Healing 2 The Nations International ~ Dr. Claudia R. Wintoch ~ Blog June 2011

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Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Mopti & Sévaré

At about 9:45 am Paul knocked at my door. We should really be getting up, as we needed to buy our return tickets to Bamako for the afternoon, and the later you come, the greater the chance that the bus is already full. I asked Paul to tell his friend to pick us up at 10:30 - I should have known to tell him 10:15 if I wanted him there by 10:30. Paul's friend's driver showed up at 10:45 to take us to Paul's friends office downtown Mopti. We really needed to get those tickets!

We greeted Ibrahim, and told him we had to buy our tickets first. It was just around the corner from his office. So he sent someone with us, and we bought them. The bus was leaving an hour earlier than we had thought, at 2 pm. But that was all the time we needed anyway.

And then came the bad news. Paul and I expected to be shown two beautiful, finished houses that we could rent on the spot. Once again, we had been promised things way beyond reality.

The first option was a little apartment on the roof of that very building where his office was. It was small, with a big veranda/terrace, and with difficult access. Streets and houses in Mopti are all very small and tight. It was immediately obvious that this was unsuitable; no kid would dare venture that far inside a building to an unknown destination (just one reason).

So we put our hopes into the second building, a "big house" in Sévaré, according to his promise. Sévaré is right next to Mopti, with a straight street of about 12 kilometers between them. We found out that in many ways Sévaré was the better option for the children's center anyway.

As we pulled up to "the big house", I couldn't believe my eyes. You mean, this construction site??? He said he could finish it within a month, and even make adjustments according to our wishes. He also admitted these were actually little independent shops, which is why they all have doors to the main street (picture). You must be joking! It was totally unsuitable. And Paul and I were discouraged. We had come with high hopes, and they had been shattered.

Ibrahim took us back to Mopti where he had to back to his office. It was noon. We told him we wanted to walk around Mopti until our bus left, and he accepted, and so we said our good-byes.

So we walked around town looking for street kids to talk to. We came to the port, which Mopti is famous for, and saw the slabs of salt from the Sahara that are transported down here by boat from Timbuktu, and then transferred to trucks or sold. It was good to be back here! This town has its own charm, and people are so much nicer than in the capital.

We asked a guy standing around about the street children, and he gave us good information, then said he would take us to where they are. So we started walking towards and into the tiny market streets, and did find a few children. Another guy also simply joined us. But the street children were afraid. They did not know what we wanted from them, though we told them about the center we wanted to start. Still, they did not trust us. One child we had woken up actually ran away. It was sad.

When we went to a public restroom we had to pay for, there were some street children as well. When we came out, Paul started talking to one kid who looked all sad. He did not have his box they use for begging for money. He told Paul that somebody had stolen it while he was asleep, and now he was scared to go back to his teacher because he wouldn't have the money. (They get beaten up when they don't reach their daily begging target.) I asked how much had been stolen, and then gave him that amount. It was just a few cents. Then he walked away. People here don't show joy generally, so you have to live with that apparent lack of gratefulness (and often it IS a lack of gratefulness).

It was time to get some food for Paul, and there were a few food stands around the little bus station. I liked how that meat on the grill looked - especially the tail with fur sticking out like that!

Paul got himself some good food, and they even had a little room with a table right there, where we sat down to eat. Time-wise it was perfect, as we had to be around the corner by 1:30 pm.

We tried to find some water for the trip home, but were surprised not to find any bottled water. I prefer that, just to be on the safe side.

Adventure Trip

We sat down at the bus station and waited. 2 pm came around and our bus had not even arrived. A few minutes later he finally showed up; it was an older model than the one we had come on, and the ones you usually see at the bus station. Oh well.

We got on and sat relatively far front this time. However, the seats were tighter than last time, and we had the knees of the people behind us in our back; not very pleasant. And we were dripping with sweat. Again, no windows to open and no air condition.

It was nearly 2:30 when we left Mopti to first head to Sévaré; there were able to buy some water. We couldn't wait to finally get moving! Again, stopping at the police checkpoint at the exit of Sévaré, but this time no ID checks. We were on our way, but the driver stopped quite a lot. Sometimes to take on additional people, sometimes for no apparent reasons. He was also overtaken by other buses. Those things were annoying as we wanted to get home.

We drove for a few hours, and night had fallen. Neither one of us was very comfortable - and we had thought on our way up that it wasn't; our perspective had changed.

Not far from Segou, the bus suddenly slowed down drastically. There was some engine issue. We heard them call someone to tell them that the engine was out, and people needed to be put into other buses. Oh great! However, the bus was still able to go very slowly. But how far? I had no clue how far it was to the next town, but at this rate, it would take a long time. We kept driving and driving until we reached Segou, passed the check point, and stopped at the bus station. This bus wouldn't go any further. What now?

Suddenly we heard them telling all those without luggage to go to the bus on the other side of the road which was also going to Bamako. So we crossed the street and were lucky to get on, sitting in the previous to last row. Again, it was hot - hotter than the other one - no windows, no AC, BUT it was a newer bus, the seats were more comfortable, and no more knees in the back. And then, my seat was broken, meaning the back would not stay upright, but was way down. I felt bad for the person behind me, but was happy for the comfortable sleeping position. I was thanking God for the blessing! In just a few hours we'd be home. It was about 11 pm at that time.

So we both got comfortable, ready to get some sleep, as we went on our way again. Praise God! End of the adventure, right?

Just a few minutes later we stopped at the police checkpoint, as always, expecting to move on a few minutes later. The driver always keeps the bus running for that time. But this time we just stood there, and stood there, sweating like crazy. Still, I wanted to get as much sleep as possible. Finally we could tell something wasn't right since we were still there, and that was confirmed when the driver turned off the engine, and the bus turned dark. What was going on? It was around midnight, and we had no idea.

Paul went to find out. When he came back, he told me that someone had tipped off the police that this bus was smuggling drugs, and that the bus was grounded. They would take it to a shop to search in the morning. What about the passengers? Nobody knew. Looked like we would spend a LONG time in Segou.

What to do? I thought sleep was the most reasonable. Most people were outside because it was so hot inside, but I stayed since I could only have sat on a bench outside. I got a little sleep, and woke up when two guys came to the back and started moving bags away from a hatch on the floor. They had a cigarette, and I thought they were passengers who wanted to lie down to sleep. I spoke up and asked them in Bambara, whether they could not smoke outside. They asked whether it bothered me, and I said yes. So they snuffed it out. I lay back down but was watching, wondering what was going on. I listened to their exchanges in Bambara and could understand a lot (more than I wanted to). It was weird, as were their actions. The one guy cleared the ground and opened the hatch to the bus engine. Then I heard and saw in the faint light bottles of alcohol being hidden inside, as well as other stuff. He kept asking whether that was all, and to throw away some discriminating box. By then I wasn't feeling very comfortable and closed my eyes when they looked my way. Why did they do all that in plain sight? Paul later told me that they had told all the passengers to get off before doing this, though I know there were a few other sleeping passengers on board. Still, it wasn't a good feeling being witness to a crime.

