Received!

Alas, the NVC has given me some good news. Our packet of forms was finally received! Supposedly reviewing the forms could take as long as 8 weeks, but I have faith that it will be shorter than that...and I know my mom does because she is really wanting a June 6 wedding! :)

On another note, it's Friday! I like my job, but I don't want to be here right now. I want to go get frozen yogurt and shop at Dillard's with my little brother...

Real life...

I'm surprised by how quickly I re-entered real life. It felt completely normal to numbly travel home alone and come back into the life I have here, like I had gone to run errands. I'm not sure what I think about that. I never imagined I would live two lives in two very different places that were so opposite yet equally wonderful, exciting, joyful and sad. I hate that normal right now is a life with George 6,000 miles away. Things will change soon.

I'm pretty sure I called the National Visa Center automated response system 7 times yesterday and at least 20 times this week. They still haven't changed my status to indicate that they have received the paperwork or that they are doing anything with it.

On another note, I have been e-mailing my new friend from JFK...we'll call him D. He said he was going to make some connections for us to see if our process could be sped up and told me to keep in touch because "...someone made our paths cross..." I couldn't agree more!

I'm back.

I'm searching for the right words to say and what exactly to post. My mind is jumbled and there is a lot to share. First, I have malaria, as in the mother of all malaria! One of the side effects is having a cloudy mind, so excuse any bad grammar and any other weirdness this post may contain. I'm getting better though.

My trip was so great. I just love George so much and any time with him is wonderful, sick or well, crammed in a tro-tro or walking on a gorgeous beach...it's all good. :)

We finished George's application and were able to get the other needed items for his paperwork-yay! I also struck up a conversation with a man in JFK who works for the United States Joint Office Command and he gave me his card and offered to help in any way possible. So today, after some rest I prepared and mailed our last packet of paperwork to the NVC and e-mailed my new friend asking for some help with the speed of our application. Hopefully he can do something, but I'm still trusting in God.

I haven't spent much time in Cape Coast, so it was a different experience this time- I prefer the Volta Region. I'm tired, so I'll leave it at this and add some pictures...

Accra

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned it or not, but I pretty much hate Accra. Let’s play a game to get a better feel of the place. Imagine a large city, such as Houston; now narrow all the streets, squish in the entire city, multiply the number of cars by four, multiply the number of pedestrians by ten, add thousands of hawkers, spread a few tons of trash throughout the place, sprinkle in some goats, chickens and dogs, make sure that the traffic is always rush hour/parking lot and for some reason everyone is racing, traffic signs don’t really matter and every single driver is playing chicken with the next. The trucks like the one below with guys sleeping on coconuts drive as crazy as the small taxis and motos....just fyi. ;) I really love Ghana, but Accra, not so much.

Back to the real reason of this post, and I‘ll make it short. George and I had to go to Accra to get a police report/certificate (everyone keeps telling us it’s a different term) for his visa processing. We got to our tro-tro early, but we had to wait for it to get full and then we were off to Accra, about a 2 hour ride. As usual, George knows someone who could help us. His roommate’s brother is a policeman and works at the Accra headquarters! This was such a blessing for us. We ended up not having everything that we needed for this police report, but our new friend helped us out tremendously. After finding a place for me to park it (can’t let the people who decide the price see my skin color), he walked G through everything and found a way to move forward even without our missing item and will collect the report and hold it for us until we are back in Accra. The fee still ended up being 4 times more than it was supposed to be, but we should get this paperwork on time because of it (can you imagine what it would be had I been standing there?).

After this complicated victory, we decided that we should celebrate with hamburgers! The air conditioned restaurant was a nice break.

After walking around just a little, we headed back to the tro-tro station and back to Cape Coast. Let me tell you, back in the day, tro-tros were these old, hardly held together vans that typically broke down at least once during a trip, probably had a door closed by a rope and were almost always a mish mash of different vans and different parts to make one very interesting tro-tro. There was no A/C, most likely no music and you just prayed that the windows opened. Now, and I don’t know how this happened, Ghana is full of very nice, new tro-tros. Either an interesting Toyota mini-bus or George’s favorite, the Ford. There are lots of 15-passenger Ford vans, just like my family had when we were kids. These are quite the improvement, they have A/C. they don’t break down and nothing is held together with rope or tape. However, because the fear that their vehicle will fall apart has been taken away from the drivers, they drive like maniacs! Side note: there are about 57 rumble strips between Accra and Cape Coast, the drivers do not slow down. By the time we arrived back in Cape Coast, my back was sore! I also apparently got food poisoning from my meal…..but that’s all part of the adventure, part of our story.

I have my computer, but not the wireless connection that I’m supposed to. Oh well, I will write anyway and even if I have to post these when I return to Texas, I will post.

