just a few thoughts:

• the money here (Rand) has had me in quite a fluster, but i now have it sorted out enough to guesstimate if 7600R is a good deal for a steak or not (it is) or if 2699R is highway robbery for a jar of jam (it is not). basically the best way that i found to navigate the system is to just divide everything by 10 and that will be close to dollar amount. the first time i went to the store i couldn't believe that i had spent 300.89R on a few groceries! then i realized that it was about 30 dollars. 
• roads here are CRAZY!! they are slightly better in durban/pietermaritzburg (richer cities), but they are real bad around lily. going into town today we were slowed down by 2 cows crossing the road and countless dogs/people who just wander around in the road. plus the steering wheel is on the right hand side and the lanes are all backwards. i have never been a wimpy passenger but i felt downright queasy today as freddie (volunteer from germany) sped around dodging people, cows and cars!
• weather. now, for anyone who has spent any kind of significant amount of time with me has probably figured out that one of my pet peeves is people who complain about the weather no matter the season aka "its too hot" or "its too cold" or "its too windy" or "too much snow" or "too little snow." anyway, having said that, i will go into a small rant about the weather. it is pretty warm and nice during the day (probably mid-late 70's). however, nights are FREEZING!! literally freezing! i literally put on every piece of clothing that i brought with me (not many!) before i go to bed. every time i feel uncomfortable or wish that i was warmer i am struck by the thought of how cold the children must be in the houses near me... sometimes it just breaks my heart to think of how cold they must be or how hard it must be when the water goes out for days. or how sad it is when i ask a girl why she isn't wearing shoes and she tells me that she doesn't have any-- just her school shoes. she is one of the teenagers and i have already decided to leave some of my shoes with her. it sometimes feels like i am doing so little, but i know that God has placed me here to love these kids, so that is what i am doing.
• the little children here (under 10 years) are so generous. one day at school i forgot my lunch and so many children came over and offered me some of their peanut butter and jam sandwich (they think that is my favorite sandwich because that is what i bring). it is so sweet that they have so little and are so willing to share what they have. 
• i have settled into a pretty nice routine here and am very much enjoying getting to know the other volunteers as well as the children and the teachers at school. i am amazed at how quickly this has started to feel like home. my housemate mbali is a primary reason for that. she works here at lily and is hilarious. she knows everyone and everything about everything- think rachel lind in younger and south african form. she is absolutely hilarious and i get along with her really well. she kind of doubles as a personal assistant since she knows the volunteers schedules. she has kept me from missing countless volunteer meetings and bible-studies. :)

prayer requests for this week (if you so wish to pray for me/lily ;))

1. for the health of the kids. it has gotten very cold here and many of them do not have warm enough clothing so they keep getting sick 
2. the staff at lily. there has been much turnover in the past few months and they are working with a very small crew.
3. that the teachers will have patience, compassion and love when working with the children. as well as discernment and firmness in upholding rules and structures. 
4. that the volunteers will be bold about sharing life and sharing Jesus with these kids. 

thanks! :)