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Sometimes beauty just IS. Like the day I photographed this little lady Ciara and her two adorable brothers, Liam and Finn. You might think that we are alone here… THE ONLY ONES living outside our home culture by living in Bujumbura, Burundi. You would be wrong. There are loads of us… singles and couples and…
This is a worldwide giveaway folks, so listen up! There are some places on this planet that just seem to have a wee-bit-o-magic in them. Beaver Creek Coffee Estate is one of those places. We recently visited the beautiful estate and roastary in Port Edward, South Africa and we were impressed by how much there…
Visiting some of the coffee hills around Burundi, along with the adventurous B. Carlson family;and meeting the farmers who work the washing station in which cousin Keith has a vested interest, that is my coffee growing area “dream visit”.
I posted this link on facebook.
I like this post on facebook. What a great post. I would love to travel to Africa – I want to go on a safari and see all the fun animals.
Firstly I love the idea of you writing a book… I hope it is packed with photographs and all about life in the heart of Africa… Meanwhile, It Sounds like Port Edwards is such a fun place to visit… ummm so many coffee places… Burundi to meet you of course, Kenya we have best friends there… Guatemala because I have never been there and would love to… the list goes on!!! A coffee world tour!!! I have tweeted your competition out…
I would love to go to Ethiopia and visit their coffee hills… but really, anywhere in East Africa would be enjoyable! I shared this blog entry via twitter.
Coffee is great but people are better. I would visit you guys in Burundi and I’ve thought about it quite often OR I would want to meet you somewhere else in Africa and tour coffee fields together.
Shared on FB.
Cheers!
Sulawesi in Papua New Guinea
I love dark, rich, buttery smooth java and PNG is the most adventurous place I can imagine.
Post shared via fb.
I would like to go to Peru – i love the culture and a bunch of my friends just came back from a trip there and had amazing stories and photos!
I liked the post on facebook 
Hi Guys, great blog and experience! Tanzania, Africa’s heart of coffee and awesome people! (Zanzibar before leaving…lol) and then pop around to Burundi to fetch my beans for Durban’s new roastery (dreaming…) Liked and shared on FB! Love to all…
I would love to visit Kenya because the coffee there produced is my absolute favourite!
Peru. Walking the Inca trail with a thermos of nutty Peruvian .
Liked on Facebook, shared on Twitter. Hurry, my Catuai is nearly finished
I liked this page and shared it on my facebook page. Re: where I’d most like to visit among coffee-producing regions, well – let’s be honest. I really didn’t know what the major coffee producing regions are b/c I’m an ignorant coffee drinker (although am becoming a bit more informed thru your blog!), SO I had to google it. 
Now that I have, however, I’m going to have to go with Costa Rice b/c I’ve heard it’s amazingly beautiful.
I would visit Burundi because:
a – its where I fell in love with my hubs,
b – my awesome panys sister lives there and I wanna visit!!!
C – I have a not-so-small crush on two crazy little chanas that live there and I need to hug them and see where they are growing up
D – did I mention that Ben is super cool and makes me laugh out loud? Plus he makes a mean cappacino and I would travel the world for that cuppa goodness.
Sharing this on fb now…. Love you guys sooo much!
I’d like to visit and meet the farmers in the Sidamo or Yirgacheffe regions of Ethiopia because my kids were born in Ethiopia and I’d love to dovetail these two loves of mine (my kids and coffee)! (I tweeted this and posted it to Facebook. Love your photos!)
I’d love to visit Hawaii! Always wanted to go there and would love to visit the coffee plantations there.
Shared on FB
I would love a chance to visit El Salvador – if I ever got there I would move heaven and earth to visit Aida Batlle’s Finca Kilimanjaro.
Shared on Facebook. Keep up the awesome work in Burundi!
“What coffee producing region would you most like to visit and why?”
In the heart of Africa coffee you’ll find the heartbeat of Burundian coffee. The warm, lush hills and the sun-kissed land infuse those little brown beans with love that you can taste!
However, if I win, I want my friend, Bruce Knutsen, to win the prize of going to visit his loved ones in Burundi!
I’ve shared this post on my FaceBook wall to my 1200 FB friends!
“What coffee producing region would you most like to visit and why?”
I would love to visit South Africa (Burundi) What I like most about it is the nature with the hills and the animals that you can come in contact with. I also love african culture and the people. It would also be a great thing to be able to teach the kids in school English.
After reading your posts it’s like a dream to visit and help out on the farms and let people talk about the way things are going. It inspires me so much. I can’t even describe it.
Telling you that there will be a book scares the pants off me. I’m telling you now, months before the it’s even close to being completed. Why am I doing that? Well, two reasons. FIRSTLY. Saying it, scratch that, TYPING IT OUT LOUD makes it real for me. I thought I could be one of those…
Raw Humanity.Your Story.The individual Farmers Stories.Your boys stories (how they see it) Lots of your Great Pictures. How about pages that Smell like Coffee,Crazy I know! Sorry,too many words. Good Luck.
