remembering victims while not forgetting Congo...

With all of the news reports coming out of Haiti... It's hard to not be pulled to the suffering and struggles that the people there are facing... The loss, horror, pain. It's drastic and shocking. Even here in the DR Congo, we hear reports of what happened and continues to occur there. The government even announced last week (or before?), that they will be donating 2.5$ million in aid. A country that isn't organized, is accepting foreign aid and humanitarian donations... Is giving. Ah.

Whether that's a wise decision or not, Congo is still bleeding. Lives continue to be damaged if not lost, on a daily basis.

Two weeks ago I presented to one of our classes about the potential that this country has, and what is being done about it by Congolese leaders (close to nothing). I also shared with them the foreign investors... Investors who's presence here might benefit Congolese to a minimum degree, but mainly the gains are leaving the country and impacting China, Europe, the States...

Congo is still hurting... Twelve years of civil wars will create unimaginable damage to a country, not to mention to a person's spirit. But Congo continues to be unseen, unnoticed, unimportant.

This article was published in the NY Times this past weekend... The author states, "It’s time to show the same compassion toward Congo that we have toward Haiti."

I hope that can happen.

Orphaned, Raped and Ignored 

Thank you for the love you have for me, and the Congolese people. Our students are living examples of hope in spite of pain, damage and destruction. Continue to pray for them.

love,
Bethany

I'm still here...

...Just fighting with slow internet.

!!!!

But it's surprisingly going "fast" this morning... Let me try to upload a pic so ya'll know that I haven't lost weight. In fact I'm getting fat!

I love you all!

Here is Hulda, Freddy, me and Sifa

Now you know I'm not starving to death...

love,
Bethany

All is Well

Happy New Year! 2010.

It's still weird for me to write... I continue to write out 2009 instead of the proper year...

Apparently so do Immigration officials here in Beni.

We have a team here from North Carolina right now... They arrived on Saturday and they stay for a week. They got their passports and visas back from Immigration on Sunday. On Monday, an official called Kaza here, to tell him a mistake was made on all twelve of the visitors' visas...

Instead of writing January 10, 2010 - they wrote 2009. On their VISAS!

So, yesterday and today, we've worked to get them corrected.

I guess I'm not the only one having a hard time remembering the correct year. Thankfully, it's not as important for me to remember as it is for some!

"Love has come to walk among us"

I've been listening to a beautiful Christmas song this morning... The lyrics are just wonderful:

All creation had a language, words to say what must be said.
All day long the heavens whispered, signing words in scarlet red.
Some have failed to understand it, so God spoke His final word.
On a silent night in Judah's hills, a baby's cry was heard.
"Glory!" sang the angel chorus! "Glory!" echoed back the night!
Love has come to walk among us. Christ the Lord is born this night...

My prayer is that you all have a blessed and Merry Christmas.

Love,
Bethany Dawn

Worlds Collide

Thursday, December 10, 2009, 9:45am

For a solid 20 minutes, I have been sitting in a storefront that is still being built. Leaning against the raw brick, unfinished wall, sitting on a stone to keep me off the dirt floor - we are grateful the builders had already attached the metal roof to the building. The rain continues to pour from the heavens, the ground is saturated already, we had rain just two days ago. Sitting so near to the ground, amidst the unending rain, I am overwhelmed by the smell of the earth. Fresh, clean, wet, dirt. It almost reminds me of my Mom's garden.

I'm not the only one taking shelter inside this future-store or boutique. With me is a boy who looks like a college student - clearly late for classes, but with the understandable and acceptable excuse of "the rain came!"

There is a middle aged woman, sitting on a small stone similar to my own, in the middle of this "room." She is either a great faker, or else she has somehow managed to fall asleep while sitting on a stone, surrounded by strangers, in the midst of the thunder crashes. In some ways I'm a bit jealous of the ability she has to sleep just where she has happened to be.

Near to the mama is her taxi driver, who has also decided to close his eyes and try to catch some sleep, sitting on top of his motorcycle.

My taxi driver is under the overhang, just outside our door, as if he's keeping watch for the precise moment this rain will end.

There are several others out there near him, and undoubtedly more in the attached rooms to our particular store. We are a hodge-podge of people, all put together unexpectedly. We listen to the lulling sounds of the rain on the roof and the newly paved road.

