Mike's African Adventure

Thanks!!

2006-05-14T12:41:00.000+03:00

Hi Everyone,

Many blessings and thanks coming your way!

I'm back safely from Tanzania and it was an amazing
trip. From the blue tranquil waters of the Indian
Ocean to the endless open savana filled with all of
God's amazing creatures. God is so good, he opens our
eyes to his endless wonders and watches over our every
step!

I love the outdoors and it was amazing to see his
prestine creation from how it was the beginning of
time. In the Serengetti we watched literally millions
of wildebeast on their yearly migration over thousands
of kms of protected parks. It's one of the largest
natural animal migrations left on earth! It was truly
HIS favour that we saw every possible animal that we
wanted to see - rhinos, lions, leopards, cheetahs,
giraffes etc. all in their natural habitat. We had
lions and baboons with in meters. One baboon took the
lunch box from Kim - I guess he thought it was free
delivery ;)

The bus ride back was again full of surprises. Coming
into Nairobi at dark the bus hit a drunk man that
walked out into the middle of the road. He was
unconscious but breathing. No 911 here, they dragged
him on the bus and looked for the nearest clinic that
turned him away, then to the police station where
police man emptied the little change in his pockets
and sent him off. The bus then took him into Nairobi
for a larger hospital. There was not much I felt I
could do but pray. Really gives you a new
appreciation for the emergency system we have in
Canada!! I truly hope the man is OK!

But overall the trip was really an amazing end to an
amazing experience. I'm back at Canada House now (our
main base) to finish up some work and fly out in a few
days.

Thank-you all for following along and supporting me on
the journey. Your emails and prayers were so precious
to me and I know I wouldn't have survived without
them. There have been ups and downs but I have truly
seen God's Mercy, Grace, Patiences, Faithfulness and
Love through it all.

I hope to keep in touch with you all are hear what
you're up to but this will be the last of my "travel
updates" ... for now ;)

Thanks again for following along and I look forward to
seeing you and hearing about the good plans, for a
hope and a future, that God has for YOU!

Signing off from his African Adventure (for now)!

Mike

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A little Spice to Life

2006-05-01T22:51:00.000+03:00

Hello Everyone,

Jambo! (Hello in Swahili). Well we have arrived in
Zanzibar and are having a great time! Work back in
Uganda is mostly finished. I will return for a few
days before my flight to finish things up, but for now
I'm enjoying the Spice Islands.

The trip was a greuling 29 hour bus ride in a bus with
no washroom and a leaky roof ;) I hard lesson learned
- don't drink a lot of water on a bus with no
washroom. I had to run off in the dark behind a gas
station and the buses here don't wait for you. You
have to flag down a taxi driver to catch up to and
stop the bus. Lucky the bus was stil there after much
relief. And the bus leaked in two spots, one right
above my shoulder but I found a plastic bag to wear to
divert the constant dripping.

But we are here now and it's been amazing. Our hotel
is in the street maze of corridors in Stone Town and
has the fitting name - Narrow Street Hotel! The
people here are different then on the coast. It was
settled by Arabs originally and is %90 Muslim. It has
the feel as if you have been transported to the Middle
East.

Tomorrow we head up to the North Coast to do some
snorkelling and hopefully see some Sea Turtles. We
have met many travellers from all over the world and
every some from our own backyard (I met someone from
the Okanagan funny enough). It's been a good wind
down from my work in Uganda, but I still have Uganda
in my blood, still use Ugandian greetings by accident
rather then Swahili (common in Kenya and Tanzania).

We are here for a couples more days then off to the
Serengetti for a Safari. Don't mean to make you all
jealous. I'll be sitting behing a desk at work soon
enough ;) But some of you will be finished exams now
and onto the summer, enjoy the break from school and
God Bless!

I think more people get sick when travelling a lot
(new strange foods,little sleep, etc.). One of our
group has fallen sick. If you could pray for her
health that would be great! Praise God for the
wonderful diverse world that he made!

