Hunter Willis' Blog

On My Mind...

2011-03-21T14:51:00.003-04:00

I Have Moved To Northside

2011-02-26T00:44:00.003-05:00

I have moved to Northside; it is good to have my own apartment, but I miss the companionship of my last diggs.

There are so many things going on in this city, and so much is moving in such an amazing way.

I have been praying for so many people that have been experiencing change, good and bad.

I myself have been going through a period of great transition; with things both good and bad.

I attended a funeral today. It was shaking; it was good to be with friends though, and good to be there for people who have been there for me so much.

I owe such a debt of gratitude to so many friends; I hope that the people that I spend time with on such a sporadic and random basis, usually one on one, know that. I hope that I do not behave in such a social manner out of selfishness.

I pray for my heart and for the hearts of others.

It is now a season of work, of moving forward, but also of TRUSTING GOD and ENJOYING his plan as it unfolds; being motivated less by outcomes and more by the bug guy. Worrying less about relationships and commitments, and living out the day glorifying Christ, enjoying it and watching and listening to what he is trying to tell me.

I invite you all to join me in this.

Praying, working, watching, waiting. Loving and being thankful. (Trying...)

Burkina me manque.
Mon coeur me manque.

Ecclesiastes 3
Luke 8:23-25
Psalm 27

Right now-Trying to trust. Faith. Prayer for all the things going on while I've been disengaged.

PEACE!

Where am I?

2011-01-20T18:08:00.002-05:00

I am in the Valley

Isaiah 50:10-11

10 Who among you fears the LORD
and obeys the word of his servant?
Let the one who walks in the dark,
who has no light,
trust in the name of the LORD
and rely on their God.
11 But now, all you who light fires
and provide yourselves with flaming torches,
go, walk in the light of your fires
and of the torches you have set ablaze.
This is what you shall receive from my hand:
You will lie down in torment.

I'm sorry, but this is incredible.

2010-12-14T11:17:00.000-05:00

Meet Buck from TeamCerf on Vimeo.

Verse Us

2010-12-07T21:48:00.001-05:00

Luke 2: 41-52
41Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover.

42And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast.

43And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it.

44But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day's journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance.

45And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him.

46And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions.

47And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers.

48And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing.

49And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?

50And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them.

51And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.

52And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

Hebrews 6: 9-20
9 But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak:10 for God is not unrighteous to forget your work and the love which ye showed toward his name, in that ye ministered unto the saints, and still do minister.11 And we desire that each one of you may show the same diligence unto the fulness of hope even to the end:12 that ye be not sluggish, but imitators of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.13 For when God made promise to Abraham, since he could swear by none greater, he sware by himself,14 saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.15 And thus, having patiently endured, he obtained the promise.16 For men swear by the greater: and in every dispute of theirs the oath is final for confirmation.17 Wherein God, being minded to show more abundantly unto the heirs of the promise the immutability of his counsel, interposed with an oath;18 that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have a strong encouragement, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us:19 which we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and stedfast and entering into that which is within the veil;20 whither as a forerunner Jesus entered for us, having become a high priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.

Thankful

2010-11-13T13:21:00.003-05:00

Thankful to have so many friends on my Birthday, and a family full of people who despite my neglecting them over the past two years due to overcommitment, are still as warm, remembering and loving as ever.

I had Starbucks for the first time in a long while this weekend. It is quite tasty. I don't regret going without it though. I have kept up with my coffee.

Living with John in Southside has been quite a treat, and I think we both agree its very nice to have the company. Luna, John's dog seems to enjoy the arrangement as well, and is very well mannered and listens. This is fortunate.

Butch, the sometimes drunk homeless man that hangs out behind our house, decided to present his knowledge of the area's past in demonstration of his age and wisdom (after the story of the time he shot a deer 5 times while drunk on corn whiskey in Goochland which took about 25 minutes to tell). He explained the places where old laundromats used to be, that the building behind ours was stables when he was a kid, then a fish processing center (now its a small saw mill) and the scene of days past. He also described in detail the white areas (before the McDonald's was built of course) and the areas where the n******* went shopping (the mention of which caused a glance between John and myself that pierced generations). Butch told us that if you were black, and you tried to walk through the white area of Hull Street (between the black area and the city) you were liable to get your a** beat and maybe worse. He said the whites would steer clear of the black areas for the same reasons.

I am thankful times have changed.

Butch still seems a nice guy (if you're white) and is most definitely a greater harm to himself than anyone else. I never did get exactly how old he is from the conversation. We talk every now and again, and he does have some very interesting stories.

Please pray for Butch.

God has been moving the very large stone that is ELCBF slowly, but with great force. Things seem to be progressing, and we will be making some great leaps forward very soon, God willing. I will keep you informed of this...

Work is going well, and my coworkers threw me a little fest on Friday which was nice, particularly the King Cones, which are definitely a favorite of mine.

I took a hike last weekend to the top of Cold Mountain with a group of friends, and my SLR went too, providing a series of very well received photographs; the trip was a very positive experience and the discipleship and friendship made me realize how much being busy has blinded me from missing my friends. Seeing the presentation some of them gave about their trip to Kenya on Thursday on amplified this, as well as feelings and memories of friends in the Faso.

I have been brainstorming for a new series of posts on the Polifaso site
http://polifaso.wordpress.com/
If you haven't seen that yet, please check it out!

keeping up with prayer, trying to remember to live life for the glory of God, being thankful and remembering of his grace while trying to make it through the daily grind.

Life is... well.

Bless you all.

What is going on?

2010-10-19T21:34:00.004-04:00

Every minute of every day is consumed. Time is no longer mine, and thought no longer must be utilized in order to exhaust every moment of the day. Many are enjoyable, all go by too quickly.

A life that has been perpetually consumed with massive exposure to new things and new cultures, stimulating adventures and days full of the freedom of love from Jesus, good neighbors and children has become (dum dum duuuuummmm...) The daily Grind.

I post that I have been waiting for a miracle rather than allowing myself to realize that God and miracles surround me every day. My brain is in a comatose state from a lack of stimulation.

The people I see every day are blessings on my life, and I enjoy (almost) every moment I have spent with them; Burkina beckons.

On and off of coffee. In and out of Prayer. Bouncing back and forth between Faith without works and works with little faith. Taking pictures. Consuming too much. I fear I have let myself become too much my old self in the workplace.

I suppose I need to find what is sustainable for me in this American living.

I hope it involves 30 Rock. Jack D. is the hero of my past life.

Just being honest.
I need a serious attitude change and to return to the warmth and love of Jesus.
Good to know he's waiting...

I desire to Glorify God more in this stage of my life.
I pray that you are well.

Peace!

Update: me and Burkina Faso

2010-08-14T11:59:00.005-04:00

WOW! Life has been busy, but constant and relatively unchanging for the past few weeks. I moved in with a buddy of mine in southside, but have been continuously working and trying to keep in communication with everyone (but haven't been very successful) and just plugging away at the day to day.

Burkina In the News

Blaise at the UN, 2009

I read the other day that Blaise Campaore is challenging the constitutional provision that declares that the president of Burkina can only run 2 terms; everyone was wondering how he was going to justify running again (or if he was going to retire, riiiight...). I have mixed feelings; on one side this is fairly undemocratic and he has a pretty good stronghold on Burkina's political situation, but on the other hand, he is by far the most stable option.

I believe that Burkina's government could be doing a better job in looking out for its people (especially in regards to education) but they have a very free society (albeit lacking in security), and as long as you don't try to run for president or oppose the government on a massive scale, they pretty well leave you alone over there.

In short, yes Blaise is making a power grab, yes he is corrupt and relies on a tight knit network of friends, yes he likely killed Thomas Sankara but in the scope of things (West Africa's 60 year political history) he is a stable and capable leader and has a great track record for improving society and working closely with the west to bring support to his great but tiny nation of Burkina Faso.

Thomas Sankara delivers a speech

Below is an unfairly unflattering image of a complicated, intelligent man. He and his party claim that because they are the majority party and they have democratically chosen him as their leader, it is undemocratic to prevent him from running again.
Pretty smart- it allows him to retain power and still hold support from the west.

Idealistically, I wish Burkina had a better leader, but in the scope of current politics and the world, my heart settles lukewarm with Blaise Campaore.

I pray he doesn't turn into a Mugabe and that when he finally does step down, Burkina remains truly Burkinabe...

Re ELCBF
Jeremie has been accepted to a Assemblies of God school in Burkina and will be studying for the next three years to get a degree from the church. This is excellent news! We are continuing to work on child profiles and praying for our friends here in the USA and in Burkina Faso.

I finally Saw 'em!

2010-08-02T22:22:00.003-04:00

Primus. I have been a fan since I heard them in elementary school. My first CD: Fizzle Fry, in 1996. I bought every album; they got stolen. I bought them again. They got stolen again.

I didn't buy them a 3rd time, but I did download them darn it.

So, for nearly 15 years now, I had been a fan. I have seen several other headliner shows, but never Primus- no more. Granted I had to see a late show on a weeknight when I was ill- BUT I SAW THEM. I saw them with the very friend that I used to jam to their songs alongside- back when we were cool. Or when we thought we were cool... lol.

Now, I know I'm cool (rock on =P ) and we had a blast. It was an amazing experience for me.

Thanks Alex!

Les Claypool has put on a few pounds, and he seemed to lack a certain flair last night, but nevertheless, the man played a solid show. The music held every ounce of energy it ever had, and the moshing shirtless sweat-carriers bouncing us all over the place while we struggled to capture descent images of the band we a constant reminder of Primus' never ending ability to electrify a crowed.

Fast paced bass riffs, ridiculous guitar whatevering, and lyrics that come off as time-wasting, silly, and likely drug induced but subtly carry a strong message of the falsity behind the "American Dream" are enough to throw any teenager or 3/4 brain-dead post gen x'er into... well... a mosh pit. AWESOME!

Scratch one of the bucket list! What an amazing time...

Buy Me Some Peanuts...

2010-06-21T22:41:00.003-04:00

A Certain Fondness for Life

2010-06-08T23:44:00.004-04:00

FINALLY GETTING USED TO ALL OF THIS!

I am regaining some passion and experiencing something of a renewal of faith; I think it is largely due to the realization that I need to stop worrying about how in line my priorities are and enjoy the things I am doing and the people I am doing them with.

There are some GREAT people here in Richmond and also up in Fredericksburg! You know who you are!! (All of you-you feel special now don't you?!)

I miss Burkina. I think about it every day, and the people there, and Clarisse. I still read the news and keep up on the continent's news and events; I've even been reading L'Observateur Paalga (The New Observer) to stay fresh on my French. Every now and again people at work (who are from all over the world, sought for their ability to speak in tongues [languages-tee hee!]) ask me about it and what I did there. Small talk almost inevitably leads to a Google map search, followed by me staring at Burkina and thinking of the kids and Jeremie and all the things we have done and are doing.

The children and the people are harder and harder to remember, but the frequent texts, occasional calls, and random glimpses I get of images keep a fondness burning in my heart that reminds me why I'm doing all this in the first place (Jesus) and how wonderful he is.

One of my friends asked me to "tell your jesus to use his wizard powers to help me out!" which I did. He got the job. This made me laugh. I think it made us both happy. I miss my friend and his family with a similar fondness.

I like my job, and wish I was making a little more money, but I suppose that is true of any of us currently thankful jobholders during the present times.

I am excited about Craig Springs, a camp this weekend in Craig County which looks to be quite a bit of fun. Very much looking forward to it.

Also pleased to announce the successful marriage of my cousin and her charming and very diplomatic (In many, many ways) new Husband which went off without a hitch, so to speak.

New friends at work keep me on my toes (and I them on theirs) and life has certainly kept me more than sufficiently busy.

Multiple friends getting engaged and married off, having kids, priming the cycle of life. Beautiful things, beautiful dreams. Children of the American life.

Not Much to Say

2010-05-24T20:46:00.002-04:00

Not a whole lot to say as life begins again to take on a very stable vibe. I get up, go to work, sit for 8 hours, then drive home and participate in various activities during the week and weekends, then, on Monday, it all starts again!

My job at Mondial is rewarding and somewhat challenging which I am thankful for; it pays pretty well too, which I am also thankful for. I am trying not to loose sight of Jesus and everything that has been happening, and why I am working in the first place, which all is proving to be quite a lot.

It's difficult not to let the something which you spend 8 hours every day doing dominate the way you feel but the love of the ones I spend my time around seems to combat this encroaching danger sufficiently. I pray that it continues to hold true and that I don't loose sight!

So now I am accepting that life will be like this for quite a while as I work to support the people I am working with and for and to pay off my personal debt. I have learned a great deal about this life in the past few years, and pray those lessons don't fade and God keeps me strong!

So blessings to you in your work, be true and strong for the good things in life, and love on your neighbor and I pray for all of you in that work, and God will give us strength!

Peace.

Eric Penn

2010-04-26T22:45:00.003-04:00

In what may have been one of the strangest happenstances of my life, I ran across this guy in Raven Court. He was really nice and only had encouraging words for me.

He is an author, and a philanthropist.

