Cornucopia

Since this is considered a journal, I may resort to some musings. I think another way to say cornucopia is "horn of plenty" although I am not sure if I remember correctly. As I think about the significance of these words in a north american setting, I wanted to reflect a little on the application here, in Mongolia. A few weeks ago we as a team celebrated Canadian thanksgiving. There are three members of our team with citizenship there. It was great fun to be together and to be thankful. We had beef instead of turkey, but it was an actual tenderloin from the capital! The "pumpkin pie" was made with another squash found in the capital, but tasted declicous. One thing about Mongolia is there is never a shortage of potatoes--so there was enough mashed potatoes and gravy to go around and around! What a refreshing time.

As I do my shopping here in Darhan and send shopping lists with the team who sometimes travel to the capital on the weekends, it is my tendency as a mother trying to provide and as one who has lived all my life in the states, to want to stockpile and fill my freezer for the long, cold, winter. I am quickly learning that this is not the way in Mongolia. A few examples. We have one "department" store here in Darhan. While we are pottytraining and trying to use cloth diapers, we still visit here pretty frequently for Pampers. They have Sam's Club style shelving from floor to ceiling. The pampers are displayed neatly from right to left on the shelf. Upon closer inspection however, I find that they are all size 5. I am looking for size 2. I pull one package aside to look at the stock behind it for a size 2, only to find that there is no "stock" behind it. The attendant was quick to tell me when I asked that they had size 5!!!!! I am learning to focus on what blessings are available rather than what seems to me to be lacking.

When ordering with a large group at a restaurant, we have quickly learned to diversify our orders. They may have chicken on the menu, but that may not mean they have it today. Also, this does not garuntee that they have enough for three servings! It is not uncommon for three to order chicken. The waitress returns to tell two of them that