If you are like me before I came to Chad, you probably can’t imagine that there would be internet in the middle of the Sahara desert.

Initially when we moved here over a year ago, we mostly accessed email and limited internet at the UN Cantine. Jacob would go there to check and send email. After we had been here 6-9 months we found that we could connect to the internet using bluetooth from our cell phone.

Shortly after that we bought what they call a “dongle”. I think they call it that because it dangles from the computer. Who knows. Anyways, the dongle plugs into the usb port on our computer and we can access our email through that. Sometimes we get text messages in French. For example,

Internet KATTIR a expire, envoyer SMS au 1111pour 1 h, 2424 pour 24 h, 7777 pour 7 jours, 3030 pour 30 jours

We do our best to figure them out. Those messages offer daily specials or monthly specials where you can purchase phone minutes at the doucan. I think one day of internet is $5, one week is $30 and one month is $100.

When we use the internet we never know what kind of a connection we will have. A couple weeks ago I got an email from the company that I buy the kids’ curricula from. They were offering free shipping in the month of April so last Friday morning I set out to make an order for the next level of history, math, grammar and latin. I had completed the order and then went to the page where they ask for credit card information. I typed in my credit card number and it said invalid. It happens to us all the time here. When we try to purchase something (plane tickets, curriculum…) our card freezes because they put us on fraud alert despite the fact that we have contacted them to tell them we live here. Anyways, later that day I asked Jacob to take a look and see if I made another mistake. In the end I had typed in one of the digits incorrectly. OOPS!

So the next morning (April 30 and the last day of the free shipping) I set out to make the order again. After 45 minutes, I had just about 20 of the 24 items in the basket and the connection went out. I prayed and asked God for peace regardless of whether I completed the order or not and then I said, but God I know that you do care about even small things like this so please help the internet connection to come back! When I looked up the internet had come back on so I smiled and clicked on the next book. The next web page I saw said “You have 1 item in your basket.” When the internet kicked off all of the items I had put in the basket were forgotten : ) Oh well.

I took a week off from it and finally was able to make the order.