A short post.

Fooled you!

I always intend to write a short post. It never ends up that way though. You know you love it.
Another post of random thoughts and updates, jumping back and forth with no real structure.

To spice this long blog up a bit, here's a picture showing how much I stick out on a regular basis.


I've been pretty busy lately. Starting up at Beacon of Hope and getting shown the ropes for there. Pretty interesting. Beacon of Hope is connected to TEKAN (acronym that translated, means Fellowship of Christian Churches in Nigeria) which is a collection of several Christian denominations here. Beacon is involved throughout Nigeria with HIV/AIDS awareness, training, testing… etc. One thing they started this week is a course they are teaching to pastors involved in the different denominations all about HIV/AIDS plus what their role is as a leader to do with it. The idea being, they will then teach what they learn in this 20 week course to their congregations - hopefully removing the stigmatism that so often follows when anyone openly shares a positive HIV status. This stigmatism is a HUGE problem. Depending where the person lives, if they become open with being positive, their lives can be ruined. People will refuse to buy things from them, ending any income. Friends will leave. People have been beaten to death by their family just for saying they are infected. I cannot even begin to fathom this. I can't imagine how hard it would be to build up the nerve just to be tested. I can't imagine how hard it would be to wait the 15 minutes it takes to get the result. I can't imagine sitting there when someone I don't know tells me I tested positive. I can't imagine finding out that I have a disease that, even with all the treatment, will eventually kill me. I can't imagine walking home in such despair. I can't imagine needing more support at any other time in my life. I can't imagine building up the courage to tell my family and loved ones that I have HIV. I can't imagine how I would be able to even finish one sentence without being overwhelmed. I can't imagine my family - the ones I love and who are supposed to love me unconditionally - I can't imagine them murdering me before the symptoms even show .

I can't imagine any of this happening.

This is, obviously, an extreme. But the stigmatism is almost always still there. People lose their jobs, their livelihoods, their friends, their families, their lives. They are afraid to find out. It may take someone a year just to build up the confidence to get tested. Testing takes only a drop of blood. Hard to imagine that something in one drop of your own blood can lead to your life being ruined, even ended.

Chris, my housemate for the past three months, has taken off for home. He flew out for Britain last Friday. I tagged along with him to Abuja (a good three hour drive) Thursday afternoon. Chris and I partied in Abuja with Mike and Megan and their adorable kids Amira and Nico (don't challenge Amira in wrestling, she will beat you EVERY time… trust me). We stayed at the Ribbens for a bit (had some great burgers), then around nineish Mike asked us if we wanted to go out to a store to get some snacks and drinks.

This is when I started going into culture shock. Which you might find a little odd.

When I first came a little over three months ago, I was in Abuja for a couple days. It was a bit different from what I was used to, but still pretty Western. So it wasn't TOO different, so I didn't think anything of it. It was all more of a novelty than anything else. But now, after living three months in Jos, a very African city, it really hit me. I've been living in a city with no streetlights, where you don't walk anywhere past 7, where there is often more time without electricity than with, where air conditioning is rare, motorcycles are taxis, curfew is 10, a stoplight is that guy in the orange shirt telling you if you can go... you get the idea. So, after three months, you get pretty used to that being normal. Driving around to a store at 9pm was not. The streets were lit. There were those electronic TV screen ads on the side of the road. There were… people. Stores weren't just open, they were busy! It seemed surreal. We went to a department store (Park 'n' Shop!) where there were shelves of… everything. Food! Toys! Bread! Cookies! Drinks! They even had an entire wine section. Upstairs they were selling microwaves, fridges, laptops and the biggest plasma TV I've ever seen in my life. This is far from unordinary in Canada. The average mall has a store for each of these things. But being in Jos for 3 months and visiting other areas in Nigeria like villages that don't even have holes for toilets), you come to think of the entire country being the same. It's surreal to see such a modern city in a country full of villages without clean water or toilets. When I had first left Abuja three months ago for Jos, Kyle had told me: "you're finally leaving the West."
Now I understand.

It makes me wonder. I feel I adjusted pretty well to the Jos life (in my opinion anyway). To losing so many of the luxuries I enjoyed back home (like having both a fridge and a microwave in my bedroom…) But seeing how things are in other areas around the world I've realized at how little we actually need. You miss things at first, but you get used to them being gone. They're replaced with more meaningful things. Things that challenge you. Things that make you learn. Make you adapt. Make you think. Make you better.

