Out of Africa: Part 11 – Departing a Changed Person

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.

Thursday, October 27, 2005

Thursday began with another game drive. There was not much exciting about this ride. We did see a hyena, a cheetah, and a pride of lions that numbered 15 or more. It concluded with an outdoor cooked breakfast beside the famous Mara River. Interesting to eat an omelet while hippos (safely down an embankment) look on when surfacing.

I am scheduled to fly out today at 4:00 pm on the first of four flights that will take me home in about 30 hours. I should arrive in Amsterdam about 5:30 am departing for Detroit about 2-1/2 hours later. I have a 2-3/4 hour layover to clear customs and then fly to Pittsburgh Friday afternoon. I hope not to miss any connections which I was just told are okay. One frequent traveler of this route told me that I could be bumped if overbooked because this is the last leg of my flight and I have no connections. That is not good since the flight from Pittsburgh to Detroit was overbooked by about 12 folks and they talked to me about being bumped then. In any event, I soon will be home in a day or so. This has been an exciting and life changing trip.

I have been on several mission trips with varying purposes, so expecting to be changed was clearly on my radar. The biggest change this time is that I am in a position to affect change in a community of faith. I now must ask what is that change?