Sunday, December 3, 2017

Decembers.

December. Decembers have been milestones in my life twice. The first time was my college journey to Israel/Palestine in 1996. We were there for two profound weeks. The second was December of 2013. I left Malakal, South Sudan on December 6th (after finishing teaching, grading and submitting grades for the college.) I spent a week in Juba, South Sudan getting a six month in and out visa, with the help of South Sudanese colleagues. I believe it was December 13th that I flew to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia for Christmas. The 14th I went to the international Christmas Bazaar there, had a wonderful time meeting friends and purchasing special things from Africa. That night we began hearing reports about fighting breaking out in South Sudan. I was never able to return to Malakal. In the Spring of 2015 I returned to South Sudan, going to Juba. The college (The Nile Theological College) where I taught had relocated to the Capital and that is where I was called. By September I had to return to the United States for a hip replacement. I never went back. The trajectory of my life had/has changed, beginning with that December of 2013. Well, really beginning long before that, it kept getting corrected as my call in ministry became increasingly clear. But doors closed in December of 2013. When you can't get back into a town, or a country, because of Civil War, things change.