Occasionally people will pass by on foot - soaking wet. I wonder why they don't stop and take shelter from the rain. But then I realize that rain is a part of life here. Life doesn't stop when the rains come. And neither do they.

Across the road is Enra, where there is processing and manufacturing of Mahogany, and a large forest within the compound as well. It's surrounded by what looks like a 5 or 6 foot wall. I watched at first in surprise as I saw things falling from or off of that wall. I finally realized that what I saw were sticks and branches. Someone was throwing wood over from Enra. A few minutes later, I saw three children climb over the wall, laughing and dancing in the ever-increasing rain. One of the two girls seemed to take rest under a tall tree. The boy and other girl would occasionally dance, especially when a car would pass by - practicing a new dance move, perhaps? But eventually, life beckoned - the responsibility of the task they had been sent on was remembered and they all started loading up on the sticks and branches they'd collected. And in spite of the thunder, lightening or the rain, they started making their way up the road.

A while later, I saw a woman walking up the hill towards us, carrying a heavy load on her back (likely from her garden). She also had an umbrella in her hand, covering her head. It took just a moment to realize the reason - on top of the large sack she carried on her back, was her young baby. Even though she had hundreds of veggies and wood, she still wanted to protect her baby from the rain, without stopping on her journey to get out of the rain. It was both beautiful and heartbreaking.

By 10:15, I was once again on the back of the motorcycle, on my way to UCBC. It was still sprinkling a bit, but compared to the downpour of the past 50 minutes, it wasn't so bad.

On my mind though are the people I saw while sitting in that room, and the ones I shared the room with. Our worlds met for less than an hour. An opportunity we wouldn't have had if it hadn't rained.

Christmas-time is here...

With surprise I saw that yesterday was December 15 - or since I am studying French, I should say, "le 15e Decembre."

Without snow or Christmas lights everywhere, it can be hard for some to really see this as "Christmastime," but it still is. Regardless of the advertisements to buy more presents, an abundance of Santas and preparations to decorate the house - it's still Christmastime.

We haven't seen too many decorations - though I'm sure it will come, especially this weekend / next week. Last year we decorated the Christmas tree at the Kasali's on Christmas Eve. The same night that Kassie and I baked for hours on end!

I don't know what we will do to celebrate, this year specifically... We are in our house now without Congolese family members - a lot of displaced Americans. And most are new to Congo, especially during a holiday.

So we have the chance to develop a new tradition, a way of recognizing and focusing on the meaning of this time of the year. What will we do? How will we observe and celebrate and reflect on Christmas as a family, this year?

I don't know.

But my hope is that we will still see this for what it is, even if it doesn't look exactly the same.

It's Christmas.

I've been listening to Christmas music the past two days, maybe as a way to remind MYSELF and to put me into the "spirit." And sometimes, I can hear Mama Furaha singing Christmas songs... They are of course in Swahili, but hearing the tune still takes me to the spirit I'm looking for.

On Sunday, we attended local choir Echo du Salut's concert with a large, well-known choir from Butembo. As the concert opened up, the choir from Butembo sang the Halleluiah Chorus acapella, in Swahili. It was beautiful. Absolutely PERFECT. It was a fantastic way to be reminded of Christmas and to reflect on the power of words, regardless of language.

Joyeux Noel!
(Merry Christmas)

Rain

Friday, December 4, 2009

Before leaving the States… Many people asked if it would be the rainy season when I arrived in Beni. I would simply laugh and say, I don’t know! People here tell me that Beni has seasons of rain or sun, but during my time in Beni last year, I never saw it.

It would rain for three days and then we’d have sunshine and no rain for ten. Sometimes we’d have 10 minutes (or 3 hours) in a day and sunshine for the next four. It seemed to happen like this throughout the whole year I was here. “I’m convinced that there are no seasons,” I would proclaim!

Since I’ve gotten to Beni on the 15th of November, it has rained every single day. Sometimes all day long. Sometimes just a quick shower in the morning or for a few hours in the middle of the night...

This morning I woke up to the sound of rain (which I could hear in spite of the earplugs!), around 5am-ish. It continued until nearly 7am. Now at 12:15pm, I’m watching dark clouds approach the school.

I guess there is a rainy season after all. We’re certainly in it.

Adjustment

Our journey from Entebbe was a bit more eventful than the one that took us there… Again, it’s a fast exposure to life and the things that complicate it when in Africa. I found most of it entertaining, typical and even comforting (because it was familiar and made me feel at “home,” again), but felt bad for Megan… Not because it was so terrible, but because it is quite a transition to go from the States to traveling by bus in the middle of Uganda.

