10 RANDOM Things I Love About Zambia!

Now if you know me at all, you know that I love the people of Zambia and serving and loving on the orphans of Zambia. But here is a list of other things that I love about spending my summers here!

10. The Weather
Zambia is currently in its ‘dry season’, which is like their winter. The average temperature around this time of year is probably around 75 degrees, although some days feel much colder and some feel much warmer. The mornings and evenings are guaranteed to be chilly, so it’s definitely a nice alternative to Texas’s 100+ degree temperatures! Not too hot, not too cold, all you need is a light jacket!

9. No Seatbelts
I could probably count on one hand the number of times that I’ve worn a seatbelt in the three and a half weeks that I’ve been here. It’s nice to have a break from such restraint! I don’t know how legal that really is, but it’s the Zambian way and I’m for sure okay with that!

8. L’s vs. R’s
To the majority of the kids here, I am “Auntie Maliah.” My father Cletus has always been “Uncle Cretus.” Zambians like to switch their r’s and their l’s, so it makes things a little confusing but super cute at the same time!

7. Mint Cafe
It’s delicious. We only get to go out to restaurants on special occasions, but this is always my first choice when we do! They have this chicken sandwich with pineapple on it that I get every time and it’s actually really good. Also, they have ‘freezos’ or milkshakes in all different flavors (hazelnut is my favorite) and they are yummyyyy!

6. Zambian Birthdays
Every time any of the staff or volunteers (American or Zambian) celebrates their birthday in Zambia, they are forced to undergo the Zambian tradition of having water dumped on their heads. Because the birthday boy/girl usually knows it’s coming, they do their best to avoid the gallons of water that are meant for soaking them and that makes for quite a spectacle for everyone else to watch! This is a tradition that I would love to see America embrace! :)

5. Sunset on the Hilltop
Camp is held in the Legacy Center each day, and the Legacy Center sits on top of a hill that overlooks all of Zambia. In any direction you turn, you are able to see miles and miles of the rest of the nation. That kind of view makes for one spectacular sunset! Without trees or other buildings to block the beautiful African sunset, every color of the rainbow is visible and it’s a sight to remember for a long time!

4. Cynthia’s Cookies
During the Camp LIFE Auction Night, these homemade chocolate chip cookies are the highest bid item and raise thousands of dollars for the education department each week! Every time Cynthia bakes a batch, she leaves out the “reject” cookies for summer staff to eat up, and we are grateful every time! They truly are incredible and are probably THE highlight of the camp menu!

3. Zambian Singing
These people are just plain born with beautiful singing voices. Without a single voice lesson, all Zambians can carry a tune and harmonize to any song... a capella. Every day after camp, we circle up for praise and worship with all of the Americans and Zambians. I love to close my eyes and just listen to the Zambians’ raw and unedited voices that are genuinely worshipping God... it’s such a pure, angelic sound and I am convinced that the angels’ singing in heaven will not sound much different.  

2. The Stars
Unless it’s a cloudy night (which it usually isn’t), the sky is clear and the stars are so bright here. They are framed by the African treetops here in Mulungushi, and it’s a beautiful and unforgettable picture! I love looking up at the stars as I walk home from dinner or another villa and talk to the God who so creatively put them in their place! I feel like God puts those stars in the sky each night just for me as a way to remind me how much He loves me and how big and powerful He is. The memory of the African night sky will be a picture that stays with me forever!

1. Uninhibited Orphan Love
This is by far the thing I miss the most when I’m gone and love the most when I’m here. These kids are so hungry for love, and it doesn’t take them long to trust the “white ones” that only want to show them love. Once they trust us, they show us so much love right back! Just yesterday, I was standing by a line of kids at camp and one of them just grabbed my hand and held it. Before I knew it, I had a whole flock of kids stroking my arm, touching and playing with my hair, hugging me, and holding my hands. They way they show their love is so childlike and refreshing, because they don’t hold back.  It blows my mind every year to think that these kids, who have (many times) never been loved themselves, are still so capable of loving others so much and so quickly. Their love is genuine, pure, and completely uninhibited; and it’s unlike any other kind of love that I’ve experienced.