Serentiy

Over the past couple weeks, I have been focusing on the serenity prayer. For those who may not know, it goes like this: God, Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Amen. Serenity is the opposite of anxiety, of worry. Serenity is a character trait that I lack, but also one that I desire to have. As the prayer says, serenity is also a two part trait: emotion AND action. I believe that complete serenity is only available through surrendering my life to God and his will (AA Step 3). Psalm 61 speaks to developing serenity in the midst of trial by finding refuge under the shelter of His wings. One can say that beginning my year in Zambia has been a bit of a trial and journey in and of itself these past few days. The adjustment period has/is slow. I have already heard “You’ll get used” more time than I can count. So often, I want to skip the process to jump straight to the end result. For example, I wish that I could wake up one morning having full knowledge and understanding of Nyanja, only one of the local languages. Serenity is having peace with where I am at with the language (I have only been in Zambia for 5 days!), but also taking the chance of being ridiculed for saying something wrong or in a funny way. Serenity requires enough humility to take a risk and ask for help. After all, the only way we change is with each other. Finally in honor of the serenity prayer, I am going to make a list of things I can and cannot change and practice using the wisdom to know the difference. If you disagree with any of my statements, please share as learning is vital to wisdom! Things I cannot change: the bugs, the phone system, the language, jet lag, time difference, Lusaka itself, bus system Things I can change: increase my use of bug spray, practice using the phone system and ask questions about it, increase my Nyanja vocabulary, spend time around people who only speak Nyanja, social connections, practice going to places that I will visit frequently