Ghana is amazing. I wish I could bring my family here right now. I love being here and being with George, it feels so normal. I’m getting used to having my heart in two continents. Even when George is with me in the States, we will still have friends and family here; this will still be the place we met and fell in love and the calm, slower pace of life will still beckon to us. I used to think that was a bad thing, to love and long for a place where you can’t be. But it’s more than that. It’s just a different life, a different people. I think missing Ghana will help George and I be better Christians, family members and neighbors. The things we will miss are mostly intangibles that we can bring back with us. The communal way of living, the ability to enjoy small and simple things like just being with friends and family and not having to be constantly occupied by things.

One of my favorite Ghanaian proverbs is, “The bed does not look for trouble.” . People teach their children that from a very young age and it simply means that if you don’t have a task to do, go lay on your bed, it will keep you out of trouble. Cute, huh? Just simple. That, and sometimes it’s too hot to want to do anything but lay still!

Ghana time!

I have arrived safe and sound (luggage as well) and could not be happier. Things weren’t exactly smooth getting over, but I am here and so thankful! Long story short, I almost missed my trans-Atlantic flight and forgot a VERY important document that is supposed to be seen when I enter the country. I was close to a heart attack twice there and prayed my butt off…and here I am, no worse for the wear! I’ve really missed Ghana, the weather here is fabulous! Balmy and sunny, perfect sundress weather! George and I have been enjoying just being together, as well as working on paperwork and school projects. Unfortunately, we have to trek to Accra on Thursday to get that police report. There are police headquarters here, but they only do police reports in Accra...of course. We are hoping that there is a place nearby that I can duck in so the price isn’t too jacked up! The Internet is not what we thought it would be, but hopefully we can Skype soon.

I'm leavin' on a jet-plane!

I do know when I'm coming back though.

6 hours and counting people! I have completed the paperwork, done most of my packing, printed more needed items, gotten cash to exchange, applied my glow (thank you Bath and Body Works for your amazing self-tanner!) and am almost finished with my to-do list. I have a few more things to put in bags, another coat of nail polish to apply, some wild hair to tame (long trip hair is such a pain to style, it pretty much looks blah by the time you get there...no matter what), a few electronics to charge and hopefully I'll get a little bit of sleep. My mom (bless her soul) will take me to the airport at 4:15 in the morning. As much as I am beyond excited to be going to see my man, I still have a thing about waking up way before the sun- I don't like it! My phone is loaded with all the best tunes and sermons I've been wanting to listen to and I have my trusty Snuggie to keep me warm...this is gonna be great!

I hear I'll have Internet in Cape Coast, so maybe I'll update. :) I'm so excited to see George and I'm so excited to see what wonderful things will happen while I am there. God always seems to move in big ways while I'm in Ghana with him. I'm so happy!!

A little update. After reading and re-reading the instructions, I do believe I finally have a clue about what's next. The timing could not be more perfect as we need things from each continent and it is best for me to mail everything from the States. Our little tiny bump in the road is George needing a police certificate (it's like a background check) so he has to go to the main police headquarters in the capital city to get fingerprints done in order to get said certificate. Well, tomorrow is a holiday and then it's the weekend, which means it can't be done 'til I am there. That means we have to trek several hours to Accra and the price will be beyond jacked up because of me. Bummer. Other than that, I think we've got this. Please pray that the police will be timely in giving us this certificate and that they won't make the price too high. At this point, that's the only thing that will hold up this last application.

Whoa!

That 2-3 days to process my payment and wait for further instructions was a lie (surprise!). I checked the status just now and the payment has cleared! I have started reading the instructions for the next step, it's pretty involved and, you guessed it....confusing! This timing is great in one sense because I can work on it here without relying on a sketchy Internet connection or worrying about my pre-paid Internet time ticking away. Also, we can see the light at the end of the tunnel, this is it, just a little bit further! On the other hand, I have a lot to do in the next less-than-48-hours in order to be able to leave.

Please pray for wisdom and time management for me as I prepare. Pray that I can quickly and clearly figure out what exactly I need to do with immigration to take with me and that I will know these next steps so that I can clearly tell George and prepare him for what's coming. Please pray for favor for this processing and peace for George and I as we enter this final stretch...we really are almost finished!

Yay!

We have some good news!!

George received the Immigrant Visa Fee Bill Letter (could they choose a longer name please?). Yay! I have paid the fee and now we just wait 2-3 days for the payment to clear and receive further instructions. One step closer!

