A Missionary's Best Friend

During my four weeks of living in a Papua New Guinean village, I discovered that there are several things that could be considered a missionary’s best friend. High on the list (which is not exhaustive by any means!) are: 

• Mosquito repellant, aka missionary perfume: the higher the DEET, the better. RID is the brand of choice, being the most readily available, although its efficacy is hotly debated among my colleagues and I. (Personally, I think it attracts more mosquitos than it repels…)
• Mosquito coils: they make my nose run and my eyes red and itchy—but they do keep the mosquitos at bay!
• Mosquito net: (Are you sensing a theme yet?) The mosquito net is a must-have for every missionary dwelling in a place where malaria is common. In addition to keeping mosquitos away, it also keeps spiders, geckos, cockroaches, and any other little pests out of the bed!
• Tang: not all that long ago, I turned my nose up at it…not so now! It makes the water go down so much easier. I eagerly look forward to my daily bottle of pineapple Tang!
• Peanut butter: a good source of protein and no prep work—what more could you ask for?! My roommate and I found several jars on the discount shelf at the store for only K3.95 each…we were elated! (Peanut butter is rather expensive here.) It’s good on bread or tortillas (if you have them) or else a Bush biskit (similar to a graham cracker) or a cream cracker (a slightly sweet, white cracker). Peanut butter is not, however, good on chicken biskits—speaking from personal experience!  
• Flip flop sandals: more comfortable and much more convenient for running around the yard or going to the liklik haus (restroom) than strapping on your heavy duty hiking sandals. Be sure to have a few extra pairs, though; one of mine had an unfortunate incident with the mud and didn’t make it.
• Laplap: an incredibly versatile piece of fabric that women wrap around their waist with a little twist and tuck and voila! Just like magic it stays put! I always end up using safety pins, since I haven’t quite figured out the twist and tuck method yet. They are also useful as curtains, hung over a mosquito net to protect the bed from gecko poo and other falling debris, as a door, and wrapped around the body and tied behind the neck to bathe in.

A man of many companions may come to ruin,

but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. 

~Proverbs 18:24