Paul later also told me that the police knew they were hiding cocaine in the front bumper and all the tires, because they went straight there to look, but the driver refused to give them access. So they simply would take the bus apart themselves during daylight.

I was glad when Paul came back, and whispering I told him what I had witnessed. Then he told me that other passengers had actually left, buying themselves seats on other buses going to Bamako that had to stop at the checkpoint. That was possible? Why hadn't he told me that earlier? It was nearly 3 am by now, and we could have left 3 hours ago?

So we grabbed our stuff and got off the bus to wait for the next bus to come through. What would our third bus be like? We didn't have to wait very long. Paul went there right away to ask whether they would take us. Of course, all the buses are very full, the aisle full of luggage with more people sitting on that luggage. Still, the driver said yes. Hallelujah!

So we had to pay again, and got on. I was given the aisle seat in the first row, right behind the driver, and Paul had to sit on a plastic container in the aisle.

In the dim light, I saw a lot of stuff lying by my feet and tried to find where to put them. I thought it was stuff, but as I put my feet on it, the "stuff" suddenly shrieked. It was a chicken!! I couldn't believe it! Would it peck? The guy asked whether I was afraid of chickens, and I said, no, as long as they don't hurt me. He said it wouldn't. Then more "stuff" moved, and realized the big white thing was also a chicken - a big one. And it was more than an hour later before I realized there were actually three chickens by my feet! (picture) So I tried not to move my legs too much - for the 4 hours of driving until Bamako.

The whole 4 hours the driver and his crew were talking loudly, and the music was on pretty loud as well. Sometimes playing secular music, but also playing muslim chants and music, which is pretty annoying. And having kneew in my back again and no window to lean against, you can imagine that I didn't do much sleeping.

I had another problem - I REALLY needed a bathroom, but I knew there wouldn't be one until I was back home. At daybreak the bus stopped so they could do the Muslim prayers - the bus always stops at prayer times - and people also went to the bathroom, right there in the grass. I wondered if I could and decided to try. However, I couldn't find a private place and had to abandon my plan.

I was so glad when I woke up as we approached the Bamako police check-point. It didn't take too long until we got through, and from there, our part of town is the very first one. They were so kind to let us out right by our market. Yeah! We called Saloum to come get us, and a few minutes later he showed up. It was 7 am. Our trip had lasted 17 hours; and it only is 6 hours by car. You know what? This was the first and last time we took public transportation. Next time we're taking our car.

And our mission wasn't even accomplished. Still, I don't regret this trip and feel like it was a great first trip to check things out. Now we still have to find a house to rent - in Sévaré - and as soon as we have a few options we'll go up there again to look at those.

Life is an adventure!

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Monday, June 27, 2011

Mopti, Here We Come

Our bus was to leave at 4 pm. I was scrambling trying to get things done before that, as there was thing after thing I had to deal with.

At 3 pm we left home to have Saloum take us to the bus station. We were supposed to be there by 3:30 pm. Dark clouds were starting to gather. It wasn't until just before 4 pm that they would let us on the bus. They opened the back door, and I could not believe how everyone pushed like crazy as if they would not get a seat on the bus. I tried to reason with them, to calm down, be patient, we'd all get on, but to no avail. It was really sad.

Paul and I got a seat towards the back, and it seemed pretty decent. The seats were small of course, and it was very hot inside, and the windows could not be opened. Neither was there air conditioning. So you can imagine what it was like!

I was glad I had brought a pillow with me - don't know what I would have done without. Of course I soaked it in sweat, but I was able to lean against the window with it.

It never really rained, just a few drops as we were leaving town, and we never saw any more rain on this whole trip. The further north you go the less it rains, and Mopti is NE of Bamako.

It turns out that we had a good driver, who did not play loud music or make unscheduled stops, but did his job - driving. We first stopped in Segou, after about 4 hours, and used the Malian restrooms and bought some water. Paul bought some food, while I had brought my food with me since I'm on a strict diet right now (some of it spoiled though, without a fridge).

While Paul was waiting for his scrambled eggs that they would put into some French bread, a young street kid came up to us. I had compassion on him and asked whether he was hungry. He said yes, so I asked whether he wanted a sandwich with eggs, and again he said yes. Since I didn't want to pay and leave without knowing he really got his food, I gave him the sandwich they had just made for Paul and ordered another one for Paul. The kid took the food and left. Paul got his food and we walked back to the bus. He said he'd eat it outside, and I got back on. When he came back on, he told me he also gave his sandwich away to a street kid - and bought himself some other food. We're putting stakes into the ground for a future children's center in Segou! I loved it! And I was wondering about God's ways since He has us start a center in Mopti which is more than double the distance Segou would be. He knows.

We made more stops in San - glad for a restroom again and some water - and then in Sévaré which was our final destination. By then it was after 3 am. I thought the trip would take 10 hours, not 12! We were stopped at the police checkpoint at the entrance to Sévaré, and a policeman came through the bus to check everyone's papers. Normally, the bus just has to stop and show papers, and then we go on. I had my driver's licence and a copy of my passport with me, and he didn't seem too happy, but went on. I seemed like we were held up there forever, so close to our destination. Finally we continued and a few minutes later we arrived at the Sévaré bus station. I had been in touch by phone with Emmanuel who was so kind to give us a ride to the hotel. I hadn't seen him in a long time, so it was good to see him again. Our trip had lasted 11.5 hours. By car, it's only 6!

We did as much talking and catching up as we could while Emma drove us to the hotel in Mopti. I had found it on the internet, and it was cheap and had great reviews, and I made the right choice. Of course it was 4 am before we got there. We had to wake up the night guard and receptionist, but it didn't take long until I had my room, and they took Paul to his sleeping place on the roof. Paul said he slept great up there. I also slept well.

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Sunday, June 26, 2011

A Long Eventful Day

What a long day! It was a far cry from the day of rest a Sunday is supposed to be.

In the morning, Eva joined me for a workout again. Then there was an incident with one of our boys to deal with. Then Eva and 3 more precious ladies - Fanta, Mimi, Julie - took over my kitchen to cook a special lunch for everyone. I think they did an awesome job making "pizza" for everyone. They bought white bread which became the pizza dough, and then put tomato sauce, mozarella, onions and lentils on top of it.

They used my new oven to bake them - and the heat in the little kitchen went way up. Who said you can't have a fan in a kitchen? Oh please.

It looks like all the kids loved them - and even Fanta who is picky when it comes to food she doesn't know.

Just before 5 pm we had two American visitors come for the first time. I gave them a tour of our base and invited them into my living room to talk. We had a good time talking, and the young lady might be back to do activities with our children.

Then it was time to get some more work in the kitchen done, and Eva was so kind to help me. Just a little time later we had our family meeting.