"Eric Penn was raised in Watts, Los Angeles, Santa Ana, and Richmond, Virginia. Most of his childhood was consumed in detention homes, group homes, and foster care. His early adult years were consumed in Virginia's maximum security prisons. Eight and one-half years of his life was spent around notorious killers, rapist, and other criminals. Four and one-half years was exhausted in solitary confinement hearing psychotic individuals' brag through the air vents about heinous crimes. Mr. Penn decided to study the psychotic nature of deranged criminals and turned his cell into a university. Through a process of erudition, eclectic studies, and careful observation, Mr. Penn discovered a unique thread that ties criminals together. The most notorious cases possessed a strange hatred towards anyone in authority. All inmates were suspicious of the American government and felt they were victims of a larger conspiracy. Every once in awhile books would make its way to solitary confinement and inmates would debate its content. Books such as "Behold a pale horse" by William Cooper would be discussed into the wee hours of the night. The most conscious inmates were ultra-rebellious and the Correctional Officers approached them with caution. Mr. Penn was paroled after serving his term and immediately started writing his first book: Children of Chaos: Breaking the cycle of family and social dysfunction. Today, Mr. Penn works for a non-profit organization as a Family Case Manager teaching parents how to nurture and raise healthy children. In 1997 he was appointed by former Governor George Allen of Virginia to serve on Virginia's Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Advisory Committee, that term ended on June 30, 2001. Mr. Penn has a unique way of solving what he terms "esoteric crimes," using psychology, media outlets, history, and current sociology to uncover deeper clues within horrible crimes."

Located here.

May God bless him and his peaceful work!

Etran Finatawa: Awsome Music, Peaceful Message

2010-04-23T15:12:00.003-04:00

Must See This:

http://www.etranfinatawa.com/

These guys are not from Burkina but Niger; a few members are part Fulani, a nomadic tribe that comprises the majority in the north of Burkina Faso. They are a multi-ethnic band the delivers a message of peace with a music style that... well- check it out:

This song is calle Iguefan, which means "The Dune."

Simi Ol and the ARRR Force

2010-04-22T11:19:00.003-04:00

So, my brother lovingly and kindly agreed to let me have his video camera for my trip to Burkina Faso, but there was a catch. I had to go pick it up from this guy named Simi, who was an African artist from Cote D'Ivoire who my brother had met doing gigs in Paris (he plays a mean bass). So, I took the metro to meet this guy Simi near the projects in the north of Paris to grab this camera.

Simi turned out to be a really cool, nice and loving guy- on a mission. Simi is a reggae artist that delivers a message of peace and love, and his band is actively philanthropic. We hung out for a while, and had a great conversation.

I took his CD to Africa with me, and passed a copy to the most popular bar in our quarter. Here's Simi's Youtube video:

He calls himself "Komandant Simi Ol", and he and his band are an army against violence.

If you want to get your hands on some African French Reggae, you can get it on iTunes.

Search "Simi Ol"

ELCBF Project Blog

2010-04-21T13:08:00.003-04:00

So, after the USA trip and a few other posts, I have decided it will be better to create an ELCBF blog that is cleaner, and has more clear information regarding the project. That blog can now be found HERE:

http://polifaso.wordpress.com/

I will still be putting personal information and posts on this blog, especially when I get back to Burkina Faso.

For now, I am psyched to be starting my new job at Mondial Assistance on Monday, and I'm still riding on a high after getting Jeremie the money donated by Rotary International to Sponsor our orphanage.

So things are pretty darn good!! I hope they are for you as well!! Please click the link on the images/post below to Sponsor a child through ELCBF! Thanks and God Bless!

Child Sponsors!!

2010-04-14T13:05:00.005-04:00

So, the time is here! We are accepting sponsors for children in the ELCBF program! please visit http://elcbf.org/sponsor/ to fill out the necessary information and become a sponsor for one of the 300 children in our program! We are so excited to share the opportunity to connect people here with an actual child (that I have met and played with!) that will so greatly benefit from your help. Its just $20 bucks a month, and it's tax deductible!

That $20 will feed, educate, clothe and provide medicine for not a face on TV or some random person across the world, but one of 300+ children that are connected through local missions in Richmond!!

So why not sponsor a child now, and share God's love with a child and family in Burkina Faso?!

Please, click on the link, fill out a form, and help support the children in our program!

God bless you all,
-Hunter

At The Edge

2010-04-06T10:39:00.008-04:00

Prayers go out to the coal miners and their families in WVA.

West Virginia is a beautiful state, rich in history and a unique culture. The place definitely gets a bad rap, though it is true that it seems quite poor and there isn't a whole lot there. As Virginia becomes more and more developed I increasingly feel like the walls are creeping in, but after having driven across the USA, I am relieved to witness that this seems to be pretty unique to the mid Atlantic and New England. Traffic elsewhere in this nation flowed smoothly; we went through several major cities during their hours and rt. 3 on a weekday afternoon or i95 just about any time put them all to shame.

I still love it here though.

It was a wonderful thing to reconnect with my brother, we really got to know one another all over again which was probably the best part of the trip; it was wonderful of him to do this with me, and I really felt close to God the whole time. I think it was good for me to get away from society for a while, to decompress from Africa and the holidays as life never really stopped after January.

Sometimes you forget...

Driving through places like Nevada and Wyoming and coming back to VA was definitely a shock. It started in Missouri, where there were actually other cars on the interstate. It is amazing to think just how much there is out west and how difficult the climate is. I'd say it's a safe bet that the majority of the land within the USA is sparsely inhabited, yet we are still growing; more and more people in the cities and in the "Golden Crescent" (or Washabaltaphiliyorkaboston as I like to call it). Also California, but even with about 1/4 the nation's population, California seems to have plenty of space, miles and miles of beautiful mountains, forest and plains set aside from human habitation-not that we don't here in VA, but our eastern cities are definitely more crowded.

It is fun for me to think of what it must be like to ranch out west; using everything from horses to ATVs to helicopters to watch after your cattle, being able to see from 40-120 miles over the earth's rolling surface. Then I think of how poor it was out there, the trailers, the small towns and the inescapable solitude caused by the distances between them- reality quickly puts a damper on the romantic image. Money isn't everything it's true, but without community life must be very hard; even remote villages in Burkina have families all around. I think growing up in a trailer, responsible for hundreds of cattle and living more than 40 miles away from anyone must create a uniquely hardened individual.

I think of Wyoming, the snow drifts and the wind we experienced, and then I think of the snow barriers that were 10-15 feet high, put up to keep snow drifts from clogging and likely destroying the interstate. It must be amazing in the winter there. Gates on the interstate to close them when they are covered and scenes of pavement stretching to the horizon with few fellow voyagers speeding down their dotted lanes pull imagery from the mind to fill the void. God is watching over it all...

images do no justice...

Astoria Was so beautiful and the badlands were amazing, so much more OPEN... you can see everything out west. The beauty is much easier to appreciate when you don't live there I'm certain.

Mount St. Helens and Mt. Hood over the horizon from Portland, the gentle but massive feeling of the high Rockies standing firm like God's left hand which we stare at like children in awe of our father's strength, and the Cascades that cut through the horizon with their snowy peaks proving their greatness and boasting that not even the great redwood can spot their face.

As we came back into VA I was surprised to find myself overwhelmed with a homely comfort and a new appreciation for the beauty for our our little Appalachia, as it so unique in this nation. I was also shocked at the size of our mountains as many were equally as impressive in size as the average rock out west. Their sloping curves and soft tree lines however were much more like our father's gentle brow, showing love, confidence, strength and giving comfort all at a quick glance, and without saying a word.

I am glad to be back, and look forward to getting back to work. Spring is rising all around me and my senses are awash with glorious stimulation, God is piercing my soul every day. My eyes have seen America, and my soul is alive for God. I go to lay myself at his feet and pray that he uses me for good causes. I can't wait to be back in the city but will so deeply miss the experience of being near to the family that's alongside me now... bless them.

AAAAAaaaaaaamen.

Link re-posted for Facebook readers http://www.2112.net/cheeze/trip/ Should work

Photos

2010-04-02T10:08:00.001-04:00

Ok, so I have created a website with just under 700 images which should be pretty easy to use and look through. it can be found here:

http://www.2112.net/cheeze/trip/

Enjoy!! The trip was fabulous and I have lots to say, but for now I have lots to do...

Complex Map

2010-03-30T22:59:00.004-04:00

This is a sophisticated and highly detailed map of our USA journey. The journey is completed and we are home safe! More notes to come soon, but for now, bed and shower... blessed shower.

Full signal, full throttle

2010-03-29T14:30:00.000-04:00

Our journey nears it's end as we cruise up on St. Louis with fewer nights to go than we spent in Wyoming.

America is amazing, and every town seems to have a rich and interesting story and at least 10 reasons they are ready to throw at any visitor to prove they are unique- and I really think they are.

From the corn palace, to the space needle, great Thai food to bad Fried fish, the corn farmers of the notrth to the oil refineries of Texas, the struggling cattle ranchers to the money printing techno geeks of silicon valley and the Biltmore billionaires to the temporary trailerers of the Mississippi delta, from sea to shining sea, everyone has their pride and their stories, every community their successes and their struggles. What a wonderful and DIVERSE country to be a part of, and what a blessed slice of earth we have.

Thank God for it all and for it's peace which I hope you are a part of.

Still a good few days ahead!! More stories, more pictures!! More fluffery to come!

Flat: a salty tale

2010-03-20T15:26:00.001-04:00

Sitting at Utah salt flats rest station, amazed by Gods creation.

California and Washington are awesome places and so clean and pretty one questions the truth of them; I simply could not get comfortable but I was only there for a day or two so as to be expected.

We saw the end of the Lewis and Clark trail and spent a day in Astoria Oregon which was AMAZING and we had lunch at the google.

Last night we saw a ghost town called Wonder in Nevada which was cool but anticlimactic as no structures were left standing; we did see the remains of a post stop that became a Wells Fargo stop at Cold Springs- they dated to 1801 which for out here is ancient.

I'm rounding 3k photos and can't wait to share!! I'm learning how blessed I am every moment of this trip...

God keep you and bring peace to all who read this!! Thanks for reading too!

South by South West

2010-03-19T01:11:00.003-04:00

So, We are in Ft collins Co, a beautiful little town north of Colorado. We have driven across CO, TX, and NM and seen most of the south!! What a week. Beautiful. I have cauth up with two old friends and seen many a thing never seen before. Pics up on Facebook.

Atlanta

Hotlanta was a pretty town!! It was really cool to hang with Candace there and see how she was liking the place, and also to learn a bit from her as well. It seemed a really clean and new city, with an amazing cultural diversity!! Really good Thai food too. Spicy...

Birmingham

Birmingham was definitely what I typically imagine the south being like, mostly old, not a whole lot going on, and not enough money to keep what would be beautiful architecture and scenery pristine. The park dedicated to the Birmingham riots was very nice, and the city did seem like it had more to offer than I got a chance to see.

MS

After Birmingham, we headed to Vicksburg, MS and down to the Mississippi delta; Vicksburg was smaller than I thought it would be but it was REALLY cool to see given its history, and it had taken very good care of itself. Very clean, small but historical and well maintained downtown and a big riverboat casino that probably paid for everything else there. It was pretty, and the Courthouse was certainly unique, quite a sight too see in fact.

The MS delta held many surprises. One recognizes that large boats and barges go up and down the MS, but hardly expects to see the swampy shallow waters of the delta teeming with industry; several refineries, fishing ports and various trading docks line the river near its mouth, and seeing the control towers and cranes peaking over the river dykes took not a small bit of getting used too. Simply an amazing experience.

New Orleans

NO was a very happening city, with TONS of history. The French Quarter was a lot cooler that I was even expecting and seemed to be the NO version of Phili's south street or Richmond's Fan District, but with twice the energy and size, and with a faux colonial French accent to the architecture. The center city was more like I imagine Miami than Richmond, which was a big surprise.

Brand new mobile homes next to destroyed permanent structure were not an uncommon sight throughout, and the damage from Katrina and storms past has clearly not been exaggerated, if anything probably understated.

Texas- Don't mess with it.

Texas is clearly a refined place, but this has much more to do with the Oil refineries in the state than the first impressions the state left with me. People did seem plenty nice, and West Texas has a never ending skyline. The oil derricks and ranches were amazing and plentiful. San Jacinto, the field of Santa Anna's (first) defeat was surrounded by oil refineries which left a sour smell to the place. Interesting, Total, the French Gas company had a refinery right next door, though they do not compete in the US consumer market.

San Antonio was pretty and the Alamo was nice and nearly exactly as I expected it- save for that I had not realized it was in the middle of the downtown district!! It was quite a beautiful museum, and we got lots of pics, very glad I did it. San Antonio was a peculiar place, and seemed to be what Short Pump would be like if it had its own metro population and decided to grow skyscrapers. Seemingly not a lot of culture/history (Alamo aside), but pretty and lots to do.

El Paso

Drove through El Paso, and right next to Juarez... that's a pretty big fence!! The area has a unique culture and architecture and I very much enjoyed seeing it. I cannot imagine what the poor people in Juarez are going through right now, and what it must be like to look up every day and see fools like me driving past their impoverished, ravaged community in our shiny cars on vacation- all day every day. A big reminder of an imperfect world. It was amazing to pass by shopping malls and US neighborhoods, and looking left to the shanty world of simple concrete and tin structures pushed into the hills on unpaved roads.

New Mexico.

