Things I am learning.

Dear Friends,
Greetings! This past week or so as the volcanic ash cloud wreaked havoc with air travel in European air space, I learned how other things were being affected by the crisis as well.

In Nairobi the Rose Market was directly impacted. Roses in Nairobi are grown, harvested, packaged and flown to Tescoe Supermarkets in the United Kingdom. With no planes able to pass through European air space for up to a week the rose market in Nairobi lost millions of dollars in sales. Not only was money lost in sales, the companies who employ people to ready the roses for market had to compensate the UK markets for the losses that they sustained. It is possible that many businesses around the world will have their ability to remain in business impacted by this crisis. The roses in Nairobi were being taken out of their cardboard packaging containers that were ready for flight, taken out of their bundles and were re-processed to go into a composting machine.

Such is our global economy that every continent is tied to the others and what affects one country or continent has an impact on the others.

I learned today on AlJazeera News that President Bashira has won re-election in the Sudanese elections, the first in 24 years. The opposition parties had all withdrawn from the elections, effectively leaving him as the only candidate. There is concern that there will be attempts from this government to delay the Referendum Vote of 2011. This RV is to decide if Northern and Southern Sudan will remain one country or if the South will split off into its own autonomous country. Either way the vote goes will have deep implications for Sudan.

The semester at the Nile Theological College is drawing to a close. There are three weeks of classes left and then a week for tests. I have decided that I prefer semesters to quarters, I like having more time with each group of students. Having more time allows me a better chance to memorize all of their names, and a better chance to get to know them as individuals and possibly to discern the best ways to help them learn. My philosophy of education is that the relationship between the students and the teachers is the vehicle for learning. It is important to have the time for that relationship to develop. Where do they need more information? Where do they need prodding to do more exploration? What are they strong in that needs encouragement but perhaps not quite as much focus? So much to learn, and yet --- learning!
Blessings,
Debbie