Adventures in Food

Cooking in Mundri can be full of the unexpected and is often a learning experience. Fuel prices have been very high recently (as much $70 per gallon in some areas of Juba last week), and we have not yet been able to find propane for our stove. In an effort to conserve the little propane we have left, we got some local charcoal stoves. It was my night to cook so I decided to make one of our Sudanese favorites, greens with ground nut paste and rice.


First I had to figure out how to light the charcoal. Thankfully Cecilia was cooking at the Bishop's compound next door and she gave me a few hot coals. After I walked over with my stove piled high with charcoal, she looked at me and taught me lesson number one. Little food, little charcoal. =) She rearranged the charcoal between the two stoves and I put a lot back in the bag for another day. I don't know what the outcome of the meal would have been with out her help! She also offered a few suggestions for preparing the greens. Thank you, Cecilia, for making several necessary corrections to my Sudanese cooking technique!

Success! A meal cooked without propane from all locally available ingredients. It didn't taste exactly like the Sudanese greens with ground nut paste that we all love, but it was pretty close.

Today I headed to the market to pick up a few things for Karen who is cooking tonight, and I spotted a fruit I didn't quite recognize. Fresh fruits and vegetables are scarce so we usually buy what we can get even if we aren't sure what it is exactly. I got home and cut one open and this is what I found. Definitely unexpected. It tastes like SweeTarts. It is good if you just suck on the seed, but we made into juice for dinner and it was EXCELLENT!

If anyone can identify this fruit, let me know!

Last year our team bought what we thought was a watermelon and when we cut it in half it turned out to be a giant cucumber. =)

Chameleon

Over the last several days in Sudan I have encountered snakes, rodents, scorpions, and wild dogs. Even now as I sit and type at my computer there are the relentless flies and wasps flying at my face.

Well today on my way to church I encountered this rather large chameleon. Since I rarely come upon interesting animals much less one that I am not trying to remove from my house or personal space, I decided it was worth stopping and watching it for a bit. I called Karen, so she and the kids came running down the road to check our our lizard friend.

White Shirt

My 2008 Ukrop's 10k white t-shirt after two years of sweat and dirt in Sudan next to my 2011 Ukrop's 10k t-shirt after one day in Sudan. Aside from the color, the old shirt is also hard and stiff from being scrubbed hand in Omo then dried in the intense sun. The new shirt is still soft and comfortable.

Highlights From Days Two and Three

Bike Repair, Moya Ma Fi (Water Not There), Full Water Tanks, Broken Door Locks...


Day two started off with an early morning jog with Karen, Acacia, and Chai. Then I enjoyed a cup of coffee in my new insulated travel french press which is the perfect size since I am the only coffee drinker on the team at the moment. It was my cook night, so I started the process of going to the market.

Step One: Locate Bike - It was deep in the store in the far corner behind several other bikes.
Step Two: Clean Bike - It was covered in spiderwebs and dust.
Step Three: Fix Bike - The tires needing air was the simplest of the issues. My bike chain was pretty rusty and dirty. Michael brought out his new bicycle repair tools including a chain cleaning device and rigged up a gasoline bath for the chain. After lots of WD-40 and a few other tweaks, the bike was ready to ride.
Step Four: Add Spiff Bike Basket - The Massos had brought two bike baskets for market runs, so one was attached to my bike and the other to Karen's new bike.

With my bike fixed I was set to head into the market. Acacia joined me on Karen's new bike with the other basket and with our shopping list plus a few items for the Bishop's wife, we were off. The bike ride to the market wasn't as far as I remembered, but the main road is in far worse condition and very bumpy. I didn't see a single person I knew at the market, but I got to brush off my Moru and Arabic greetings. I really enjoyed the whole process of getting back to the market.

Check out Karen's blog post for more about the food and fuel situation in Mundri, prayer requests, and a picture of me and Acacia on our bikes sweaty and just back from the market.