And we had quite a few things to discuss - serious stuff. It all took quite a while, but I hope we'll see the fruit of it.

But the day wasn't over yet. Seybou had asked for us to talk tonight. So Paul and I sat down with him with trepidation. What was his decision?

I told him that I had prayed, and God had not given me the liberty to give him a bigger salary than what I had offered. I told him I had already offered him the maximum salary possible. I told him there was nothing else that I could add, that I had to do God's will.

Paul then talked and said quite a few good things. I had my doubts that he would accept to work for us for the amount offered. But suddenly he said he would. I was pleasantly surprised. He's starting in the morning.

Finally I could go back to my office - where I screamed not long after when a big, flying cockroach flew right at me. I went to get our night guard, but of course it was hiding then. So I decided to spray my room with bug spray, but it was not coming out. The night guard left, and I hesitated to go back in there, knowing it was still somewhere. Suddenly I saw it, and ran to get the night guard again who then took care of it. Finally I was able to get back in the office; I still had to get a few things done before going to bed - which shouldn't be too late, as Paul and I are traveling to Mopti tomorrow.

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Saturday, June 25, 2011

Weekly Service

These pictures show Fanta in our kitchen, cooking our only meal (besides breakfast) for the day - and Mimi learning Malian cooking skills.

In the afternoon we had our weekly service, and this time it was Mimi preaching - the second lesson in our series about integrity, and she spoke on morality, doing a great job.

But first Paul led Bambara praise, followed by me leading French worship. Normally Jérémie does the song projection, but he was at the end-of-the-year event for his YWAM dance team that he is a part of. So I did it for the Bambara part, and then Joseph did it for the French part.

Eva and I, plus one child, were gonna leave right after the service to drive downtown to the restaurant and supermarket, but we were told one of the cars is not working, and so we had to wait. Saloum had to take a full car back to our neighborhood first; we pick them up and take them back for the service every week.

It was getting later and later, but at 6 pm we finally left. We had a different kid than planned with us, as the first kid had done something stupid in the morning. But Bakary was very happy about that, as he got to come with us.

We had good food first, and then did our shopping in the store. We arrived back home at 8:30 pm and finished the family meeting. Then we had our weekly team meeting with ALL the adult workers. I was pretty tired by the time we were done.

Sarata (6) has been sleeping in Eva's room with her, and in this picture she's showing off her writing skills to her. She's such a smart little girl!

And isn't Eva's room nice? She's done a great job cleaning and tidying up and making it homey - what a difference to its previous inhabitant, our beloved young man Christian. Being a 20-year-old guy is just not the same as being a 20-year-old girl ;-).

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Thursday, June 23, 2011

Rainy Day With Consequences

This morning the power only came on at 10 am (instead of 9-9:30 am) because it was relatively overcast. After my precious time with God, it was time to exercise, and I was happy that Eva was going to join me. There's definitely something to working out with somebody, rather than alone. We did my Wii fitness program for half an hour and had fun.

As lunch time was approaching, it got darker and darker, then the winds came, and then the heavy rain. The kitchen had to flee inside the dining hall, while everyone else ran to close windows. We're not talking a little wind and a little rain, but strong winds and rain. So far, I've been glad that the rains were coming during the night when it doesn't affect us in terms of the sun producing electricity. But today I knew the power would go out soon.

However, I didn't think it would be that soon. At 2:30 pm the power went out. Great! Now I've gotten used to living without electricity for a time, and it's cooled down enough now that you can function without the fans. But I do have food in my freezer, and that was my biggest concern. I knew it wouldn't be until the morning before the power would be back, estimating about 20 hours without.

The little ones enjoy rain - it's fun - and Jonathan even fell asleep on the bench. The older kids did not, as the rains didn't stop, and so they had to be on the back of the pickup truck all the way from school to our house, being totally soaked. It's time for our bus to be used!!!

Elisabeth cooks lunch for us every day, and her son Casimir is now 15 months old. Paul's fiancée Rokia took him to our slide - but he doesn't look sure whether he really wants to go down.

At 4 pm our kids' music teacher showed up to teach them drum set, piano and guitar. However, without electricity, there was no using the piano.

At 5 pm we had our weekly prayer meeting. Thank God my keyboard works with batteries! We had a good time worshiping God and praying for different things.

Then our "adult kids" had dinner and went off to school. It was getting dark - literally, as we had no power to turn on lights. Thankfully I just had charged the batteries of my little lamp, and we had 2 more flashlights. Not being able to do anything but read, I asked a few people whether they wanted to play a board game. And so Paul, Seybou and Eva joined me for a game. We had a great time.

Then it was time for dinner, and we even did our nightly Bible study with the street children - with my little lamp - followed by our family meeting. The kids took one flashlight into the bathroom with them to shower and brush their teeth. While they were going in and out, we played the game again.

Then I retreated to my bedroom to do more reading, before going to bed earlier than usual.

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Tuesday, June 21, 2011

A Few Pictures

Our little kids deciding to do some washing - shoes, socks and plates.

Our base seen from the hill - you can see all three buildings from that perspective.

Eva went for a walk on the hill, taking a few boys with her.

And Julie is in our kitchen - her "internet café" - coming as close to the signal as possible.

With my little 3-year-old Jonathan at the family meeting. This is his new pajama I got him for his birthday.

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Monday, June 20, 2011

Regular Day

Another week has started, and finally the kids are back in school - though summer break starts soon. Hama and Jonathan stayed though - and had fun with scooter and bike respectively.

Even Paul tried out the scooter!

Most of our kids learn instruments, and they have to sit down and practice every day... how much they actually do, and how much time they spend just playing around, is a different question. But most of them HAVE made a lot of progress, which is great to see. I can't wait to see them play in the service.

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Sunday, June 19, 2011

30 Years From Now

Sundays is our day off - and I always realize that day how much I need it. That doesn't mean there aren't things that need to be done - quite the opposite - but it means I take more liberty NOT to do things that day, and get more rest in. I always feel so exhausted on Sundays. They say it takes a day per hour of time difference to overcome jetlag, which means I'm not quite there yet, and I can tell.

We had something special planned tonight, after hearing a guy in Las Vegas share an inspiriational story that made me think we've got to do this.

I told the kids that tonight we would get together - as the person we'll be 30 years from now. I told them to think about what they want to be doing then, who they want to be, and that we'd just all talk to each other as that future person. This picture shows some of the boys dressing up after I told them about it, pretending to be 30 years older.

Well, some of the kids had not thought about it at all and made something up on the spot. A few others had thought about it, and as I asked them question after question they had not thought about in advance, they made up answers on the spot. It was quite interesting.

The most fun conversation I had was with Paul - though we acted as if we didn't know each other, so it wasn't that authentic.

After our family meeting, I sat down with Paul and Seybou to talk and see what his decision is about working for us. We could not come to a concensus, so I suggested we each think about it and pray for two days and talk again. Please pray for God's will to be done in this!

