piki piki

Piki piki
"motor cycle"

Sights
-Trees trees trees trees
-Green green green green green
and their other-than-green growth- foods and florals
-coffee plants in browns and assorted greens sprouting in abundance- in rows, extending as far as the eye can see
-gardens, the livelihood of the lovely lived-long-looking, looking-on locals
--many-colored laundry hanging on lines or laid, drying on large river rocks
-Rainbow colors, as seen in-on-over-under
the beautiful locals adorned in khongas and tees and top wraps, carrying
fruits and vegetables in baskets, balanced on heads
living in and meeting at metal and wooden shacks painted in turquoises, reds, browns, oranges, and lime greens.

Sounds
-vrooooooooom
only piki piki
and I love it!
-in the quick- lived silence of the piki piki,
one hears
many waters- brooks, streams, short falls- birds, songs of Swahili shouted and spoken,
and that sweet silence that only nature can accomplish so silently and perfectly…
the whisper of the Holy One

Smells
-the freshest of air, lived-alone and then mixed with
burning taca taca as it wafts through the forests of banana trees, then
coffee bushes touched delicately by the sun and it’s rays, then (but really at the same time)
the red-brown Africa dirt
and mud and,
lastly, completely complimentary, is the scent of
something new,
newness,
unknown and not to be labelled or described to any degree of accuracy
and so
enjoyed to the uttermost,
grabbed at-
tightly fisted-
and pushed hard into my heart-
never to be forgotten.

It’s how I most prefer Africa. The wind all over me, touching any part of my face I allow it to (having put on a helmet and goggles, a shield against it)… blowing up and around everything on me that is not securely tucked, threatening my flip flops with being thrown over the edge and lost forever in some bubbling brook laid under bridges the piki piki flies me over, and providing me with forever renewed moments of the freshest of air- swallowed then circulated throughout my entire being (heart, mind, body, soul) conquering all bad and negative and transforming it immediately to new and clean and pure and good- God good!

As I relax into the ride, handing all power and control over to the piki piki (which Im only able to do out of great trust in God and His protection of me), my body becomes one with this land, Africa- this Tanzania, this Moshi, this Kilimanjaro and the red brown dirt/mud that covers it all. There is a beautiful, wild, funky texture to this land. It is raw and undone and not to be conquered or dominated. As I ride, submitted to ‘come what may’, I am blended into and become one with this texture. It’s as if running a hand across and over a large, wildly ridged oil painting- except it’s your whole body being run over this painting- except the painting becomes real life and it’s now red brown Africa dirt laid across mountain trails climbing up Mount Kilimanjaro.

is there anything more perfect!!?!!

As I am run across this textured painting, as I ride with this land, beautiful brown (but really reds and oranges and hot pinks all blended to perfection) locals pass us (rather are passed by us)- walking their bodies uphill towards home after a long day of farming their crops, sitting on tables at small shack-side ‘bars’, carrying laundry or fruit or chickens in baskets atop their heads, riding bikes- sometimes with two or three bodies at once, herding and hitting goats with long sticks, crossing rivers from forest to dirt road with collections of proof-of-pickings.

Some wave, some smile, some stare blank-faced, some yell, some follow us with their eyes until we fully round the bend. I wave at as many as I can and am most often received with such great joy- widened smiiiiiiiiiile, enthusiastic response-wave… other times, I am looked at with …. Ummm, not joy. These hearts we fly past are purposeful creations exhibiting such raw perfect beauty, each gifting me with a just-this-one-moment connection of eyes and heart. Yum! I am thankful!

Uhuru: Freedom- freedom- freedom- freedom- freedom- freedom- freedom

For me, it is freedom-
heart escape-
heart re-fill-

crazy-beautiful joy! Again and again, I tuck my click click away and, holding my arm outstretched and my palm wide open, I grab all the smells and sights-
quickly fist them all into a ball of perfect moment memories and then press them into my heart!

"Lord, Holy Spirit, dont ever let me forget this-

embed it deep within and bubble it up to the surface every now and then,

for a smile and a 'my God is an awe-some God' heart flutter!"

Wow Wow Wow Wow Wow Wow Wow Wow Wow Wow

I feel differently now than before

more African

more awed

something changed in me

something was added to me

phillip and me
peter (phillip's twin) and mary, his fiance (and so much more!)- beautiful beautiful beautiful