On another happy note, both of the new skirts I got for Sudan so far have been very successful. They don't fly up when I bike or have so much fabric that it gets caught in the spokes and they aren't too hot. =)

Michael spent a good portion of the day replacing some of the door locks that were broken with new locks from Kampala. That night as I was locking up the team house to go to bed one of the brand new locks broke. It is broken in the locked position so the deadbolt will have to be sawed in half to get the door open again. The same thing happened to my door last year and Phil came to the rescue using the angle grinder to cut the deadbolt since Melissa and I were locked out of rooms.

The next day Michael and I headed out find out the status of the water projects at Hai Salaama and at BNTC. The water office staff were out of town fixing another hand pump so we will meet with them early next week. We biked over to the project, and there was no water flowing at Hai Salaama. Unfortunately there wasn't anyone around with enough English to tell us how long it has been this way or what happened. Monday we will head back with some troubleshooting tools and take a closer look starting with the electrical connections. We headed over to BNTC next and found water in abundance. The float switch isn't working so the tank overflows occasionally and the tarp used as a temporary tank cover is torn to shreds, but overall things look to be in great shape. We headed over to greet the students at BNTC, and we found them digging in the garden and picking some Moringa leaves for lunch.

That afternoon we had team meeting with the four of us (Michael, Karen, Scott, and myself). It was a wonderful time of hearing more about what has been going on with each person while we have been apart and praying together as well as some logistics and team business.

Note: I will NOT be continuing day by day posts, but for now as I transition back to life in Mundri they will probably be more frequent. =)

Back in Mundri! Day One

A car on the airstrip as we are landing, snakes, heat…the familiar things of daily life in Mundri.

After a week in Uganda, I arrived back in Mundri safely on Tuesday morning. I was the only passenger on the MAF flight, but several of the seats were filled with my luggage along with most of the Massos luggage. The cargo area was filled with water project supplies, curriculum for the kids, etc.

On the first flight from Kajjansi to Arua I started listening to audio book, but once we climbed to the cruising altitude I put on my jacket and I was out. After waking up early for the flight, the thin air put me right to sleep.

After the plane refueled in Arua, I managed to stay awake during the second flight. As we were descending I saw a large spot on the airstrip. At first I thought it was a cow and I’m hoping someone from my team is there already to have the herder move it quickly. As I look up the airstrip I don’t see our team car in the left corner where we usually park. Then I notice the spot is moving QUICKLY straight down the airstrip. Turns out the spot was our team car! We usually drive down the airstrip to clear any debris before a plane lands, but they were still on the airstrip as we were landing. They cleared out of the way just in time. When I stepped off the plane I was greeted by the Massos, Scott, and our friend James. I stepped down onto the familiar red dirt airstrip, and the kids proceeded to tell me all about the excitement from their perspective riding on the car. Praise God for safe travels all the way to Mundri!

Somehow while I Uganda I had convinced myself that Africa wasn’t as hot as I remembered it. When I tell Ugandans that I live in Sudan, they almost always comment that Sudan is HOT. I thought that since the rains in Mundri had started it wouldn’t be that hot, but after one minute moving cargo on the airstrip I was very sad that I couldn’t find a hair tie to get my hair off my back. The reality is that the past two days have not been that hot in comparison to the dry season in Mundri, but I’m readjusting the heat and falling back into old habits like always carrying a sweat rag with me.

When we got to the compound I stepped into my familiar little house to find the curtains drawn and light pouring the windows. It was remarkably clean! The Massos had passed on the kindness that Scott showed them by cleaning out the entire house including Larissa’s room. They evicted a rat and cleaned all the rat droppings. They dusted the ceiling and walls. They mopped the floors with bleach. They found my sheets in a trunk and washed them. They washed my mosquito net. They put a mattress out in the sun to get rid of the musty smell and made my bed for me. They went above and beyond to welcome me to a clean house, and I am so thankful!

