Geyman Steps

I was in the process of writing a little bit about what I have been up to when the boys came running to us with a baby tortoise. It was a big distraction and interesting enough to take precedence over my previous thoughts.  From a little bit of research, this is a Sulcata Tortoise or also called an African Spurred Tortoise. They are the third-largest species in the world and live up to 100 years. Males reach around 200 pounds (90 kg) and females 90-100 pounds (45 kg). Of course, this one is not yet fully grown :) The boys found it out by a dripping spigot. An interesting fact is that they are very susceptible to dying from dehydration up until they are two years old. They have to soak in shallow water to hydrate their skin and shell.  Size and rate of growth depends mostly on the environment they live in. Based on what we read, it seems this little guy might be less than a year old. The boys were fascinated with the tur...

Today we dropped Dinah off at the airport. Our 26 mile drive took over 3 hours which averages out to be about 9 mph or, in Tanzania terms, 29 speed bumps per hour. Since she is on a tourist visa, she needs to leave the country in order to have it renewed. She arrives today in Johannesburg, South Africa, and will be staying with some friends of ours until Monday. And a stowaway on the window (below)... at least we were insured by Geico Notice the guy under the bag? One intersection took 50 minutes to get through. Good for roadside business! You can literally buy anything next to the road.  On Another Note: It is difficult to write about Tanzania after having a bad day. In all fairness, there are many good days and there are many difficult ones too. In the midst of a good day or week, there is nowhere else in the world I would rather be. It is almost as if God is allowing me to taste a tangible confirmation of our calling to serve in Tan...