Gifts from a far

We got comfortable with our life here in Niger. The things we missed were kind of stored away somewhere to keep ourselves from craving and obsessing. And periodically, between net-grocer shipments, we think of something we should order but it often gets forgotten before the next order is placed.

Rome was kind of a tug back in the sense that there were all those stimulating visuals and tastes. Gelato twice a day! Candy stores and pasta shops. Is that bacon cooking that I smell? I couldn’t finish my pizza and salad and had to ask for a box to take it back to the hotel to savor later. “You’re not Italian,” remarked the waiter.

Coming back to Niamey was different. We still love it but oh how I miss that coffee! There certainly is a difference between a plate of Italian cookies vs a Nigerien wheel barrel mound full of green and red peppers. Both can be stimulating and overwhelm the senses. But I think you tend to miss the ones you can’t get.

So it pleased me to the bone when I received my birthday care package from my loving family on Wednesday. I thought perhaps I might get a book or a CD (they know me well). But this delighted us all like Christmas! There were chocolates, dried fruits, boullion, organic pastas, cookies, and easter candies. There were two CD’s and not just a book, but books; some for the kids and 6 for me! We hadn’t expected these suppressed stimulants for at least another 2-3 months.