Sacrifice / Reward
Honesty & Advice. Looking forward to what is sure to be a beautiful book
courage and family
People.Life for the locals. Coffee process. Yay, can’t wait!
… and thanks for asking
I like the honesty answer. What makes this blog so great is the beauty you find in the everyday and the honesty with which you share that – do that in your book and inspire others to do the same.
Bicycles
Kristy, I started following your blog after reading Wayfare magazine online and what I connect with is your reflections and struggles on the complexities Expat Life. I live in Uganda and when you talk about being stared at and missing what is comfortable and known, I get it. So I would like to read more of that. Good luck on the book!
Coffee Families!
Snatches of the God moments and lessons along with so much of what you are already doing with photography, family, farmers.
raw humanity
spirit
resiliency
women
you
I will buy your photography book for my coffee table and gifts for my friends
I will buy your memoir book for my niece to inspire her with a story of a woman’s strength and life
I will buy your children’s book on coffee farming for all my city friends’ new babies
quality. honesty.
I think you should tell the on-the-ground stories of real people in the world you are experiencing, in a way that honors the people and gets readers excited about the journey you take them on through the pages. Some photo-essay stuff, some poetry, some interviews.
Enjoy the process – and use your images a lot in the book. They are very communicative and powerful.
Cheers
John
Simplicity
Passion
Home (stretched to every sense of the word), Jesus
God moments- times when something was impossible but God came through, or moments where things happened/God provided that couldn’t possibly be coincidence. Does that make sense? Moments where you knew God came through for you in a way only He could.
coffee guy
camera girl
all the “whys” (why bother, why care, why risk, why choose this, why does this matter…)
Definitely your pictures of Burundi, the farmers/their families in the hills, and your family (btw, my husband loves your photography/style of photography – I don’t hear him compliment other artists everyday, so i knew that he REALLy likes your work ). I love the raw emotion that you share about your journey, so would love to read some of that as well. It’s what we as your friends/readers/etc. can so connect with – the emotions and thoughts experienced along the journey. Thx for asking for our input – so excited for you!
good printing. your photography deserves it.
You know I love the pictures from the coffee hills. But I also love the candid photos of the Carlson’s and other moments that make your life happy in Burundi. I think sharing the joy found in the people and the country are beautiful.
Life
emotions
Bring us the story of the people, through how you connect with them. No one can give us that,but you. Show us their world, what matters to them, their viewpoint – through their lives, their buildings, small moments. And, it will be beautiful.
enjoy the journey!
growth
Faces. Everyday nuances. (And it looks like you’re already doing this well.) Things that might have become even a little bit normal for your (now) everyday living, but are truly a wonder to those who do not live there. You’re a very talented artist, Kristy. I’m excited to see the final product.
Farmers. Process.
More. More of what I see, hear, and most importantly feel when I read your blog. Your fears, worries, and doubts – show your depth of character. Stay true to you and Him.
Family
Stories
You can’t NOT share your pictures – they capture so much that words can’t. And also stories. You are a good story-teller.
Sweet kids. (yours and theirs)
Farmers stories,family,photos!
love. that is what I want to see:) Love for culture and for people and for the journey. Love you and SOOOOO loving this! You will rock it!
Colorful, local clothing, children’s faces, love those bike shots.
Local friends
Places. People. Coffee.
Pioneering stories.
Daily Adventures of a “Mzungu” family and personal history of the people you meet. And Congrats!
Journey. Risk. Family.
You are totally coming to Djibouti this year, or I am coming to Burundi. You’re going to give me a photography crash course and we’ll talk books and family and Africa. I’m being a good Somali and ordering you around.
Families — yours, the coffee people, the people in your village.
You are such an intuitive person. I see it clearly in your pictures. Tell the story, the life of a family, the farmers. We do take coffee for granted. Tell us the life of the farmer, the family they support, the money they earn, the home they live in. You have so many thought provoking ideas, make us think. I can stare at your pictures for hours, wondering what it’s like there. What does the sun on their skin feel like, what did the children do this morning? The picture of the man with so many wrinkles in his skin, what has he seen, experienced.
Oops, haha! Two words….
Life
Relationships
Love you guys!
Katie
A book! Hooray and congrats! I think your approach on the blog is a great template for book-makin’. You have everything you need right here! I’d love to see the families behind the coffee… including your family, and the farming families who put their heart and soul (and soil?) into our morning cup. Good luck!
Photo stories – relationships – the journey of coffee
Family! How your family exists in such a different culture is so fascinating and amazing.
More than one word. I’m sorry.