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Saturday, June 18, 2011

Weekly Service

Our service is every Saturday at 3 pm. In the morning, the children go door-to-door to pray for the sick and invite people to our service. They also do their daily chores. This picture shows Bakary cleaning the bathroom.

This morning I woke up to the news that our 11-year-old Daouda was gone - again. He only just returned after having been away for 4 months. Last time he had done something very bad, this time it was something small in comparison. We're all very surprised he ran away again, just weeks after having returned. It's so sad.

The little ones enjoyed the bubble gun that Christian left behind - that he actually only revealed at the end of his one year in Mali with us. Looks like they love it!

We fast lunch every Saturday to prepare for the service. It's also the one time the floor in the dining hall (where the service is) is washed, though we should change that. At 2 pm we get everything ready for the service. At 2:30 pm we all pray together for the service - and that's actually the first picture of that prayer time as far as I'm aware.

This Saturday was different in terms of the weather. Just when we started the service, the rains came pouring down. We had to turn the lights on, and nobody else joined us. It was "just us" - our resident and non-resident family. Nobody goes anywhere when it pours down. It stopped later, and a few more people did come towards the end.

Paul led Bambara praise first, then I led French worship, and Jérémie was responsible for projecting the words for the songs on the wall. He did a great job. I'm glad that's working so well now (also thanks to the new, free software).

I preached the first lesson on a 40-week-course that is changing nations world-wide right now, bringing people back to the foundation of integrity and morality according to God's views. I believe that is a big need in Mali, and I hope it's going to lay an even deeper foundation in our children, workers and church members. I added some stuff to the lesson to make it a sermon, and feel like it went really well. Paul very much appreciated it. So we'll see how it goes from here.

Minutes before I was done preaching, a van suddenly pulled in - with a bunch of white people. It was our friend Anco with his wife and a group of people. He's the one who's done all our solar power installation, and they've just come back from a 14-month furlough. It was great to see them; I quickly finished my sermon (nobody was listening to me any more anyway).

They only came by for a few minutes, to check on things and talk about things. I left them in the good care of Yakou (Ray), as Eva and I were supposed to leave right after the service.

Eva, Jérémie and I drove downtown to the restaurant, and then went to the supermarket. That has kind of become our tradition to do, and we always take one child with us that deserves to go. We had a good time talking and doing our shopping, and arrived back home just in time for the 8 pm family meeting. After the meeting, we had our weekly ALL STAFF meeting (rather than just the main staff) on the roof of the dining hall, where we discussed different things. It was the biggest meeting yet, as our new night guard Tierno joined us, as well as Joseph who is going to be the spiritual leader of the new children's center in Mopti.

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Friday, June 17, 2011

Off School

The kids are still off school as the schools need all the rooms for the important 6th grade exam going on right now. So the kids have been home every day - and they've been enjoying those 3 new scooters!

Rainy season has started, but when the sun shines, it's hot and humid. Jonathan (3) found the perfect way to cool off!

Especially in our kitchen area it's hot, when the wind is not blowing. Here the kids are all gathering arond the sheep head smoldering on the coals. They can't wait to eat it! It's the best part! Those white Americans don't seem so sure about that ;-).

Mimi's passion is to plant a vegetable garden and trees. Now that rainy has started, it's the perfect time for that, and so she's also kept a good number of kids busy who seem to enjoy the work.

In the evening we did our first movie night in a while. Our sound system was fried 7 weeks ago, and just came back returned. However, it's still not working properly. We decided to do the movie night, and then take it back to be repaired in the morning. And so we sat up our screen hanging down from the building, put benches into the yard, opened our gates, and showed Narnia 3 that I had just brought to Mali. The Narnia series are some of my kids' favorite movies.

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Thursday, June 16, 2011

Christian's Last Day

A few days have passed, and I haven't had time to write this blog, so some details will be missing.

We decided to go to the nearby restaurant as a "good-bye" dinner with Christian. We took Hama and Jonathan along, as it was their birthday dinner at the same time. The five of us (Eva was there too) had a great time eating good food and enjoying each other's company.

Yesterday before Christian had bought a sheep - his good-bye present for everyone. Here you still see it alive. But this morning its life's end had come.

Christian did the honors of killing his sheep himself - courageous, I think. Then they skinned it - most everyone was present for that!

They cut up all the meat and cooked and roasted it for dinner. They kept the head to be eaten tomorrow.

In the afternoon we had our weekly prayer meeting - the first since my return. After some worship, I got our big Mali map out, and made a team for each Malian region with those who had a heart for that region. Then each group prayed for its region. This picture shows the Mopti region.

Then we all gathered around the map, and one from each group put his hand on his region, and together we all prayed again. We had a great time!

But we weren't done yet. We sat Christian down on a chair in the middle and all gathered around him, praying blessings over him as he's leaving tonight. It was beautiful.

We had an emotional family meeting in the evening, as the kids and especially Paul said touching words of good-bye to Christian. We also gave him the gift of a bookmark that everyone signed on.

At 11:30 pm I had to finally say good-bye myself, and Eva and Paul took Christian to the airport. Christian had spent nearly a year with us here in Mali. Thanks for your sacrifice.

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Wednesday, June 15, 2011

First Day Home

What a wonderful first day home! I think that was my best first day home ever. And I've been more happy with my life in Mali than ever. I love it!

I set my alarm for 8 am as I'm starting this new, exciting diet, and I have to take stuff at 8 am and 8 pm every day. I only went to bed after 2 am (7 hour time difference to overcome), so it was a pretty short night as I stayed up after getting up at 8.

I had unpacked everything last night, but not put anything away. Most stayed that way all day as I was taking care of other things. I unpacked what Eva had brought and distributed those things where they belonged, and so time went by fast. It was so great to hug and hold my little ones again - of course the teenagers don't care for that as much, and you have to ask them for a hug.

It's also so exciting to have Eva back with us - she just belongs here! She just found out that she was one of few to be accepted into nursing school. Praise God! I hope she does her 3 years quickly and comes back to head up our medical center. Also I discovered that she only starts school in February, so I very much hope she'll stay with us until then.

We just purchased three scooters from leaving missionaries, and the kids just love them. They're doing their circles all around our dining hall - even 3-year-old Jonathan. 15-month-old Casimir had some help.

And I was amazed to see how well Hama is now able to ride his special bike for handicapped children. Praise God! I'm glad Ray was able to repair it today.

Another thing we purchased is a divider - it was much needed to give our little ones privacy when they use their pot. What a great picture of Jonathan behind the divider, being the first to use it.

And 15-year-old Karim pretended being a woman today when he tied Casimir to his back!

I was in and out of my house all day taking care of all kinds of things, while time was flying by. I hope I can put away all the stuff tomorrow, and get more things done.

