Some updates:
1. School closed about 3 weeks ago now and time has been flying by ever since. We have visited a lot of families and friends as Beth and Cait said their goodbyes. Witnessing their goodbyes has made me very grateful for a second year here to continue to develop the relationships I have begun to form in my first year as well as to dive deeper into different communities of which we are already apart and to improve my Swahili now that I am comfortable with other parts of Tanzanian culture.
2. We all finished the Dar Uhuru Day Half Marathon despite the unfavorable conditions. The race started at 7:00 a.m. and so the sun had already risen with a vengeance. I thought I was lost at one point and mistakenly directed to the full marathon course and I cried a little bit, almost gave up but thankfully found the determination to keep running along without very much direction. Let’s just say any race I run at home will feel like a breeze compared to this one. But we all finished and with pretty decent times, so we accomplished our community goal!
3. That same day, after some final preparations in the house, Erin and Alyson arrived with the new JVs for Dodoma. That evening, we traveled together as a community through the rain and darkness that welcomed these four new JVs to Tanzania. Goodbyes and hellos commenced during that week of transition from the Dar 2013 community to the Dar 2014 community. Beth and Cait left early Friday morning while Erin and Alyson were at their homestays and Kathleen and I had a nice full day to relax and get ready to truly begin a new year when we all came back to our home together for the first time as a community. I’m feeling great about the transition and am looking forward to what this next year will bring!
4. Tomorrow, we are leaving for our retreat in Arusha, where, thankfully, it is cooler and quieter. We will spend a few days there with the Dodoma volunteers getting to know each other and getting familiar with the four JVC values and thinking about how we can live them out in this next year. Then we will travel with the Dodoma volunteers to celebrate Christmas at their home. We are looking forward to the change of scenery and weather conditions and of course the company of the Jesuit and JV community to celebrate with.
Thank you all for your love and support, even when I don’t have internet access to stay in touch with you. You are all always in my daily thoughts and prayers of thanksgiving. I’m wishing you joy, peace and an awareness of God’s presence in your life for the Christmas and holiday season!
Happy 2014 to the new Dar community-Alyson, Erin, Kathleen and Katie-your Christmas picture will be added to the McCs friends and family holiday picture album-I know the new women will add a dimension to the great home that Kathleen and Katie were welcomed into just a little over I year ago, Get off to a good positive start with your classes on the 6th-Little Christmas-let each student know she is important to you-especially the bad boys-and your term will work out right-that's my sage advice about first day of school after35 Septembers-good health, strength for the challenges, take care of one another as strong women always have done, and relax once in awhile-LOL-Maryalice
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