Struggle well with life...

"And I think that's what our world is desperately in need of - lovers, people who are building deep, genuine relationships with fellow strugglers along the way, and who actually know the faces of the people behind the issues they are concerned about."
- Shane Claiborne

Well, it has been quite the whirlwind adventure since my last post. We had to travel to Ethiopia for two weeks so that we could renew our Kenyan visas. I have to admit that I was tentative to go to Ethiopia at first, because we had looked into so many other places to travel in Africa that were farther or seemed more interesting. But, God works in mysterious ways, and we never realized how much of a blessing our time in Ethiopia would be. So, the fact that travelling/flying in Africa is so expensive and that it prevented us from going places like Madagascar, South Africa, and Egypt, was really God’s hand at work. Anyway, let me try to fill you in on some of the details.

“Ethiopia and Kenya: Compare and Contrast”: I realize this title sounds like an answer to a college exam question on the history of Africa; but, it is actually the most frequent question I have been asked in the past few weeks, so I figured I would try to explain what I have seen in the two countries. First, I in no way claim to know or have any of this figured out. I have a very limited experience with Africa, so these are just a few of my own observations, and may not be general truths.

Organization and cleanliness: Ethiopia, at least the parts we saw, seemed to be much more organized. Addis Ababa was much closer to a city in America in terms of environmental cleanliness, law enforcement, and driving on the right side of road. In Kenya, all over, there is an exorbitant amount of waste disposal in open areas. Plastic bags litter the dirt side walks, roads, and slums. In many areas, the trash is just burned in large piles out in the open creating plasticky fumes that permeate the area. There is a general lack or knowledge and education, or maybe a lack of concern, for the environment and waste disposal. However, this isn’t everywhere; many of the areas we have visited in Kenya have been absolutely beautiful and well preserved. But, unfortunately, it is a fairly common occurrence in most towns that we have visited to see this type of waste. So, it was nice to see a cleaner side of Africa in Ethiopia.

Culture: Both places have amazing and rich cultures that get into your blood. However, the music, culture, and food are quite different in the two countries. I have to admit that I am a little more of a fan of the traditional Ethiopian food. The food is delicious. It is all really spiced, varied, and fun. I say fun because it is all served on a large platter and everyone at the table eats with their hands and njera (like a thin, large, sourdough pancake); it really makes for a shared community experience. Also, the amount of food is quite large (plenty for three people) for less than 6 dollars! In Kenya, the food is much blander. Both musical styles were completely different. The entire time we were in Ethiopia we never heard any rap or American music blaring from speakers in matatu or shops. Ethiopia is much quieter, and there music is much more soothing than the tinny guitars of the Kikuyu songs that are so common in Kenya. But, as much as Ethiopia’s music is soothing, Kenya’s music has grown on me, and it feels more like home, even if it is a louder more abrasive home. Lastly, there is a greater sense of safety and less corruption in Ethiopia.

Overall, I love both Kenya and Ethiopia equally and for different reasons. I think it is necessary when travelling to assess each culture and country separately. I try not to make too many comparisons, because each place is unique and each place has its ups and downs. Most importantly, each place is beautiful and full of its own treasures.

“Addis Ababa”: We all really had no idea what to expect from Addis when we arrived or what to do when we got there. It was night so there wasn’t much to see. Then we arrived at the SIM compound in the city and unpacked our things and took the rest of the night off. The next morning a missionary couple, Joe and Kay, informed us that there was a delicious, inexpensive, and fun restaurant within walking distance. We decided that it was too good of a combination of things we were looking for to pass up. It was quite the place. We sat down in cozy little chairs and ate the traditional njera and wots (not sure what they are…but, they’re delicious). On top of the amazing food, we got to hear some authentic Ethiopian music and singing in the restaurant. During our meal, several different singers and musicians entertained us. The music was beautiful, and the singing resembles a wave the way the voice goes up and down. We also decided to visit the national museum or Haile Selassie museum the same day. It was a really neat place full of eccentric items from Ethiopia’s past and present. There was amazing and disturbing art. We saw Haile Selassie’s throne, and we learned about the fossil “Lucy”.

During the rest of the week, we visited the Mercato (market), which is the largest open-air market in East Africa. It was enormous and a little overwhelming to walk through. But, we found several friendly shop owners and bought some neat souvenirs including a clay coffee and tea pot set that I was never intending to buy, but was convinced in a matter of minutes. Now I have a plate, coffee pot, several tiny coffee cups and an incense burner (which was a plus), which I have no idea where I will put it. We also visited the Sheraton hotel in Addis (quite the dichotomy between luxury and poverty) and visited an ancient rock church.