Normally my first day back I'm "not back" to give myself one day to transition before jumping into daily life. Not so today. At 8 pm I was in the dining hall to read the Bible story for the children and pray for them. Then we went to the living room for our family meeting. It was great hugging them all good night - and Sarata has been exciting about sleeping with me tonight as I asked her earlier if she wanted to. With her Dad back, I thought it would be good for her not to sleep in the same room as her parents and little brother. As long as school is out, that works. They don't have classes this week (and last) but pick up again on Monday. So after our team meeting, she came over, brushed her teeth, and I set up a mattress for her in my storage room. I hugged her good night, and she went to bed. Then I went to my office to do some office work, now that all the kids were in bed.

Three Birthdays

We also celebrated three birthdays today - Hama turned 10, Jonathan 3 and Hawa (named after me) 2. Since it's my first day back, Mimi was so kind to bake the cake today. All I had to do was to put the candles and decorations on.

We set up the birthday stuff in the dining hall, I got the drinks out, lit the candles and brought in the cake while singing HAPPY BIRTHDAY with everyone. The three kids did good blowing out the candles! Too bad that neither Jonathan's and Hama's Dad nor Hawa's Dad were present.

I'm excited that we got the FIRST really good picture of a smiling Hawa without any hint of unhappiness!

I cut up the cake and distributed it, and then everyone gave the kids their gifts. They were showered with candy and fruit. I had a beautiful pajama for Jonathan (he had complained about not having one), a dress for Hawa and a watch for Hama. Hama had been bugging me for weeks for a watch, so he was overjoyed when he got one. He was also wearing his new clothes from his sponsors in Austria. We had a wonderful time together celebrating our precious kids.

What a great first day home in Mali!

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Tuesday, June 14, 2011

From America To Paris And Mali

We arrived in Paris at 1:30 pm local time - now 9 hours later than where I had started in Phoenix. My connecting flight was scheduled for less than 3 hours later. Again, I could take my time walking through the airport towards my gate and through security again. There were hardly any people which was nice, but then I was surprised when I had to take EVERY electronic item out of my bags. From time to time they do that in Paris. So I had to take out computer, GPS, camera, Kindle, cables, external hard drive.... not much left in my bags after that ;-).

I was glad when I was through and headed straight for the frequent flyer lounge - where I got "my seat". It's my second home already! I had some tea and food and connected to the free internet. I also got to talk to my brother and Mom on the phone. Time flew by as always!

My gate was the very last one, the furthest away, and I got there before boarding started. And then boarding was delayed more and more because they still had to get the plane ready. There were unusually many children waiting to pre-board. I was the first in line for the frequent travelers. Finally boarding started, and I took my nice window seat. I'm always one of the first to be on board - there's always room to store your bags, and it's nice to settle into your seat and read or sleep.

It was another full plane, and I had a young man working for an NGO next to me that was semi-annoying. But he only spoke his first words to me when we landed in Bamako, and they came out of the blue. It was awkward. Still, I enjoyed my flight and watching another good movie. Just the food was below average on this flight for my taste (I usually love Air France food!).

I was glad when we landed. As always I was ready with my immigration form already filled out, while everyone else had to get their forms upon arrival. That way I always get through as one of the first people which is nice. Of course I then have to stand at the luggage belt waiting for the luggage to come out, but that's okay. Another advantage of a frequent flyer is that my bags get a PRIORITY tag which means they come out first. And as always, my two suitcases did come out right in the beginning. But not the third. As the belt went round and round without the third bag, I knew it was not there. Still I had to wait it out. It was the little carry-on bag that weighed 68 pounds though - because it only contained two heavy transformers (and a few books). It didn't surprise me that they hadn't made it. It was probably suspicious being so heavy, and transformers aren't every day items. They probably had to make sure they weren't bombs. I just hope it gets here on the next plane tomorrow. And then I'll have to deal with customs.

So after the belt stopped turning, I had to go to the little office for my claim. I had to wait in line for a while. Paul even called me asking where I was as I usually get out as one of the first people. I filed my claim, and left with my two bags. They have now installed an x-ray machine again (sigh) but at least they didn't make EVERYONE put their luggage through it, the way it was in the past.

Instead of Christian and Paul, it was actually Eva and Paul that awaited me. It was so great to see Eva again here in Mali where she belongs! She only got here less than 48 hours before me.

The airport had changed a lot outside as it's been under construction for these past two years. So we had to walk quite a bit to get to the parked car. And Eva is not used to driving our cars any more! Still, she was the one driving us home while I enjoyed talking with both of them.

Arriving at home, Uppy (our dog) was the first one to greet my enthusiastically as always, but ther was also our night guard, and Christian, and Ray/Yakou. And then I recognized the person standing in the dark - Fanta's husband Seybou. We shook hands, and I was truly glad to see him again. He left his wife and kids two years ago to go to Algeria and make a lot of money and only just returned a few days ago. Seybou was one of my first spiritual kids that meant a lot to me, and the things he did a few years ago broke my heart. I hope everything turns out well, they way I dreamed it a few weeks/months ago.

It was definitely very hot, and the heat inside the house was overwhelming. I just wanted out of my clothes! I got a loving welcome from my cat (not a given) who ended up sleeping in my bed with me all night (also rather rare). I was surprised that I wasn't actually THAT tired at this point, and unpacked all my stuff. Then I took a nice shower and settled into my bed - with a good book and my beloved cat. I went to bed before 2 am but it took a while before I actually fell asleep. A 7-hour time difference takes a while to overcome!

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Monday, June 13, 2011

Leaving America

It was definitely tough getting up after a very short night. In fact I woke up frequently - probably because I didn't want to overhear my alarm clock, since I was so tired.

Breakfast was included in this hotel, but I was shocked at how many people were up at 7 am. They didn't even have tea bags left, and so I only had orange juice with my food. I ate quickly, returned to my room to finish packing, got a cart, and transported my luggage down where I checked out, and then loaded my car. I was happy with my bags that I knew where all 3 close to 70 pounds. And I was happy that I was actually leaving earlier then planned. It was just after 8 am.

I had 2 hours and 10 minutes of driving ahead of me. The hotel in Flagstaff was right by the highway, and the highway took me straight to the airport in Phoenix. It took a while to get to the rental agency, and there was no gas station around. That was good in the end, as I returned the car 3/4 full, while I had received it only half-full. As I returned it, I asked whether I could be dropped off at the terminal since I had so much luggage (they had done that one time before), and I was glad when they said. And so one of the Hertz people drove me to the Delta terminal.

Again, I was happy with the time, as it was just over 2 hours until my flight. The problem was that I needed a cart to transport my bags from the car to the check-in counter, and I couldn't see any. Finally I found some on the other side of the terminal - for $4. I had no choice. I got one, and loaded all my stuff onto it, then making it to the check-in counter.

It was a petite lady there who checked me in, and she had a hard time moving my bags from the scale to the moving band. They weighed 64, 68 and 64 pounds (70 pounds equals 32 kilos). I was glad I was rid of them - until my arrival in Mali.

