The Rub

Thank you to the woman who stopped me today and reminded me what is important here.

“You Americans are so different from us. You walk right past us so quickly on your way to work, always off to work, and don’t stop to talk,” she told me. I responded, “You are totally right. We always think about work, but you take time for people. We need to learn from you.”

I Can Do It!

I needed to get a key copied, and I remembered seeing a place to do them in the city not too far away from the mission center. The "HAPUR" (open) sign showed through the window, but alas, the door was locked with no one inside. I checked the hours which indicated that the shop should have been open 15 minutes before. Oh, how typically Albanian! I thought. It seemed like a waste to go back home without my key copied, since it's a bit of a walk to get to the city.

Language Learning

Learning language by immersion is proving to be one of the most valuable experiences I could have chosen. I make tons of mistakes, but the more I talk with people the more I see how much they appreciate the fact that I try. My mess-ups bring lots of laughter, and it's a good thing I have learned to laugh at myself so I can join in when people crack up at my bad Albanian!

Every language has lots of words that are easy to mix up. In Albanian, the words for "boy" (pronounced "choon") and "dog" (pronounced "chun") sound very similar. So of course it was quite humorous when I mistakenly referred to some boys as "dogs" instead.

What is "Clean"?

I used to think I was a very clean person. I had some obsessive-compulsive behavior concerning cleanliness as a kid. Like refusing to walk on my bedroom carpet with shoes on. Even now, I am generally pretty good about keeping things uncluttered and neat. If I can see dirt on the floor I clean it up.

Sometimes cleaning can be therapeutic for me. Doesn't it feel better to live in a clean space? I considered myself to be above average when it came to cleaning. That was before I moved to Albania. 

Food Mishaps

One of the two questions I am asked most often about Albania is, What is the food like? (And just in case you're wondering, the question I am asked most often is, What language do they speak in Albania? The answer: Albanian, which is unrelated to any other language. It's in a class of its own!)

Back to the first question.