BIIIG Pretty country!! Drove through a missile testing range and saw an amazing sunset, got really close on two ends to the test site of the first nuke explosion, and kept going. Albequerque seemed like a cool place, but not a whole lot going on the hour of night we dropped in. The Wells Fargo building was lit up green for St Patty's day though, kinda cool to see!!

Colorado

You wanted the Mountains, you got the Mountains. An impenetrable wall of beauty stretching to the sky to my left, and a range of rolling hills and buttes to my right, farther than the eye can see, nearly farther than the mind can conceive!! So beautiful...

After three nights in the car, I am thankful for a hot shower, a steak dinner and some of the most beautiful sights I have had the pleasure of seeing. Jesus has been calling me loud and clear and it's been wonderful to get away from the mix up of daily life I've been pushing myself through and listen to what he has to say.

I love you guys, I miss my friends, and more importantly I miss my friendships- I feel like i have been very removed and distant since I have been back. I do really love all of you and I regret this, to those of you who have felt neglected or pushed away since my return I apologize.

I do have a friend in Jesus, and I know that when I die, he's gonna recommend me to the spirit in the sky...

Please pray for the people in Juarez, good and bad and pray for the victims in Mississippi and Louisiana.

Stop One: Big Kitties

2010-03-13T10:54:00.002-05:00

CCI: Mebane NC

A animal refuge center for wolves, lions, tigres and a host of other small exotic dogs and wild cats. Good fun, but being thought of and played with as though one was lunch always makes a man nervous.

500 lb kitties running after me gave my heart a jumpstart but I will say they are the most adorrable 500 lb females I ever saw!

Never saw a real bobcat before! A real treat!!

Good fun, great fajitas and beautiful skies so far, crossing NC as I blog!!

CCI Website: http://www.conservatorscenter.org/

About to be out!

2010-03-10T22:26:00.003-05:00

So Friday begins the adventure with my brother, a voyage across the continental United States. In a few weeks, directional references will hold new meaning for me; "out west" will no longer mean Roanoke, and "Down South" no longer Nags Head.

Our first leg includes North Carolina, South Carolina and a stop in HotLanta; then it's wagons west! Our chariot will be my brothers VW TDI Wagon, so this phrase still holds true. Here's a pic from a few years ago.

We're both very much looking forward to the trip. Pray for our safety, from external forces, and also that we don't kill each other!

Cold in VA

2010-03-03T11:50:00.002-05:00

Rain and Clouds in Richmond
Passing time between appointments
Watching money, worrying
Learning how to live on faith again.

Giving thanks for many friends,
Living on the edge of it all.
Can't wait to get back to Burkina again
and see those whom I left after last fall.

Work is Bliss

2010-02-26T09:48:00.007-05:00

Good news! I have been given "Missionary in Waiting" status with my church, Commonwealh Chapel and will be given additional support from our church community! This is a huge relief to me, and most importantly has given me some serious direction and motivation; it is becoming very apparent how many people are supporting my efforts and the things Jeremie and I are working to accomplish for God.

Youth With a Mission Ministries has been meeting with me regularly and opened their hearts to what what God is doing in my life. Hillside Missions has done the same, and has also asked for some input on an upcoming mission they are conducting in Bobo Dioulasso. It has been a true pleasure to get to know the people in these organizations and I look forward to working with them more.

I have also been meeting with Pastor Gleaton who is enthusiastic on finding ways her church and community can help and be involved in whats going on. She made me breakfast- it was YUMMY!!

The Rappahannock Rotary Club has also agreed to help more, and is working on sponsoring our orphanage, and St. Georges Church had invited me to speak; the event got nixed due to a few feet of snow but I am very grateful for the contribution they made as well.

Lastly I am excited to have been invited to speak at a camp that one of my fraternity brothers helps run in the summertime in June; it was flattering to have been asked, and I'm thankful for a great amount of prep time and the opportunity to speak. It also simply sounds like its going to be a lot of fun!

The past few weeks have also involved work with some west Africans that have been in town:

Pastor Abraham Goa

Pastor Abraham is a church planter from Burkina that is here with YWAM; I have been meeting with him regularly, getting to know him and helping him to understand American culture and practice English. I have made an information website for him that can be found here.

Emmanuel Ambane

Emmanuel is a soccer player from Cameroon, recruited by ODU to play on their team; he has now graduated with a degree in Economics and was in town trying out for the Richmond kickers. He got saved while at ODU, and was referred to Commonwealth by a former parishioner. He was an awesome guy with inspiring faith; I sincerely hope he makes the team and sticks around Richmond.

Life in VA

2010-02-09T09:56:00.006-05:00

So my days have been split, some in Fredericksburg, some in Richmond, and now it seems some in New York City. I have had a chance to meet up with some wonderful people, both contacts I'm getting to know better and new friends I have met for the first time. This has been an absolute delight.

I am living in Fredericksburg, settled in with an old friend and his family, and living conditions have truly been wonderful; the job hunt however, both for me and my old friend, has not.

I got a line on an excellent opportunity but was turned down, but going through the interview process was good for the spirit, as no other companies I have applied for have contacted me. I think and pray that my future will not consist of me returning to the retail world, and I have started looking for jobs abroad. I pray strongly that returning to Burkina Faso is what God has in store for me.

I pray and ask you to pray for the well being of those I'm living with, for my friends in Richmond and Burkina Faso as well as the families we are helping there. I also pray that we all stay safe and warm through this winter and whatever else it has in store for us.

Of course also, continued prayers for Haiti and the people who's lives have been destroyed by devastation there...

2010 Is shaping up to be quite a year!

In VA, Post Holidays

2010-01-11T16:03:00.003-05:00

Both of my brothers have returned from whence they came, thereby marking the end of my holidays. I have been very productive today, and am ready to start something that resembles a normal, American schedule/life again.

I have not really been forced to adjust to the culture here because I have not really had any obligations since returning to the West from Burkina, but now I am finding myself with a hopefully quickly filling schedule and a great deal of personal time (as opposed to planned family time).

I pray that the coming weeks will be successful and that we will raise the funds necessary to expand the school, continue the expanded medicine program, and to start the orphanage in Targho. Pray with us and wish me luck!

I hope that you all had as wonderful and merry Christmases as did my family, and that you are having a superb 2010!!

My Heart's Still In Burkina

2009-12-21T08:54:00.003-05:00

Pic Post: 2009 review

2009-12-14T05:02:00.016-05:00

2009 Burkina Faso: In Review

The following is a collection of pictures taken during my work in Burkina Faso, 2009. They are of school and church construction projects, homes and families aided after the Sept. 1, 2009 flood, neighbors and friends of the school and medical program, and of myself and Pastor Jeremie working in Ouagadougou and Targho. Most of the pictures are from or beloved community of Place Bonham, just north of Sandogo in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

Allasan (Lassan) checks the level of the new wall being build on the expansion lot of the school.

Esther attemps to wrangle the kids back into class after recess= unsuccessfully.

Madame Nikiema distributes sandwiches and cookies to the kids at recess

Zeke studies gleefully in Kassoums CE1 class.

Hamidou and the CE1 scramble for a chance of being in the picture.

Northewest view in front of my apartment.

A donkey deliveres cement and dirt to supply the construction of the wall.

Children in Daouda's CP2 class.

Justine leaves for the day, Elizabeth in tow.

Some crazy white kid (me).

Jeremie explaining the relief program to one of the parents at the school.

Southeast view in front of the school.

Southeast view behind the school.

Northwest scene behind the school.

Justine's daughter Elizabeth!!

Neighbor's adorable kids.

Kids at school study during recess.

Recess Play!!

Farida at work! CE1

The church repaired, as quickly and inexpensively as possible.

Madame Zongo and others wait in line for our doctor, Saturday morning.

Men working on the expansion lot wall.

Men working on the expansion lot wall.

Madame Sakande Sanata and her two children. Her first two children died of Malaria.

My apartment neighbor, Claudine!

The neighbors at the school show me what their eating.

Jeremie, Ester and their daughter Elielle check the door at the food shelter, Targho.

Men and one of the rebuild homes for the aid program.

Cozey, Targho. From the same series as previously posted.

Jeremie cutting millet, Targho

Jeremie and one of the children in our program in front of her newly reconstructed home, relief program Sandogo.

Ester, Elielle Jeremie, Targho.

Jeremie observing flood damage, Sandogo.

Its been a long time... (Paris)

2009-12-08T12:15:00.003-05:00

So, I've been AWOL for about three weeks now... SONABEL Frapped the charger to my laptop, (along with my power strip and voltage regulator) so when the laptop died I jumped back in time about 10 years, which is no fun. Now that I am in Paris, (Nassatanga) not only have I already had fine wine, sausage, cheeze and an assortment of bread, but I also have fine bandwidth, cables and an assortment of computers. Hooray!! For all of you readers, this translates (finally) into high quality media and some large youtube videos, God and scheduling willing.

More to come once I'm settled here. I'm in very good health, better spirits, and have a checkup appointment with a doc tomorrow to see if I have any hitchhikers in my bloodstream.

Thanks again for your emails and help!! God bless!
-Hunter

Kokologho, Cards and Computers

2009-11-20T04:11:00.005-05:00

Sam's cousin walking from his house

I took a trip with Sam to his hometown of Kokologho the other day to visit with his family and meet some of his friends. It was a very pleasant trip. The sky was a thick baby blue and it was very clear, so much the opposite of Ouagadougou. The air was fresh and cool, and the lack of noise reminded me of how much I love the country. There were a lot of pigs there too, which reminded me of how much I love BBQ...

Sam on the dam

The garden well, and the fields beyond

We saw the lake there, and took a pretty long hike across the countryside. The air was cool, but the sun was intense as always. All of Sam's friends and family were overwhelmingly nice and generous, and I was lavished with gifts of chickens and peanuts.

cozeying with Sam's family and Boubaka

me on the lake

I gave the peanuts to my neighbor to sell; the chicken I fried up somethin awful nice- I made a BBQ sauce and fried it southern stile, and invited the pastor, Sam, and Sam's sister Claireese to come and play cards. It was an absolutely delightful evening.

UNO with friends

This week has been incredibly busy as I have been organizing photos for all the kids at our school. I have three pics of each student and am completing the compilation today.

It turns out that with all the English courses we taught and all the work I've been doing, the thing that has been most popular has been my computer. All of my neighbors, all of my English students, kids in the neighborhood and even the pastor and pastors from other churches have been coming to learn the basics of how to use computers and the internet. Unlike most other things I've been helping with here, I am very very familiar with computers, and am planning on organizing a real course when I return.

Ibraham learning how to type, search and use e-mail

Last night I projected the Your Version split screen bible in the classroom, and put the French alongside the English while I played some classical music. It was amazing, and a wonderful feeling being in a room of half Muslims, half Christians and just sitting in the ambiance of the music reading without saying a word. All were very interested and we read for about 20 minutes. Jesus was most definitely working there.

I am beginning to wind down a bit and need to start thinking of the developed world and what it is going to be like to have paved roads, cars and real coffee again. I know I will miss Burkina dearly, and I am ready to come back and work my tail off to pay down some debt, meet our program goals on this side of the pond, and save some cash so I can make it back here before next school year.

me playing two different sized Nescafe cans with pencils

I want to say again that the things Jeremie and I have been working to accomplish here have provided a better future for hundreds of kids, both the kids in the program and those in the school who aren't in the program, (all told around 300 now...), the 3k people fed after the flood and the dozens of families who received relief. There are so many wonderful open hearts who have given and worked to make all of this a reality, and to all of you I say thank you and God bless you again. Everyone here knows that all the support is coming from multiple communities back home and they love you for it.

Burkina-Malawi 1-0

2009-11-15T18:45:00.000-05:00

Some Of Our Stars

2009-11-11T07:59:00.003-05:00

Baseball is BACK!

2009-11-08T09:55:00.002-05:00

I'm sorry, but this has got to be the funniest thing I have seen in a long time.

Our city, which I have begun to love dearly, has been fumbling baseball issues. We lost our resident Braves feeder team we'd had for decades, and proceeded to argue about building a new stadium for a year or so. Now we have a new team in our old stadium:

The Richmond Flying Squirrels

I personally am glad to see that we have a team again, and am relieved that the team name is within the "ridiculously comical" range, thereby filling the requirement of being absurd enough it is impossible to take seriously, and so absurd it is funny-but not over-the limit absurd to as to not have any entertainment value whatsoever.

The following XKCD graph explains how this principle is applied to movies.

The Flying Squirrel, I feel very much falls within the "So bad it's good" range.

This Blog is typically not the place for such a post, but as the news has TOTALLY and in every way made my day, and will probably make me laugh anytime anyone mentions baseball or flying squirrels for the rest of my life, I felt it appropriate to comment.

Go Nuts for the Squirrels!!

Targho in November

2009-11-03T09:06:00.007-05:00

Amazing. It is so beautiful there; we didn't get to see the kids, but we met the new town doctor and explained the program to him. He is a very kind man, and is equally as excited about the program as the previous doctor. We met up with several different families, including two pastors and a few relatives of Jeremie, and Job's family as well.

Jeremie's wife Esther and their niece

Jeremie's father

A few of the people from the largest church in town were cutting millet for an old couple; Jeremie and I pitched in for a few minutes in what was a symbolic gesture. Everyone was excited to have us there helping out, and though we didn't do much physically, we definitely gave the folks a burst of energy of the afternoon. It was a good time.

cozeying with the locals...

