Airport Ads and Reminiscing

I spend a lot of time at airports.  Before a long flight I tend to wander the airport just so I can move my legs in anticipation of the hours of sitting ahead.  While waiting for flights I get to see a lot of airport ads.  I always look for the HSBC ads which are usually clever.  This campaign in particular made me smile.  First, as a student of international development, I agree that local knowledge is immensely important.  But mostly, it sounds like a Michael-ism.  "Never underestimate the importance of local knowledge" fits right in with "never underestimate the power of the equatorial sun to reduce productivity" and "never underestimate the usefulness of a short length of pipe" and all the other valuable lessons Michael taught his engineering apprentices.  Michael usually shares those pearls of wisdom after singing the following lyrics.

"I have only come here seeking knowledge, things they would not teach me of in college" ~ Wrapped Around Your Finger, The Police  

And I definitely learned a lot of things not taught at Penn State!  Before starting on our first water tower, Michael had me practice with Kyle by making a work bench.  Kyle and I planned, discussed, measured, and cut the angle irons with a hack saw.  As we were getting ready to weld them together, we realized that even with two engineering degrees between us, we had still cut every angle iron on the wrong plane creating spear like pieces. Good thing Michael had us practice first! Now you know why Michael kept singing those lyrics.  I definitely lacked practical skills when I arrived in S. Sudan.

So now back to the airport ads.

Recently, I have also taken notice of the strange but humorous Oxfam ads.   Since I'm guessing you can't read the small text, it reads "unique gifts that help fight hunger, poverty, and social injustice."

So next time you are at the airport, walk around and check out the ads.

And if you want to realize how little you know and what it means to minister from weakness, apply to be an engineering intern in Mundri.  You will learn from the men of the local water office, your teammates, and lots of other amazing people in Mundri town.  You may even get Michael to sing you those lyrics!

Brazilian Treats

Many of my all time favorite foods are all Brazilian.  First of all Starbucks in Brazil came up with the brigadeiro frappuccino!!! AMAZING!!! Although I must say the conversation with my aunt was better than the drink itself. =)

Of course I stopped for pão de queijo. =)

So far I have also enjoyed passion fruit mousse, goiabada with queijo mineiro, guaraná, and AMAZING coffee!!! I have a whole week left of all my favorite special treats that are only available in Brazil (and some parts of South Florida).  These foods remind me of family and bring back a lot of good memories.  Good thing I am only in Brazil for a little over a week because I may be physically unable to pass a shop that sells pão de queijo without buying one.

My Little Blue Dress

On Black Friday 2011 Melissa found a great little blue dress with a bright colored flower print in a pile of clothes like the one shown above in Mundri, South Sudan while we were out doing our team Christmas shopping.  I bought the dress for a few S. Sudanese pounds.

The dress was made in Vietnam and then made its way to a clothing rack at an Old Navy in the US.  It was purchased and then somehow made its way to East Africa.

I wore the dress for Thanksgiving 2012 on Staten Island with a cardigan and tights to help it make the transition from summer to fall.

Now the dress is with me on spring break in Brazil airing out on the balcony of my aunt and uncle's apartment after a long flight in a suitcase.  Who knows what other travels are in store for my little blue dress.

Justice Conference

PhillyBloco performed! They are a Brazilian music and dance group with lots of energy and drums.  The convention center wasn't a great space for them, but they still got people dancing and enjoying the music.  I've seen them live in a smaller venue, and they are great live!

But I didn't go to the Justice Conference for the music.  I went to primarily to connect with people and secondly to hear some great speakers.  The highlight of the main conference speakers for me was a panel discussion which included Dr. John Perkins and Lisa Sharon Parker who is shown on the screen in the above picture.  Personally, I enjoyed the depth and thoughtful reflection of the discussions at the pre-conference breakout sessions more than the dynamism of the main conference speakers, but there was a lot to consider and learn throughout the whole conference.

So here for your consideration are a few thoughts presented by the speakers that I am still pondering.  Since I was scribbling notes quickly, I can't guarantee that these are direct quotes, but I'm hoping they are close or at least capture the speaker's point of view.

1. Dr. Nicholas Wolterstorff - None of the current writings on justice start from the wronged.  They start from the intellectual puzzles.

2. Dr. Nicholas Wolterstorff - We will get all mucked up if we start with the gray cases, so start with the easy and then get to the gray ones.

3. Dr. Nicholas Wolterstorff - Justice at many points requires freedom, but freedom without justice is only for the powerful.

4. Dr. Soong Chan Rah - (In many cases) Incarnational ministry has become a way for us to become the Messiah.  We empty ourselves to go to the poor to bless them.

5. Dr. Soong Chan Rah - Lament relies on God's sovereignty and not our ability.

6. Dr. Soong Chan Rah - It is our responsibility to lament.

I haven't watched this video, but from the description it seems like it may be similar to his breakout session talk.



7. Ken Wytsma - Quoting Eugene Peterson - You can't hurry lament.

8.Gary Haugen - Do-gooders show up late and leave early.  Perseverance is necessary.

9. Gary Haugen - ...the hidden glory of a long and faithful love

10. Gary Haugen -  Love that overcomes monotony and tedium (and frustration).  This is the love our Maker sees and honors.  A long obedience in the same direction.

11. Gary Haugen - ...ordinary unglamorous work of justice

12. Gary Haugen ... prayer not as a matter of discipline but desperation

13.Gary Haugen - The book of justice is long and boring...I love it when we read it together

14. Dr. Nicholas Wolterstorff - True love is never unjust.

15. Dr. John Perkins - The church lives out its call most fully when it is a community of faith with arms wrapped around a community of pain.

There were a lot of other great things to ponder, but those were just a few that I thought I would share with you.

