I've been coughing and sneezing so much lately. I thought I had caught a cold yesterday, but today I realize, I'm allergic to the dust on most of the books and walls here. I found out that I'm also allergic to my sheets, so I took them off before I slept. It's much better now. I slept much better last night. 8 hours!

Sleep comes easier than I thought it would. Since I'm a light sleeper, you'd think I'd be up all night with the noises outside my walls. The 4-6th grade boys who live in my dorm complex shout, laugh and pound about like elephants. Wild dogs bark, growl and fight outside noisily from dark until about 3 a.m. A Hindu call to worship, an Indain singing voice on a loud speaker, wakes me up every morning at about 5 a.m. It sounds so eery and demonic, it disturbs me and I can't get back to sleep. I'm so thankful that our God is more powerful than any false one, and much more powerful than the evil one himself. I put my ipod in my ears to drown out the Hindu singing and pray for a few more hours of sleep until I have to get up at 7:30. I haven't been able to sleep past 6 yet, but it's ok. Birds start chirping and keep me company at about 6:30, and I enjoy getting dressed early and going out to the gardens outside.

I haven't been hugged by anyone since my parents and boyfriend hugged me goodbye. Aaron was the last person I hugged, really, the last person I touched, minus the cordial hand-shakes I've politely received. I'm very concerned about being culturally appropriate, so I know that it's not permissible to touch a man. But even with women, I'm not sure yet, is it alright to hug the women I've become friends with? Is it acceptable to ask a girl for a hug goodnight? Is it alright to hug a student goodbye after we've had a conversation in her dorm at night? I've never gone a couple of days with out a hug, and I'm learning that even though physical touch isn't one of my main love languages, I do need it. It's one of the ways I feel love.