Fires were burning sporadically, as new fields were being cleared for the next planting. The dirt paths that meander about prevent the fires from spreading, and the grass is thin enough that the fires, unlike field fires in VA, don't get very high or strong and they burn out quickly.

Targo was bustling as it is harvest time. The fields having been mostly felled, everyone was in the process of cutting, transporting and stacking the millet for the year. Most seemed in better spirits than usual. It was really quite a wonderful sight to see. We gave cookies and bread to a few groups of strangers, and I played with the Muslim kids at the mosque for a few minutes; I shook their hands and spoke some Moré, and tried to break their frozen, slack-jawed stares with little success.

My neighbors in Ouaga are very used to me now, and I had forgotten what it was like before people were comfortable with my presence. I think I made a good impression, and they were all excited when I recovered their soccer ball as we parted.

The food center is a great little structure, and a wonderful beginning to what we hope will become the location of our new orphanage. There a trees and bushes planted around the perimeter of the property, and in about 2 years, I suspect it will be the most beautiful lot of land in the region.

food distribution shelter

I ran out of water about 3/4 of the way through our venture, and had planned to purchase more in the market there. Unfortunately, they didn't have any sachets or bottles in any of the three small bars, and even more surprising, everyone was out of Coke!! In all seriousness, I think that gives a good idea of how isolated the village is. Targho is a good sized town (I liken it a bit to Farmville, VA- tiny, but big for the region); it has wells and a market, but surrounding villages aren't nearly as well off. Jeremy mentioned that several of them don't have wells. I hope we can help solve that problem...

I miss and love that place, it is very warm, very simple, and very very Africa. Tragically, there are many more difficulties to the life there than in our bustling metropolis of Ouaga. Hopefully that won't be the case for the next generation.

Wall Finished

2009-10-31T18:29:00.003-04:00

Lassane and his team have already finished the wall. I was speechless when I arrived this afternoon as they were wrapping up. They did indeed finish before the end of the week-but THIS week. Incredible. I observed that they were working very fast now, much faster than they had been working in the early morning as they had a full day of practice under their belts. Lassane about blew me off my feet when he replied in understandable English: "Time is money."

His dad worked in Ghana, and he picked up a bit. Impressive!

Lewis, Clark and the West (Africa and US)

2009-10-30T18:39:00.008-04:00

While here in Burkina Faso, I have been passing the time by reading the Journals of Lewis and Clark (if you don't know who they are, you should probably just act like you do and Google it later) and have learned some amazing things. Most notably thus far, is that Lewis and Clark traveled from what is now Missouri to Oregon suffering only two deaths in their party of many, and only one due to violence from Native Americans. The two were in contact with natives nearly their entire voyage, and made a point to get to know the local cultures for a short period before trying to trade and attempt more complex communications of the sort.

The native Americans they encountered in L&C's 19th century eyes were viewed to be very poor, not just living on the land. Indeed a few of the tribes with which they traded lived in such harsh conditions that starvation was serious issue, and many subsided on roots and berries alone.

Despite these conditions, nearly every tribe the pair encountered had been noted to be "not beggarly" but overly welcoming and generous, save a few misunderstandings and incidents which derived from an understandable and almost foreseeable lack of trust or need for survival.

All this is in great contrast to the wars of the later part of the same century; even given the spirit, desire and policy of expansion our historical failure to peacefully interact with those cultures is simply remarkable.

I think we are to a great degree making the same mistakes in Africa and the Middle East, not only on the ground but with our foreign policies in both regions.

I mention all this for two reasons, one is that my first great challenge of this venture was learning to relax, have more patience than was previously imaginable, and learning to implement and teach western ideas on local terms: IT WAS NOT EASY.

The second is that I have two friends who, in what is maybe the greatest coincidence of my life (or no coincidence at all which after writing it, I now believe to be the case), are members of a tribe of fewer than 200 Native Americans in VA that is very very close to winning a multiple century battle for Federal Recognition.

Their numbers are diminishing, as the new generation (similarly to the Faso) is more interested in iPods than headdresses.

Don't worry, they aren't planning a Casino!! They just want to keep their tribe growing and get some of the benefits denied to them by the Gov't. They're really nice too!

Article on the Bill

Congrats to the Rappahannock, I hope the bill goes through.

Love and Life in the Faso.

2009-10-30T16:52:00.018-04:00

It has been a week of mixed feelings, as I have continued to have a wonderful time talking with the neighbors and continuing the activities at the school, but as though only to remind me that I am still mortal and not as loving as I want to be, I have felt a bit lonely this week. Sam came by this evening to invite me to his village, and I got some good news from back home, so I think I'm feeling a bit more cheery tonight.

Plus I just bought some cookies, which is never a bad thing.

She Sells Peanuts: Community Case Study

A few weeks ago I posted about a woman who sells peanuts by the school. She's one of the ladies I talk to for a few minutes every day. Over the past week we talked about a range of topics.

This woman, like most people in Ouaga, was born in a small village to the west. She has several siblings, did not go to school, and like most women I have met here, she has a progressive view. She wants her kids to learn and doesn't want her daughter to marry and have lots of children early. She had a son who was about 12 years old, for whom they worked very hard to ensure an education, but he died a few months ago, I would presume of malaria, but I did not ask as she came to tears just mentioning it.

Her husband works selling things in the Grand Marche, and is lucky if he can keep enough gas in his moped to travel for the week. She buys two plates of peanuts for 700 CFA ($1.62) and sells them for 900CFA ($2.09) over the course of three or so days, meaning that if she is lucky, she'll get 600 CFA ($1.39) for the week. This is the family's spare income; she will save and buy clothes, new pots, and the like.

They live in a courtyard, and used to share it with two other families, but those homes fell; now they have the only enclosed structure in a rubble encrusted enclave which I estimate to be about 10x12: enough to keep the rain off of four people.

From time to time she sews and makes food for the market, but gains even less profit from those activities which require much more effort and start up money. Other women dedicate their time and money solely to cooking, but usually with help from children, second wives, or families in shared living spaces.

I have become very friendly with her; her daughter is in the program and she knows well that I will not give her money- she has very little, if any incentive to exaggerate, though I will say she did honestly explain she has no clue, not even a general knowledge of how much her husband earns. She trusts him though, and doesn't think he earns more than he shows.

Most importantly: her kids are ADORABLE!!!

I have been here for three months. She has sold her peanuts every day I have been to the school, and was there in February. I will post more about the other women and families I have talked with as I learn their stories.

Progression, Expansion

We have been forced to expand the school, as we do not have enough room for the government to give the ok for a pharmacy, and as our school is 1/10th the price of many of its equal, we grew by about 25% this year. The $30,000 plans to add another level to the school were really cool looking, but unrealistic to say the least. So, we had to buy the lot next to ours in a now-or-never bid that has put us in a tight spot, but one with amazing return potential.

We broke ground on the lot today and I suspect the surrounding wall will be finished by the end of next week.

Lassane, the lighthearted, good spirited and hard working father of Isaaca is leading the work team. He is a shining and wonderful example of how the local economy has benefited from the program, having been hired for four construction projects thus far. I think the cold water I gave him today may have been the first cold drink he's ever had at the work site, but they are nearly as careful to hydrate as we are.

Thieves

A few weeks ago, there was front page news that a ring of thieves was cracked by the government, accompanied by a photo of a massive stockpile of gas bottles (for cooking, about $100 each but cheap to refill), mopeds, T.V.'s radios, and even a fridge or two.

This week, another ring was hit, and over 100 mopeds were recovered; they had been stealing here and selling in Cote D'Ivoir and Ghana where people have more money and one can fetch a higher price for a moped.

This is, needless to say, a bit counter productive for the developing spirit of the nation. I do not want to know what prison here is like.

I find that the culture here is much as I imagine rougher areas of the south and west of the US of the 19th C. One is obliged to be very polite and is always kind and hospitable to those one has met, but one is always very suspicious and watchful of strangers as thieves are everywhere.

I am learning though, that there is no excuse or reason not to love, and I have regretted to many such suspicions here with strangers.

Suspicion means less trust, less trust means less communication, less communication means less community, less community means more theft. A vicious cycle only love and unearned trust on chance can brake. I met this great guy who taught me that once...

Spoiler Alert

I am very much looking forward to the trip to Tagho, seeing and getting pictures of our small food prep structure we made for the program, and seeing the site of what will be our orphanage when/if God sees fit to let it come to pass. I am optimistic about the photos, and cannot wait to see the kids there again!!

With the expansion of the school, we are touching the street which borders our block to the south. I met our new neighbors today and am anxious to get to know them!!

Lunch

2009-10-27T13:04:00.006-04:00

I met with an associate of my mother's for lunch who happened to be in town; she was a delightful woman with a lifetime of experience abroad, and I feel we had very similar outlooks on Africa, foreign aid and the like. It was a very nice afternoon meal, and quite a treat for myself, as the picture will attest.

I am quite thankful for the meal, the encouragement, and the tiny bit of exposure to the trove of information and kindness which faced me across my delicious, Calamars Pizza.

I think and pray my next few years will be quite amazing indeed.

On the way home, I got a shout from some guys that hang out by shop corner I frequently pass. "So you're Burkinabé now, eh?" referring to my jersey. "I'm trying! But I'm still white!" Laughs all around. I love it here.

For the Ladies ;-)

2009-10-26T05:04:00.004-04:00

Jeff Attaway Took a 40+ mile bike ride that made its way past our school; he took a picture of the school and put it on his blog-the internet is incredible. So this morning the women by the school were inquisitive of this other "nassara"; when I explained how far he rode his bike, they were amazed.

As many of the Peace Corps blogs will attest, the people here, though respectful of the intelligence of westerners, think that we, to put it simply, are a bunch of ninnies. Any amount of work done by hand, or any exercise beyond a short walk seems to impress them, and they are frequently worried that we will overexert ourselves. When I told these women that Jeff was trying to ride his bike to Ghana, they just about turned inside out. I told them that Americans are strong, and that Lance Armstrong had won the Tour de France many times; this was a poor example as I then had to explain what the Tour de France was. I also had to explain that I too could ride a bicycle.

So, this conversation, as so many do, quickly turned into one about American culture, and was in part, a conversation I had very much been longing to have.

They began asking me questions about women in the US; when I explained that women in the states are encouraged to live with the same liberties as men, the ladies just kind of stared at the ground for a second- a pause immediately followed by an inundation of questions. I told them about the independence of women, and that the Peace Corps in Burkina is working to encourage the new generation of girls, to teach them they don't have to marry at 14 and that there can be more to life than cooking and having lots of babies. I thought they might be a little hesitant about this fact as it will have a very heavy impact on the culture here.

Boy was I wrong.

They loved it... they (again) suggested that I find a Mossi girl to take back to the states with me.

Peace Corps Mission in Burkina Faso

We talked at length on subjects like multiple wives, first born sons, women at work in the US and education.

I asked them about Female Circumcision; they said with great confidence that this no longer happens. They said that the government has a policy of rewarding anyone who turns in the father of a family who does it, that they pay 50,000CFA (1/2 years pay for many families), and that the tipster doesn't have to reveal their identity.

"Then he will be in prison, and when he sleeps in prison, he will think every night 'was that good for the girl?'"

BF Initiative on Female Circumcision

I doubt this has exterminated the practice, but her confidence was very encouraging. This likely however applies largely only to Ouaga, where there is a large Government presence and people actually have radios/access to them. It is very strong anecdotal evidence for the progress of the program.

Lastly, I told them that such liberties didn't always exist for women in America, and that it's really only been in the past 60-80 years that women were liberated, and that such things can and will come to Burkina.

I pray very much that the coming years here remain as stable and progressive as they have in the past; I think, for the most part, our boy Blaise is doing a bang-up job.

Developing Ouaga

2009-10-25T09:31:00.004-04:00

1.Construction and building, Ouaga 2000.

2.Ave. of the President, Ouaga 2000. This is the nicest, newest development in Burkina Faso.

3.The new overpass.

Into the Light

2009-10-20T19:17:00.004-04:00

I was a bit touched today.

Like a Robin toppling out of the nest for the first time I squinted my eyes and dawned the day, left my door, and went to the school for the first time in about ten days.

I learned from Jeremie that all the neighbors had been asking to come and visit, and that they were all continuously asking about my health during the week. This was very warm news, and at the same time very encouraging.

During my labs experience, we had made copies of the pictures I took, and Jeremie handed them out for me but no one had seen me since; today the neighbors were all very excited and thankful, and some even wanted to show me their new photos... They were all inquisitive and wished me well. It was a very nice morning.

I have been getting much done today and am making a speedy recovery now that I have drugs and laxatives that work effectively.

Thanks again for all your encouragement and support.

"Yaa soama wusgo, winaam kont lafi."
There is much good, God gives health.
Baraka.

(Baraka is thanks in Moré, its also a reference to "blessings" and is the same in Swahili; Barack means blessing in Arabic. I don't have any clue what Obama means...)

A few neat things; one not so neat...

2009-10-17T18:36:00.004-04:00

Actually a few billion not neat things-amoebas in my digestive tract. On their way out now, thank God. Hence my lack of posts/photos this week. I am already feeling much better, and am thankful these meds work as quickly as they do!