The BEST part of the conference was the opportunity to connect with friends.  I had many great conversations between sessions and at lunch catching up on life and discussing the thing we heard from speakers.

Critical

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to attend the Faith and International Development Conference at Calvin College with several of my classmates.

There were two things I loved about the conference:

1. The opportunity to have candid conversations with the speakers and exhibitors after sessions and over meals.

2. Processing the things we were hearing from the speakers with my classmates.

One our professors has already stated that our cohort is more cynical (doubtful as to whether something will happen or is worthwhile) than previous cohorts especially when we process together.   We test everything we hear or read against our own experiences and the body of academic work we have already read on the subject.  We read critically, which is a good practice for grad students.  Because of this, our professors are great at leading us in always looking for the positive aspects of every theory or method even if there are significant drawbacks and flaws. 

At the conference I realized that without the direction of our wise professors, I have the tendency to not just critically analyze but to be critical especially when discussing something with my classmates.  We have honed our skills, and we are great at picking apart case studies.   But those are academic cases studies, and now we are at a conference listening to the real stories of development practitioners.   Somehow it is easy to forget to show grace.  I forget to allow for the possibility that others have been led by the Holy Spirit to pursue a different model of ministry than I would have chosen in similar circumstances.  I have made plenty of mistakes myself and I will continue to make mistakes even after studying international development and getting a degree.  There are rarely right and wrong answers when it comes to development practice, and the phrase "prayerful discernment" seems to be the answer to every difficult question that comes up in class.

So after this realization, I ask that you will pray for me (and for my classmates) to follow the lead of our professors in looking for the good in every ministry first especially outside of the classroom.  Also pray that we truly will rely on prayerful discernment and that it won't just be the answer we give in class when things are complicated.  

The Justice Conference is next week, and I'm really excited!  I will once again have the opportunity to hear speakers and learn about new ministries, so I will get another chance to analyze critically without being critical. 

WHM South Sudan Video

Check out the new WHM South Sudan video.  It is only a little over 5 minutes long.  Enjoy!

WHM South Sudan Video

It was great seeing lots of familiar faces throughout the video including these friends from the local water office! 

Pumpkin Oat Scones

I LOVE this recipe, so I thought I would share it with my blog readers.  I have made these scones in S. Sudan which means you can be flexible with the ingredients.  I made them for breakfast before a trip to NYC with my roommates last weekend (pictured above).  They are a perfect traveling day breakfast whether you have a MAF flight to Uganda or a train ride to NYC. 

I adapted the recipe from this website:

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/pumpkin-oat-scones/detail.aspx?event8=1&prop24=SR_Title&e11=pumpkin%20oat%20scones&e8=Quick%20Search&event10=1&e7=Home%20Page

I usually add 1/4 cup sugar to the dry ingredients and also increase all the dry spices to 1 Tbs. each.

ENJOY!

A New Semester Brings Disasters

A new semester means new classes and new (used) books.  With titles like "The Road to Hell", "Condemned to Repeat?", "Famine Crimes", and "Despite Good Intentions", I decided to switch out the verses I have written on my mirror.  I added key phrases from Romans 8:18-21.

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.  For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.  For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.

I'm excited about my classes for this semester which are listed below.

Program Planning, Management and Marketing
Applied Research and Evaluation
Relief and Mitigation for Disasters and Complex Humanitarian Emergencies

Living in South Sudan, I saw suffering, but the WHM team entered in the development phase.  Mundri town was years past the relief phase.  This semester I will study relief and disasters.  I am thankful that last semester I had the opportunity to take Theology of Poverty where we discussed suffering and evil, but that does not mean I have it all figured out and will never need a reminder of the promises of God.  Even missionaries need to reminded of the gospel. 

This is the interactive part of this post.  Do YOU have any suggestions of verses to add to my mirror for this semester? My closet has two giant sliding mirrored doors, so there is plenty of room!

Order of Magnitude

I had a college chemistry professor who used to always say "What's an order of magnitude between friends?" when discussing extremely large or small numbers.  I like the concept of orders of magnitude.  I don't like it as much as I like fractals, but it is up there. 

Because I like the idea of considering the same object at different orders of magnitude, I have always loved this poster that hangs in my aunt and uncle's home in São Paulo.  I also like tomatoes, preferably at 0 mph. 

Tomato at 0 mph

Tomato at 4 mph

Tomato at 40 mph

Tomato at 400 mph

Lately I have been thinking about orders of magnitude when it comes to poverty.  Is there poverty, disease, and a lack of access to safe drinking water in the US?  Yes.  Is there poverty, disease, and a lack of access to safe drinking water in South Sudan?  Yes.  The difference is in the order of magnitude.

Home

When I landed in Sao Paulo, the Brazilian immigration officer welcomed me home.  When I landed back in Miami, the US immigration officer also welcomed me home.  Neither is completely true. 

At Jennifer's recommendation I read Love at the Speed of Email on my flight from Miami to Sao Paulo. It is a quick read, and the author, Lisa McKay, talks a lot about the idea of home. 

Lisa writes about "home" saying, "...nowhere I’ve ever lived looks fully like home to me. It has less to do with whether that place felt like a home during the time I lived there than with there being about a dozen such places."

There are so many places that a part of "home" for me including Florida, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Brazil, and South Sudan. 

And I must admit that sometimes I feel like Lisa did when she wrote, "I was overwhelmed with the sense that my life was fracturing so irrevocably into a thousand disconnected people, places, and sensations that I would never stand a hope of feeling fully integrated."

For the global nomad, there are many sections of this book that put in to words the questions that tend to come with this lifestyle. 

My idea of "home" isn't simple, but is uniquely mine.  I am thankful that Brazil and South Sudan are important elements of "home" for me.