Surviving Solo

It is one of those things that I get nervous about…being all by myself in this country.  Josh does a lot to help work the logistics of our living here.  From banking, to ordering water delivered to keeping credits on our phones and credits for electricity , all those aspects that require lots of Mandarin and going every which way to all different shops.  So of course, the thought of him being out of town for a week – which is usually about how long it takes to run out of everything- brings quite a bit of anxiety.  And yet, he had to go.

Josh had a great opportunity to attend a conference put on by our company. It was specifically designed for those who are in leadership and provided lots of time to be refreshed and poured into by the HS and others in the family. But of course, like most conferences, you have to leave this country to do it. So not only was Josh out of town, he actually left the country. This aspect brings a flood of “what if” scenarios into one’s heart and mind that only by the grace of our Father can they be pushed to the side.

Thankfully, we had a brief practice run when Josh traveled to Kashgar (and almost got stuck there). He was only gone three days but we learned a lot about preparedness and therefore we were able to feel better equipped this time around.

How does one prepare for the absence of a spouse in a foreign country? Well, it is kind of like preparing for a natural disaster. We stocked up on clean water but made sure I knew the phone number to get more delivered. We went to all the grocery stores to get various food items that would allow me to be able to cook without having to drag Jaden somewhere each morning. We took out plenty of cash to have on hand and made sure all documents were easily accessible if something happened and we needed to leave or authorities came by demanding stuff. We went over which shops provided which kind of credits (phone, electricity, gas, water). And finally we covered it all with prayer.

You might think that all of this is a little excessive. I mean, Josh went on a ton of trips while we were in the States and we did NOTHING of the sort. But remembering where we live there is a lot of “has happened and could again at any moment” events. Therefore, a lot of what we do here is preparing ourselves for as many possibilities as we can. Thankfully, Josh and I have been through a lot of what can happen before we had Jaden so we have a better idea of how to react in various situations.

So with all that under our belt, and a firm faith in the Father to take care of us, Josh set off. Jaden and I actually did really well. We went about our days as normal as possible.We were truly blessed by all those who came to visit us. Each day we had different visitors planned some for dinner, some for lunch and some for both. Jaden got more kid interaction than he had in months! And I had so much expat interaction I really had a great time too.

Due to all those who continued to pray for us, Jaden and I slept really well at night. Our first night though had a small bump, there was someone who was most likely drunk ringing all the apartment doorbells over and over. Thankfully (and I do believe it was totally by the grace of our Father) he only hit our bell once. But you can still hear all the other rings, albeit much more muted, and so I noticed that for thirty minutes this guy was out there ringing away! Why do I think he was drunk? Because I could hear others unlocking the door for him to come in but he kept re-shutting it and ringing again! After thirty minutes he must have just given up but I didn’t hear him stumble up the stairwell.

After that night though, there was not another incident. So with refreshing night sleeps Jaden and I were able to keep busy all week. I ended up doing my first painting (that’s right Anna, you should be proud!) of Scripture and also made a fall wreath with felt flowers with some other ladies. Jaden and I ate pretty well as I was able to cook either with Jaden “helping” or while he was playing/watching a show.

With the help of some friends I made wreath with yarn and felt flowers

The first day was my most difficult. I had promised a friend I would make and decorate a cake for their birthday party. I had made one of the cakes the day before and so still needed to make the second, not to mention taking the time to decorate it. Thankfully, I was able to cook it in the morning and decorate it during Jaden’s nap. The hard part came in actually getting it to the party. My babysitters ended up not being able to make it so I had to take Jaden along with me. Well, we get all ready and I’ve got the cake on the pan with plastic food bags taped around it to try to protect is as much as I can from the elements. Sadly, our new home is NOT a taxi hotspot. Jaden and I walked thirty minutes to the next busy intersection to find one. We get it in and I am able to show him a map of where to go but I had never been there so it takes us a while to find the restaurant. I am so thankful that I saw another expat by the street to be able to help J and I and cake get out of the taxi and cross the busy street. We then had like SIX flight of stairs to walk up! Needless to say, I was very lucky to make it all the way there with the cake intact. Thankfully I was not as tardy as the birthday girl who was being surprised.

I decorated this one with homemade fondant roses

The rest of the week was split between visitors and taking Jaden out in the stroller to find various small things. We also went to Josh’s school a couple times in search of a package that was supposed to have arrived (we had to go twice). Our new location makes it a good thirty minute walk one way if Jaden stays in the stroller.

How do you carry a heavy package and push a stroller – have the kid ride it – the package has been through worse I am sure

At the end of the week on Sunday, I was able to make my way across town and go to our fellowship (we even made it on time!). On the way back Jaden and I stopped at the store to get a huge bag of flour and oil (of course I would run out of those to essentials!) I was so proud of myself for traveling on my own, hauling a super heavy bag of flour and oil and keeping Jaden from being hit by cars.

The following day we hit some roadblocks. We only had two days left before Josh returned and Monday afternoon our power went out. I checked around to make sure it wasn’t a neighborhood thing…and it wasn’t we had run out of electricity. So I dressed Jaden and off we went to go get more electricity credit. After I successfully explained what I needed to the shop keeper, the challenge was getting the card in the meter box back at our apartment. But with careful balancing on the stairs and Jaden’s “you can do it, Mom!” I successful recharged our meter.

He loves the leaves changing colors.

Then, as I prepared to call family to open our newest package with them a huge window popped up with a ton a characters all over it. Now, for most of the time that Josh was gone he was unreachable. The China phone number didn’t work in Hong Kong and the place didn’t have wiifi. So we were able to only talk if he could get some place that had internet. Thankfully he was able to text me that evening and we were able to figure out that we had run out of Internet credits and he could give me the account number. So the next morning I bundled Jaden up and off we went to find a mobile phone store. We found a small little one tucked behind a bus stop and I was able to communicate that I needed to put more money on our account. We then headed back home where I restarted the system (that’s right, I did that too!) and we were able to call family and open the package!

Dad’s flight came in late but we still waited up for him

For the most part, our week adventure was very encouraging for me. I realized that I could communicate in Mandarin a lot better than I thought I could. I learned more of the logistical ropes which feels very empowering. And Jaden and I were no worse for wear. I credit our successful week to all those who sent up extra prayers for us. It could not have gone any smoother and for that I am eternally grateful.