God Bless,
Mike

ps OK this is cool, some masai warriors just walked
into the internet cafe. They're dressed in their
traditional red robes with all kinds of beads and
carry a stick and knife at all times. One of the guys
has his ears stretched with big earrings - and they're
sitting here checking their email - weird!

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Time Flys as fast as a Cheetah

2006-04-15T13:35:00.000+03:00

Agandi (how are you) my Friends!

I may say this every email but I mean it - I hope you
are all doing well!

Well, my time hear is almost finished and I have seen
the Cheetah run (although it was in a cage). This
last week will be spent doing computer work (when the
power is on).

The last several weeks I have been travelling in the
villages looking at new water projects and collecting
information for reports. It was good see visit the
villages and you find that the people living there are
very similar. The survive off the land, growing what
they eat. Most have Banana Plantations full of
Matooki (plantain). Oh yes and they all love roasted
goat.

Last week as we were leaving our main camp in the
village (Rubingo) we had a goat party for all the
workers. We bought two goats (yes you buy them alive)
that they slaughtered them for us - not for the weak
of stomach like myself (but I did kill a chicken).
But Oh Boy when they roast it up it's one of the most
delicious meats I've tasted. After feasting on
roasting meat and drinking lots of Soda's (Yes the
Coca Cola and Pepsi empire expand across Africa, even
in the most remote villages), we finished the night
with speeches, singing and a bit of dancing. It was a
good way to finish our time there.

In one week we will be heading off to Tanzania to
visit Zanzibar and the Serengetti(where I hope to
really see a Cheetah running). Then I fly to London
to stay a few days and return to Vancouver May 20th.

I has truly been an amazing experience and I thank all
of you guys for following along. I truly hope to hear
about your current and future adventures, whether it
be abroad or in the job you go to everyday.

Yes things are finishing up but there's still a lot of
work to do. Please pray for:
- grace to finish all the reports and work in this
last week
- grace for the transition back to Canada
- continued good health

Now I realize that I have been having prayer requests
but I have been neglecting praise reports. Here are
some:
- my health has been much better this month (thanks
for your prayers)
- there has been breakthoughs in relationships and our
team is working even better together
- God has truly kept us safe the whole time we have
been here
- God has truly provided for my every need

With lots of Love in HIM,
Mike

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God is Good

2006-03-24T15:28:00.000+03:00

Hey Everyone,

I really hope you're all doing well. Not to much to
report on since last time. I have been continuing my
work in the villages and have been in front of a
computer writing reports.

I've been sick though but am much better now. It was
some kinda stomach thing. I was in bed for a couple
days and thought I was getting better but then the bad
gas hit (sorry for the gorry details). I seriously
felt like a human gas compressor. Anyway I'm getting
treatement for it which means going to the clinic to
get injections for 5 days. Feeling great now though.
There are sure some crazy things that can happen in
your stomach here.

Also - Praise God! I have found a good job upon my
return to Canada. I will be working at a company
called KWL in Burnaby (yeah, for all you
Vancouverites! I'll miss you Vernonites!). I will be
doing water modelling and water sytem design which is
the area I want to go in. I start June 1st which
leads me to a question:

Does anyone know of some places where I can stay in
Vancouver/Burnaby starting June 1st?? (I don't have a
lot of time to look around as I get back May 20th)

Thanks guys!!

Mike

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New Horizons

2006-03-09T17:23:00.000+03:00

Hello Everyone,

Hope you're all doing well. Sorry it's been a while
since my last update.

Well the last couple weeks I've had a good chance to
travel a bit and see some new horizons.

About two weeks ago on our break I had a chance to go
to a game park in Uganda. The first night we tented
in a forest full on monkeys. In the night we awoke to
Monkey calls responding like a chorus in the forest
all around us. We found out in the morning it was
Baboons and Colubus Monkeys making calls to mark their
territory. The next day we travel into a Gorge to
search for Chimpanzees- we found them pretty quickly.
Amazing creatures - they are very intelligent I think
the closest to human beings, but not close enough to
evolve by any stretch of the imagination. Next we
travelled to the Savanna and did a Safari. We saw
elephants, hippos, lions, hyenas, warthogs and lots
more. It reminded me of the Lion King. The greatest
was to see Pumba (warthog), it got me singing a little
song a love (Hakuna Mutata). Amazing to see God
creation and how they all work together.

