access to internet proved far more difficult than we had imagined. i apologize for the scarcity of updates while we were in Nigeria, but as the weeks and months unfold and as things are processed, i hope that we'll be able to share that with you here.
we're back in Chicago now. i woke up this morning to CTA buses and the general orderliness of things. it's confusing. when we arrived in the city yesterday afternoon, i couldn't get over the neatness, the lines, and the choices. a trip to trader joe's with sarah proved a bit too overwhelmning...and boring...hah. i think i prefer buying my food from the person who grew it, in an INSANE market, with goats and chickens and yams and owkwa (the most delcicious "bread fruit" you've ever tasted) all around. it's good to be back, though.
i think i'm going to sleep a bit more, but i just wanted to say that we're back in the states and doing well.
i miss it very much and can't wait to return. there's a lot of good work to be done there, a lot of great people to do it with, and i hope that some of you will join us in it...we'll need all the help we can get!
i love you all and will update again soon, i promise!
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Monday, June 16, 2008
rain rain
today we travelled to the bishops house, had breakfast with him at 6:30 am (I know me up early in the morning is crazy!)...we had a nice talk with him and everything seems to be working in our favor. its so amazing here...we met with the chief or king (what we call the mayor in the states) and his wife will attend our conference...i have never met so many prominent people and they are all so hospitable and willing to help!!!
so i have been bitten by 6 mosquitoes so far....and travis has not been bitten at all. i guess i have nicer skin!! (haha...sorry travis) NG's family house is amazingly huge, as with all of the other houses in the village...there are farm animals that run around the village and many trees with huge beautiful leaves
unfortunately there are also some huge insects, like the cochroach, eww....they are giganourmous and have wings...i went to the bathroom and saw one decided that he would not hurt me so would leave him alone and use the bathroom UNTIL it darted right for me!! i ran out looked a travis laughing at me and the darn bugger kept chasing me....i ran into travis' room and closed the door....BUT he still chased us...finally travis took out the big shoe and smashed him....man it was an adventure
the children here are absolutely adorable...BUT i think they are a little confused as to why we have such fair complexion...wherever we walk all of the children open their beautiful eyes and just stare. everyone is so welcoming though!!
ok i have "talked" too much now so ill save some for later
peace
so i have been bitten by 6 mosquitoes so far....and travis has not been bitten at all. i guess i have nicer skin!! (haha...sorry travis) NG's family house is amazingly huge, as with all of the other houses in the village...there are farm animals that run around the village and many trees with huge beautiful leaves
unfortunately there are also some huge insects, like the cochroach, eww....they are giganourmous and have wings...i went to the bathroom and saw one decided that he would not hurt me so would leave him alone and use the bathroom UNTIL it darted right for me!! i ran out looked a travis laughing at me and the darn bugger kept chasing me....i ran into travis' room and closed the door....BUT he still chased us...finally travis took out the big shoe and smashed him....man it was an adventure
the children here are absolutely adorable...BUT i think they are a little confused as to why we have such fair complexion...wherever we walk all of the children open their beautiful eyes and just stare. everyone is so welcoming though!!
ok i have "talked" too much now so ill save some for later
peace
the rainy season
means that is rains...A LOT. everything, we concluded, is bigger in Africa. the raindrops, the bugs, the smiles, the food...it's all big and let's you know it exists. everything encourages all the senses. it's all new for me (and stephanie, too) so the eyes, ears, nose, fingers, mouth, and heart are all working 110%...it's neat. i've rarely felt so alive...maybe never have i felt this aware of my place in this world as a human, as a brother, as a friend, as a person of faith...just trying to do something.
i'm still trying to find vocabulary that is appropriate for all i'm seeing and hearing and feeling. i'm working on that and will try to use that soon.
just know that i'm being challenged and that i'm having a blast and learning how to find joy and GOD in a number of new ways. i'm asking a lot of questions and not entirely sure i'm finding the answers, but that's ok. i'll share those questions soon.
we begin talking and being with the children tomorrow (tuesday) so please be in prayer for our hearts and our time with them.
i'm still trying to find vocabulary that is appropriate for all i'm seeing and hearing and feeling. i'm working on that and will try to use that soon.
just know that i'm being challenged and that i'm having a blast and learning how to find joy and GOD in a number of new ways. i'm asking a lot of questions and not entirely sure i'm finding the answers, but that's ok. i'll share those questions soon.
we begin talking and being with the children tomorrow (tuesday) so please be in prayer for our hearts and our time with them.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
we're here!
in Lagos! yes, equatorial Africa is hot and humid but its also really really wonderful! the people are beyond welcoming and the food is delicious. stephanie and i (well...maybe more me) are pretty enthralled with the lizards running around the grounds of the convent we're staying at.
we got here late yesterday evening and are adjusting to the time change pretty well, i think.
i wish i had adequate words to describe the energy here. it's unlike anything i've seen or felt or known before. maybe over the next several days i'll try to find a way to talk about it. until then, just know it's consuming.
we're here. we're safe. and we're very very glad to be here.
my soul is full and i am eager. i'll hand it over to stephanie now.
much love,
travis
hey all
so we made it safely to lagos last night! there are so many people who line the streets, and it seems like the airport is a hot spot...the ride to the convent was amazing. people were walking the streets and the cars on the road were driving so chaotically BUT everything had a pattern to it...apparently the horn is a method of communication NOT a hostile machine
its very humid here but it will probably be the best diet ever!! like travis said the food is delicious...
pk well her brother is about to pick us up to meet NG's family!! ttyl
steph
travis and stephanie can be counted among the two most courageous young adult americans. their energy is unbeatable. what started like a little conversation has become a reality among the three of us (the muskateers). sometimes i have to remind myself that stephanie and travis are with me in nigeria and not in america. all it takes to make a dream come true is hope into the plane and off. so here we are - still in lagos waiting for the june 12 to pass, the two americans to pay courtesy visit to their homeland embassy and we are off again to the east - where the sun rises on igbo-ukwu (the great igbo) that is my home-----.