So I wondered: do we adapt quicker to losing things, or gaining things? Both seem to be pretty quick. But adapting to loss makes us grow, while adapting to a gain seems to make us soft.

My younger brother, Jamie, had joked about when I would come back, I would be like Schindler at the end of Schindler's List. (Not the END end of the movie, he wasn't joking about people putting flowers on my grave or something morbid like that). Near the end of the movie, Schindler is looking at things he spent money on and saying about how those things could have helped him save more Jews from the Nazis. Jamie joked how I'd come home and pick up something of mine and hold it up saying something along the lines of "this could have fed anothe. This DVD…" I thought it was funny (not to make light of the tragedy the movie depicted, but rather on how Africa would affect me), but I also suspected there was truth to it all. Right now, I don't know how I can go back home without looking at everything I have (couple thousand dollars worth of movies, for instance) without thinking about how I should/could have used my God-given money more appropriately. God has given me more money than I needed. Money I could have given away to someone who could use it to live. $20 is a LOT of money to a LOT of people. It means a lot more than we'll probably ever understand to a lot more people than we'll probably ever comprehend. $20 in Canada won't buy you a new DVD, but here, the equivalent (a bit under 2500 Naira) is quite a bit. I have someone who comes in to do my laundry, which I would never have done if I had a machine - all done by hand and I don't have the time. Becky can use the 800 Naira she gets for a day's work more than I can. She would have to work more than 3 days just to buy a movie in Canada. If she didn't have any expenses. Which, since she has a baby, I don't think is true.

So, I doubt me coming home will be as dramatic as Schindler's List, but I know I won't be the same. I'm not the same now as I was. I knew when I was still in Canada and planning on leaving that I wouldn't be the same guy coming back. I don't mean the light tan I've gotten, I mean the way I think. The way I look at things. What I do with my spare time, how I talk to people, how I read my Bible, what I pray for… everything. I know God has me here for a reason. I'm still not sure what that reason is. God could have a plan for me to be here for years. He could have a plan for me to spend every day of the rest of my life in Canada. Who am I to disagree with God? I just pray I don't resist too much to what He does have planned.

Henry Blackaby once wrote: "Some people say: 'God will never ask me to do something I can't do.' I have come to the place in my life that, if the assignment I sense God is giving me is something that I know I can handle, I know it is probably not from God. The kind of assignments God gives in the Bible are always God-sized. They are always beyond what people can do, because He waits to demonstrate His nature, His strength, His provision and His kindness to His people and to a watching world. This is the only way the world will ever come to know Him." God gives us challenges He knows we can't handle. Unless we come to Him. God makes us grow through challenges. We're challenged so we can grow. If you spent you're entire life having everything you asked for given to you, you'd crumble at the first difficulty you faced. Don't avoid a difficulty, it's really God giving you the opportunity to grow.

Hard to imagine I'd be almost home right now if I only stayed the initial 3 months. I feel like I'm just getting used to everything. Be weird to be going home so soon. When I think back to when I first got here, it seems so long ago. But all the time in between has just flown by.

On a completely different note, I ate something off a banana leaf for the first time ever this week. That's definitely something that should have been on, and now scratched off, my To-do list. It was good.

I now have my Nigerian drivers license. It's actually kinda scary how easily I got it. No test. But I did show my Canadian license, so I guess they're assuming I know how to drive. At least I hope that the average Nigerian can't get a license that easy. But going on how a lot of them drive, I wouldn't be surprised. I'm sharing a Peugeot wagon with another guy here. It's pretty sweet. Not the car, it's a piece of junk. But being able to drive myself around. The car is... drivable. But wouldn't pass any safety laws. But it works and it's better than nothing, so I'm not complaining.

What else, what else...

I went to my first Nigerian wedding today. No offense, but in comparison, Canadian weddings are a bit boring. It was so energetic, a lot of singing... Weddings in Canada can be so stiff and dull. I can't remember the last wedding I've been to that was FUN. And it seems that's what it should be. It's an enjoyable occasion. A couple is being united under God. Laugh! Sing! Cheer! Yell! Dance! It's a happy occasion! Not that we don't enjoy our weddings in Canada, we just somehow feel that we can't express our emotions to the full extent of how they are affecting us.