After returning we headed off to Kenya for a week to
checkout a possible new water project. Kenya was
quite different from Uganda- much drier and flatter.
We met with a committee of elders from the area that
have been working for 10 years to get water for the
area. They had just been in a drought, no rain for 6
months. Four days before we arrived the rains started
and boy did it rain (praise God - Bwana Asifiwe). The
drought hit them hard as they are all farmers. The
grass has dried up and they had to go into the forest
to get grass for their cattle. When we were there the
people we were staying with had a milk cow that died,
most likely due to starvation. There were reports
that they had even lost people from lack of water.
Amazing stories that remind you of stories in the
bible that you don't think really happen today. We
hope that we can help them with water. Please pray
that as we write our report we would have wisdom and
present these peoples plee in the best way.

My intership has been extended for another month to
finish some work. I then plan to travel a bit. Plan
to be back in Canada mid-May.

Prayer Requests:
-wisdom in concluding the work I have been working on
-not to worry about what's next to do my part to
search and trust God, that HIS peace that passed
understanding would gaurd my heart and mind in Christ
Jesus
-energy, health and strength
-protection against the evil one

Only a few more months and I'll be back in Canada.
Look forward to seeing you all!!

In HIM,
Mike

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Moving Ahead

2006-02-11T14:43:00.000+03:00

Hey Everyone,

I pray the Lord watches over you all as seasons
change. I've been well, thanks for all your thoughts
and prayers!

Projects are really cooking now so there seems to be
lots of work to do, especially as March is coming
closer. New water lines are almost ready to serve
more people with clean water. I have also been
looking at new water projects for the future, which
has had it's challenges.

Going to new villages and seeing the state of how the
people live and the dirty water is very motivating.
However there is such need, but not enough water for
everyone. My biggest challenge I have faced is
deciding how far we can take the water. There has
been a long drought so water springs are less so I've
had to cut back on the amount of people that we can
serve with water. Very hard decision, I prayed to God
lots for wisdom as my experience and knowledge is
limited (a prayer request). But atleast we can help
some and we must. Reminded me of when Jesus was
talking to the women at the well - he said that people
drink the water but become thirsty again. He has
living water that we can drink so that we will never
be thirsty again.

I watched as the construction team built a water tap
for a new village. The adults and children from the
village stood by and watched eagerly. One boy had
some sort of disease and he had large open blisters
all over his face which the flies had found. We
talked with his Mom and told her to bring him to the
clinic at our camp - I pray she has the time and
strength to bring him. I hope that clean water will
help prevent and treat diseases like this!

The more time spent here the more the reality of the
need becomes apparent. But we cannot be overcome we
must continue to move forward and help.

Some might remember a women that we helped take to the
hospital with her very sick daughter, who died that
night. She traveled to the large town to meet as and
brought two huge bunches of matooki(plantain banana's-
a bunch must weigh 25kg). Amazing people, they have
nothing but are so willing to go out of their way to
give. She wanted us to come and visit her village.
We hope to in the future.

The stories go on... There is so much need but we
must help.

Prayer requests:
-wisdom to make decisions of decided who should get
water
-strength to move forward even when the need seems
overwhelming
-wisdom as I make decisions of what to do after March
-protection from the enemies schemes to discourage,
bring discord, intimidation

Oh, a bonus, a bunch of us will be travelling to see a
possible new water project in Kenya at the beginning
of March.

Oh and I did a bible study/worship with my guitar with
the whole group. It was awesome!! To hear the
Ugandians sing "ONE WAY, JESUS" was sooo cool!

Ok that's it for now. Thanks again for all the prayer
and support- I definitely feel it.