Our day started at 5am, when we woke up. Two taxis met us at the house at 5:30 to take us to the bus depot. We got there by 6:15 and were loaded onto the bus by 6:45. But even those few minutes were an experience – what with the 15+ men who crowded around our cars to offer help or profess their love to one of us girls. Megan looked at me and asked, "Is it safe to get out?" I only laughed and said of course! They just wanted to help us with the luggage, so that we would pay them some money!

We got out of the car and after haggling about prices to take the bus and prices for the conductor's men (not the ones who came to our car) to load our luggage into it – we get on. By 8:45 we still hadn’t left the parking lot. Finally though, we started to move, only to find two busses ahead of us that were stuck. One was in a deep ditch that had been created by all of the rains the night before, the other had stalled and wouldn’t restart. It seemed like we watched a group of men try to push that bus forward countless times. It would rock forward seemingly far enough, and then it was like they ran out of strength – and it would roll back. But thirty minutes later the stalled bus was pushed out of the lot and the ditch had been filled with dirt. We traveled for about 10 minutes before we had to stop to get gas. We were still in Kampala. But that is when it was decided that our bus wasn’t able to make the 7 hour journey to the border. So we waited a surprisingly short time for the replacement bus to arrive and RE-started our journey at 9:45. We finally left the city of Kampala at 10am, just under 4 hours late.

The bus ride was long, bumpy, hot, and entertaining. I remained amused by everything until about 3pm, when the novelty / hilarity of it started to wear off. We finally reached the border at 5:45 – 15 minutes before it closed! But Honoré and Noé were there to meet us, help us through the customs and get into Congo. That is where we really relied upon them to carry us through the demands of the immigration agents.

The ride into Congo and to Beni took about 2.5 hours… It was a jarring ride – but that’s to be expected when there are no street lights, no pavement and holes the size of tables and TVs in the road.

In filling out the Visa application forms in the States, we are told to indicate that we are visitors and not working or living in Congo. When we were waiting at the border and speaking to the immigration officers, they asked us our professions – we all answered that we are teachers. A few miles down the road from the border, we were stopped at a check point, where the soldier asked us the same question. He was told that we are missionaries.

It’s interesting to see how quickly our identities changed depending on who was asking the question. In a way, all three of those answers are in fact correct. But it’s a shame that certain people need or want to hear certain responses when asking questions. To remember how to jump through the hoops can be an exhausting task!
It’s good to be back in Congo once again. I’ve missed it a great deal and am so happy to be back. Especially after that long journey – I have felt this release or feeling of, “ah, at last I’m here.” It’s good to be back in my second home again.
Work has started right away, of course. I’ve tried to ease into things… But the work is still there. So in a way, I’m running already!

Thank you for your love and prayers. Our students are doing well and gave me such a sweet and warm welcome. It was so strange to stand in front of them in Chapel on Monday morning. It had been over four months ago where I did the same thing… Wishing them success in their exams, telling them I love them, and promising to return again. Well, I am back and expressing to them the greetings of so many of my family and friends. To hear that there are people and churches praying for them in the States – I cannot explain their joy. So thank you.

It has also been exciting to hear them asking about the Kipepeo scholarship program… Soon it will commence so that everyone who has supported a student or part of a student’s school fees – they will soon receive your gifts. Which means that they will soon begin to work! I’m excited to see the progress of the Program and how our beautiful property line has developed.

The internet has been horrifically slow lately. We aren’t sure what the problem is… But when it is working better – I will be sure to upload photos for you all to see.

With love and prayers for peace,
Bethany

Uganda

Arriving to Kampala went smooth enough… We said our goodbyes to family at the airport in Chicago, and had a little time to kill before our flight left for London. The flight itself wasn’t the smoothest, but we made it without getting sick, thankfully. With four hours before our connecting flight to Entebbe, we wandered around Heathrow resembling zombies – as we didn’t sleep on that 8 hour flight. Finally though, we got on our flight and 8+ hours later, we landed in Entebbe.

Oh it was clear we were in Africa again by just a few things that hit you in the face right after exiting the plane.

First –we were met with the sweet humidity of the Ugandan air, right next to Lake Victoria. Even though we left the plane at 10pm, we were still surprised at the heat and warmth we found – especially compared to our time in London and Chicago!

