Prep time....

Dear Friends,

Greetings. As I spend my time in Louisville, Kentucky focused on preparations for returning to Africa I have learned a few things.

What will soon be South Sudan is considered a hardship post. This not only means that there are what, to an American, seem to be very basic living conditions, it also means that even just getting there to begin one’s work is hard. It takes more work.

Some of this is because there is not an infrastructure to speak of in a country that has been torn apart by almost 50 years of civil war. Looking the last few days at pictures and readers journalistic renditions of what is happening in Sudan in general I realize that it is very hard to focus on things like getting an education when most of the llife’s energy is spent trying to find something to eat every day.

Therefore, there is very little infrastructure. This means that there is no easy way for foreigners to get money to the south for daily expenses. There are no banks in Malakal, where I will be living. Because of the border disputes with Khartoum in the north of Sudan there are many road closures. The cost of gasoline has risen and this means that food prices are going up and there are severe food shortages in many areas. The water in Sudan is not drinkable, at least not for an ex-patriot from the United States. I must plan ahead as to how to obtain clean drinking water and what food to take in order to be able to eat while I am learning the lay of the land when I arrive in my new home.

There is a shortage of electricity. In the area where I will live in Malakal there may be 12 hours of electricity per day. I am having to learn about inverters, rechargeable batteries and solar cooking. I am taking a battery operated fan with me and will need to look for a solar powered flashlight.

There are limited supplies of things like shampoo, no one I’ve spoken to has seen conditioner so I am having to take in my own supplies of those personal essentials. African hair is different than Western hair and so it makes sense that the stores in this little town would not have the kind of hair products that I need.

I’ve been told that there is no hand lotion to be had in Malakal. So I am taking my own supplies of lotion, feet become very dry and flaky in the African climate. There are probably few doctors and no dentists where I am going so I am investigating where I can find services when I need them.

Some of this looking ahead is because eventually I will be returning to a first world country and I will need to keep myself in a physical condition to be able to return with grace. An analogy would be this: I used to wonder why missionaries sent their children to ex-patriot schools instead of to school with the local children to whom they ministered. At some in Khartoum I realized it is because the missionary kids need to be prepared to re-enter, or enter for the first time, their first culture, the culture of their first tongue. Those young people may choose to go to college in the United States, they may choose to follow God’s call on their lives in the United States. In order for that to be an option for them they must be able to relate to the academic curriculum that other children who are in school in the United States are experiencing.

My issues are something like that. While I am spending a significant amount of my adult life in other countries, I must be prepared for the time when I will return to the culture of my first tongue, to the United States.

In a sense I have a foot in both worlds. I am living and serving in Africa, and yet I must always remember that to some degree the United States is the home to which I will return when God calls me back there. In advance preparation for that time I care for myself as if I was in the United States to the best of my ability in a country that is far, far different from my own.

I hope it is helpful for me to share some of my journey in this time of preparation for my return to Sudan. It is a time of trails and exhaustion. What keeps me going forward is knowing that God is sending me to South Sudan for Such a Time as This. I have an assignment and the Lord is providing me with the means to fulfill that assignment. God has given me a strong love for my students and that is my driving force.

Blessings,

Debbie

This is the 100th BLOG!

Dear Friends,
Greetings! I am watching CNN in my apartment at the Furlough Home at the Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. I am missing advertisements for Abu Dhabi, Egypt, UAE, etc., on Al Jazeera television that was available to me in Khartoum, Sudan. I am certainly becoming more informed about political issues in the United States however!

I have just under two months now until I return to Africa on August 2nd. I have collected a battery operated fan for the hot days without electricity in Malakal in the south of Sudan, as well as ordering a basic solar stove and a bag to purify water through solar heat. I find it ironic that the batteries which will power the fan will have to be recharged at night with electricity. I wish that solar was more advanced at this point in history. I think it is a cutting edge and has not been developed to a point of daily use yet. I do trust that in due time it will be as common and reliable a technology as electricity. In countries such as Sudan where solar heat is plentiful most of the year, I hope it will become a widely used and free form of power and fuel after an initial investment for solar equipment. In places in the world where there is not yet electricity, solar could well be the next step in creating a powered infrastructure.

I also have a mosquito net tent coming to me via UPS. The malaria bearing mosquitos are rampant in Africa and South Sudan will be full of the pesky creatures. Learning that I will need to sleep under netting in order to avoid the ailment I began to question if a tent might exist. I feel claustrophobic under netting and was thrilled to learn that yes, tents do exist. The one I will take with me to Africa has coverage quite a ways up the sides because mosquitos can bite through netting. It also has a zipped front so I can easily get in and out. I don't know if my bed will fit into the tent or if the tent will have to sit on the bed, but I feel better already knowing that I will be protected from mosquitos and all sorts of crawling insects and rodents....