Mike

__________________________________________________________
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Breaking Through

2006-01-22T17:16:00.000+03:00

Hey everyone,

Hope January is finding you well. I'm doing well- I'm
enjoying the 4 month extended summer. Not any crazy
adventures to report on like last time. After getting
back to work in January I have been working on various
water projects. But through out all I do I have
really sensed Gods presence and how he works in
amazing ways even in little ways, even in the midst of
struggles.

God has really opened up breakthroughs in
relationships with those around me. I'm learning it's
not just about the work that you do, but those you do
it with and how you deal with them and treat them.
It's been a great growing experience - and I'm
thankful that God know exactly what he's doing and he
deals with us with such patience and love.

I think I'm getting very fimiliar with Uganda now. I
feel comfortable here and I find that I'm not taking
as much pictures because things are so fimiliar.
There's still so much for me to learn though.

Had a really good meeting with an engineer from
Toronto the other day. He has his own company but has
a really good balance with ministry and work. It was
very encouraging for me to see someone that is very
technical, yet very relational. God gave us both a
mind and heart and we need to use them both.

I sense God pushing me to take more initiative with
leading a bible study and worship. To be more aware
of the ministry opportunities around me - to see more
of the spiritual side and not get too caught up in the
technical things. So this would be a pray request for
me.

Also been missing home. Please pray for extra
strength and obedience for the months ahead.

You guys are in my mind and prayers. Love to hear
what you're up to and how I can be praying.

With lots of love,
Mike

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Rwanda & Rafting

2006-01-01T21:03:00.000+03:00

Happy New Year to you all! Hope it was an awesome
time with God, Family and Friends!

Well our christmas break is coming to end. It has
been a very different christmas and New Year, but it
has been an amazing experience.

As you may have seen from previous emails we went
rafting on the Nile- crazy. Christmas was spent at
our home base of Canada House located in Mbarara.
Gingerbread cookies and roast chicken galore (yes, I
killed the chicken). Then we travelled to Rwanda,
just got back yesterday.

Rwanda was a truly amazing experience. We visited
some memorial sites from the genocide. We visited one
church where 5-10 thousand people were killed. The
church has been left as it was after the killing. The
tin roof is specalled like the night sky from light
streaming through the small holes made from exploding
gernades and gun shots. In a small room all the
clothes of the dead have been gathered along with
countless bones of those that couldn't be identified.
The bones have been collected into a memorial champer.
Skulls cracked from machette blows stare at you in
horror. The once white sheet on the altar at the
front still stained with the blood of the innocent.
On the wall a statue of Mother Mary frozen in a stare-
the only witness of all the horror that took place 10
years ago.

Yet despite all the horror that took place across the
country as 1 million of the countries 8 million people
were masacred- they have come a long way in 10 years.
The country is growing strong, with a new road system
across the country and the capital, Kigali, booming
with business. The people are friendly and the place
feels peaceful and safe.

We travelled to the Montane Rain Forest in the south
which is full of all kinds of monkeys and chimps. As
we walked through one of the oldest forests in Africa
with our guide we could hear chimps calling in the
forest around us. Communicating to the small groups
of chimps that they should gather together and nest
for the night. Ironically after walking for 3 hours
in the forest without seeing any monkeys we found a
group of 10 monkey catching insects just outside the
door of our cabin. They weren't afraid of us as other
tourists had been feeding them (they told us - don't
feed the monkeys).

Back to work in the villages tomorrow. Construction
starts on the water projects which is exciting. The
break was great and very refreshing but it will be
good to get back to the work we are hear to do.

Today armed with my Bible, Journal and Guitar I found
a quite place and met with God. He never fails those
who seek him. I'm learning that I need to seek him
more and rely on his strength. I'm finding that if I
go on my own my pride and selfishness take over and I
end up frusterated wondering what's wrong- but that's
when I know where I need to go.

Prayer request:
1. More time spent with Him and His Word to truly find
His strength, vision and humility.
2. Continued Grace and Patience in the relationships
with the team and other around me.
3. Strong finish in these last 3 months to complete
all that he has me here for.