I spent the rest of the day unpacking, cleaning, and organizing. I fell back into the daily living tasks of life in Mundri. Even the hydrating process was comfortable and familiar as I poured myself a glass of water from the fridge, then refilled the pitcher from the water filter, then filled the water filter from the tap.

In the afternoon I stepped back into my room ready to tackle another trunk and out of the corner of my eye I saw another unwelcome visitor. There was a three foot long skinny green snake slithering on my window seat which then retreated to under my desk as jumped back out the door. Michael came to the rescue again and killed the second snake I have found in my room. The snake incident last year was a lot scarier, but I am still looking around a little more carefully when I walk in a room and flashing my headlamp on all the walls and checking behind the door in our shower before stepping forward.

At the end of the day after taking a shower and drying off smelling the familiar scent of a towel washed in Omo and dried in hot African sun, I crawled into to my bed, tucked in my mosquito net, turned on my new solar reading lamp, and read a few chapters of The Mysterious Benedict Society, a children's book recommended by a friend. On a side note, the solar lamp said it would require 10-12 hours of direct sunlight to charge, but after three hours of late afternoon sun in Sudan at just 5 degrees north of the equator, the lamp was charged.

At the end of day one back in Mundri I was looking forward to the next few days as I greet friends, see the water project, and visit Mundri Secondary School.

I am thankful that God brought me back to Mundri for this season of my life and for all the familiar things of daily life in Mundri.

Sad, Expectant, Unsure, Excited...

I'm at the airport in Miami waiting for the first of three flights that will take me to Mundri. How do I feel? Well over the last two weeks I have repeatedly gone through a variety of emotions. I have been sad, expectant, unsure, excited, tired, joyful, etc.

The two months I spent as a missionary in residence at WEPC was a special time for me. Even though I was ready to get back to Sudan, I was sad that my time in Richmond was ending. I said goodbye to my Bible study and the staff of WEPC not knowing when or if I will be able to spend an extended period of time in Richmond again.

This is a picture from about four years ago. While I was working at DuPont, Nomex, the product I was working with, turned 40 years old so the plant was opened up to family members of employees. Since my parents couldn't come I invited the girls from my Bible study, and four lovely ladies came! We are pretending to turn valves that were assembled in a random configuration and aren't really connected to anything. =) It was on the wall of my friend's house and I scanned it while I was in Richmond. Good old memories from Richmond and now lots of good new memories.


I got to do all my favorite things in Richmond from dinner at Sticky Rice to afternoons at Maymont. My last night in Richmond I saw Limitless at the Byrd Theatre. When I was boarding the train to Philly I ran into a friend from church who was headed to DC. Small world.

When I got to Philly I moved in Larissa for a few days, and we were roommates again. It will strange living in our house in Mundri without her for a few months.

After leaving Richmond I visited a few universities to check out some Master's Programs in International Development before landing back in South Florida.

My last week in the US with my parents I packed and organized but we also got to take a walk on the beach as a family and I got to enjoy my mom's home cooking. Today at the airport once I passed security, I looked back to wave to my parents, and they were jumping up and down and waving their hands in the air for me. =) The picture below is the sunset from the backyard of my parents' house.


My time the US was wonderful. I'm ready to travel and hopefully I didn't forget anything important. Pray that my luggage makes it to Uganda unscathed and that my flights all go smoothly. Pray also that the Massos and I won't have any problems finding each other in the London Heathrow airport.

A More Complete Picture

Those who have been reading my blog for a while know that I do not consider myself a writer, and I struggle to turn my thoughts into words. Ideas and questions often circle around in my mind over and over again. Those thoughts are refined as I read scripture, hear the preaching of the word, and have conversations with friends. In the end I may have gained a deeper understanding of some aspect of God’s character, but more often I come to terms with another one of the paradoxes of God and faith.

Well that is the story of my last two months in Richmond.

I left for Sudan with questions. Questions about hope, redemption, suffering, development, love, and worship. I returned two years later from Sudan with more questions.

