Hello. It is enough for today.

Antere. N Dagban yuli Wunpini. 

M bohindi la Dagbanli. Di sagiya zungo.

"Hello. My Dagbanli name is Wunpini. 

I'm learning Dagbanli. It is enough for today."

This is Elijah's babysitter, Rafia.
She named me Wunpini, meaning "God's gift,"
a local name people enjoy and can pronounce.
(Taken by Joshua Wagner)

I love that this is not only okay to say, but it's recommended in my training right now.* We all have limits, right?

Language learning is a very important part of being a missionary, whether you're learning a new language or simply learning how to communicate effectively cross-culturally in a common language (e.g. English and Ghanaian English).

My big takeaway is that it's okay to acknowledge where I'm at in the process. AND, it's good to say it aloud. "It is enough for today," or "This is all I know." People here are very patient and friendly and continually say that little by little we will learn. Biela biela - "small small" or "little by little."

This is an even bigger lesson for me. I'm a missionary wife and mother, planning to work and live in Africa for several years. Pretty much everything will take time and will come biela biela. That's okay.

Each of us takes a day at a time, uncertain of what each holds.

*Here in Ghana, my little family is getting ready for life in Sierra Leone. Josh and I are sitting through classes on cross-cultural living/working, particularly in West Africa. We are also learning some of the local language to learn a method taught here and tackle common barriers with language learning.