May God's grace, and unending love always find you
when you come to the end of yourself.

In Him with lots of His LOVE,
Mike

__________________________________________________________
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Happy Holidays from Africa!

2005-12-24T16:01:00.000+03:00

A BIG MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone out there!

May you feel the true PEACE of the father. May you
really appreciate the family and friends around you
and afar. His loving arms are big enouch to stretch
around the whole world.

My first christmas away from home- I miss family and
friends. But I feel HIS Peace and Presence and I have
friends around me.

We just returned from Rafting the Nile. CRAZY! Grade
5 rapids which are the highest you can raft. It was
so much fun, but after I was so tired. It felt like I
had been flushed down a very large toilet several
times!! The boat flipped twice and we were left at
the mercy of the river. I swear I had like 10 litres
of water flushed up my nose and out my mouth. The
crazy things we do.

I've really been missing playing the guitar! So after
the help of some strangers I met on the street and
some wild rides on boda-boda's (motorbikes) weaving
through traffic all across Kampala I now have a
guitar. I got it in tune today and played some
christmas music that I remembered- it felt so good and
totally put me in the christmas spirit. When I return
home I hope to leave it with a church here.

The team has been getting along good and the christmas
break has helped alot. Construction of various
different water projects starts in January so that's
something to look forward to.

Christmas here is much lower key. It's kinda nice not
to worry about the christmas shopping rush. For
christmas day we will have a big pancake breakfast and
chicken dinner which could involve me killing a
chicken. Then we will visit some of the Ugandians on
our team who have invited us to there home.

Well I truly hope you all have an awesome christmas!

Gods many Blessings!

Mike

__________________________________________________________
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More Pics (from Tanzania and Uganda)

2005-12-09T16:22:00.000+03:00

On the beach in Tanzania(just a short visit though)

Had a friend drop by - Tanzania

The famous Bayobob tree! - Tanzania

Me and the Banana Tree (what's with me and the tree's!) - Tanzania

Misty Mountians in Tanzania

Relaxing at the resturant

Merry Christmas - While I get a tan!

2005-12-08T19:57:00.000+03:00

Agandi! (how are you)

Warm Christmas Greetings to you all (and I do mean warm!). I truly hope you are all doing well and getting geared up for christmas.

I'm doing well. I enjoy hearing from you guys- wherever you may be! Christmas is coming but it sure doesn't feel like it here. I was taking a rest this afternoon in the 30 degree weather and heard in the distance- "Hark the Herold Angels Sing...", it felt very wierd. Yes, christmas this year will be different, I may be rafting on the Nile and chasing after elephants and lions, but I think I'll have a new appreciation for a North American christmas.

The last week I have been in a place called Kikigati near the Ugandian/Tanzanian border. A pretty hot and dry place. I have been helping with the repair of a rain water catchment. Nothing to exciting but something happened that's worth mentioning.

I was driving down the road (on the left hand side) and a lady came running up towards the truck waving for me to stop. I stopped and found out from the Ugandian travelling with me that she has a really sick child that needs to be transported to the other clinic down the road. I couldn't say no so they rushed the child who looked in really bad shape into the back seat of the truck and we headed out. So turned out that she had brought the child already to both clinics and they had both referred her to the hospital in the large town 2 hrs away (Mbarara), but she didn't have money to get her there, and her husband had left to Tanzania with his other two wives. So we took the child into the hospital because she was in really bad shape, she kept dozing off and the Mother kept waking her up. So we took her limp body into the child area of the hospital. Mothers were everywhere with their children in arms. We rushed the child to a small room where the nurse was dealing with other very sick children. They looked at her and gave her care right away. We had to go back to Kikigati so we gave some money to the mother and our cell phone numbers. Well, that night we got a call and found out that the child had passed away, and she had no way to take the body back to her home. We worked out a way for one of the other interns to take her back.

The sad thing is that this is third time that this has happened while the group has been here. It knew things where bad hear but that was definitely a wake up call. It seems the child mortality rate is very high here.