I made my way to and through security, and was looking for the frequent flyer lounge - there wasn't one. So I got some lunch and sat down at my gate. I had plenty of time until my departure at 1 pm, and I was glad that the airport had free internet that I took advantage of.

We were just a few minutes late to board our plane, and I was ready to settle down and have a nap. And so I didn't take long before I feel asleep. I woke up just in time for the overhead movie - and for once it was a movie I hadn't seen yet and that was actually good ("The Adjustment Bureau"). Once it was over, I could close my eyes again.

Arriving in Atlanta, I had to turn my clock forward by 3 hours. And I had another 3 hours before my connecting flight to Paris. It was nice not to have to hurry from one end of the airport to the other for once.

Arriving at my terminal, I went straight to the frequent flyer lounge where I had 2 hours to chill. I was tired and wanted to sleep, but took advantage of the free internet instead. That way the 2 hours went by fast.

My plane boarded at 10:20 pm, and I arrived at my gate just before they started. No upgrade unfortunately. And unfortunately I had an aisle seat in a full plane - and in the first row (I don't like first rows because you can't keep your bag with you and don't just have the screen in front of you). I always have window seats so I can lean against the wall and sleep better. Oh well. After dinner and one movie, I did my best sleeping upright in an aisle seat. I don't know how successful I was.

By the way, just after we had started eating dinner, we got into a zone of severe turbulence. It was pretty bad and seemed to go on forever. They interrupted dinner service. Then the pilot announced that we were through because we had changed altitude, but then the turbulence was back. After it had stopped for good, a flight attendant came through asking everyone whether they were okay. I had concentrated on my food and movie during the turbulence and miraculously didn't get nauseous.

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Sunday, June 12, 2011

The Grand Canyon

To make sure I'd leave on time, I set my alarm - and woke up just minutes before it went off. It had been another short night - what's new. I had some food, finished packing, did computer stuff. Finally it was time to leave, and I called the front desk for someone to come up with a cart for all my luggage. I had not packed it for the flight to Mali yet; everything was just thrown into one bag, adding up to nearly 80 pounds, and the other one was my regular stuff for traveling. I also had another small suitcase of 70 pounds that contained just two transformers.

When this tiny woman came up with the cart, I knew she was not the right person - but she did her best; poor girl. Once we got to the lobby, a big guy took over. He said that when he heard my room number he already knew he'd be needed. He was nice as he helped me load the car.

I had a 4.5 hour drive to the Grand Canyon ahead of me. It was 10:30 am when I left, driving towards Arizona. Again I had my Kindle read to me for much of the time.

When I reached Lake Mead (picture), there was a traffic jam. That made me a little nervous as I had to be at the airport for my helicopter ride at a certain time. But I did have a half-hour time cushion.

The traffic jam soon let up and I made up for the lost time again. The view of Lake Mead was just gorgeous - and I loved it when the dog also looked outside to enjoy it.

I did not know that the famous Hoover dam is right here, and I actually drove across it. However, there was no time to stop and look at it. I enjoyed the views from the highway.

I kept driving deeper and deeper into Arizona, with a national forest to my left - north of me - and the Grand Canyon that direction as well. Finally I left the highway and drove through the forest for another 100 kilometers or so until I reached the little airport - well, the second airport was the correct one. It was located before you actually get to the edge of the canyon.

I was excited as I drove up to the airport and parked my car. I could already see the parked helicopters lined up. And I had arrived early.

I checked in inside, got weighed (though I'd had to tell my weight at the reservation), and then had to sit down to watch the safety and instruction video. Then I had to wait in the boarding area. I was tired, and I still had 40 minutes until my flight, and so I made myself comfortable in the chair, looking forward to a nap. However, I was surprised when they called my name just a few minutes later. I guess they put me on an earlier flight because I had come early.

There were three other people on the flight with me. They put folded-up swimvests on each one of us, and led us outside to our helicopter. They wanted us to get on right away, but I still managed to have one of the other people take a picture of me. However, I wasn't posing because they weren't happy with my hesitation.

We were told where to sit, and then they put the seatbelts on us, as well as the headsets. They closed the doors, and the pilot welcomed us. The helicopter was really small. He told us that explanations would be done in English and in French. I thought it was funny that I ended up on the French helicopter. I could tell that the other 3 passengers were actually French.

And then the helicopter lifted off the ground. It was a weird feeling - especially when the helicopter turned. It was very windy, and you could tell. A few times it got pretty bumpy, and by the time we landed again after 30 minutes, I was actually a bit nauseous.

First we flew over the forest for quite some time, and you could see the Grand Canyon approaching more and more. They were playing funny music like "Fly with me" that seemed cheezy and appropriate at the same time. The funniest was that as soon as we entered the Grand Canyon, they started playing the music from the movie 2001. It made me laugh.

Then the narration started as we crossed the canyon, made a circle to turn around and crossed it again. I was taking lots of pictures of the great view. What an experience! Enjoy the pictures!

Then we headed back to the airport, and I was actually glad to have firm ground under my feet again. Still, it was so worth it!

I got back into my car, ready for the 80 minute drive to Flagstaff, even though I was tired. As I was driving and driving and driving, I was thankful that I had decided to spend the night in Flagstaff rather than driving all the way to Phoenix where I'm flying out of. I will drive those extra 2 hours tomorrow morning.

I had to drive the 100 km through the forest again first, before getting back on the highway I had left earlier, continuing on east to Flagstaff. My hotel turned out to be right by the highway, just one of many hotels all in the same area. I also saw a Walmart right there, which was exciting as there were a few things I still wanted to purchase. Tired or not, I went there - and was disappointed as the food section was tiny, and I didn't even get what I wanted to take to Mali with me.

I decided not to look for a MacDonald's to buy my favorite salad for dinner and went straight to the hotel. Two other cars had just arrived and were checking in. That meant they also used the only two luggage carts, and I had to wait for one of them to come back down.

Nobody was there to help me this time, and so I had to heave all my luggage onto the cart myself, and then get it up to my room. My workout today! It wasn't too bad!

It was just after 6 pm when I finally settled into my room. I felt like I needed a break, rather than jumping straight into work again. I made myself some tea, turned my computer and the TV on, and did sit down on my bed for a while. But then the time had come to start packing!

I unpacked everything and started packing smart. I was awake, ready to go, and made good headway. Once I was done, it was time for some office work, followed by writing this blog. And so time went by fast, and it's after midnight once again. Since I have to get up early tomorrow, I'd better go to bed now. Next time you'll hear from me, I'm probably in Paris.

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Saturday, June 11, 2011

Last Conference Day

I was really glad there was no conference session this morning. That meant, no alarm clock, and with the heavy curtains, no sunshine. It was about 8:30 am when I woke up after 7 hours of sleep. I was tired, but it was time to get things done. And I knew the morning would go by fast. Taking a bath, running to the post office, some packing, emails, eating... and the time to leave had come.

