Out of Africa

who's seen "Out of Africa?" great movie, totally recommend it! (especially for all the ladies out there, Robert Redford is a STUD!!! Meryl Streep (karen) is pretty great too!) Anyways, for those that have seen it...you know how Karen goes to this exotic place and has adventure upon adventure. And while she's galavanting through the country breaks all social norms of what a woman should and ought to do (a woman after my own heart-you know, the Jane Eyres, Anne Shirley's, and the Elizabeth Bennet's!) AND while she's doing this she finds the love of her life, who not only happens to be one of the best looking men on the planet, but has the heart of a lion!
WELL my time in Africa has been nothing like that! haha! It has been more like madagascar 2 (which we just watched the other night) where theres a lot of chaos and confusion...a lot of hilarity and a lot of animals! haha!
BUT, there are pieces of my trip that are similar to Out of Africa in the sense that, I, like Karen, will return home after a long journey in an unfamiliar place...but not empty handed and not less in spirit. I have not had an sultry, steamy affair, but i have fallen in love with parts of African culture and my heart has expanded to embrace parts of myself that i hadn't discovered until coming here.
And im not sure if thats Africa's doing, or if thats just what happens when you decide to let go of control in your life and hop on a plane to a strange land. Either way im glad i came...struggles, rashes, bug bites, obesity and all! it has continued to teach me that not only are there other ways of life out there, but their is beauty and value in those differences!
Im not sure what it means to bring parts of Africa home with me...and i dont necessarily think it will always be noticeable or tangible (i may not wear african garb or eat ugali on a regular basis, i may not get rid of my TV or live in a mud hut) but i am thankful for the perspective, the broadening of my horizons, the pictures engrained in my brain that remind me I AM BLESSED! i am thankful for a deeper sense of who God is as i meet and see more of his people.
So while im kinda jealous that meryl streep gets to MACK with Robert Redford..."Out of Africa" doesn't got anything on my story here...its been one for the books!