Well, life goes on and you can only do so much. Otherwise things have been good.

Well I must send this email before the power goes out. Enjoy the snow for those that have it!

Mike

50 hrs on a Bus!

2005-11-25T11:48:00.000+03:00

Hello Everyone!!

Well wow, what an adventure. So much has happened but
I'll try to keep it short, but it won't be, so for
those that don't have the time to read it all - "I'm
doing fine and hope you are all doing well!".

The last week and a half I have been in Tanzania. I'm
now back in Uganda on a break at a beautiful island
resort. I haven't slept in the same place for the
last 2 weeks, it's been a whirl wind, but it's been an
amazing opportunity - Praise God!

First off me and Richard (program director) headed off
to Tanzania on a bus. We traveled through Kenya to
Tanzania and the 24hr bus ride was an adventure in
itself. Crossing borders in Africa can be quite the
task. Military people with AK-47's, small crowded
imigration offices that can be a challenge to find in
the dark. Never the less we made it alright. The
roads in some parts are terrible and traffic travels
on whatever side of the road is best- however it is
good to be in a bus because the rule of the road in
Africa is- if it's bigger then you- Get out of the
Way! Literaly at some instances people were jumping
into the bushes on the side of the 'road' to get out
of the way.

However, despite the rough trip, it was alright due to
an amazing discover for me- Gravel! I was feeling
kinda naucious so I thought I'd pop in a Gravel. Next
thing I know I wake up 6 hrs later feeling great!

We travelled through Kenya at night so we didn't see
the country-side there, but Tanzania is beautiful.
More arid landscape then Uganda, but amazing trees
scattered across red sand, and every so often you see
a Masia dressed in the traditional red robes hearding
their cattle.

We were in Tanzania looking at future potential water
projects and an ecotourism site with the Lutheran
church. After hiking up hills through pasture land
and forests we determined that one source of water is
very good and it should serve 3 local villages and the
town of Lushoto fine.

The rural people of Africa seem very similar. They
live off the land and depending on water sources can
travel great distances for water. Some are well off,
but most live in poverty just trying to get by. By
providing them with a safe and close water source it
can save them lots of time gathering water and improve
their health. The time saved gathering water can
hopefully help them produce more from the land and in
some cases allow the children to go to school instead
of staying home to gather water and work. It's
exciting to see the potential to bring water to these
people and help them out. Yet, I know that I still
can't begin to comprehend all that the people face and
what life is like them. As a person from Canada I'm
continually blown away by how fortunate I am, how much
we have, and that even though there are many
challenges, we can offer help to these people.

Many other things to say, but I don't want this to be
a journal- just an update and some random
thoughts/lessons. So I will close with some prayer
requests. Thank you soo much again for your prayers-
they HAVE be felt and answered- I'm glad to be here
but I miss Canada and you guys!

Prayer requests:
1. Continued grace, unity and meshing of the team -
our work can be very draining/frusterating at times,
but we learn to work together.
2. Focus, effectiveness and wisdom as we dive into
some new projects, Patients as well, as things take
time.
3. Continued health and safety for the team.

Thanks so much guys, I love hearing from ya!

With lots of love,

Mike
p.s. pictures will be coming soon!

__________________________________________________________
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Off to Tanzania!

2005-11-10T20:41:00.000+03:00

Hello,

Hope all is well with you. Things in Africa are good and getting better. I'm off to Tanzania in a couple of days and will be there for a week or so checking out new water projects with a Tanzanian Engineer named Godfrey. Thought I'd send an update before I leave.