But don't worry Rick and Natalie and Jon and Stef, you're weddings won't be boring. You're all too much fun for that to happen.

After the wedding, my ride had to show the wedding party where exactly to go for pictures. When we got there, they realized that the photographer didn't come with. So then I became the 'official' photographer. Which was weird. Since I wasn't actually invited to the wedding (not that you GET invited to a Nigerian wedding, it's an open invitation to ANYone...) but I didn't even know WHO the bride and groom were. I was just there because I wanted to see what a Nigerian wedding was like. Then I became the photographer. So that was kinda neat.

Oh, and check out my rock climbing pictures! We went twice to this huge pile of rocks (LOTS of rocks in Nigeria) and climbed them. Quite tricky to get to the top. We were all pretty sore the next day.

Snaps

I uploaded pictures.
Not much, just from St. Patrick's Day and the Worship Over. Kinda give ya a feel of some of the random stuff that goes on.

I know I'm way behind.

Here's some more 'teasers' of pictures to come:
This is (apparently) the highest point in all of Plateau. Maybe even Nigeria. You know what? I'm just going to say this is the highest point in the world.

brb

In 3 more months!

I got my visa extension.

I'm pretty pumped.

Hopefully I'll be able to get a good night's sleep now.

:)

Enjoy this picture of a sign. I did.

Finally!

Yay! Pictures!

It's taken me a little while. Ok, quite a while... but I finally have some pictures posted. It's taken me literally all night, so you better be happy. I hope to be in bed by 1.

Most are from Jemkur, which is a remote village in Plateau State (state I'm in). Because of the horrible roads, it took 5 hours to get there. Plateau State isn't even that big. To give you a bit of a frame of reference, Ontario is bigger than all of Nigeria. (With significantly less people). One of the guys from RURCON, plus a guy from another organization, called TASTE, went to this village to show them how to build a sanitary toilet. Many people previously just went in a field or even a stream (which they also use for drinking water). So it's definitely something they need. The idea was to get the villagers to do the work themselves so they would be able to know how to build more, plus it would get them involved and they would be dedicated to the project more. Just giving handouts to people makes them dependent on them and takes away any initiative for them to do certain things themselves.

The toilets themselves are an Indian design (as in from India, not Native). It's a bowl that can be flushed with 1.5 L of water. The pipe splits off into two holes, only one of which is used at a time. After a couple years, the second hole is used and the first one can be used for fertilizer (talk about win-win!)

The village was pretty cool. Not literally, I got burnt, but pretty neat. They don't see white people very often. I scared some kids... But once I pulled out the digital camera, they warmed up to me.

Jemkur pictures are

here

and here.

Other pictures I have are of Yankari Game Reserve. This place is technically farther than Jemkur, yet takes less than half the time to get there, thanks to good roads. It's a lot of fun there, went with Chinyere, Monica, Janina and Chris and John. We didn't see a whole lot of animals, besides baboons and warthogs. And a lot of birds...
But there was an elephant!
Behind some trees.
It may have been a rock.

The hot spring is what was the most fun there. I mentioned it in my last post I believe. Now you can have a better taste of what it was like in some of my pictures. But I have to say the second trip we took was better. Especially for pictures. So check these ones out, but just so ya know, there's better ones on their way! Eventually. *Edit! Just uploaded the pictures of the second Yankari trip! Ch-ch-ch-check it out now.*

Yankari part 1

part 2

and part 3

CRWRC had it's annual spiritual conference this weekend. It was great. Got a chance to play with kids. Which is always fun. Especially Nico, Mike and Megan's little toddler. He's a lot of fun. I kinda 'kidnapped' him a couple times...

Conference was good. Got the green light from Beacon of Hope. Now I just need my visa. Hopefully that will come soon. Praying it does!

No sermon today.
I need something to talk about tomorrow...

Two part post.

(This post is another post in two parts. The second part has to do with Africa and pictures. Feel free to skip until there if I start to bore you).

Doing something for yourself (aka, selfish) is arguably basis to end whatever it is you are doing. If I was a boss, and I gave you a promotion, I'd be doing a good thing. But if the real reason I gave you the promotion was because it was the only way I would get a promotion, my halo will have dimmed a few watts. I'd have done it for myself, not because you needed the raise. You probably wouldn't complain because, hey, it's a raise! But I think it raises a moral dilemma. If you do something for yourself (something selfish), but are indirectly doing something good for someone else, is the act itself good?
In other words: does the end justify the means?

