I’m counting 7 weeks into my field rotation right now (6 weeks since Loki), and the only change of scenery has been Juba for 5 days. I’m getting tired of the heat (40-45C depending on the source), tired of the same rice and stew, and tired of sitting around without any work.

So Yei is way down south near the Uganda border. Apparently it’s very green and lush. I can’t wait. But the best part is that it won’t be so hot. I can’t imagine setting up the system in 40C heat, lugging barrels, gravel, sand, etc.

The 7 weeks of this field rotation have been almost an eternity. The usual rotation is 8 weeks, so I’m starting to feel my mind slip away. Unfortunately, some friends are visiting Uganda in April so I’m extending my pain for 11 weeks in the field. I hope I get back to Nairobi in one mind. I feel like Dieter Dengler in Rescue Dawn, slowly losing my mind while I imagine what delicious items fill the shelves in my imaginary fridge.

The distribution was targeted at households who had fled their town after fighting between soldiers broke out. From our estimates we served about 700 households. Multiplying that by an average household size of 4, that meant 2800 people. But the numbers are never accurate since some households had only one person and other households were ten or twelve. As expected with this discrepancy, there was fighting. There was fighting for food provided by WFP. Lots of fighting. There was also fighting for the NFI kits that we distributed. Almost every 15 minutes there would be a squabble large enough to summon the army, all toting loaded AKs, to help keep the peace.

Our team of four was outside in the wind and sun for five of the hottest hours of the day. I applied and re-applied plenty of 45SPF sunscreen and I still got a bit burnt. Three liters of water and no lunch were barely enough to keep me going. But we were successful in giving out all our mosquito nets, buckets (although some were broken), kitchen sets, blankets and tarpaulins.

It was a busy day, but some of the people were friendly saying “Salaam” or trying out their English “How are you?”. That gave me a chance to practise my 4-5 phrases of Arabic. But for the most part of the day it was just too busy giving out kits, opening packages, that there wasn’t even time to look up and greet people. I just took their card, marked a “K”, gave a pot or kitchen set and pointed them onward.

The toughest part was when we were finished distributing the kits and an old leprous lady with no fingers came over and begged for something. All I could say was sorry, “maalesh”. She was crying and there was nothing to be done for her. Some Sudanese staff helped her to get registered, but she had nothing and she received nothing yesterday. I felt sad for her, but strangely, it wasn’t heart rending.

Blessed is the man
who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners
or sit in the seat of mockers.

But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season

Psalm 1:1-3

I read that Psalm today and I’m the tree that yields its fruit in season. I’m planted by water, but that doesn’t mean I’ll sprout fruit every day. There are the harvest seasons and I’m glad that God is in charge of that. I’m also glad that God is charge of any change of plans too!

Hi! Greetings from Africa!
I hope you are coping well with the recent snowstorms in Toronto. Here in Kenya, it’s the opposite problem: sun, heat and more sun. The daily high regularly reaches +35C, but I’ve been drinking plenty of water to adapt with the heat and the intense sun.

At the moment I am waiting in Lokichoggio in northern Kenya. Situated 30km from the Sudan border, Loki was established by the UN in the 1989 to serve as a logistical pit stop for humanitarian assistance to Sudan under Operation Lifeline Sudan (OLS). UNICEF, the World Food Program (WFP) and 40-other NGOs, including Medair, have offices here to support operations in South Sudan. As a result, a small town has sprung up around the airport and the UN compound.

Conditions in Loki are quite good. It’s much nicer than the expectations to which I signed up. There is a pretty good canteen with decent food, fresh fruit and vegetables. I’ve been told to stock up now before I head into Sudan where the food may come from tins. Unfortunately it’s a bit of a ghost town since 95% of NGOs have relocated into South Sudan after the CPA peace agreement was signed ending the war in 2004. The compound is littered with empty buildings of NGOs like Save the Children, Oxfam, etc. Altogether, I wouldn’t mind spending considerable time here, if only I had something to do.

Four weeks since leaving home I’ve been delayed once in Switzerland and once again here in Lokichoggio. Myself and another fresh colleague were hoping to get into Sudan as soon as possible. However, our second round of briefings have been postponed and put off and I’ve already seen different staff come through Lokichoggio on their way to Sudan. It is quite frustrating to be waiting here with nothing much to do.

Excitingly, I will finally be flying out to Malakal with MAF this coming Tuesday. I’m looking forward to seeing the real Sudan, instead of the veneer of Lokichoggio. The down side is that there is also no work to be done there either. My project is waiting for donor funding before we can go ahead with any work.

Please keep these things in your thoughts and prayers:

• an end to violence in Kenya which is weighing heavily on the Kenyan staff
• successful and quick donor funding for the WatSan project
• my faithfulness and fruitfulness amidst delays and boredom

in His service,
Ben

• packed malls full of neurotic parents
• eating dinner after dinner of turkey and tryptophan
• Christmas CDs on infinite repeat
• bitter winter weather with -20C windchill

And I propose one more: Christmas cantatas and the pain of out-of-tune choruses.

So this past Sunday I went to People’s Church to watch their Christmas concert. Dread. That’s all I felt leading up to it. And a bit of sleepiness. To my surprise it was thoroughly entertaining. A bit slow at parts, but fun. It wasn’t just singing (yawn), but they did choreographed dance along with a full live band. Too bad something like this would be too “revolutionary” in our Chinese church circles. I think the grannies and gramps would have heart attacks.

I’m just looking into the realm of possibilities. It’s still a ways away, but maybe I won’t sleep at my next Christmas concert when I return home.

This week has been so much about birthdays and birthday celebrations. Of course, part of that is because of mine and now Joeie’s. But November is the birthday month. I’m not biased: just off the top of my head I count twelve. And that’s from a relatively small circle of friends and acquaintances. I blame whomever that Valentine guy is (or according to Wikipedia, numerous Valentines). Funny thing is that most non-November babies don’t realize: February 14 + 9 months = November! We joke about Valentine’s Day conceptions, and it’s likely exactly true.

So November is now super packed with dinners and parties for either my birthday or hers. I should have planned ahead because the week before I had sushi buffet (excellent), Korean BBQ (too much food), and prime rib steak. So having birthdays back-to-back is going to be hectic each year. But it’ll also be a super fun week of just having a good time!

Unfortunately, anybody having a birthday in these two weeks doesn’t get much time to even say “Happy Birthday” to themselves. First, you don’t have any say in when you pop out of the womb. And second, you don’t have any more say in when exams are scheduled. I pity some friends who’ve received exams as birthday presents.

So Joeie: Happy Birthday. Just remember that your birthday present from York is Christmas break starting on Tuesday. And also all things pretty and shiny!