September 6 Post

Yesterday we had a very encouraging and productive meeting with Mannaseh the diocese secretary. Mannaseh is hilarious. His personality is so joyful and effervescent. He is about my height and quite skinny but is always dressed to the hilt. That seems to be the norm here. As a child one would wear shorts, sneakers, graphic tee shirts, teens usually wear things that are more trendy and stylish if they have the money to do so, and almost always, the socially respectable men look sharp. Dress shoes, dress pants, oxford shirts, sport coats, etc. Much like in America, you can spot those who are in a higher pay bracket by what they are wearing. Many people, including myself in the beginning of the planning stages for this trip, make the mistake of thinking that one would need to dress down for a trip to Africa. For example I brought my work boots, some jeans, and all the gray Hanes T-shirts I owned. My mindset was that Africa is dirty, I will be fixing things while being in and out of the mud, so I will need jeans and tees that can get dirty. I was so wrong. Everyone is very conscious of their clothing and their appearence. Here, a person needs to look the part that they fill. For this reason I have worn almost exclusively my Oxford shirts tucked in, so that I fit the part of Manager.

With all that said, the meeting was very encouraging. Mannaseh,our dear friend, came to take us to meet some people he knew, but instead we ended up talking about the conference center for 3 hours and not going to see his friends at all (this is typical here). It was encouraging because Mannaseh’s english is very good and his coherency is at such a level that Julianna and I can speak at a normal pace using our normal vocabulary and be understood. I never appreciated the convenience of speaking without needing a translator until now. We discussed staffing problems, plans of attack for fixing those and other issues, strategies to attract more customers, renovation plans, etc. He was able to communicate some very important things that we had been needing to communicate with the former manager who still has a great deal of influence here, but cannot speak English at all.

For fear of being called fickle I won’t say we are in the swing of things, but after today’s meeting I can say that we are both more at ease than before. In Kinyarwanda we say buhoro buhoro which is something like step by step, slowly but surely, etc. Here they describe it as, “You know how you say in America, ‘slowly by slowly’.”

Until next time, know that Julianna is still improving, she has developed a nasty cough but is so so so much better than before. Also be praying that God will miraculously provide the money that the conference center needs to repair and renovate the necessary things. (There are many!) Another thing to pray for is for our relationship with the University students. We know some from church, but our greatest exposure to them comes because the university rents our three conference rooms for study space for the students. They have taken to spreading, literally, all over the whole center; in the yard, in the bungalows, etc. Right now some have befriended Julianna and I like Julius, Anacharid, and Alfonze. While others, like that guy over there under the bungalow, have taken to making fun of us. I am not sure why but something about us makes them laugh and point sometimes, when I figure it out, I will let you all know. :)

Thanks for all of your support in every form. We have recieved so many encouraging emails that help us know that we are loved.

Drew