It has always bothered me (in interviews or the like), when someone has been asked why they help such and such people, or donate or whatever - and they answer:

"it makes me feel good"

To me, it just seems like the wrong reason. It seems pretty selfish. I've always wanted to tell that person "this person is in need, this person is starving, this person is DYING… and the only reason you want to help him is because it makes you feel good?!?" What about their right to live, even if it doesn't directly make YOU happy? What about the Biblical mandate to help those who need it, whether you benefit from it or not? To me, help/aid/donating involves a sacrifice.
Getting joy out of helping is not wrong whatsoever.
But if the reason WHY I were to donate, give support, feed a homeless person - if the reason is to give myself a pat on the back, to get that 'warm, fuzzy feeling' I think I'd be doing it for the completely wrong reason. The Biblical idea of helping those in need is to put them first.

Often, I think the reason people say this, or give this impression, is not because they themselves are selfish. They're just aware that our society is. We are focused on our individual happiness. To try convince someone that they should donate because it would make someone else happy just doesn't seem to have as much appeal as donating money because it will make YOU happy. And we'd much rather make ourselves happy - if the option is there.

The good Samaritan is the prime example of helping someone in need in the way we are supposed to. He put the injured man first. He went to his aid. He got down, got all bloody picking him up off the side of the road and helped him to the city. He paid a good deal of cash to see that he would get better. He put the injured man first. If the Samaritan had done it so that he himself could feel good, he would have been putting himself first. He would've told everyone he passed that he picked the man up off the street. Maybe have even asked for help, so he could still get the glory but not get as dirty. He'd be telling people that he saved a life. He would've called up the papers to let them know what he did. He would have wanted everyone to know that he breached the huge cultural gap. That he gave up his hard earned cash to pull that man to safety. He helped his enemy. He would've been trying to puff himself up before everyone. But he didn't. Because he put the other man first. He gave things up. Money, obviously. But he also gave up his trip. He was traveling somewhere, possibly in the opposite direction than he brought the man, and gave up getting there on time. Maybe he lost the big business deal. Point is, he gave up something he didn't want to, without getting something in return. He gave up where he was going, what he was doing, and his lunch money - all for the injured man.

To REALLY help someone, to REALLY give yourself, to REALLY donate…

it has to hurt.

If we're not hurting...
we're not giving enough.

Replace 'warm and fuzzy' with passion; a burning desire to help others.

Here ends my 'sermon' as I'm sure Sherri would put it.

Now, onto African things…

The CRC has an annual spiritual conference this weekend (Thursday to Sunday), so I probably won't be updating during that. Not that I've been the most loyal updater lately… I've been trusted with the daunting task of supplying peanuts or popcorn on Thursday as snack food for the group. I don't know if I can handle that. During the conference, I hope to be able to talk to people from Beacon of Hope (the organization I hope to be working with in a couple weeks) and CRWRC staff about me staying on to work with Beacon of Hope and hopefully get my visa woes figured out as soon as possible. If this doesn't get figured out, I might be leaving in less than two weeks. If not, I won't be home for about 4 months from now. Which is really weird. Should I start getting ready to go home, or should I start settling in? I don't think I'm ready to go back yet (disappointing, I know), but we'll see what the Lord has planned. I've heard a response from someone who was quite excited at the idea of me working with Beacon of Hope. Even said something along the lines it being 'an answer to a prayer'.

No pressure...

Another disappointment: still no real new pictures up at the moment. Nothing really 'African' anyway. Some of you have been whining about this *cough*Sherri*cough* but you'll just have to suck in that lip until I have the chance. Which may be soon. But then again, may not. I'm in Africa, so I'm doing things in African time. Crazy people going by your clocks, rushing to get things done. Slow down! Take a breather!

To keep you (somewhat) satisfied, here's a few teaser pictures of the Yankari game reserve and hot spring we went to recently.

We're all animals.
I'm a tiger!

Chris and I take monkey in the middle very seriously.

This is the hot spring. It is awesome.

Also, some pictures of the eclipse I took a while back. Technically in Nigeria, so there. Also a basketball game and the carnival at the local school. While I'm at it, here's some of my favourite and random shots. That should keep y'all busy for a while.