I got the exact seat as yesterday again. I was excited about the last two meetings of the conference - unnecessarily, it turned out. David's wife was doing the afternoon session; she was just talking away about a million different subjects. In the end she prayed for miracles; I left then as I was really tired.

I had a two-hour break - that went by fast. I've been going home during each break, and never even got to see anything of Las Vegas, including the glamorous street with the hotels and casinos. Too bad.

I knew that Sid Roth would be the speaker in the evening, as it was the last session. He'd had some trouble getting here. Worship was wonderful. He then spoke - about his passion, the Jews and Gentiles, one church. For me it was actually pretty basic, nothing new or revolutionary. Once he was done speaking, the conference was over. Just like that.

Well, this conference was not quite what I had expected. Not one ministry time; we never got prayed for. Oh how I miss Jill's meetings, where you ALWAYS met with God and left refreshed and fired up! I had expected these meetings to be more like that, but obviously was wrong.

At one time the organizer and speaker was asking people were they were from, and everyone was shouting out their states. When I shouted Africa, he reacted as if he didn't believe it, saying, "Is that the 53rd state?". That was disappointing.

Another time we were told to go together in pairs, and I didn't have anyone. The speaker saw another person on the other side of the sanctuary and told the two of us to get together. Then he said that the two of us were supposed to meet. How exciting! I said, "I'll see you later," and never saw her again.

So, looking back at this conference, I can say that I heard some good stuff to put into practice, but it wasn't a time of spiritual refreshing really. It's time to go home, though. It's only been 2 weeks, but it feels like I've been gone for 2 months.

Tomorrow it's another long day of driving - and visiting the Grand Canyon, and on Monday I leave to return to Mali.

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Friday, June 10, 2011

David Herzog Conference

After a short night it was very hard to get up when my alarm clock went off at 8 am. I had breakfast included for today (only), and so I went downstairs for it. There was a buffet, and I got some good food. I was done eating quickly (who eats alone in a restaurant!). At 9:15 am I left to drive the 10 minutes to church for the first meeting.

When I got there, there was a line that I got into. The doors only opened at 9:45 am. Once again I tried to get talking with some people, but I'm just amazed that I can't get into conversations with people here in Vegas; it's strange. They're just not interested.

At 10 am the first meeting started. We had a great worship time, and then Lance Wallnau came up for his second and last session. One of the things he is is a consultant, and people pay him thousands of dollars for the information he gave us. I actually took some notes, as he gave us valuable stuff to put into practice.

The meeting ended pretty late, after 12:30 pm. I drove back to the hotel and had some lunch, and before I knew it it was time to return for the afternoon meeting at 2 pm. I was curious as to who would be the speaker, and looking forward to hearing David Herzog - for the first time. And he ended up being the speaker. I enjoyed listening to him, and he also prayed for miracles, and they were happening - creative miracles, instant weight-loss miracles (that he is known for) and others. It was 5:30 pm when the meeting ended - quite late.

Again I returned to the hotel; there was a lot of traffic but thankfully it's not far. I picked up some food on the way and enjoyed my short break at the hotel.

That is until I checked my email... Christian had written, and the news was that one of my nightmares had come true. Now, God gave me a dream a few weeks ago where exactly this was happening, and everything ended well. So I'm praying this dream came from God to let me know it would be alright. May it come true.

In any case, I was rattled, concerned, and praying as I left to return to church for the evening meeting. I found myself wishing I had waited until after the meeting to read the email as I had so been looking forward to the meeting. Now I was distracted and praying for peace.

Once at church, I called one of my friends to tell her about the situation, and then the meeting started already. During the one-hour worship time, the situation was constantly on my mind as I tried to focus on God and give it over to Him, and regain my peace. By the time it ended, I had achieved that goal, and I was looking forward to the rest of the meeting.

Again, David was preaching, and I enjoyed listening to him. In the end, he prayed for miracles again, and again there was a long line of people testifying the miracles that had just happened. As in the afternoon, I could feel the presence of God and His anointing specifically on my hands.

It was 11 pm before he closed the meeting. Where had the time gone? I was very tired, in any case, and drove home quickly. Once home, I had some tea, turned on my computer, and read/wrote emails and this blog. And so it's very late again as I go to bed; at least there is no morning meeting tomorrow so that I can sleep in. Yeah!

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Thursday, June 9, 2011

Long Drive To Las Vegas

At 7 am my alarm clock went off - that was tough. I gave myself a few more minutes before I forced myself to get up. Again it was cold and I got myself some tea, then had some breakfast with my friend. She helped me load up the car, and then it was time to say good-bye once again.

I set up my GPS, and got everything else in its place for the 7-hour drive. I stopped at a gas station to get gas, and started my long trip. It was cold outside, but it got warmer and warmer as the day progressed and soon I had to turn the AC on, especially as I was driving through the Nevada desert.

I recently purchased a Kindle - after hesitating for a long time. I love my books and my library, and I wasn't sure I wanted an electronic book. However, you can also subscribe to magazines on the Kindle - and get them immediately, and for little money. A huge advantage when you live in Africa.

But today I was finally sold... thanks to the text-to-speech function. The 7 hours just flew by because my Kindle was reading my magazines to me. What a great function!

The landscape was fascinating as I entered the desert. There were cacti at the side of the road.

What surprised me was how much traffic there was. I expected the roads to be deserted, but the opposite was true.

At 2:30 pm I reached Las Vegas and soon saw the big hotels and casinos at the side of the road. How fascinating! I wished I'd get an opportunity to see all those buildings at night!

I was glad when I reached my hotel. But the happiness soon ended when the hotel claimed breakfast was only included tomorrow morning, but not the other two mornings.

Someone helped me unload all my stuff from the car and carry it up to my room. I soon realized that there was neither a fridge nor a microwave - which were supposed to be there. After a phone call they at least brought up a fridge. Then I had to discover that there was no wireless internet, and the wired internet cable was way too short. Thankfully I managed to put my LONG cable in that I always travel with. Finally, there weren't any tea bags in the room. Sigh.

I was glad that I had a few hours until the first conference meeting. I spent quite some time taking care of computer issues, and I took a wonderful bath. At 6 pm I left to go to church for the first meeting. It was a 10-minute drive away.

I didn't actually know what I was looking for, as they had kept that secret. Was it a church? Thankfully I recognized it when I got there - it was a church. The church had only just received their papers for the building which is why they had not put their name on the invitation.

It seemed like I was there early; the doors to the sanctuary were not open yet, but I had another 15 minutes to wait. I tried to talk to a few of the people standing around, but no one was "biting". At 6:30 pm they opened the doors, and I got a great seat - aisle second row.

I actually liked that no one knew me, and that I didn't know anyone. I was getting excited at the prospect of simply spending time with God, encountering Him! That's why I'm here!

Not having anything else to do, I was reading a book until worship started at 7 pm. It lasted just over an hour, and I greatly enjoyed it. His presence was there, and I had so much peace. What an awesome God!