I want to see the STORY of FARMERS making COFFEE. I want the relationships that make up a cup. A face/name for every bean. Coffee is a luxury(we forget that) that takes time, and labor, and love. Your blog is a reminder of that, it’s evident that you can make that happen.
Photos.
Family.
Culture.
Oops, that was three. Sorry. But those are what I’d like to see and how the latter two interact.
Though Bigfoot would be enticing, I always like to see pictures of people, where they live and their stories. There’s a photo book called ‘Where Children Sleep’ and it’s got a picture of a child and their story on the left and a full page of where they live on the right. He said that he didn’t make it with an agenda to change anything, but just to show the kids and where they lived. It’s heart-wrenching to read at times, but I need that.
I think really well in the shower. I’m going to start taking a marker and some sort of waterproof surface to write on INTO the shower with me. Just so that I can remember what my thoughts were. Because as soon as my feet hit the non-magical regular floor, I seem to forget it all….
A word timely spoken! It is good to be reminded about what is really important in life.
just FYI……… I don’t “LIKE” you I LOVE you. xxxxxx
“I was valued WAY BEFORE I EVER ACCOMPLISHED A THING by an AMAZING GOD”
That statement is beautiful. Thanks for sharing
Amen, sister. It is incredibly hard for me when I blog not to be checking the site stats about 20 times/day or to celebrate when a particular post gets read a ton or be a bit down when another particular post does not get read (sigh). It made me second-guess what I should write, b/c what would ‘they’ want me to write? SO … yes! Bust out! Keep being real in your writing and ENJOY it. Thx for sharing … and for having this blog. I am blessed and challenged by it.
i needed this. thank you. I am sharing.
Thanks so much for these amazing thoughts!
Its like you read my mind here. I get too wrapped up in comments and likes too and need to set boundaries for social media too. I do a lot better since going back to work, when I get home my kids get me 100% when I was home with them it was so easy to sit on the Internet. Thanks for this honest post!
This post resonated with me so much, as I’ve been having all these feelings ever since I started blogging. The analogy of high school is right on – since entering my 30′s, I finally had felt so confident about who I am and thought I had worked out all my affirmation issues, but they have come back as I’ve taken part in social media outlets. It’s been rather hard [and annoying] to work all this stuff out again.
I re-read an essay by CS Lewis called ‘The Inner Ring’, and I highly recommend it if you can get your hands on it. It’s included in his book ‘The Weight of Glory’. It was very helpful and addresses a lot of these topics.
[oh! here's a link to the article]: http://www.lewissociety.org/innerring.php
Love to you Kristy.
Hi back at ya! Thanks for this post. I think we all need to feel validated, whether we are a professional, a farm wife, a mother, or a blogger, etc…
I don’t think we are needing an affirmation after everything we do, but to know that what we do, whatever it is in life, is important.
Oh, and I also “liked” this.
Love you and yours.
As a “pastor’s wife”, and a part of building a church for the past 8 years, I can so relate to this post. I have to remind myself on a consistent basis that it is not about the numbers, who comes, who leaves, or what people think….my identity needs to be solely wrapped up in the fact that I am His child. No more, no less. Nevertheless, I “liked” your post, because I think others can benefit from it. Thank you for sharing your heart and encouraging mine today.
There’s a song by Sara Groves that I like to listen to when I start getting stuck in the social media mud. It’s called ‘Obsolete.’
There is a beauty in raising boys that I did not expect to find. It is lodged somewhere between the screaming and the sword fights and the pushing and the spilled juice. I feel like I am always scrambling for a tiny piece of sanity, a rest in the midst of the deluge that is…
Thanks, Sarah
That’s how I feel about my boy. I love that you put it to words.
So true @Michelle… a little bit of peace after all the crazy is so nice!
I love being the mom of two boys. Some days it’s crazy, but now that they are nearly grown, I can say, it’s been fun. But once in a while, when I need a moment of peace and a little girlyness, I have to get together with friends for a dose of estrogen. And then I can go back to the boy kingdom again, with my mind refreshed and ready for more wrestling and stinky socks.
by longmilescoffee
longmilescoffee -
Susan Carlson - I’m not getting anything done this a.m. except sip Burundi coffee and enjoy the way special effects of God’s light are captured in your photographs– and missing you and your 3 guys!!
Sally - Hi there.
I have been lurking in the shadows like a proper stalker for a while now; silently in awe of all that you’re daring to achieve, of your fantastic photography and your refreshing honesty about the ups and downs of your new life. We’ve never met (although we share mutual friends… I am originally from Durban) but I am sure I would love you just as much in real life as I do here through your blog. Anyway, I was tired of being a silent cyber stalker so ‘hi’ and please keep on doing all that you are doing – it’s hugely inspirational and a bloody good read. Sal.
Debbie - These are absolutely gorgeous – the wonder and abandonment to kids.