My heart was tied up in those questions. It left me uneasy. At first I had the feeling that if I just did the right things, read the right scripture passages, talked to the right person, I would be able to process my time in Sudan and I would have answers, or at least a clear path forward. I was asking God to reveal to me and our team the right ministry strategy. A ministry strategy free from sin or at least that did more good than harm. The complexities of cross cultural ministry in a country recovering from war were weighing heavily on me, and honestly leading me down the road to disillusionment. Why do anything at all in Mundri if everything is tainted by sin and wrong? Why share my hope in Christ if I can’t fully understand what it looks like to have hope in the midst of desperate circumstances? I was both full of pride, believing I could figure it all out, and afraid of being judged in ministry and failing.

As I was processing these thoughts, I had the opportunity to attend a women’s Bible study at my church called Wellspring. That Tuesday, we studied Psalm 88. The title of the study was Dark.

I call to you, LORD, every day;
I spread out my hands to you.
Do you show your wonders to the dead?
Do their spirits rise up and praise you?
Is your love declared in the grave,
your faithfulness in Destruction?
Are your wonders known in the place of darkness,
or your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion?

If you are familiar with the entire text of the psalm, you know it doesn’t get resolved. The psalmist doesn’t get any answers from God. But as we studied Psalm 88, I was comforted by the knowledge that taking my questions to God is worship. Psalm 88 was written to be sung as worship to our sovereign and all-knowing God. I can ask God questions about hope and suffering and ministry as worship.

I will call that part one of what God was doing in my heart regarding ministry. Part two came through conversations about Mark 14:3-9 when Jesus was anointed in Bethany.

While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.

Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, “Why this waste of perfume? It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.” And they rebuked her harshly.

“Leave her alone,” said Jesus. “Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me. She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial. Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”

I had read the same passage as part of my lent readings a week earlier, but when I read this passage in the midst of a conversation about ministry in Africa, God showed me something different. That day the first thing I thought after reading Mark 14 was that everyone has ideas about what you should do in ministry. The people present with Jesus saw a woman act out of love to worship Jesus, and they reacted by saying that she should have loved in a different way, by giving money to the poor. Jesus however saw her heart.

That was good news for me on that day. That was freedom. Freedom to serve out of love and worship. Freedom to prayerfully seek guidance from the Holy Spirit and trust that God is at work. Freedom to know that all ministry is tainted by sin, but to still act and do something out of love.

After two years in Sudan and having some time away, I was evaluating a lot of things. I don’t know who I thought I was thinking that other people hadn’t already asked these questions.

I am still asking the questions and seeking guidance from the Holy Spirit, but I also have the freedom to act in love trusting God to redeem a ministry tainted by the fall. Broken things are being redeemed here and now as a foretaste of the complete redemption to come. Everything sad is coming untrue. That is good news for Sudan, our team, and for me.

I will end with a passage that a friend shared with me from 1 Corinthians 4:3-4. It was both convicting and freeing.

I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.

I am continuing to learn of the power, freedom, and beauty of the paradoxes of God.

Extended Update at WEPC

Haven't had a chance yet to hear about my time Sudan? I will be sharing at WEPC after the second service this Sunday. We will be in room 35 in the basement.

Check out the Facebook event to RSVP or send me an email. We would like to get a general count since lunch will be provided.

From the Myhres Blog

From the Myhres blog:

"This is the real context of Easter--no bunnies or lilies, instead the shocking hubris of desperate men, the hate and terror that must be radically healed before our world is redeemed. Our hope lies not in minimizing or softening evil, but in overcoming it by love."

Read the whole post:

http://paradoxuganda.blogspot.com/2011/04/evil-abounds.html

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Wish List

Some friends have asked if there is anything they can get for me as I am heading back to Sudan.

I have created an Amazon wish list with some items that I could use at the Secondary School and some things that I would personally enjoy. If you order an item from the wish list, it will be sent to the address where I am collecting things that I am taking back with me to Sudan.

If you would like to be sent the wish list, send me an email. I may also share it on Facebook.