On my recent trip to Africa, I disciplined myself to keep a daily journal of what transpired and how I felt about it. These entries are from that journal.
Sunday, October 16, 2005 and Monday, October 17, 2005
Today I flew out of Pittsburgh with a certain amount of trepidation. I am sure I am doing what God wants me to do for this time, but what will He call me to do as a result when I return? The answer to that is weeks away.
The flight to Detroit out of Pittsburgh left 25 minutes late. With only little over an hour to make an international connection, I was surely wondering what was happening. The plane was overbooked by about a dozen folks so we spent time deciding who would not make the trip. I was almost one of the ones bumped, they talked to me about it, but international travelers with connections are usually not bumped I am told; so I was spared. However, I was told that returning, and they see it is the final leg of my trip, if this same thing happens my odds of being bumped are pretty high. I will cross that bridge when I come to it . . . if I come to it.
When I boarded the plane there was a brief moment of concern. My seat was assigned by the airline. This was the only seat I was not allowed to pre-assign when I booked with Orbitz. They arbitrarily gave me the first row in economy, which is the last row to board the plane. With it being so full, there was zero room for my carry on and my briefcase. They told me I would have to check it. I told them I could not. I had a short transfer to an international flight to a location that loses 20% of the bags and I had already checked one bag. I explained that this was my emergency bag. I was nice about it, and they seemed to understand. We found a seat to put it under.
Somehow we arrived on time. I assume they sped up or shortened the flight route to make up the time. When I arrived in Detroit my plane was already boarding, so I barely had time to hit the bathroom.
My flight to Amsterdam was okay. My legs are long so I usually ask for an aisle seat so I can stretch out and so I can go to the rest room without disturbing anyone. When I got to my seat, an Indian woman asked me to change with her husband so he could sit with her. He was about 25 rows up and a window. At first I declined, but it became apparent I would spend the next 9 hours listening to her complain if I refused. So I squeezed in to a window seat next to a Croatian man who spoke bad and little English, although it is much better than my Croatian! He was a nice enough guy who drank Irish Whiskey directly from a large bottle the entire flight to ease his fear of flying, and talked about how much he loved French Cognac. He offered me a drink of his whiskey every 30 minutes or so the entire trip.
The transfer in Amsterdam was okay when I finally read enough to hit the gate. I had time to get a orange juice, use the rest room and begin the slow process of boarding, and it was a slow process with excessive security measures. The flight was on KLM (Royal Dutch Airways) and I was very impressed. First, I had my aisle seat, and had the seat next to me empty. The staff seemed cheerful, acted like they enjoyed their job, and fed us mercilessly! They even gave us an ice cream break!
My arrival in Kenya Monday evening was actually pretty uneventful. It ended over 24 hours of travel. While waiting on my bag, which did indeed arrive with me, I was able to exchange American dollars for Kenyan Shillings (Ksh) the local currency. The exchange rate was 70 to 1. So I was carrying almost 20,000 Ksh in my pocket! Do not be impressed, an ice cream cost me 150 Ksh at one rest stop.
We were met by World Vision personnel who transferred us to our hotel, where we were met with African hospitality. Here they greet you with a glass of fruit juice and a hot moist wash cloth to wash your hands and face. I could get used to this. I wonder if my staff will be doing that when I return? Na-a-a-h.
My roommate was from Flushing, NY. He works for World Vision and also a ministry called Pray New York that unites NY churches in prayer. By the time we got to our room it was 11:00 pm or so. We went to bed and after about 2 hours I finally drifted to sleep inside my mosquito netting. About 4 hours later, I awakened ready to go. I disciplined myself, however, to lie in bed and pray rather than getting up and stirring around potentially disturbing my roommate.
Why did I awaken so early? Well, there are at least five reasons.
1. My biological clock is no where near on Kenyan time.
2. I am anticipating what God will do over these next two weeks.
3. I left my church knowing that I have several major staffing issues facing me. I want to do what is best for Fountain Park and the kingdom. I am sure these issues will lessen in my consciousness as the days pass; but for now they are very evident in my mind.
4. There are a lot of personal issues rolling around in my mind presently. Some of them are pretty serious decisions that I feel I am facing in the upcoming weeks and months.
5. I am concerned for Gavin as we decide how our decisions regarding his treatment will play out.
Day 1 and 2 are over. Things are just starting and already I can tell, in the words of Bob Dylan, “Things they are a changing.”
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