What an awesome Thanksgiving. There is one other American (Jess) here right now so we hosted Thanksgiving dinner for about 25 people. Michelle (New Zealander) helped us even though this was also her first Thanksgiving. We ordered chickens for the meal because you can't get turkey here. I made sure to specify that I wanted dead chickens 'cause you just never know around here. I don't usually eat turkey in the States for Thanksgiving but I wanted to get it here because it is so traditionally Thanksgiving but we made do with the chickens. Also, ham is very expensive here so that is why we went with the chickens.
Cooking here is interesting to say the least. You've got the altitude issues (I'm at about 6300ft here), the stove and oven are gas and it is extremely hot. There is no such thing as simmer or warm on these dials. Plus, it is difficult to find ingredients that you are used to cooking with. All in all, I thought it was a great night. We were worried that we wouldn't have enough food but we actually had leftovers.
We played a game where we drew names and we went around the room and said why we were thankful for that person. My family had done this once in the past and I thought it was a great way to spend Thanksgiving. It was so cool to hear some of the reasons why everyone was thankful for the others. Mussie had to translate the whole evening so I am not sure that he really enjoyed his Thanksgiving but I am very grateful that he was willing to be our translator. In the end we had US Citizens, New Zealanders, Ethiopians, and for a short while, a Canadian.
I spent most of the evening holding an impoverished newborn that now has a hope and a future because God used Blessing the Children to rescue her and her family. Can't really get more thankful than that, can you?
Monday, November 28, 2011
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Busy, busy. . .
Things sure have been busy lately. Sorry for the delay in postings. I am actually sick today (only a cold, nothing to worry about) so I am doing work from bed so I thought that I would update you on everything that has been going on. The BCI directors came into town last week and it was busy, busy with meetings. I wasn’t in the meetings and trainings but all the “big” people were so things that I wanted or needed to do got put on hold.
I mentioned in the previous blog that Michelle and I were starting a Bible study at one of the churches and that approximately 30 women showed up for the “welcome” meeting. The first official Bible Study was held on Oct 25th and it was amazing. Approximately 25 women showed up to the study and we had an amazing time together and with the Lord. Because all of the “big” people were in training all week, our usual translators were not available. Mussie arranged for a man to come and translate for us. So we get there and we are waiting.. . .
The Bible study was to start at 4:30 and by 4:45 there was still no translator. Now, if I were back in the US I would have been totally panicked at this point, but this is Ethiopia and time is a fluid concept to most of the locals (not all, but most). But by 5 I was starting to get nervous. I texted Mussie to try to find out if he had heard from the translator (remember, Mussie was in this very important training so I shouldn’t have been texting him). While texting Mussie my phone ran out of money so I went to use Michelle’s and hers ran out of money also! So I start walking around the church complex looking for our translator, whose name I didn’t even know! I couldn’t find him but I found a man who spoke English fluently and I asked him if he would translate for us and he graciously agreed!
Michelle and I have started a Bible study at another church as well and the welcome meeting for that one was on Oct 20th. Approximately 25 women showed up for this one and the first Bible study is this Thursday. Please pray that we have a good turn-out and even though there is a language barrier, that we will be able to join together and learn more about our great God.
With the directors of BCI in town, I have been able to learn much more about this great organization. Not only have I learned more about how they got started but I have learned a lot about where they want to go. There has been a lot of vision planning happening and I am so excited about things that I have heard. God is doing amazing things through BCI and I am sooooooo thrilled that He has chosen me to be a part of it!
One of the biggest happenings is that Dennis has returned to start Phase III of the school. Dennis is from Michigan and he was been the builder for the school. The school has come together in phases. Phase I and Phase II happened at different times and both times, Dennis has come to Ethiopia for a month and has built the school. Well, he is back and Phase III is happening! Phase III allows BCI Academy to go up to grade 8 (currently it is grades 1-7). It also includes a cafeteria, kitchen, and other rooms that will be used for training for adults.
While there have been amazing things happening around here, there has also been heart-breaking things as well. Almost every day I go on home visits with one or more of the social workers. This gives me an opportunity to visit the homes of the program kids and to meet their families and/or guardians. This also gives me an opportunity to see what kinds of needs are out there. On Monday afternoon Betty (BCI social worker) took me and a couple from Canada to meet a family that attends her church but that is not in the BCI program.
This home visit has been the absolute worst visit I have been on, including all of the home visits I did last year when I was here. This home consisted of a 20 year old woman (Seble), her 4 year old son (Yabsira), and her mother. Four years ago this young woman was gang raped by four men. So, at the time this young girl was only 16 years old. These men attacked her so badly that she is still in chronic pain from the injuries that she received. I am not going to go into all of the details of what happened to her body, just know that it is horrific. She is so messed up that she can barely stand or walk. The only time that she leaves her house is to walk approximately 50ft to the closest church. Her mother and son go to a different church, a church that this young woman wants to attend, but because of her physical limitations she is forced to attend the closest church she can get to.
Basically, for the last four years this precious girl has been sitting on her bed watching the world go by through the window that is at the head of her bed. As I mentioned earlier, she has a four year old son. This little boy is the product of that brutal rape. She loves her son very much. I could see it in the way that her face lit up when he walked in the door and by how she kisses on him. She is not only living with the physical trauma of what these men did to her but she is living with the pain of not being able to provide for her child.
The couple from Canada that came with me on the home visit was torn up by this visit as much as I was. The three of us were just sitting there, not believing what we were seeing or hearing. Looking back on it now it seems weird that we weren’t crying but I realize now that we were too stunned and angry to cry. I have cried over it since then, I actually am now as I type this, but at the time I was in complete disbelief.
After leaving the home visit, the couple from Canada went to lunch and they decided that they would pay for this precious girl to have reconstructive surgery. I am soooo elated at this news! I love how God brings people from all the way across the world to change the world for one family. This woman is not even affiliated with BCI but God is still using BCI to bless her.
The next day, I went back to visit her and Sheila (Blessing the Children Canada Director) came so she could meet the family. Betty told the young girl that her surgery is paid for and it was a precious moment. I have noticed that the majority of Ethiopians are pretty reserved in their emotional reactions so there was no screams of elation or even tears of joy; but there was hope. There was hope in her face; not just that she would no longer be in physical pain every day, but hope that she would be able to improve the life of her child.
BCI would like to add the little boy to the program but we need to find sponsors for him. Please pray that God brings along the perfect sponsors for this family-and let me know if you are that sponsor or if you want more information about how to sponsor a child.
This is Seble. This is how she watches the world.
This is Yabsira.
I miss everyone so much! I think it is worse because I haven’t been able to communicate much because of technical difficulties. Please know that I am trying to get everything up and running so I can Skype but things aren’t as easy to accomplish here! J
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