Shae's log: Exciting employment!

So here’s the information that everyone has been waiting to know… WHERE AM I WORKING AND WHAT EXACTLY AM I DOING?

As many of you know, my heart belongs to Cradle of Love. I would have done anything to be back there and serving the babies at the orphanage. Cradle is in a time of turmoil as the state of its existence is in question. And I just want to jump in and help it out. But I’ve been asked not to. And I’ve accepted that reality. Still, I love going to visit the children and playing with the babies. I went on Saturday and my heart was full. But I digress…

Coming back to Tanzania without guarantees was unnerving. But I did everything that I could to get myself established and left the rest in God’s hands. I spent my first few weeks looking for cheaper housing and trying to establish myself with an organization to volunteer and get residency papers through. Little did I know that God had big plans for me!

I was forwarded an advertisement listing a need for a native English speaker to do some writing and proofreading for a new safari company. It offered pay or housing in exchange for 43 hrs of work. I thought it was a long shot until I realized that the contact email was of a woman that I had met last year. I immediately emailed her my CV and cover letter and just prayed and crossed my fingers. Of course, after days of email miscommunication (THANK THE POWER OUTAGES FOR THAT ONE!) we had an interview and I was hired! And I mean HIRED hired. No volunteer service. No baby Happy conflicts. No hesitation about my skills. I was IN! She would pay my outrageously expensive work permit, get my papers in order to meet Tanzanian standards, and help me with my housing. And, until I get a house girl (more on that later), I would be allowed to bring Happy to work. It was MORE than I had prayed for and definitely more than what I deserved. But after a few days of contemplation, I accepted and so here I am.

So, the deets: I work for safaris-r-us and their newly assembled team of safari bookers and accountants. There are four of us who currently book, bill, and organize safaris. The safaris-r-us office is located just outside the gates of the School of St. Jude (. Gemma Sisia, the founder, owner, and operator of our company had a vision to build an office and some housing for future employees. WELL, with only a few months into operation, the safari company is growing like wild fire and the need for employee housing is now. So, in three weeks, I will be moving out of my expensive apartment here in Arusha and into employee housing at my office. Currently, Happy and I ride the St. Jude school bus every morning and afternoon from my residence here in the city. It makes for early days but its good for Happy. She is still afraid of black people and being on the bus with students and teachers is helping her to relax and adjust. Happy plays in the office and is a fantastic napper so I am able to get a lot of work done. When I move there permanently, I will hire a house girl to watch after Happy and to help me cook and clean. I am a little nervous about having a house girl except that I will literally be a few feet away and can check on the baby every hour if I want. My boss Gemma has been so great about me having Happy in the office. I couldn’t be more blessed. And for all you SCT readers out there… you may find it funny to know that I am organizing files and creating charts to help tighten up operations of the safari company. ITS MY DREAM SITUATION. I’m totally qualified for this job! Who knew that all my anal retentive ways at SCT would land me the DREAM job in Tanzania. Score one for the Shae!!! Yay, baby!

Ok, so basically that’s the LONG version of how I got my new job and what I am doing these days. I really feel like all your prayers and support have led me to this place in life. I am doing great. Happy is doing well. As soon as we can get her back to her old friendly self and not racially profiling (can you believe that???) all will be fantastic. I’m really tired with this single parenting thing, no car, no power, full time job, and language barrier. But seriously, my life is still an embarrassment of riches. And I truly thank God for all these undeserved blessings that keep pouring in. He allows me to wade through the water but offers me a life preserver just when I need it. OUR GOD IS AMAZING.

~Shae