The last couple days have been good, but it has come in an interesting way. It all started with our water taps running dry. Of course being the engineer I should know why there is no water ;) There are two Ugandan Maintenance workers (Charles and Gordon) that are in charge of maintaining and fixing the system. So it was left to them to fix the problem. After a couple of days without water in the taps, I joined them in search of the problem. After a couple of days of hangin out with them and driving them around we found the problem- one of the main valves was half closed, probably from a kid playing a prank. It was not good that people were without water for several days, but it was a good experience for me. I got a chance to get to know Charles and Gordon better and interact with people in the community. I was able to apply my knowledge and feel useful- it was very satisfying to help fix the problem and see how much the water helps the people. Plus in the process of looking for the problem many smaller problem (leaks) were fixed. I think it's pretty cool how God can use what looks like a big problem, and bring a lot of good out of it that you wouldn't have expected at first.

I had another chance to really connect with one of the Ugandan leaders I'm working with in camp. We had a really good discussion about relationships between us Muzungos (white people) and Ugandans. It really opened my eyes to help understand them more. I thank God for the more opportunities to connect with and understand the Ugandan people- at first it seemed very hard.

God is constantly challenging my pride and selfishness and sometimes I feel very exposed but I know it's good. I know I need to cooperate with the exposing and killing of the sinful nature within me so that I can be changed- more of Him less of me.

There are many victories but there are still many challenges facing the team. One lady has finished her time here and more people have arrived.
Please pray that the changing team is able to adjust and work together.

Please pray specifically for Kim and Avis who is working in HIV and AID awareness and Health. There are many diseased and sick people around here and they are the most involved with them. Yesterday one of the workers daughters was very sick and was taken to the hospital. Today a small child that they were helping was very sick and was taken to the hospital- we found out tonight that the child passed away. It affects the whole team, but more so the ones dealing with them directly. Please pray that Kim and Avis will have strength and courage to deal with these situations.

Please pray for a safe and productive time in Tanzania!

As I write there are many other thoughts flowing through my head, but I will keep it at this for now.

I truly hope you are all doing well!

With lots of love!

Mike

Pictures!!

2005-11-01T12:03:00.000+03:00

Arriving at Entebbe Airport

The Kids!

Sunset at Rubingo Camp

Cooking a Traditional African Meal (well- not quite)

Beautiful People - Cute Babies!

Civilization- well kind of!

2005-10-31T23:46:00.000+03:00

Well I've been back in the main city (Mbarara) here for a 5 day break and it's been very nice. We have access to internet hence the emailing splurg.

The main city is very different then the country- although there are more amenities life seems busier. Many things to buy to try and stock up for the next month. Also much time is spent at one of my obsessions - technology. I've been sorting through the computer graveyard here to try and get better set-up for camp - be it cell phones, solar panels, batteries etc. It's kinda fun but it can be a big drain of time.

Being so "busy" I could feel my focus was weaning and I needed some time with God. He is amazing, He never fails, He always picks you up. Sunday morning I just wanted to hide away, but I felt prompted to go into town and check out a new church. So one of the guys from the team joined me and we each got a ride on a "boda, boda" (motor cyle ride), which is quite fun, but honestly not quite safe (no one wears helmets) but they don't go THAT fast (don't worry Mom, I'll keep safe!)

Anyway, we went to this small church that runs the internet cafe and it was awesome. Now African people know how to rejoice and dance! I'm sure us Mazungos (white people) look like fools trying to dance african style but it's a lot of fun. God was there and his presence was what I needed. It doesn't matter where you are in the world - it can't separate you from His Presence (Psalm 139). The people shared testimonies, which where basically like sermons, of what God was teaching them and it was right where I was at. It was very refreshing time and I made some good connections with the people and played soccer with some of them that night. Thank you for your prayers, and Praise be to God - He is able to meet all of our needs, and most
importantly our spiritual ones, according to all his riches!

So I've bought a soccer ball and some shoes for soccer. I want to start up some soccer games with the kids in the village when there's some free time. Yes I know this could be a dangerous thing- and it could get out of control especially considering all the kids in the area, but why not? Please pray that I can connect with the kids and that they can have fun, but not look to me as their "Sugar Daddy", giving them this and that. Our team has already become accustomed to the little kids yelling to us on the road as we pass by "Give me my motor-car". A past Canadian was giving the kids toy cars which is great, but word has spread and the kids have the impression of our team that we are here to give them free stuff.