A few amazing things this week:

I met a 76 year old man who fought in WWII, I believe with the Mossi resistance against the Vichy government. He was a kind man and had much to say, both about his past, and the new generation. He carried his old ID's, one from the 1930's before the war, and one from the 60's. He was certainly a handsome, strong young man; the stony composure of his youth had given way to a much kinder, much more sensible persona it seemed. He looked better with teeth, but had much more charisma without them. He had traveled 100 miles to come to the med clinic where we were waiting, and still dawned his military fatigues, and a marine style black cap with red piping. Amazing.

The new overpass just north of our neighborhood opened, and is a sight to see!! It is EXACTLY like what you see in Hampton Roads (kind of) and the houses and business around it have benefited from the development, and feel absolutely no different than a new town-center or downtown development (in a way). It really was a rush, going up the hill and seeing the view of Ouaga from up high, and truly did feel like a US overpass though-it is clean, shiny and new. No doubt in 48 hours it will be orange and look 100 years old, falling victim to the orange dust as everything exposed (including your person/clothes) does. I am determined to get a good picture of this.

They are developing the road immediately to the south of the bridge.

This process is incredible. Compared to what we do here, it is a blitzkrieg. Last week, they surveyed. Two days ago, they cleared the signs away from the road. Today, all of the shops and trees were cleared by a few hundred workers-in ONE DAY. It was amazing, heart warming, a little frightening and fascinating to watch local women and teenagers climbing all over the felled trees to cut them up for firewood. In two hours, they had decimated an enormous tree (I estimate 6' diameter), and there were probably about two dozen similar scenes along the route. The shacks are all so small, they pick up and move as though they were designed to do it-because they were. Needless to say it was a very bustling scene.

Judging from the progress of the overpass, I bet they will finish paving in a week, but it will take them at least three months to rewire the streetlamps... in any case, the spirit of Burkina Faso is alive and burning for progress. Ouaga 2000 is a shining example of this.

Thanks for your prayers this week. Jesus has an unbelievable bedside manor.

Peace.

Oh, and I got more BBQ sauce!! Wahoo! More pics to come soon...

Also, settled on a color scheme.

Something Like The Beach...

2009-10-10T11:14:00.007-04:00

A la Plage
I have commented much that this place reminds me of Nags Head; I am very fortunate to have grown up with a cottage in that beautiful place, and have countless memories of long summer vacations in the sand there. Those memories combined with my growing up within a few miles of the wide open Potomac River and boating on it often have instilled in me a feeling that whenever there are open skies, there is water.

This is an unfortunate thing in this place; the positive effect however is that the more I grow comfortable here, the easier it is for me to feel like I am at the beach. There is, after all plenty of open sky, and all the sand and dust a man could ask for.

Hello MotoMotorolla, please don't sue
Walking is my primary mode of transportation; I find that hopping on a moped after several days of only walking is a very exhilarating experience, even if we rarely exceed 15mph (due to the terrain/"roads"). Jeremie's Moto is 80cc, and Esther's is 100cc, for all you biker peoples out there.

Mahamid For Obama

2009-10-09T06:58:00.003-04:00

In the spirit of our President's award

One of my four favs

A Wonderful Week

2009-10-08T06:46:00.012-04:00

The Nieghbors

There are five or six families around the school that are frequently outside; now that I have gotten to know some of them, I find myself leaving long ahead of schedule to pass the time with them. The people are loving, and they very much enjoy helping and watching me learn their language.

Now I estimate that aside from the children at the school, there are about three dozen young kids that hang out around our square, and make quite a fuss every time they see me pass. This is fine and well, but when groups of them come at once it can be cumbersome, as I then have to continue along in the company of 20 something 3-8 year-olds. The family parents and the guys that hang out at the bar/store across from my flat take pity on me and help me scatter the kids when necessary.

My SLR is just about the most valuable and fragile thing I have here: I get antsy when the locals are using it...

It Tastes Like Chalk
Two girls along my route were selling some small rocks alongside their peanuts this morning. "What do you do with this? You eat it? So you put it in the food?" At this point, I was determined to try it-I suppose I have eaten too few rocks in my life.

"No, you eat it, like this" they reply. "But its like chalk, isn't it? It tastes like chalk?" I demanded, certain it was simply colored chalk rock. "No no-its good! You have to try it!" they replied. I tried the rock. They were right- it wasn't just chalk. It tasted like... well.. chalk, but with a tiny twist. I find that much of the local diet consists of flavors that aren't really bad per se, but don't do much good for the senses either. The texture was very interesting, and not nearly as dry as chalk (not that I am an expert in the taste of chalk, but I had two older brothers growing up: I have eaten chalk rock before). I haven't finished my rocks, and think I will save them for the US.

Zaira
There is a mentally ill child at the school named Zaira. Seeing this girl and realizing that no one has worked with her to improve her motor skills or give her a chance at life has affected me greatly. My heart feels this is a bigger tragedy than the three thousand lost homes on Sept. 1; I have asked an OT friend to help me, and we are working together to attempt some diagnoses and see if there is anything we can do.

For this effort, I recorded her some this morning and worked with her to try and draw a circle. Progress was slow, bit after a few minutes, she was making lines on her tableau- You should have heard Justine (one of our teachers) light up with laughter and glee! It was amazing. I don't think this child has received much positive encouragement; after working with her for about a half hour and telling her she was doing a good job, she now lights every time I'm in her sight.

Simply amazing. I very much look forward to working with her, and will pray for her progress and ask you to do the same.

Bissap
(See post: Bissap is Delicious)

I think I am addicted. This stuff is absolutely incredible. I got my hands on a good bit of ginger juice as well, and I think I enjoy the two more than any other drink I've ever consumed. Bissap is very much like a combination of the flavors of wine and grape juice mixed, but somehow smoother going down than milk or tea. Incredible. Ginger juice (for those who have not tried it) tastes like, well, ginger, but burns so strong going down that I think that grain alcohol is the only comparable sense that comes to mind. The combination of the two makes for a non-alcoholic beverage that enlightens the senses, gives good health, and is easy on the wallet to boot.

I will very much miss the pleasure when I return to the states.

Beans and Rice
There is a dish that I have come to enjoy, and is the only local dish that I have found has a consistently delicious taste. "Benga" is the local word for beans: the dish is prepared as follows-

A)
1)On the side, fry some flour/millet grain mix (just flour will do) so as to create a good handfull of "crunchy"
2)Cut a small serving of onion and cucumber (a cold salad on the side)

B)
1)Boil beans (small brown beans similar to if not pinto beans, I know we have them in the states).

2)When the boiling begins, add a sufficient amount of rice to make the rice 1/4 of the serving.

3)With the rice, add a good bit of MSG, and boil until beans/rice are soft and ready to eat.

The salty beans and rice mixed are placed in a bowl, with the "crunchy" on top on one side and the onions and cucumber on top on the other.

It's quite delicious... yumm.

Amateur Help-Portrait
Help Portrait is an effort launched by Jeremy Cowart to provide family portraits to those who can't afford or would otherwise not get them this holiday. It is an excellent idea, and a marvelous opportunity for the photography community to spread some love.

Coincidentally, at the same time I was learning about Help-Portrait, I had been taking pictures of the families around here, and have come to the realization that NONE of these families will EVER have a portrait if I don't give them some pictures. Unfortunately I am very much too amateur a photographer to claim to be a studio specialist, but I feel the spirit is the same, and more importantly, I wanted to share Help-Portrait with all of you!

The families are all very excited to be receiving their pictures and I in turn, cannot wait to give the gifts!

Poor Kassoum
Kassoum stayed over last night; Jeremie has been insistent that he crash here a few nights a week for my safety to help if someone should try and break into my place. It feels like paranoia now, but is not a bad idea.

Kassoum is taking night classes to try and pass the Bac test so he has a shot at the University (here, that's correct, it's the University). He told me he was studying history: unbeknown to him, this is a dangerous faux-pas in my presence.

He did thoroughly enjoy his hour long lecture on the causes of the First World War though. I think he is anxious to learn more; having the internet and being able to give him other resources is definitely a blessing in this regard. I am thankful for his grateful attention.

Some Things
There are a few things that I still have not grown accustomed to, and don't think I ever will. That, however may not be a bad thing. Among them are frequent open fires, the smell of the local fish dishes, everyone that has an infant breastfeeds very openly regardless of the situation, and that the children ask me for money for candy and drinks.

Loving It!
I am otherwise growing very comfortable with my environment however, and can already tell I love it to the extent that I know I will return. I hope that I can continue to dedicate the time and energy to this program that I have been so blessed by God, my family, and those around me to be able to give over the past year. Thank you all again.

I'm working diligently on the website and the new sponsorship program; I hope it will be up very soon! It's similar to the old one so as not to confuse people, but has a much better layout and a snazzier design.

That's all for now!
-H

The Teachers

2009-10-05T09:33:00.002-04:00

The Shelton's Blog

2009-10-03T03:22:00.002-04:00

This is the blog for the Sheltons, the coupled who helped me (or really I helped) teach the English school in August.

It has ton's of pics-makes me jealous of bandwidth... hehe. I'll probably make a website when I get to Paris.

Anyway, enjoy!

Thanks for your help and efforts guys!

-H

I am...

2009-10-02T19:17:00.002-04:00

I was going to start this post by stating some things that I am not, but I would rather take a more positive approach.

I am a man that made a decision to come to Africa. I am a believer in Jesus Christ. I am a person that has much more will than experience in what I am doing. I am a believer in following through. I am learning a lot about the world, and about every aspect of life therein. I am learning much about what Jesus wants from me, and how I can be a better follower. I am discovering that I wanted something from Jesus that was apart from my relationship with him.

I am learning how to help, how to give, and how to give because God wants me to love. I am learning that the world is not an equation who's sum equals me and how it affects me. I am frequently not feeling well, but I am very positive. I am loving the people here much more, and more importantly, I am wanting to know them more. I am discovering a world that I think most people in the US are entirely unaware of, and I am discovering that they need to be. I am thinking about a great many things in life, and I am realizing that God has put me in a position where I have A LOT of time to think things out.

I am thankful-VERY thankful for all the contributions, spiritual, physical, and monetary of everyone who has made all of this possible-in order of importance the aid for the flood victims, with aid for the Medical Program and school coming in a close second, and support for my spoiled American behind coming a far third.

I am learning to be honest, and learning much about myself in the process.

Fried Chicken

2009-10-01T06:55:00.004-04:00

This was delicious. I taught Esther and the neighbors of the school how to deep fry chicken. They were definitely not nearly as excited about it as I was, though I think they enjoyed it. MMMMMmmm...

When the chicken was done, I scattered frantically looking for anything else to fry. The green pepper was delicious, as was the onion we got our hands on. Pepe, one of the kids in the Maternelle class, was lingering and watching the goings on. "PEPE!! COME HERE!! There's still flour and batter left over! We'll pour the egg on you Pepe!! Come here!" Esther and Jeremie found this hilarious. Pepe caught on eventually. Cute kid.

There is news that another rain, of 270mm, is due on Sunday. The forecasts for this region are notoriously inaccurate, but I fully intend on lots of praying before Sunday in any case. The rains that cause the disaster on September 1 were just under 300mm-meaning we could see two 100 year floods in the same season.

My thoughts on all this:
I'm PSYCHED I get left over fried chicken for lunch!! WOOT!!

Esther

2009-09-29T18:25:00.013-04:00

I have taken about 3,000 photographs thus far.
I think that 4 of them are good.
This is one of the 4.

Pastor Jeremie's wife Esther sells cookies, crackers, and bread treats to the children at a loss for 25CFA (+/- $.5), which helps them learn about buying things, and also provides them with much needed carbs. Sometimes when the kids don't have money they'll try to negotiate a trade with a piece of chalk or some trash. Esther invariably gives in, but never without a fight.

I also eat the cookies; I find them to be delicious.

Add To the Cooking

2009-09-29T10:01:00.005-04:00

There are two brands in Burkina Faso that tower over all others. Indeed, upon my arrival in February I noticed that all the water towers were adorned with either the great "Jumbo" crown, painted in professional grade contrast with yellow and red, or the Maggi circle, which utilizes the same color scheme. One of either company logos seems to find itself on virtually every flat surface in public view in this nation.

What are they, these titans of industry, these corporate giants? Bouillon. It's all bouillon. For the rice... It feels like these two names have advertising in every little market, every open store. Even in the market in Targho one can witness the hard, bright red and yellow band logos battling over the market share. Now that I eat Jumbo in my rice, I feel like I'm in the middle of a bouillon war.

When I started my rice, I had a minor panic attack that brought back memories of a humorous unfortunate incident involving instant Mac & Cheese from my youth. I realized I didn't know whether to add the bouillon to the rice BEFORE or AFTER the water boiled!!

To the rescue, the only text on the wrapper:

Add To The Cooking

A time for...

2009-09-28T08:45:00.004-04:00

I love the fall. I love getting out, by myself and taking my VW out across VA, into the valley and witnessing the fire of turning leaves spread down the Shenandoah Valley, and into Roanoke. I love watching Monument Ave. change from a tunnel of foliage into a light show of reds and oranges that highlight the statues.

In two weeks, the vast puddles, soft roads and green patches of corn and millet have all dried up. Only small swatches of water rest in the pits of what were the largest puddles from the rains, and the foliage is almost already gold. The soil is hard as rock again, and the trees are turning the lite waxy green they will retain until May. It is hot, dry and dusty. Amazing. Simply amazing.