David Herzog took the offering and gave an introduction - it's his conference. Then Lance Wallnau came up as the first speaker. I had only just heard him speak in CA a few days ago, but I enjoyed it anyway. At the end he did an activation that was really great. At 10:15 pm the meeting ended.

I was tired, but I still needed to go to the grocery store. I asked my GPS where the closest Walmart was, hoping it would give me the one I saw driving up. However, I had no clue which one that was, and so I picked the closest one - which ended up being in the opposite direction. Oh well.

It was a huge store. As I walked inside the building with my dress, I could tell I was in trouble. I had put on underpants that are way too big today (thinking I'd just be driving), and they were sliding down. There was nothing I could do. I kept pulling them up, and wondered at times whether tehy were visible since my dress was short. How annoying. But I knew some of you would enjoy the story.

I got nearly everything and was glad to check out and get back to the car. It was late, and I needed to go home. 15 minutes later I was. I had some food, started writing blogs and email. And so time went by fast, and now it's after 1 am. Another short night ahead!

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Wednesday, June 8, 2011

From Atascadero To Lompoc

My poor friend is not used to going to bed late and so I got up before her. It was really cold in the house, and so I quickly got dressed and made myself some tea. Later my friend got up and we had breakfast. Time goes by fast, and so I had to say good-bye already. The car was packed with all my stuff again, and I was enjoying the warming sun rays as I said good-bye.

I only had a 90 minute drive ahead of me - not bad. I stopped at the post office and then continued south towards Lompoc. I was excited when I got to see the Pacific ocean. If only I could have stopped and walked on the beach! I love beaches!

At 12:15 pm I arrived at my friend's house in Lompoc, and she came back home a few minutes later. It was good to see her again. We spent some time talking, I got my computer connected, and I tried to get some rest before we had a great lunch.

Later in the afternoon we went over to her pastor's house, just down the road, and she introduced me to him and his wife. We spent some time talking before we returned home. I've got an invitation to share at their church next time.

I was just having some left-overs from lunch when my friend Cindy arrived. It was good to see her again. We spent the evening talking, and everyone watched my video presentation. Some of the children were really interested, including my friend's adult daugther. We had a good time talking until everyone went home/to bed. I knew I should not stay up too long - with the long drive tomorrow.

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Tuesday, June 7, 2011

From Valencia To Atascadero

I loved having this fluffy cat sleeping next to my head all night - and another one by my feet - though it did make me wake up a couple of times during the night. And so I was pretty tired when I decided to get up.

We had breakfast, and were each on our computers, and I was hoping for the last missing package to arrive. Unfortunately it didn't. I packed up everything, put it all into the car, and got ready to leave. I had to say good-bye to my friends, and at noon I pulled away to start my 3+ hour drive north and west.

At first I drove on Highway 5 towards Sacramento; I was listening to teachings on my mp3-player. Half-way into the trip I turned onto Highway 46, going west towards the coast and Atascadero. The landscape was really interesting. At one point there were lots of oil pumps, and then there were rows and rows of trees (almond, oranges). And the speed limit wasn't very high. I finally reached another highway and soon arrived in Atascadero, and found my friend's house.

It was 3:30 pm when I arrived, and it was great to see my long-time friend again who I hadn't seen in a few years. We talked, and decided to go out to eat. I was excited when we went to my favorite restaurant - Applebee's. I thought I wouldn't get to go there on this trip. We had a great time talking and eating.

And then we went to a few stores where I got some stuff for Mali. It's gonna be a challenge taking everything home!

Time was going by fast, and my friend usually goes to bed early - contrary to me. We tried to set up an air mattress, but it wasn't working. So we pulled the cushions off the sofa and put them on the floor. I hope I'll sleep well in them.

My friend went to bed, and I hooked up my computer to the internet and spent the rest of the evening catching up on things. Hopefully it won't be as last as the last few nights tonight.

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Monday, June 6, 2011

Leaving Pasadena

I was glad that I had all morning to pack everything up and take it slowly, taking advantage of the internet connection, before I had to leave the hotel at noon. Time was flying by anyway.

It was a challenge getting all my luggage down into the lubby, but I managed. In the lobby I waited for our webdesigner who I had an appointment with; our new website should already have been up and running months ago.

We had a good one-hour meeting that left me excited about what the new website would look like, and left me with work to do for it. He was so kind to drive me to the car rental agency in Pasadena - with my luggage.

It was a little agency, and I got my little car right away. I was not happy when I saw that the luggage was visible in the trunk, and that it did not have cruise control. I'll be doing many, many hours of driving with this car; I guess I'll have to do it the old-fashioned way (sigh).

Valencia, CA

It was only a 45-minute drive from Pasadena to Valencia - a beautiful Californian town I had never been to before. I was glad that there wasn't any traffic jams as I made my way north. In the early afternoon I pulled up at my friends' house.

I had had everything to take to Mali sent to their house, and so a huge pile of packages was already waiting for me. So I started opening them all up and removing the packaging from the treasures. Thankfully it got reduced down drastically - except for the 4 transformers that weigh a total of 83 pounds. That's gonna be a challenge.

I was very tired in the afternoon, but I never got to lie down. My friend Sheila returned home later, and we talked a little while I kept drinking tea and taking care of things on my computer.

At 6 pm another person showed up for a weekly kind-of-homegroup meeting. We were a total of 7 people, and had a wonderful meal together. I greatly enjoyed the time of fellowship, sharing and exchanging. Four of us sat there for hours talking and having a wonderful time. It was such a time of refreshing - and healing - for my soul! It shows again how much we need community, how much we need to be appreciated, how much we need each other.

It was about midnight when everyone left or went to bed, but now I was awake, and I felt inspired to go to work, and so I ended up working until 1:30 am. That seems to be my new bedtime - and is the reason I'm so tired during the day.

My friend have 5(!) cats, and one was already sitting on my bed, and another one on me as I was (trying to) work on my computer. So I moved the cat on my bed over so I could also find some room on there. As a cat lover, I was excited to share my bed with cats.

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Sunday, June 5, 2011

Pasadena, CA

This has been a strange few days in Pasadena. I come twice a year for my network's conferences, and while it's always been a frustration not to be more connected, for no one in the network to seem to care about Mali, it was even more pronounced this week. I hardly got to talk to anyone, both luncheons I ended up not having anyone to talk with, and so all I did was to hand out a few of my books. At least I got to have lunch with one of my board members once, had lunch with a friend who lives here, and dinner with a friend from South Africa. I also enjoyed the quietness and privacy of my hotel room. Still, the amount of money and effort to be here doesn't seem to be worth it. I'll have to think twice of coming next January. What I AM looking forward to, is the one-week leadership cruise in October.

Now before I leave Pasadena tomorrow, I have a meeting with the person who should already have redesigned our website professionally. Hoping that will be a worthwhile meeting.