... so the journey conts....
NG
we got here late yesterday evening and are adjusting to the time change pretty well, i think.
i wish i had adequate words to describe the energy here. it's unlike anything i've seen or felt or known before. maybe over the next several days i'll try to find a way to talk about it. until then, just know it's consuming.
we're here. we're safe. and we're very very glad to be here.
my soul is full and i am eager. i'll hand it over to stephanie now.
much love,
travis
hey all
so we made it safely to lagos last night! there are so many people who line the streets, and it seems like the airport is a hot spot...the ride to the convent was amazing. people were walking the streets and the cars on the road were driving so chaotically BUT everything had a pattern to it...apparently the horn is a method of communication NOT a hostile machine
its very humid here but it will probably be the best diet ever!! like travis said the food is delicious...
pk well her brother is about to pick us up to meet NG's family!! ttyl
steph
travis and stephanie can be counted among the two most courageous young adult americans. their energy is unbeatable. what started like a little conversation has become a reality among the three of us (the muskateers). sometimes i have to remind myself that stephanie and travis are with me in nigeria and not in america. all it takes to make a dream come true is hope into the plane and off. so here we are - still in lagos waiting for the june 12 to pass, the two americans to pay courtesy visit to their homeland embassy and we are off again to the east - where the sun rises on igbo-ukwu (the great igbo) that is my home-----.
... so the journey conts....
NG
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
in london!
...sitting at heathrow. my body is muy confused. there's been some napping but mostly just people watching. we depart for lagos in a few hours. so, we're half way there. at least we're on the other side of the atlantic now.
update soon?
update soon?
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
we depart!
30 minutes before we leave. my heart is full. i have no idea what to expect. that's ok. i have no idea what kind of person i'll be in 30 days. that's ok. as i fortify my heart for this time, i ask you to help me do that.
we should have access to internet at various points and we'll update this blog at those points. i love you and can't wait to share this experience with you.
peace and blessings,
travis
we should have access to internet at various points and we'll update this blog at those points. i love you and can't wait to share this experience with you.
peace and blessings,
travis
Thursday, May 22, 2008
what is?
lots of good food and planning last night at sister NG's house. i think i will enjoy Nigerian food very much. spiced chicken with fried plantains, squashes, other veggies, rice and delicious tomato mixture over the top. sunday, i think, we have ox tails...i'm actually quite excited about it.
we started asking questions last night. the biggest and the one which sticks with me today is how it is we define "poverty." it's a question that, while there, i want to think about, both for myself, for the people of Nigeria, and the world as a whole.
the western, capitalistic values which have come to dominate the world, i think it's easy to say, surely aren't the be all end all. in fact, in many instances i think some of these values have produced more harm than good.
i'm trying to revisit some of Amartya Sen's Development as Freedom in the coming weeks. what is the measure by which we determine a people's well-being? if it's soley based on GDP, import/export ratios, etc. then we're necessarily creating a context for injustice. people are often times lost in those kinds of numbers. stories aren't heard.
how, though, in the asking of these and other questions, in defining "poverty" or "success" do we still honor the story? and, more importantly, how do we prevent an entire people from being just another case study? that, just like strict economic calculations, allows the story of a person to be lost and thereby their human-ness is lost, too.
if we're doing justice we're loving others beyond anything else. i want to ask big questions, work towards big solutions, but more than that i just want to be. i want to be human. be american or white or protestant or gay or whatever else. but more than that, i just want to be with and in the human experience with others, near and far. hear their story and be in pain and joy and celebration and confusion with others. because in encountering the otherness we come to see we're not all that other, we're all human and we all deserve the same....love and the chance to make choices for ourselves.
we started asking questions last night. the biggest and the one which sticks with me today is how it is we define "poverty." it's a question that, while there, i want to think about, both for myself, for the people of Nigeria, and the world as a whole.
the western, capitalistic values which have come to dominate the world, i think it's easy to say, surely aren't the be all end all. in fact, in many instances i think some of these values have produced more harm than good.
i'm trying to revisit some of Amartya Sen's Development as Freedom in the coming weeks. what is the measure by which we determine a people's well-being? if it's soley based on GDP, import/export ratios, etc. then we're necessarily creating a context for injustice. people are often times lost in those kinds of numbers. stories aren't heard.
how, though, in the asking of these and other questions, in defining "poverty" or "success" do we still honor the story? and, more importantly, how do we prevent an entire people from being just another case study? that, just like strict economic calculations, allows the story of a person to be lost and thereby their human-ness is lost, too.
if we're doing justice we're loving others beyond anything else. i want to ask big questions, work towards big solutions, but more than that i just want to be. i want to be human. be american or white or protestant or gay or whatever else. but more than that, i just want to be with and in the human experience with others, near and far. hear their story and be in pain and joy and celebration and confusion with others. because in encountering the otherness we come to see we're not all that other, we're all human and we all deserve the same....love and the chance to make choices for ourselves.
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