The solar equipment and the mosquito tent were given to me by friends in Sacramento. I am very grateful for their care.

I'll write again soon and let you know how the preparations are coming. Please be aware that there is a great deal of military conflict in Sudan in the Nuba Mountains right now and keep the Sudanese people in your prayers.
Blessings,
Debbie

God's Mercies

Dear Friends,
Greetings! The last few days have been filled with God's mercies fresh every day.

I continue to be in a time of transition as I take care of medical needs, do itineration and prepare for my return to Africa. God continues to speak to me through other people and through circumstances.

One person recently told me that she feels God is looking out for me. Another person recently gave me an option that I had not thought of for a situation. I could feel God speaking to me through her words. The dental work that I need before I go back to Africa was unaffordable for me in Seattle and yet here in Louisville it is more so. God is merciful and faithful.

I believe, help my unbelief. In times of stress I continue to need to pray this short little prayer many times a day. It is short and potent. It is potent because it is so honest. I believe. Honestly Jesus, I do believe. Help my unbelief. Help me when I fall short in belief and have trouble trusting your plan because I cannot see that plan. I need to start adding, "thank you for loving me no matter what the circumstances. Thank-you for caring for my physical as well as emotional and spiritual well-being." Amen.
Blessings,
Debbie

Packing

Dear Friends,
Greetings! I dislike packing intensely. I am in the midst of packing this morning in Seattle. I have finally figured out that it is more than trying to fit too much into too little space. It also has to do with packing signifies change in my life and sometimes that can be a little bit unnerving.

I realize that for many people packing and change means they are embarking on a new adventure and this is greeted with expectation and joy. I get to the expectation and joy eventually, however I usually have to work through anxiety and the facing of the unknown first.

It has good to be "home" in Seattle. It has also been difficult. While I have family and friends here my life isn't here any longer. At least not for now. Of course, my life really isn't anywhere right now. At least not for now. It will be eventually in South Sudan in a not too far off future and yet that will be a new place that I have only glimpsed for a brief two days earlier this year.

In the meantime I will return tonight to Louisville, Kentucky. I do have a temporary apartment there and yet my life really isn't there either. I will spend the next two months doing itineration, finishing up shopping and details for my return to Africa, catching some hours to do reading for my doctoral dissertation proposal and praying towards the journey that will take me back to Sudan in August.

I reflect more frequently on this journey that is both life and also God's vehicle for God's purposes for my life. That is, God created me for a purpose and the life that I live is the vehicle for that purpose. I was in awe at my daughter's graduation from Trinity Lutheran College this May. I saw young people whose lives have been changed by faith and academics. None of us know how God will shape our lives when we go forward to "begin" our adulthood. God has worked even in the life of Prince William who knew his role from his birth. Watching life and God's work in life unfold is an awe inspiring mystery.

There are times when I embrace this mystery more readily than at other times. Lord, I believe, help my unbelief.
Blessings,
Debbie

going home different

Dear Friends,
Greetings again from Seattle! Last night I went to the Seattle Presbytery meeting. It has been several years now since I was at one of the meetings in the Presbytery whose care I was under for about ten years.

I realized that yes, I can go home, and yes, I am a different person now than I was then. It was wonderful seeing many people who are dear to my heart. It was interesting seeing again people whose views on many issues are very different from my own. And yet we are all a part of the one church, in particular the Presbyterian church; in general the catholic church universal.

I was struck by how many journeys intersect at these meetings. There were two examinations for Inquirers to move into Candidacy. There was one Certified Candidate being examined for ordination. I know how much it has taken to come to those different junctures on the journey of faith and academics.

God gives us each gifts and life is the vehicle those gifts are placed in. Our journey is on that vehicle and the means and the goal are to love and serve the Triune God forever.
Blessings,
Debbie

How time flies!

Dear Friends,
Greetings! Time flies! I am now in Seattle after seven weeks in Louisville and time itinerating in Sacramento, California.

I am on vacation, doing some itinerating, and getting some medical appointments taken care of. I am also learning about solar cooking and mosquito net tents. I will be taking two simple solar stoves back to Sudan with me along with the cooking pots that are designed to be used with them. From what I understand this new way of cooking (new to me at least) will be equivalent to using a slow cooker. I am looking forward to that; putting food in a pot and returning hours later to a nicely cooked vegetarian meal.

I am also trying to locate the equipment to have a solar fan during the hot Sudanese days. I will have electricity at my new home in Malakal, however it will be 12 hours at night. So I need to find a way to have a fan and stay cooler during the days.