The other letter George received was one detailing the missing documents. Remember about a month ago I wrote about sending in paperwork and having something missing or incomplete? Well let me tell you, the NVC totally freaked me out that I had done something all wrong and messed up this whole process. I was so worried, all I tried to do was NOT be worried and it was constantly on my mind. I have been waiting and waiting for this fabled letter that will tell me what is missing and what to do; basically the details of how horribly I have messed things up. Well, George got it. And here's the thing, there was nothing wrong or missing with what I sent in (unless of course, they want to tell me that later)! They need another form for the next step, a form that has nothing to do with my affidavit of support. It's time for the actual Immigrant Visa application. Up until now I have just been petitioning my brains out for George, we have finally hit the place where he can "apply" for a Visa. Which means we pay, he does some paperwork, he has several Dr. visits and then the interview! Please pray the payment processing goes through before I leave so that I can start the next step from here.

So it's that simple, and that complicated! I'm so glad I didn't botch things and that we are really just moving to the next step. Let me tell you, the National Visa Center could really use some lessons in communication- they're pretty bad at it.

I tried to link to a song I'm singing today, but I guess I'm not a nerd enough to do so.....go here if you want to know and I like the Doxology.

A little bit of progress!

Don't fall out of your chair with that title. I know the word 'progress' is shocking, but we knew it would come sooner or later.

George was oh so proud to use my saying of "Guess what?!" yesterday and told me that the Immigrant fee bill letter has arrived in Ho! This is great, but George is on the other side of the country....you had to know it couldn't be that simple! :) So, next week George will travel 7 hours across Ghana to get the letter in Ho and then 3-4 hours back to Accra to get me at the airport (YAY!!!!) and then we'll both trek another 2-3 hours to Cape Coast. Simple enough, right?

I'm excited, any movement at all is good in my book, we'll figure out what to do next once I'm there. More importantly, I leave in 8 days, I'm SO HAPPY!

I'm learning...

I'm learning that love is so much more than I ever thought it would be. It's bigger, deeper, more wonderful than I could have imagined and grows everyday...even long distance.

I'm learning to get involved when things don't work well for me, instead of just trying to find something else.

I'm learning to be optimistic even when it's easier to be a pessimist, funnier too. Why is it that optimism isn't funny?

I'm learning that Christians make Christianity complicated...and I think that's silly.

I'm learning that I'm not like other people my age and that I'd rather be lonely than a sell out.

I'm learning that following God is so easy and so hard.

I'm learning to be happy about really small things- if the weather is nice enough not to have to wear a sweater or a jacket, I'm a happy girl!

I'm learning to be content with where I am; even though I fondly dream of the days when I woke up under a net and walked through orange dirt in flip flops to get work, passing a dozen people I could call friends. I wonder if that will ever be my life again.

I'm learning to be still and know that He is God. Some days it's harder than it sounds.

I'm learning that if I walk 6-8 miles a day I can eat chocolate and not feel guilty....I like that.

...we rise and stand upright!

I'm in a defiant mood. Those of you who know me well probably think I'm in a defiant mood most of the time, but I'm not. There's is still no word from immigration. By the time it's been long enough to do something about it, I'll be thousands of miles away, so we'll probably not know anything for a while. We are still waiting-this is a common theme in our lives if you haven't noticed....it actually feels pretty normal. Even though this is a huge deal and there are times that being away from George is enough to just crush me; I don't want to allow immigration to lord over me. God is my strength and hope, no one else. I refuse to be toyed with by a silly government! I will 'rise and stand upright' and I will remember God's faithfulness and promises.

Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God. They collapse and fall, but we rise and stand upright. Psalm 20:7

Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act. Psalm 37:3-5

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7

You have multiplied, O Lord my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us; none can compare with you! I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told. Psalm 40:5

"Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!" Psalm 46:10

No title

I'm still waiting for the letter. Apparently the NVC/CIS doesn't use the Pony Express...they use something slower. Maybe a Longhorn? I'm not talking a pissed off, pent up Bevo before a game (besides, that sprint totally takes it out of him). I'm talking those huge lazy things who chill in the field and hardly move 10yards all day- they are completely surrounded by their own dung and won't even move away from it! On second thought.....a Longhorn would be too cool. I bet they use a duck. Ducks are ugly, SLOW, and sassy- they make you stop your car so they can cross the road (well, I stop, because what if the duck's posse came after me?). Makes perfect sense to me.

I'll move on to a slightly more serious and slightly more random note now. There is an insanely popular song out (I think it's new, but not sure) by The Fray and I think about it a lot, maybe even too much. Here are some of the lyrics:

I found God

On the corner of First and Amistad

Where the west

Was all but won

All alone

Smoking his last cigarette

I said, “Where you been?”

He said, “Ask anything.”

Where were you

When everything was falling apart?

All my days

Were spent by the telephone

That never rang

And all I needed was a call

It never came

To the corner of

First and Amistad

Lost and insecure

You found me, you found me

Lying on the floor

Surrounded, surrounded

Why’d you have to wait?

Where were you, where were you?

