the spiders from every corner in the house, they come back the next day. I have become accustom to seeing weird black grasshopper-like bugs sneak in the house every night. Today I kindly asked the cockroach I found on my backpack to seek another place to hang out. Yes, I think I have settled into this new kind of normal.