Life in Malakal will be much more rudimentary than it was in Khartoum. I am having to think ahead to what the things are I will need in order to live as normal a life as possible. Fortunately because South Sudan is considered a hardship post I will be able to leave Malakal four times a year and go somewhere to shop for things that cannot be purchased there. Which, judging by my two day visit earlier this year, is just about everything. I will be living a more basic life and certainly eating a more basic diet.
Blessings,
Debbie

Back in the USA!

Dear Friends,
I had not realized how darn long it has been since I have communicated with you! Anyhow, I am back.

I have also opened a blog on WordPress because BlogSpot was blocked in Ethiopia. I am not sure how I am going to keep two blogs going, if you have suggestions please let me know.

I want to finish blogging about Ethiopia in this blog entry. I made notes to myself as some point in Addis Ababa specifically for this purpose.

I have realized over the course of the last few years that it is impossible to accurately describe what another country is like. This is especially true when the other country is in a less developed part of the world. In Europe I could wax eloquent about Gothic architecture and the feelings that were evoked in me as I experienced in being places of such historical significance whose histories stretched so far back in time. While geographically the continent of Africa is as old as the rest of the globe, many of the countries were themselves created by European colonists who had never set eyes on the people groups and cultures of the continent. This is to say that while there are cultures that are as ancient as any anywhere else in the world, the historical past is not always present in the same way in less developed countries as it may be in other parts of the world.

For instance, when I was in Egypt I asked why the city of Alexandria has buildings dating essentially from the 1600's or so, it is a pretty modern city for being so very ancient. Granted there were two devastating earthquakes which took the first two cities under the waters of the sea. I was also told that the building codes were not up to par in the ancient days. and that people did not recognize the value of conserving history and the past until relatively modern times.

So when I speak of Addis Ababa I am speaking of a culture perhaps more than an urban metropolis that is teeming with historical architecture. In Addis one day I saw two sights that I knew had I not been aware that I was not in the United States would have given me a great jolt and given me a huge clue that I probably indeed was not "in Kansas anymore". First there was a whole line of donkeys with bundles of wheat strapped to their backs crossing a street. Immediately after that as the vehicle I was in crossed a street of its own and turned a corner there was a whole row of shoe shiners. These are typical sights in Addis Ababa. They are a signal to me that I am in a less developed part of the world than most of Europe or the United States.

Passing by parks one can see some of the many homeless people of Addis Ababa. There are usually many people sleeping, and sometimes groups of people talking. Some of them look downright miserable which is quite understandable as I have recently been to Addis when it is not a warm or hot African climate. I know that the unemployment rate in Egypt before the recent uprising was approximately 35%. I do not know the unemployment rate in Addis Ababa, however I can assume that it is high. There are no government programs to help with those who are down on their luck. There is no free medical care. We don't know how good we have it in the United States, even at the worst, compared to other countries that have next to no infrastructure. Having an honest government whose desire is to actually serve the people and not itself also helps. And I do recognize the fact that the United States does have poverty. I also know that Africa is the only continent in the world left which has extreme poverty.

I was told while I was in Addis that there are many women leaving for Sudan. I don't know if the majority of them are Muslims. I say this because I think for people in North Sudan it will make life at least somewhat easier to be Muslim. Once the separation of the North and South of Sudan has become legal and binding it will be more difficult to be a Christian or any other kind of believer in Khartoum or other parts of the North. However, the Ethiopian birr (the name of their currency) continues to be devalued which makes for great prices for Americans and others, and makes for misery for the Ethiopian people. Their money is worth less. Store owners often compensate for this by raising their prices. Salaries do not increase and so people have less money with which to buy higher priced staples like cooking oil. The Sudan pound is also losing value and when I was back in Sudan at the end of February and the beginning of March prices had indeed responded to this devaluation by climbing higher. However, it could be that women, one of the most vulnerable segments of any population, feel that Sudan is still a better bet for earning a living than is Ethiopia.

Being back in the United States I can....drink the tap water. Turn on a thermostat and have heat in the whole apartment to keep me warm even while it is quite cold outside. Have reliable electricity. There are many modern cars on the roads. I can once again flush toilet paper down the toilet. Restaurants have flush toilets and toilet paper is provided, along with soap I might add. The stores are....well, how do I find words for what the stores are like? Large, well lit. Overwhelming amounts of selection. Some prices are very cheap, some prices are very expensive compared to overseas. In Khartoum I had a satellite dish that got plenty of channels including CNN, Al Jazeera News and BBC News. I had no monthly bill for this service, just had to buy the dish. Here I have to have Cable TV. I get CNN but I don't have Al Jazeera or BBC. I miss them.
Blessings,
Debbie