Second – instead of having one taxi to meet us at the airport – we were met with two older model sedans… Our luggage (which all arrived seemingly intact) was crammed into the two cars along with the three of us, the drivers and our host, Papa Kawede.

Third – we started our drive from Entebbe into the city of Kampala, which took about 45 minutes. As we drove, our taxi driver commented on the condition of the roads. He told us how he doesn’t think they are safe. The reason? Because of the oncoming traffic – they have such bright lights on their cars now! It blinds him. Moments before, he mentioned the lack of street lights in Uganda and how it’s too dark when driving. But – he finds the brighter lights of other cars to be dangerous.

Fourth – the speed of the car! My gosh, I forgot how people drive in Kampala! We were cruising at a good 80 kilometers per hour (about 50 mph) but would burst up to at least 120 at times – to pass and just pray that we got back into our lane before the coming truck plowed into us. Poor Megan – what an exposure to Africa!

My thought? That the dangerous part of the roads concerns all of the people walking along the side of the street. They walk opposing the traffic , but traffic weaves in and out so much that sometimes the pedestrians have to jump from the side of the road to avoid the cars. That combined with the lack of sidewalks and poor lighting and the speed of the cars... Ah. It was a quick readjustment to life in Africa.

Fifth – we arrived at the Kawede home at just about midnight, Thursday night. It was a long ride, but so comforting to see familiar faces and a familiar place again. In spite of the club across the street – I slept soundly, until about 7am. That was when the rooster that a sister of Mama Lillian had left at the house, started crowing nonstop. The problem with this rooster is not how loud it was or how often it crowed, but how CLOSE it was. This sucker was outside our open window, INSIDE of the house! It was stuck inside for the night and hadn’t been let out into the yard… So it crowed incessantly underneath the window to mine and Megan’s room. Ah. Welcome back :)

Sixth – when the rest of the family awoke, we spent time discussing how healthy and “fat,” Justin is. How I need to eat more in order to become “fat,” again (fat=beautiful) and how brave Megan is to give up a year to live in Congo. We were met with such hospitality and kindness by this family – even though they felt like they had nothing to give – we were greeted into their house and family like we were children who belonged there. That is one more thing that made me realize that once again, I am actually back in Africa. The acceptance and love that is so openly and freely given – is incredible. And it’s genuine.

I will write more soon... 

Back to Beni!

Hello!

I'm writing just before I leave for Congo. I will be heading out on the evening of the 11th, and I am excited to return there. It’s amazing how the past few weeks, days, hours seemed to just fly past me. I’ve been back in the States since the middle of July, for four months now. And it doesn’t seem like it’s been that long… Sometimes it feels like it’s been longer, but for the most part – it seems like I haven’t been here long enough!

Where did the time go? I regret that there were so many people who I was not able to visit or spend enough time with. It’s like I’ve watched the time slip out of my fingertips and I’m leaving already.

But just like the time in the States flew by quickly, I’m sure that my time in Congo will go by as equally fast. This time around, I will only be in the Congo until the end of June. There are commitments that I’d made to be in the States in early July – so I will return again after just seven or eight months away. This time around, my stay in Beni will go by even faster than before.

So I hope that I will be able to spend more time with many of you when I return next summer. My trip could also be cut shorter, depending on my financial support. I am so blessed by all of you who decided to continue supporting my work in the Congo, and those who are joining for the first time this year. I am still amazed at this team which we have formed – together we are making an impact on the lives of so many in the DR Congo. And I thank you for joining with me!

At this point, I have enough funding raised to keep me in the Congo for 4.5 months, until the end of March, 2010. Which means that I have just about 70% raised!! I still need to raise enough support to cover the final three months of my time in Congo – otherwise I will be coming back to the States sooner than expected or planned!

I appreciate your prayers regarding all things. Please continue to pray for the necessary financial support for myself and my teammates, Justin and Megan, who I will travel with on Wednesday. Please pray for us as we travel to Uganda and then a couple of days later, when we travel through that country and into the Congo.

We should arrive to Beni, my second home, on the evening of Saturday, November 14th. We will be met by some of the UCBC staff at the border and travel the next couple of hours through the mountains and along the bumpy dirt roads. After being in Beni for a few days, I should be able to update again!

As always, thank you for your love, support and prayers.
Bethany