“Washa Mikael Church”: This was definitely one of the highlights of our time in Addis. I was reading the in-flight magazine on Ethiopia during our flight, and I came across an article describing an ancient rock church, similar to the more well known Lalibela, right within the outskirts of Addis. We decided to go and see what this “secret of Addis” was all about. It took a little while to get there in the cab, and we arrived at an Ethiopian Orthodox Church. At first, I thought we had been misguided, but once we got out and paid our fee of 30 burr ($3.00), we were led by a guide up the mountain. It was a nice 40 minute hike through the woods and eucalyptus forest to the church. Once we were there, it was quite the site. The church is in ruins in many places and it is recessed in the ground. We were informed with a brief history of the church as we walked through its old, moss and vine ridden archways and caverns. We were even informed that it, supposedly, was once the church that held the arc of the covenant. We took many pictures and enjoyed climbing around in the ancient walls.

However, the experience didn’t end with the church. Just a short walk away we were led to a clearing that gave a breathtaking view of the entire city of Addis. We proceeded to take a bunch of pictures including several, successful and unsuccessful, pictures of us jumping. All in all, it was well worth the hike and money to see something that most people don’t know about or see while they are in Addis.

“Smiles are universal (a thought from my journal)”: I was having a bit of a rough day when I wrote this, but the smiles of the children turned that day around: Children are an amazing source of joy. Even if you aren’t a parent, they can be a soothing salve to a battered soul. Smiles are universal. I saw a quote today by Mother Teresa that said, “Peace begins with a smile”. I like it as a reference to non-violent resistance, but I like it even more as an inner peace that is an out flow from God. I can say that in the emotional turmoil of the day, the smiles of the children and others helped heal my heart. I had forgotten the joy children can bring and the hope they have. There is so much beauty in the simplicity of someone who just wants to be held and someone who delights so much in a smile or a wave.

“Camp Langano: Sports Friends”: While in Addis, as I mentioned earlier, we met Joe and Kay Harding who are heavily involved in the Sports Friends ministry of SIM, in Ethiopia. We had a chance to sit down with them and hear more about the ministry and how God is using the soccer ball to spread love and grace. There goal is to create an international movement of sports ministers to empower the church and others to spread God’s love through sports to all parts of the world. It was such an awesome time to hear Joe and Kay describe their work and how God was using it in Ethiopia. You could see their joy when they spoke and how soccer was crossing racial, religious, and cultural boundaries. After meeting with them, they invited us to join them at their camp for our final week to help serve with the construction team coming from Church at Charlotte.

At first, I have to admit that I had a difficult time deciding whether to go along to Camp Langano or to head back to Kenya to finish out our time on the coast. But, I couldn’t deny the appeal of making new friends, seeing a new side of Ethiopia, and getting to serve in the process. It ended up being an amazing week full of hard work, new friendships, and lots of laughter. Just to give you a brief rundown of some of the events: we went on a boat ride and saw a hippo, we painted 25 gallons of paint on the camp, we tiled several floors, we took cold showers daily, we held a monkey tail, we saw a 13 year-old slaughter a cow, we drank more crystal light packets than I thought possible, and we laughed more than any week-long mission trip I have been on. By the end of the trip, Adam, Katie, and I felt like we had been welcomed into and become part of a Church at Charlotte/Camp Langano family. The week was a great time of joy and rejuvenation that has given us a lot more excitement to head back to our time in Kenya, because we saw the joy and excitement in the construction and vision teams at the camp. Adam and I also saw a great opportunity to pursue this same type of ministry hear on the coast in Kenya. So, we will be working on finding solid people to be involved and catch hold of vision that Sports Friends has in hopes of creating a similar situation here.

“A few funny phrases and quotes from the week”:

- “Apple bottom jeans…boots with the fur…”

- “Happy wife, happy life.”

- “Control group!”

- In reference to numerous marriage proposals and the final acceptance, “you know where the ring is in the sock drawer”

- “So, you were hip to her form, but she wasn’t hip to your form”

o Response: “No truer words have been spoken.”

- “Do.What. You're. Told.”

These are all references to the week and specific people, so I apologize to all who don’t understand some ofthem; but, to those that do, I hope you enjoyed. I just want to say thank you to the teams from charlotte for allowing us to serve with you all, and we are all excited to finish out our time in Kenya and to come visit our new group of crazy friends.