I have confessed a great deal of anger and frustration, and Jesus has forgiven me, and I am open for love. Learning to love in him is creating stability in all things in me, and as such making my life much, much easier. Easier to love the people here, easier to understand why I'm here, easier to understand what it is I need to do.

The school is bustling with activity, as parents come by and make small payments on the $70 fee Esther and Jeremie charge for the school and collect material for the school uniforms we are starting this year. The uniforms will last the whole year, and only cast about $4 to make. The children rest in the classrooms, and lessons are starting up slowly, but classes don't officially start until Oct. 1.

We bought and distributed notebooks and pens for the kids at the Church (we already had a bunch of pens thanks to a generous friend, thanks C!!). It cost about $11, and we had more than 20 kids.

Posted are some pics of all these goings on, and one of a little kid that was playing in sand that was too adorable not to.

Ecole Commence

2009-09-25T07:26:00.008-04:00

First day I actually did something in a while! Got out of the house for a good bit this morning and played with the kids for a little while. I think there are more this year, and they are equally as enthusiastic as they were in Feb. With some of the donations given by friends of Jeremie, we were able to enclose the fourth classroom. It has a ceiling and everything now! Awesome! We also got some toy horses for the playground, and painted the swing set and seesaw. It's going to be nice when it dries!

I feel much better now, and it's been a week since it rained, so some of the area is actually starting to dry out. The mosquitoes have also significantly diminished.

I spent about an hour chatting in Moré with the family that lives next to the school. They are very nice, and the daughter is going to make me some felt squares, which are very pretty and soft.

Feeling better.

2009-09-23T16:49:00.003-04:00

After a few (I'm not certain exactly how many at this point) days in this apartment, and two bouts with what can only be described as paranoid delusion to the extreme of insanity, I am finally starting to feel better. My mind is a powerful thing, but my faith endures, proving once again that God is more powerful, and that it's not about me.

Fortunately the only external consequences of said experience were multiple deleted comments of Facebook, two or three journal entries I am afraid to read, a few loud expletives that none here could understand, and some lost time, which was scheduled to be passed in waiting anyway.

Seriously... this "adventure" is starting to toll up many of the most extreme experiences of my life. I felt like I was trapped in a poorly written Sci-Fi book. Second time too... mefloquine is somethin powerful.

Anyway, I am finally starting to feel better, and I feel that God is about to do some amazing things. I look forward to the next few days. Productivity. Building relationships. Teaching at the school. Taking pictures.

Word. Peace out yo. =)

A Weekend

2009-09-20T15:55:00.002-04:00

The cultural tolerance in this community continues to amaze me, as now is the end of Ramadan, and the air is very festive. It has been filled with the endless noise of French rap, and fireworks. Children as young as three years old, from many different ethnic and religious backgrounds have been launching, by hand, small explosives equal in fortitude to those which my brother and I would create using gunpowder and coat-hanger-tubes when we were kids. What, you didn't do that?

I remain in high spirits, and in the word. It is amazingly refreshing to be around people with such faith as to insist that I pray for myself along with the medicine the doctor gives me as remedy. Not as something I should do, but with such strong resolve as to emphasize its importance over medicine. An American might scoff, and say that it is out of ignorance that they would hold such a high belief, but the people to whom I refer rely on preventative medicine and are educated, and still hold such a firmness in faith.

And so I sit, passing the time, too weak to do anything but. My spirits remain high, and I have resolved to go out and meet people, as well as make nice with the neighbors when I get well. God is teaching me to be more honest with him, and with everyone else, especially myself.

I FOUND BBQ SAUCE YESTERDAY!!.

I have almost finished Genesis. It's a good read. I'm going back to it.

Jeremie just arrived with my drugs. I will take them- and pray.

Praying for all my friends and family back home. Love you guys.

Fredneck In Ouaga

2009-09-18T11:03:00.002-04:00

I am in much better spirits, but am sick. Nothing big, just a cold I think.

This guy has a pretty cool website. I have been following him on Twitter.

I recommend you check it out.

All for now.

Fatigued

2009-09-17T03:49:00.006-04:00

The things that have taken place here are having a negative effect on my soul. Two walls of our church have collapsed and thieves have stolen the wooden window frames from the no longer salvageable partially constructed new church. I am well, keeping the faith and working to restore energy. It is good to know that there are so many back home praying for us and the things that have happened here.

Please also pray for the millions of starving drought victims in eastern Africa, many of whom will no longer be receiving WFP aid due to lack of funds, and the 1.8 million affected by floods in India.
----

In reading news articles and searching the world of free academia for information about the current goings on here, I am pressed to make a few observations.

One: The academic world still considers it acceptable to generalize the continent and its problems to a fascinating extent.

Two: The issues and problems that endanger the lives of the people in so many regions of Sub-Saharan Africa are so overwhelming as to indigestible by the human psyche in their entirety.

Three: The economic, security and humanitarian consequences of these problems to the U.S. and the world are much greater than even the most bleeding heart-ed of barely informed liberal college youth would have you believe.

I am praying on what I will do with the next few years of my life. I know it will involve aiding the infrastructure, economic, government and humanitarian improvement of this place.

Beesap Is DELICIOUS

2009-09-13T19:40:00.004-04:00

Beesap (Bissap=best 4 Google, Beesab=Senegal spelling)

Juice... sweet nectar of a pedal. It's a tea from a flower... and it's sweet... super sweet. Its sweetness knows no bounds. In comparison, Kool-Aid is vinegar.

But, at the same time, it's smooth. It's unique, but is kind of like strawberry and grape Kool-Aid mixed, with a twist... it is to sweet drinks what velvet is to cakes. As you can see, I'm having quite a difficult time describing it accurately-but quite a lovely time enjoying it.

It is something to be thankful for. Very thankful for; in the midst of minimal, but damaging flooding that has caused the collapse of our church and several additional houses in Sondogo tonight. We go tomorrow to witness the extent of the new damage and pray with families.

Sondogo is beautiful...

2009-09-13T10:58:00.005-04:00

Visited Sondogo Yeaterday.

The now vast river basin just to the north gave the air a coolness and scent that was reminiscent to the Potomac, where many a summer day of my adolescence found itself happily wasted away in muddy waters. There is no Chesapeake, no Maryland, D.C. or Fredericksburg here though, only poor Sondogo, and struggling Ouaga.

Wet Generosity

2009-09-11T07:36:00.003-04:00

Last night I arrived at the school to find Nifou loading a sack of clothing on to his bicycle for the flood victims. He awoke in the middle of the night just in time to catch a glimpse of the man who stole his radio run out of his bedroom into the night.

What a wonderful surprise!

His heart seemed untouched by this sad display of humanity and I was amazed to see his generosity, as he's definitely not the kind of guy that has enough wealth to be giving away that many clothes.

Indeed, he's off to bible school in October and the church is in the process of gathering the funds to buy him rice.

I've listened to John Wagler's sermon on Generosity about 5 times since I've been here. Giving is good stuff man, any way you look at it.

These are images from the school; the water has been standing for days is some places, puddles are refreshed every time it rains, and the humidity guarantees slow evaporation. (images coming soon, blogger/super slow connection error)

I'm somewhat thankful for each fresh rain; the pattern of mosquitoes is remarkably predictable and it takes about two days for them to get intense. Every rain resets the pattern, I just wish it wouldn't rain so much each time!

Playing with the neighborhood kids, enjoying my electricity, internet and tuna salad baggetts, Instant Mochas with Choco Amigo and leftover Folgers instant coffee that beats the pants of Nescafé (sorry Nestle!). These are a few of my fa-vor-ate things...

Ahh, luxurious Burkina Faso...

Translation, school preparation, and communication continues!

Open Heart

2009-09-09T17:47:00.002-04:00

The pictures are the handy work of Jean and Josias, Jeremie's children who are passing the time with me as I work, rest and wait for school to begin again.

They are of Jean (15, red shirt), Boubaka (jersey), and myself (Nassara).

God has opened my heart and my mind, and I'm feeling much more at home now in my new environment. The power is out at my apartment, and we weren't able to pay for it today so we have to wait til tomorrow... so I'm blogging by candlelight right now, which is an interesting experience.

Jean is crunching away on some freshly burnt corn. Mine was delicious...

I've introduced Jeremie's family to Tabasco Sauce, which gave the kids a real kick, but I think the funniest moment was Boubaka's face upon the trying of the sauce. I'm thankful to have found it, and my bland rice mixtures are much more appealing with the extra kick and flavor. Thanks Marina Mart!!

We have started the project of creating a text to learn English through translations using the Bible and two local languages, Moré and Doula (which you've likely never heard of but over 7 million speak Moré and many times more speak Doula in West Africa). It looks good so far, and I think it will wind up being very much worth while.

I found out today that the mayor of Sondogo told Blaise Campaore (the president du Faso) about the donation we made. I think that's kind of cool, but it's frightening to think that our village was hit so hard it warranted a visit from the nation's president.

I gave the website a face-lift the other day as well, check it out. www.elcbf.org

More to come soon...

Red Cross, God to the rescue.

2009-09-07T13:53:00.002-04:00

Relief. More than food. The Red Cross showed up at the village. They finally brought food aid, and apparently LOTS of it. It's not really acceptable to take pictures of general scenes here-in fact its very frowned upon, hence why all my pics are only of the two areas where we know families, and you'll notice they're largely devoid of people.

I'm relieved. I'm relieved to hear about how much aid is coming in from the rest of the world, and how quickly everyone has reacted.

I'm grateful that the food we bought was able to fill in the gap, from the day of the flood to the time when the Red Cross came, and that I know it didn't go to waste.

I'm grateful that so many people have shown interest, and been praying for us here.

I'm grateful for the people that have donated to help us.

I want to say that if you read the tone of my writings earlier, it is very clear how uncertain this situation was, and how bad things could have been for the people here. The situation is by far not over, but I think that everyone needs to understand that if it wasn't for international cooperation, the WHO, the Red Cross, and probably about 10,000,000 other smaller organizations, everyone in this village would be starving and dying right now. Literally.

Please, if you don't give to us, give to them, and rest assured that the difference they make is HUGE. God knows how many disasters they respond to every year, and how many lives they've saved.

I thank him for them.

It's by far not over, but we're gonna see how many homes we can rebuild before this thing is all said and done!! By golly!!

Thanks for your Response

2009-09-05T07:04:00.005-04:00

Thanks to everyone for their quick responses. It may seem like an insignificant bit, but with what looks like will be coming in over the next two weeks will be enough to provide nearly a weeks worth of food for the 3k here in Sandogo. If more food arrives, it will be plenty to help with other needs in the community (medicine, potential housing, repairs etc.)

That's certainly a lot, any way you look at it.

Everyone that has been supporting us can say with confidence that they have helped this community significantly. Everyone here is extremely thankful.
From our hearts to yours.

Thank you!

Oh, and keep it coming!! Spread the word!!

God bless,

-H

Morning

2009-09-05T03:37:00.003-04:00

I wake up. There is no light; it is black. No noise. I am safe. Perfect.

I hop down, walk around. Make sure I'm the only one awake... excellent.

Slowly, I head for the door, pop my head out. Still safe. No one there. I walk outside, and wait for just a few minutes.

And here it is. A little bit of blue streaks forth from the horizon and the color of the darkness changes.

"THE SUN IS COMING UP!!!" I scream at the top of my lungs.
"THE SUN IS COMING UP!!!"

Someone in the distance- they're screaming "THE SUN IS ON ITS WAY!!!"
They're flat out totally wrong.

It's "THE SUN IS COMING UP!!!" I scream again at the top of my lungs.

I lean down. Stretch... Take a deep breath. Humm a bit. This one's gonna be perfect.

"THEEE SUUUUN IS COMIIINNNNG UP!!!"

He starts again with the "on its way" bit. I'm sure to inturrupt him. Fool.

"THE SUN IS COMING UP!!!"

Others hear us and start yelling- HA! But I was first!! I usually am. They're a bunch of amateurs. Every morning, I have to show 'em how its done.

"THE SUN IS COMING UP!!!"

The dogs start barking, fighting. They always fight, but they don't even make sense. Bark bark, growl growl... blah blah blah.

"THE SUN IS COMING UP!!!"

"THE SUN IS COMING UP!!!"

It is a good morning. My family is awake. The kids are pecking around, and start making almost as much noise as me. I wait a few minutes, making sure they are ok and that all is safe. It is.

"THE SUN IS COMING UP!!!"

I'm sure everyone knows now... a fine day's work. I know I'll be the first again tomorrow. Excellent.

"THE SUN IS COMING UP!!!"

.................................................

When I was in high school, there was a rooster about 100 yards away that I could barely hear through the window. A few nights a week, he would wake me up, and it was one of the most infuriating aspects of my youth.

This guy lives right below my window. My window is a metal frame with slats. I can literally hear his footsteps.

He has a mighty voice.

I give up. In Sandogo, attempting to sleep past 4 A.M. is an act of futility. One must adjust one's bed time, and plan on a 4 O'clock wake up.

As a teenager, I would literally have dreams about killing the rooster across the way, but this experience hasn't angered me at all. I can't, however say that he wouldn't be delicious...

..........................................

I've been the only somber one here for days and I'm determined to buck up and have a great day today. We're doing all we can and life goes on.

Africa System.

Resting, waiting

2009-09-04T05:26:00.003-04:00

Esther has run down to Sandogo to visit the families of the children in our medical program to check on them and see if there is anything we can do to help.

