Life without internet

This time I actually have a valid excuse for not having written a blog in so long...

I just spent 6 weeks involuntarily going back in time to experience what life was like pre-internet. I registered for the internet on January 26 and after 3 attempts to have someone come install it and 6 weeks later, it was finally installed. But now I’m back online and I’m attempting as best I can to get caught up!

The past 6 weeks of living in a new place on my own again has been a joy....frozen pizzas have once again become routine and I’m so thankful for that....not b/c they’re just simply so easy, but b/c they are cheap and I absolutely love them. Old friends have come for visits and have since left. New friends have come and used my place to have brunch, dinner, movie nights, coffee time. Relationships are being built and are being deepened each and every day. I am so thankful for my new place opening up so many opportunities.

The acclimation to the culture and language are progressing nicely. Of course there are frustrating hours, days, or even possibly weeks, but overall I am very pleased with the progress I’m making. It’s hard to try to adequately describe what I’m going through here with the language, but as I tried to explain it to a friend the other day and this was the best way I could explain it....

Many times I feel like I’m handcuffed at the mouth. I think about prisoners who have experienced full freedom but are currently handcuffed forcing them to only observe others experiencing the full joy of freedom while they are restricted. That’s the way I feel....only of the mouth. I know what it’s like and I have experienced being to be able to communicate thoughts, to share feelings, words of encouragement, prayers, etc with one another. And yet there are so many times here that I witness others experiencing the joy of being free to vocalize their full thoughts while I sit with my own thoughts in my head completely unable to experience the full joy of communication I once knew. Sure I can communicate a little, just as someone handcuffed is partially free. But I long for the time when I’m completely free. I long for the time that I can communicate without restrictions. And I know I’m on my way.