Just a little late

You found me, You found me

First, I love this song, and I love hearing what people think of God. It makes me kind of sad though, I feel for the guy who wrote it and I remember times in my life where I have felt like God was not hearing me and finally showed up too late. But most importantly I like this song because it gives me hope and makes me thankful. I am so thankful that I don't feel this way. I know where my God is and He isn't ignoring me. With that being said, He's not exactly telling me what he's doing. However, I know He is there and at work and that he most definitely will not show up too late. Also, I think there is a reason why we can't know everything.

Waiting.

So immigration has reunited me with my good ol' pal Patience (his middle names are Suffer, Perpetually and Friedrich but that's just btw). Yep, that's the one constant with immigration- we wait, a LOT. I still haven't received the letter detailing the ramifications of my dorkhood and what else they want (the deed to my right arm?). So we shall see. I'll update when I know.

Isn't it funny how most things can be mailed anywhere in the US and arrive in a day or two? Not with immigration. I think they still use the Pony Express...

I stopped the freight train...

So the last time I called the NVC they told me they received my packet of information (the affidavit of support stuff) and that something is missing or incomplete. Poop. I should receive a letter this week with further details/instructions. Poop.

Let the confusion ensue...

I just finished my morning ritual of calling the nice 24 hour man at the NVC- I had to call twice because I hung up and realized I had no clue what was going on. And that's where the fun stopped. Even though he's a nice man, with a nice voice and he's short and wear glasses, cuffed and pleated khaki pants and Hush Puppies; he told me something that I'm a little confused about. He said that the Immigrant fee bill letter had been prepared and would be sent to the agent in the next few weeks. First off, I didn't think they were going to be able to squeeze more money out of this. Second, George is his own agent, so God only knows when that letter will get to him! Which means this process could be drawn out longer, as usual. Hopefully I'll get a copy too and can do something about it quickly. Money has to be sent to St. Louis, surely they realize that can't happen from Ghana. Seriously people, they act like they've never dealt with people from other countries.

So I think I finally have this whole Immigrant Visa game figured out. Obviously they start with making sure we're dealing with the person you want to be with the most. Then, they make you wait and wait and wait so that you are so tense and anxious about everything that simply the thought of a letter or call from CIS is enough to throw you in the nut house. Yes, that's exactly where they want you. Then, when you've grown accustomed to waiting so long you're five minutes from booking a one way ticket out of here....they give you hope. So now that you're high on optimism they bombard you with more paperwork and more fees so that you feel like you're running a marathon of amazingness and that you're actually getting somewhere. Yep, still exactly where they want you. Then things subside a bit and you get to actually think about everything that just happened. You realize that the light of this horribly long and painful tunnel is growing nearer! You know exactly what's going on now and exactly what will happen next, you can dare to think about your future, and yes, it's a happy thought. Then, BOOM! That wasn't the light at the end of the tunnel, that was an NVC lightning bug.....it's dead now. You are not finished, you do not know what's going on, you should not think about good things and you are most definitely NOT in charge. Please wait for a letter, if you don't get it in about 6 weeks or so....good luck. That's how the game goes, that's how they like it. But I think I have decided I'm not going to play. Yes, I'm not going to play this game. I don't like that they can toy with my life and emotions this way. No sir, Mr. nice 24 hour NVC man, you do not win. My hope is not in you or your Hush Puppy clad self, nor any of your less cheery minions. Things aren't as bad or confusing as they look right now, my hope is in someone else (and no, Barack Obama doesn't own the word hope and I am not talking about him).

Some trust in chariots and some trust in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They collapse and fall, but we rise and stand upright. Psalm 20:7-8

Waiting, waiting, waiting....

Nothing new is happening. January was a blur of progress and now it's time to wait again. The National Visa Center has a 24 hour automated phone system to check on the status of things. I call it everyday. They still haven't "received" my affidavit of support, so I keep calling. The guy who does the announcements sounds so nice, so I don't mind. I feel like we're friends. I think he's probably short and wear glasses, and I bet he truly is a nice guy.

Unexpected...

This may be boring to those of you who aren't immigration paperwork geeks like I am, but I'm going to share anyway.

Much to my surprise (and I think delight) I was able to move forward on paperwork last night. It took many hours, a ton of reading and rereading, a small forest or two in actual paper, writing my name and SSN enough for my entire life and lots of chocolate. I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but this is all a very confusing process! I don't even think that the NVC/CIS really understands how it all works.

So, to make the story short, I was told/I understood that I would have to wait at least another week to six weeks before I could submit my final documentation to the NVC and then have everything sent Ghana for George's part. Well, I actually got to do the paperwork last night and will be mailing it today or tomorrow! How cool is that? I don't know how long it will take for the next step, but so far so good...I never thought I'd actually get to this point. Yay!

P.S. It's freezing cold! I can't wait to be in Ghana, dusty Harmattan and all!