Jeremie has many things to do in town today and is out and about. I am here in the apartment for most of the day.

Aid as been mobilized by every group of people I know and I really really appreciate it. Thank you all...

There is still little sign of aid. I have e-mailed the US embassy and the local Red Cross, but with no response. I have the number of the Red Cross now, and the WHO but I have no $ left on my phone to call. I'll probably walk to the market and get a telecarte in a little while. Its about 2 miles from here.

The people here are going about their lives, just like normal- kind of. The skies are still dark after the rain this morning, and more rain is expected soon.

We need to communicate with the mayor again to see if aid groups will be bringing any kind of assistance.

Photos are beginning to emerge online. The city was drenched, much worse than I would have even guessed by what I saw.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8237546.stm

For all I can do right this minute, I may as well be back in Virginia.

"150,000 people without homes" I said to Jeremie. "15,000? Thats a lot! too much."

"No, 150,000."

230 PM

Esther has returned and she could only find a few of the families; the others houses have all fallen and they are nowhere to be found.

We will put the word out to meet at the school.

There is nothing to coordinate, and not really much work we can do. Just have to wait.

Waiting... getting daily tasks done.

...

A few days later

2009-09-03T17:59:00.005-04:00

We visited the schools and some of the families from the church today. We took money from my spending allowance and bought food for three thousand people. I've never fed that many people before.

Thats a lot of people.

Harve lives on the east end of town. His house and some of the people around him was destroyed. Completely "tomber." He jokes that its easier now, because he sleeps at the bike shop where he works, so he's not late at all. Edmond lives in the north east. His house is standing, but many of his neighbors houses have fallen.

Jeremie has moved into the school. The church that they had to begin constructing to replace the old one has fallen. Ironically, they had to move to the new location because the old one was too close to the river.

The old church is fine. Some people are sleeping there now.

I am fine, and in nearly as good spirits as most people here, but I sense very deeply that I am much more aware of how grave the plight of these displaced people could potentially become in the coming weeks than any of them.

The new apartment is smaller, but the white walls give it a more upbeat feel than the textured baby blue, peeling paper walls of our old apt. I enjoy it; it feels less like I'm an aid worker of some kind than staying in a new apartment.

We start the night courses on Monday, but I do not know how many will attend, as most here have more important things to worry about than learning English.

I hope that Jim and Gayle get back safe, and appreciate all they did here! The people here really enjoyed their company and appreciated their sacrifices to come... They will most certainly be missed.

Sandogo is in ruins...

This is why God sent me here.

I hope that aid comes, and want to thank everyone again for everything they've done for all these people. They are very appreciative and so kind, in every situation.

I'm sure they'd say thanks if they could too.

Typed Journal Entry, Sept 1

2009-09-03T13:03:00.001-04:00

I remarked at 4am this morning, as I usually do, that the streets were louder than I was comfortable with, but last night it was not because of the dogs barking or the mosque chanting. It was because it began to rain. At almost precisely 4am, the ran began, soon after joined by a infrequent but lasting display of lightning. It was reminiscent of a summer storm in Virginia.

When I really woke up at 645 this morning, it was still pouring down just as hard, and the lightning was still coming. I laid in bed, somewhat relieved that our trip into town would be cancelled, and looking forward to spending the morning in the company of Esther and Jeremie. This was just after I decided to come out of my room and have some breakfast. Esther and Jeremie, however departed at 930 or so to look after their kids-because it was still raining just as hard.

Roma came at 1145 to cook us lunch. She said her Moto was having some trouble, I assumed because of the rain. It was still coming down, just as hard. The lightning was tapering off though. Roma said that there was much water in the streets and that I shouldn’t come to the store with her. She said in a grave tone that some houses fell down, but she didn’t seem overly concerned. She obviously wasn’t too happy about it. I asked her about her house, she said it was ok.

Jeremie came by at 2, after lunch. It was still pouring. He said that many of the houses in Sandogo had collapsed, including those of four families at the church- and Justines. The doctor’s house was completely flooded, and Jeremies house was flooded as well. I would later discover that the side wall of Jeremie’s house had separated from the main structure.

I wanted to visit and to meet with the families from the church, but he said the water was too high and that it was dangerous. He said he would take me there later. I left, in the rain, to go buy telecarts for the phone calls we all made this evening, after I found out just how many people had been effected.

At 3pm or so, the rain finally stopped. Jeremie came at about 445 to take me to Sandogo to see what had taken place. Ibraham was either passing by or had followed him, and appeared within seconds of our departure.

I was surprised to see a few houses on the way to cross the river had fallen in and some of the cinderblock walls had fallen as well. The signs of flood were everywhere, from the debris across the horizon to the mud filling the cracks in the cement of the road. We stopped at the Doctor’s house, which had flooded to about 4 or 5 feet high. “No problems” she said. I told her if she needs anything to call me and we’ll do what we can. She thanked me kindly and we rode on across the river.

As we entered Sandogo, I was in shock.

The damage there was much worse that I had imagined, entire sections were flattened, worse than anything I’ve seen before. The houses literally dissolved into the mud from which their unfired bricks were made, right beneath their tin roofs. They were all nearly completely flat.

There were about a thousand people in the street, most of them pulling their belongings up from the field of rubble, formerly their town and market.

More shocking still was the attitude of those who were pulling everything they owned in this world out of the mud. Everyone I met and everyone I saw was as content as they would have been yesterday, as though pulling rubble out of your former home was a weekly occurrence. It was most definitely not, as this was a hundred years flood, but the people here are bound and determined not to let hardship get them down, as one might expect from a people and culture that has forever known little else.

I shook hands with Noufou. “So, you still have a house friend?” “Oui, Ca va” was his reply, with a smile and a handshake. I met several others from the church and shook hands with about 10 or 12 familiar folks in all from the crowd just as we walked pass. Pulling me out of shock and bringing me into the good spirits of the crowd was the sight of Jeremie’s children, hanging out on the side of the road with other kids moving rubble with the crowd. They were just as passively rambunctious as always, relaxing, talking and showing no signs of distress whatever. Simply amazing. Africa System.

Life goes on. We rode on to Jeremie’s house, and what he described as “not a problem” was a crack revealing a structural separation of a side wall from the rest of his house. His house had been flooded about two feet high, but he managed to save his furniture and most of his belongings, and his bedroom has a separate wall, so it was still safe to sleep in. “Not a problem” I guess, then, is somewhat the case, fortunately. He will still have to rebuild his house, or at least part of it.

As we rode and I witnessed, I prayed to God that they would all be ok, and pondered what I could do to help. Jeremie said that everyone was ok, and that they could sleep in the school and that the government was acting quickly to help. This all sounded good and well, and realizing that all the money I could muster would be a drop in the ocean compared to the need, I settled that funds would be better reserved for the medical program, and so I paid for the families of the church who’s homes had collapsed to have a hot prepared meal. For this I was thanked profusely and Ibraham drove me back to the house. I was not nearly satisfied and felt, and still do feel, that there is more that I should and can do to help.

After I made a few phone calls, I had a conversation that brought the true scope of the situation to light. This was not a normal flood.

The national hospital had been evacuated, 45% of the nation was without power, and the entire city of Ouagadougou was sharing the problems of our little Sandogo. There are three main rivers here, but when it rains there are several conflagrations of channels that make temporary rivers and streams between them. If they all flooded, hundreds of thousands of people would be without homes tonight. My best guess is somewhere between 50-80k people, maybe over 100k if was really bad. The homes like Jeremie’s however, the homes which are no longer safe and will require rebuilding, are probably countless. I’d be willing to bet that even some of the office buildings in town will need major reparations, if it is as bad as Jeremie describes.

The thought of an overwhelmed government, unable to assist these people properly in a timely manor, is dreadful, and I pray to God for the best. Everyone in question is now in serious if not immanent danger of malaria, and if assistance and housing cannot be brought or found in the next few days, starvation and disease will be serious factors. These were not possibilities in my mind before I realized that the scenario of the government not have the resources to aid everyone who needs it may just become real. I pray that it won’t come to this, as if it does there is a serious possibility that people could die. Many people. People I know.

I have mustered all the resources I have at my disposal, and liquefied much of my survival money for the next few months. Amazingly, my housing we paid for in advance, so I don’t have a choice about where to live. One of a dozen of life’s little post-it-notes that God knew this was going to happen, and what he had in store for me. There is nothing that I have now, including the rest of those funds, that would prevent me from aiding the staying off of the worst possible scenario for these people. Car and credit be damned. They’re not worth lives and this isn’t a game.

The mind separates priorities, because no matter what happens to these people, I, Nassara, l’etranger, have a plane ticket (or should have one, anyway) back to the USA in December. No matter what I do, I get to go back to the richest country on earth, where the is no malaria, and it is illegal to construct a house that the rain will dissolve-because the economy enables the feasibility of such a law. There lives are worth no less than that of mine in America, no matter the $-CFA exchange rate. If it is within my power to aid and help, I am obligated by my God and conscience to do as such to full of my extent.

New Mission

2009-08-21T11:34:00.002-04:00

God has given me new tools and put a new mission on my heart

all continues to be well here and I am excited about the porgress. Ouaga 2000, a development section that has been underway for just a few years is making some ridiculous progress. there are whole hotels that are finished and painted that were not here when i was in feb. and there are new embassies for several countries that stand now in what were emptyy fields not months ago

the government has relocated people in the neighborhood next to the school into government housing that is new on the other side of the city which means that people that lived in dirt huts now have modern facilities with access to electricty and water

the huts are now piles of rubble near the school and the new electric grid is up.

the school got electricty a week after we got here and they put up another line just yesterday
progress is fast and very visible here and Gods work is as well.

It is God that brought me here and his workis evident here as well

for the first time in my life i know an individual that has actually rejoyced at the passing of his friend because he knows his friend is with God

he took two days to pray. i have never seen such confidence in faith and such sincerety in devotion in all my life

it begs the question of which culture in this interaction truely needs healing

The medicine program and the school march on with more support and more aspirations and we are happy to report such.

From my family to my friends to my coworkers and former school mates and chums i have prayed for you all these past two weeks

God bless

all is well

Bearing in mind

2009-08-15T15:57:00.001-04:00

still bearing witness to the power of prayer

trying to hold my heart open and hang on to love

patience is a rare thing for westerners

here its the state of mind

there is so much love here

but the security is horrible

Praying all the time

Burkina Changes good and bad

2009-08-13T13:40:00.004-04:00

These images are of the same fields, dry season in Feb and wet season now/August.

God has blessed us greatly. few hickups but there have been some. He reminds us to depend on him; Jim and Gayle call us the Gideon mission and say his strength will be the only explanation of our success: this is always true.

food distribution in targho is amaaazing. teaching is wonderful.

my laptop is in serious disrepair and has been busted in transit then soaked in a rainstorm when my window still opens. it powers up after the thirtieth time you try, but this is only bcause you are all out of worldly options and are forced to rely on prayer for digital electonics which has worked amazingly; i can believe my mac still functions.

communication is sporatic

love and prayers for all

peace

Burkina Burkina

2009-08-04T13:50:00.002-04:00

Arrived in burkina typing on dust filled french keybord in internet cafe.

is cool and perdy compared to feb and people are nicer cause i am nt stressed.

Glad to have Jim and Galy and am at peace with other decision now that I have details, will pray for them.

People here are very thankful for what we have done, thank you all agin for your support. Love shutout to all readers!

Luggage lost only for one day though so stinky underwear was oinly consequence.

no more bad dreams on the drugs and mosquitoes are not that bad here.

Still dont want to die of malaria.

God is great and has much in stor for us here, more soon to come

peace

Power

2009-07-31T08:03:00.004-04:00

Jude 1:
11 Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.
19 These are the ones who cause divisions, worldly-minded, devoid of the Spirit.
20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,
21 keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.

1 John 2:
4 The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him;
5 but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him:
6 the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.

I am happy to be in faith, love my God and try to walk the narrow path, and pray that I am strong enough for God to use me with success to show others how my life has changed for the better...

Opinion

2009-07-30T01:48:00.006-04:00

Violence in Northern Nigeria.

It is difficult to forgive, educate and reform those whom you have killed. For the first time I pray for more than just forgiveness and grace to Muslim extremists. I pray that the government of Nigeria will stop indiscriminate killings, and that the young people there will have a chance to learn more than hatred, intolerance and killing.

Al Jazeera, CNN and BBC mentioned that most of the killings on behalf of the extremists were done with machetes and bow/arrow.

This is why we win the hearts and minds, people.

Ouagadougou not always peaceful. Things I need to be aware of.

Paris preparations winding down... about to hit the ground south of the Sahel!

I feel very comfortable with the Canon EOS 10D- Pics from Ouaga will be amazing.

Twitter

2009-07-29T11:34:00.000-04:00

http://twitter.com/hrwillis12

Signed Up. Will be updating.

Ode to Larium

2009-07-29T08:21:00.003-04:00

What gives me dreams that are vivid,
what makes me miss metro transfers and thereby makes me livid.
What plays with my senses and makes me feel ill
and tires my body even though I sleep well.
My calcium balance is all in a tumble
and my brain is accumulating stuff that messes with my ability to write, rhyme and reason...
Its to you dear larium, oh, oh, its all due to you.

Big contrast on the first few days on the drugs. They say it gets better with thyme. I'll have to see if I can get some in the market.

