I haven't written in quite some time, so here's a run-down:
- We finished exams about two weeks ago and had our end of year celebration. I feel we ended strong this year - much stronger than in years past. We have a lot of returning staff in January so I'm excited about the new year.
- I had an impromptu trip to Nairobi with Thomas to attend a conference with other NGOs doing work with youth in East Africa. I say impromptu because it was decided the day before that we would be the ones attending. It was great! We learned a lot and networked a lot with like minded practitioners. But, it also meant being gone for two days right before the end of school. Our staff was great though and they had no problems while we were gone.
- Lisa was in Liberia for three weeks! She was doing agriculture research asking Liberian farmers about current practices. She enjoyed the work and had quite the adventure in Liberia.
- We went to sport's weekend after the last day of school and had a three day sports fest. Our teams took first in girls basketball, second in rugby (yes, rugby!) and second in volleyball. We had a scare as one student fell and dislocated her elbow...bad way to end the tournament. She is OK now. We immediately took her to one of the best hospitals in the country just a few minutes from where we were playing.
- I was able to re-visit the hospital where I had been sick a year ago, almost to the day. Strangely enough when we were coming back from Nairobi, we boarded our bus right across the road from the doctor's office. I ran across the street to pay him a visit, but he wasn't around. It was strange to have the one year anniversary but also great to be in such a different place (mentally and physically) this time around.
- We said hello to new volunteers Ben, Melanie and Sara.
- We said good bye to our friends Allison, Lani, Lisa P. and Scott.
- We flew home! We took a cheap flight (Fast Jet) from Arusha to Dar, stayed the night in Dar, flew to London, stayed the night in London, then flew to Denver. We did that series to save money...not sure we actually succeeded :)
There's been some talk about what Lisa and I will do when we more "permanently" return to the U.S. As many know, we are returning in January and will be finished at the end of March to return in April. We'll return to the U.S. after that. Rest assured, our answer is still a resounding "we don't know what we'll do when we return." Lisa will work part time for IEFT for sure and beyond that, we are still making some decisions. My hope is that we use whatever wisdom God affords us as we look ahead. For now, we're just happy to be home.
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE AND I HOPE OUR PATHS CROSS VERY SOON.