Which brings me to some prayer requests:
1. Good relationships with the Ugandans- wisdom in how to help effectively
2. Guidance and focus for engineering work
3. Totally relying on God- that fruit of the Spirit would be seen and the flesh would die (especially selfishness)

Thanks guys. I love hearing from ya- even though I may check emails only once per month. Sorry if I haven't responded to ya!

Learning to Love (1 Cor 13)

Mike
p.s. Bonus for those who have read this far- congratulations! You can check out my blog (Yes I have set it up) at "mikeinafrica.blogspot.com"

Life is Simple

2005-10-29T16:28:00.000+03:00

Wow sorry it's been so long since I last emailed and
sorry for the long email. I am now at Rubingo which
is in Rural Uganda. It is at our work camp where I
will be for the next 6 months ( except for a few
trips). We have limited email access here- only
via Satellite Phone which is like 5 times slower then
dial-up!! Just think though- this message is being
sent to you from space! Anyway enough of that geeky
engineering stuff.

I'm doing well! I have been at Rubingo for 2 weeks
now and I feel like I'm finally settling in. Life
here is very simple compared to Canada and I think I
like it. We have no power except via solar panels
which is powering the laptop I'm typing on right now.
We do have running water which is such a blessing. We
have squatter toilets in a mud hut which I'm getting
used to, we wash our clothes by hand- OK, we have
hired a local to wash our clothes for us which sounds
very lazy, but shes happy to earn money from
working. We eat beans, rice, matooky (plantain)
everyday for lunch and dinner which are grown by the
locals in the fields around us. We sleep in
safari tents under a roof made from pupyrus and wood
gathered from the swamp at the bottom of the hill.
Because we are near the equator the sun rises
from 6:45-7:00am every day and sets from 6:45-7:00pm
all year round (no daylight savings time). After 7pm
everything is dark so the candles and flashlights come
out and we talk, read and then go to bed.

If you take a moment to be quiet and listen you will
hear crickets, birds, cows, goats, chicken and
children playing. If you are lucky you will hear the
drums and the children singing for their choir
practice at the church across the way (which I can
hear right now). So many different sights,
sounds and smells to describe the experience here but
it's hard to capture it all.

So what have I been doing here? I'm working on the
local water system that brings water from the hills
down to the local people. It's a big project and it's
almost done. I'll just be helping to finish the last
part of it and if time permits look into some new
projects in the area and in Tanzania.

The people here are amazing! They are so friendly and
welcoming. Our very first day the children sang and
danced for us. They song went something like, "It's
excellent to see you all, settle down and feel at
home". As we drive along the road everyone waves and
all the children scream "Jumbo, Jumbo!" which is like
"Hello, Hello".

There are lots of needs here. Death seems to be a
common event and many sick people come to the clinic.
The culture is very different and it seems
somewhat difficult to connect with the people on a
deeper level- although I'm sure this will take time.
>From what I can tell the christian church is
very prevalent here. Most schools are run by the
Anglician or Catholic Church and there are many
churches around. Although we are very rural many
of the Ugandan workers listen to a christian radio
station. These things are just on the surface though
and I'm not sure what spiritual condition lies
beneath. I see my role here in a practical sense with
the engineering side of things but I struggle to see
how else I can reach out to help the people- and I
guess this leads to my prayer requests:
1. For God's continual guidance and direction for my
role to play here
2. Strength and wisdom to deal with my own weaknesses
when dealing with people

Thanks guys. Oh by the way doesn't look like my Blog
is going to work due to the lack of fast/cheap
internet connections. I'll let you know if I can
post any pictures. Hope all is well with you!

Mike

Welcome!

2005-10-04T18:38:00.000+03:00

Hello everyone and welcome to Mike's African Adventure. I'll try to post as often as I can and keep things interesting. Please feel free to leave comments, I will be checking them. Also pictures will be coming soon ... I'll try to get a picture of me riding an elephant by the end of the trip, but no guarantees. Let the games begin!