UPDATE: Ode to Susan...

http://www.lariaminfo.org/

Thank you Sue... Thank you Sue... your post sure was sweet...
I see the drugs are highly toxic, but they're also super cheap!

=/

Paris, My Paris

2009-07-27T08:37:00.003-04:00

Another rainy day in the city of love, another blog post.

Excellent weekend. Good fun, good food. African food- Delicious African food.

Encouragement from friends, downloaded sermons, pictures and photos- of mine and others.

Picnics, Lightboats, and fun times.

http://www.1x.com

This 2 Shall Paris.

2009-07-25T02:11:00.006-04:00

Blake gave me one of his old cameras and the picture quality is amazing; I'm totally psyched about it. Its a Cannon EOS 10 D for all you technogeeks out there.

I hung out with the "Sans Papiers" a bit yesterday.

Their's is a sad story. They are immigrants, in this group from Mali and Senegal, who came with work papers that either were falsely given or were incompletely filed. As a result, THEY thought they were legal, and they worked for a good period of time, only to find that they were paying France's ridiculously high social taxes but had no working rights.

Some of them were badly taken advantage of (increasing hours, decreasing wages etc.) and they found they were working illegally. They had paid taxes and been exploited, with no working rights.

Now, they cant work, and are forced to live on the sidewalk a few blocks away.

They were in the lobby of an abandoned building, but Sarcozy took their squatters rights.

It's difficult to blame the government for the policies that resulted in their situation. It's not difficult to blame the companies who exploited them. In either case, people who want to work, and are capable and willing to work should not be forces to remain jobless on the sidewalk due to technicalities.

They shared their tea with me... it was DELICIOUS!

Paris is beautiful, and just as I remember it. As my brother says though, northern France can't ever seem to remember what summer is supposed to be like. The confusion creates a weather pattern wherein rain and sun play a sick game of tennis over the skies of Paris.

There is a bakery just next to the entrance to his building, and he knows the baker. I talked with her for an hour yesterday. She is very nice and wants to learn English. She asked me many questions about New York and San Francisco.

I asked her for Thon Tomates et Pain Raisin.

That also was delicious...

A Paris

2009-07-22T10:08:00.002-04:00

Its all French like here and stuff...

So homeland security apparently thought that both of my bags looked pretty sweet, and TOSSED the CRAP out of them- BOTH!! But now I have these two cool little "yo bag got tossed yo" cards.

I put them on my brother's bathroom door.

Blake found a website that lets you get mobile internet for $30/month using Burkina's wireless network, so it looks like I may even be able to get internet in Targho!! The world is a cool place.

Tried, trusted and true new method for plane travel:
1 beer. 20 mins prayer. 20 mins reading. Relaxing to music while waiting for meal. Beer with meal. Sleep for 5 hours. Wake up 1 hour from destination. Eat breakfast. Pray. Land.

I sat next to a French woman and her short tempered, nerdy, very French teenage son. They were pretty cool. I made him laugh a few times, but he was very frustrated with a screaming baby across the isle. His mom played "peekaboo" with the baby to distract him. I played peekaboo with the teenager to lighten the mood.

He did not find this nearly as funny as myself or his mother.

Too much luggage lugging makes Jack a tired and frustrated boy.

Prayer, relaxation, and communication make Jack a renewed soul.

The Africans down the street are less approachable than I imagined, but I have prayed on this and feel a string calling to make some kind of contact with them...

Stressed, mispelled.

2009-07-19T03:51:00.002-04:00

I have been experiencing stress from my transition over the past few days and the time I wake up in the middle of the night has been changing. It's like one of those neat guessing games you only play because you have to. This morning the time is 3am, yesterday it was 430am. Afternoon naps have been keeping me from breaking down in the middle of the day, but also ensuring that my unhealthy sleep cycle becomes sustainable and likely permanent. Yay!

On a higher, less sarcastic note, I am very excited and very, if not over prepared for what is shaping up to look like a very busy and exciting adventure.

A child registered for the Targo program died this week, as did the newborn baby of one of our colleagues. This is not happy news. Prayers for these families...

At the sound of the tone, it will be 3:56am. Beep.

A little bit of peace...

2009-07-16T22:41:00.003-04:00

http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=84733

This is good news... very good news. I'm glad I have something positive to tell people about this. Its one of those things (along with AIDS/contraception) that's very hard to address in my situation.

Retitled blog

2009-07-16T10:06:00.002-04:00

Ok folks, i've renamed the blog to make it a whole lot easier for people who have my email address to remember. The ELCBF blog is still the same, http://elcburkinafaso.blogspot.com.

I leave in less than a week- packing, praying, lots of driving and lots of saying goodbye is ahead!

-H

I was there!

2009-06-29T17:05:00.001-04:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIzePcwTXWg

This video was taken from right above me at the opening ceremonies at FESPACO '09! Cool stuff...

Newspaper article!

2009-06-25T14:50:00.002-04:00

The Free Lance Star published my story! It also got picket up by the Washington Times and is on the WFP's press site! (only b/c they were referenced in the article, but its still cool, n'est pas!?)

http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2009/062009/06202009/472581

Mission: Targho Africa

2009-06-10T16:32:00.000-04:00

Romans 15:

20 And thus I aspired to preach the gospel, not where Christ was already named, so that I would not build on another man’s foundation;

21 but as it is written,
“They who had no news of Him shall see ,
And they who have not heard shall understand .”

Workin on Faith Again

2009-06-02T11:30:00.002-04:00

As in February, I am forced to plan and purchase tickets before having 100% financial security in this plan of God's. This has been very difficult, and I have been praying hard to know exactly what to do. The answer is to give God as many avenues as possible to answer my prayers for support. God's got me. That's all I know right now.

I have mailed several letters in asking and am working to find more places to which I can mail, and praying and thinking for more ideas.

If I was not so excited about the trip, I would probably be more stressed. I will be teaching English, helping with the medical program, and spreading the word in Burkina Faso from August to December. This is going to be an incredible experience, and will help many over there.

I hope to establish some community ties and make some serious headway...

Great Success!

2009-05-28T11:19:00.003-04:00

Happy to report that I received a $3000 check from the Rappahannock rotary club, and gave a successful presentation at the Stafford Rotary club yesterday. More connections, more people interested, more people not referring to Africa as a country any more! YAY!

Jeremie is hopefull, and his eagerness to move forward is both admirable and motivating. With every step forward his hopes and deamands increase. Were these demands for his personal gain, this venture would be frustrating and futile, but his constant queries are solely for the advancement of the school and the continuing of aid for his community. He continues to give his time, his heart and his own money for the people in his community and for God, and also gives his thanks to the community here for our support, and to God for all the things he has granted in Jeremie's life.

Onward and upward we go!

Work!

2009-05-23T08:17:00.002-04:00

I have read hundreds and written dozens of pages on the culture an history of this very complex and struggling society. Burkina Faso and its residents have a very long and very integrated history, and live amongst each other in a manor that is unique on this earth.

Their cultural interaction and understanding of authoritative structure is totally different from ours... knowledge easily explains the difficulties that Africa has had when it comes to building on the attempts at aid from the US- not to mention the fact that the largest cities in west Africa are solely governmental centers that were never industrialized by colonial authorities due to a lack of interest and a strong desire to exploit labor rather than create stabilized trading partners.

Ouagadougou had 8,000 people in 1900. It now has 1.5 million.

New Life

2009-05-11T12:26:00.003-04:00

I have moved into Church Hill and am living for free with no job to dedicate all my time to the ELCBF project. Right now this consists mostly of email communication and research, but I am also reading French and meeting with people in Richmond and Fredericksburg about the project...

There are several other volunteer opportunities which seem to be important but I have to be very careful to restrict my time and energy to doing what God has called me to do, and what so many people have so graciously gone of of their way to aide me to accomplish.

This is a project that can never end. Thats a glorious thing.

Today was my first day of riding the bicycle to save gas money... its good to get back on the pedals again and it does not take as long as I thought it would to make it across the city.

The Library of VA is a short distance from where I have moved and is proving thus far to be a very capable office, but VCU seems to have many more resources pertaining to Africa amongs its collection (LVA query for Burkina Faso=0 results).

If you're reading this and you can count yourself amongst the many who have helped me along this venture, you're following the words of a very thankful friend.

Thanks to Rotary International and another single large contributor, it looks like we are going to have a government approved medical center and pharmacy by mid June.

Thanks and God Bless!

A Path Cleared

2009-04-12T21:48:00.003-04:00

I have a new motivation, and a new love for these people and my work for them. I hope I can help others see it. This week went very well with the funds I was able to raise, and more importantly, the interest I sparked has spread through the community back home. I hope people will not forget and that I can continue to keep their interest in what the lord is doing...

Love all of you.

-H

Sad News

2009-04-09T06:50:00.002-04:00

One of the children in Targho passed yesterday. She fell down a shaft of some sort and did not recover from her injuries... very sad. Her name was Sourweima Windimi and she was about 14 years old. This was definitely a downer this morning, and also a heavy reminder that medical and nutritional problems are not the only dangers these kids face...

I pray for her family and for those who loved her...

I continue to work to help her community.

Back on Track

2009-03-22T20:47:00.005-04:00

I have discovered that the stress and hardship I was experiencing was a fear to show emotion those whom I missed so much and love so dearly here in Virginia... so I fixed that. I feel great and God has started a fire in my heart. I am giving a presentation to two services this weekend at church and am also giving two presentations at Rotary clubs the week after. I am Dedicating my Wednesdays and some Thursday strictly to working on the project, but motivation has been slow to come due to stress, though I have made fairly significant progress.

If you are reading this, there is significant ground for me to say that I love you, and that for all of us, good things are bound to come soon.

Jeremy has explained to me that government officials have inspected our program, and all facilities related to it and approved, which is great news... there is hope that if the Pharmacy gets running as a full fledged clinic that the government can fund it if it meets code.

The budget for everything we want to do this year for the medical program: $11,056

That's free medicine for 208 kids for a year, an operating health clinic with a physician and a pharmacist (and a night guard). Also includes food for the kids in Targho and sanitation materials for the clinic and school.

I think that's a very realistic number. I pray that God grants it for us.

SPREAD THE LOVE!! Let it out...

I am home.

2009-03-06T08:19:00.002-05:00

I am home. I am alive. After one of the most stressful weeks of my life, I'm back in the USA and kind of starting to feel normal again, but I hope I don't get too comfortable. I flew into NYC which was very very cold after a month of 101 temps. A few days with a good friend up there helped me get acclimated a bit, and a few good conversations here have helped me relax. Doesnt really matter how I feel come Monday, however- I have to go back to work. C'est la vie.

There are so many things to do over there and the people and children are so easy to love. It's hard to relax because I want to get started with fund raising and planning to help them. I hope the next six months are successful and that the programs we have planned will work...

God is strong and is working...

Last Full Week

2009-02-20T11:15:00.003-05:00

One more week to go... ive taken so many good pics and have so much to build on when i get back... more importantly now I hva a clear idea of what jeremie needs over here- as well as whats going on and what we can make happen in the future. This program has so much potential and the people here are willing to do much to help.

I am looking forward to coming back to the states and hitting the ground running.

It is a shame however that I am just now starting to get a handle on the kids nales and really starting to get settled in. I hope very much that when I return I will be quick to return to the mental state I am in now. This place has so much potential...

Ouagadougou: Sunshine and paradise

2009-02-17T10:31:00.002-05:00

This place is incredible. Never could the differencebetween the atitude and pleasent nature of a peoples and the horrible nature of their surroundings be greater. The people here are all very content with life and seem very happy-except when theyre starving. The inability of families to create wealth and grow food here is easily explained with a few thousand pages of history (whiwh didnt take me too long). These past few weeks have been a great experience and Ive been able to help out Jeremie so much... the children really do appreciate it and i think they understand better than i realiaze how much we can help them.

im sick for a second time but am already on the mend again. Aside from the initial shock of the third world this trip has been quite interesting and ive definitely met some wonderful people. I think thr greatest suprise to myself is how much ive come to love the kids here. They play pretty rough and I dont think an american child would last more than a few minutes in the atmosp^here these kids create for themselves all day.

thats all for now...

NYC

2009-01-29T08:13:00.003-05:00

My journey begins here, in the big apple. I saw upper Manhattan yesterday, and Chinatown. I was not impressed. The weather was fairly miserable and I didn't get too wet. Just as I hoped, I've been blessed as the foggy, rainy weather yesterday has given way to a beautiful, cloudless clear sky today. The wall of cloud at the end of sight down every street and alley has given way and should yield beautiful views of... well... I guess whatever NYC has to offer.

Its been really good to visit with my old friend up here. She made some seriously delicious lasagna last night which was no small piece of doins. Mmmmmm... lasagna.

The next two days are days of sights and rest, and spending time with old friends. Then I'm off to Casablanca!

PAMPHLET

2009-01-17T15:47:00.003-05:00

I posted a new pamphlet for the program.
Its a word 2007 document

www.elcbf.org/docs/pamphlet.doc

Set to go

2009-01-15T10:24:00.002-05:00

Almost all the loose ends are tied up. The plans are set and I'm ready to go. I have been a little anxious about this trip, and haven't really looked at it as a fun an interesting experience for fear of allowing it to happen for the wrong reasons. That fear is subsiding, and I'm gettin psyched!! This is going to be an incredible experience and I cannot wait to meet the people we are going to help.