can i have your number?

This is a true account of a conversation I recently had on the street.

Young Tanzanian Man (YTM): Hello, how are you?

Me: I’m fine.

YTM: Can I ask you a question?

Me: Okay.

YTM: I’ve seen you on this road a couple of times now.

Me: …

YTM: So maybe you should give me your number, so sometimes, we can talk and get to know each other.

Me: Um, no.

YTM: What?

Me: No. Have a good day!

the things we compare.

Part of my Americanness is to compare one thing to another thing, or myself to another person, leading me into a realm I like to call the psychedelic vortex of comparison.

What goes on this realm, you ask?

help ashley enrich the lives of vulnerable kids in tanzania.

Now, it's my turn, folks! Michael wrote on Monday about all of the great work he's doing right now and how you can have a hand in the creation of small businesses where we live.

I need some moola, too!

As Michael mentioned, we are both Maryknoll Lay Missioners living and working with the poor in Tanzania. Financial gifts from family, friends and really cool total strangers allow us to be here doing what we do.

This is what I do, and here is how you can help.

help michael continue small business development in tanzania.

Ashley and I need your help. We seldom if ever talk about funding on our blog, but the reality cannot be ignored.

Our work in Tanzania is impossible without your financial support. 

We are both Maryknoll Lay Missioners living and working with the poor in Tanzania. Financial gifts from family, friends and really cool total strangers allow us to be here doing what we do.

This is what I do, and here is how you can help.

won't you be my neighbor?

Since we live near a market, we often see the same folks every single day - the employees in the three dukas in front of our house, the woman who sells mandazi, Tanzanian doughnuts, our neighbors, the older woman selling charcoal. The list goes on. 

And as is custom, we have to greet every single one of them, every time we walk by. To be honest, it was starting to grate on my Americanness.