Fun in the Sun

We were able to get away from Jos for one day last week for a mini-vacation with our friends, the Tolars. Yankari Game Reserve was our destination. We drove 3 hours; soaked in the warm spring for 5 hours; then drove 3 hours home.

We saw lots of these termite mounds as we were entering the game reserve.

I always enjoy seeing the warthogs, usually followed by their babies. They are very non-aggressive. Amazingly I only saw two baboons from a distance. Normally they are extremely aggressive and pesky. Last November a baboon jumped into our car and stole our bread! Bayo and Jay went on the safari. They said they saw a herd of elephants.

Aaaahhh! What we've all been waiting for--a refreshing dip in the warm springs. Well, maybe it's not so refreshing since the water is a constant 91 degrees F. But it sure does feel good! This is the mouth of the spring. That's white sand on the bottom.

David and Daddy. David can wade by himself further on downriver.

We used to take our Hillcrest students to Yankari. This branch is famously known as "Eric's branch" after it broke while he was trying to jump from it! The park now has barbed wire on the trunk of the tree to discourage other would-be-jumpers. You know, the passing of time blurs events in my memory: was I there or did I just hear about it?

A view downriver. It gets as shallow as 1 ft further down. It's a great place for kids to get used to the water. Baobab trees are indigenous to this region. They are quite a spectacular sight. Here's a baby baobab.

And here's a mature baobab. So we found out that it's possible to do Yankari in one day. We were wiped out by the time we got home, but it was a very enjoyable day.

Worshipping in the Midst of Ruins

Last Sunday we worshipped with the Dogon Karfe LCCN (Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria) congregation. Their church was burned during the Jos riots in November 2008.

After the service, I asked Rev. Elkanah, "When did you start worshipping here again?"
He said, "We never stopped."

To put this in perspective, the riots happened on Fri, Nov. 28 & Sat, Nov. 29. These people went to their church on Sunday morning, not even knowing that the riots were calming down at that point. The first time I left my compound was on Thurs, Dec. 4, and that was to get out of town! These people are incredibly brave and resilient.

Rev. Elkanah's home (the parsonage) was also burned. He and his family escaped without injury. To date, the congregation has raised enough money to repair the parsonage. Rev. Elkanah and his family have been able to move back in. This Sunday, March 29, the congregation is holding a special service to dedicate the new parsonage and also to start raising money for the re-building of their church.

The congregation is fairly small, and they have a big job ahead of them. If anyone is led to give to this project, the contact information is below. The Minneapolis Area Synod is a partner synod with Nigeria, and they are trying to raise funds to help in the re-building of LCCN Dogon Karfe.

Making a World of Difference (earmarked Dogon Karfe)
Attn: Raenay Rock

Minneapolis Area Synod

122 W. Franklin Ave., Suite 600

Minneapolis, MN 55404

For more info, contact: k.perry@mpls-synod.org

Angels of Mercy

When I checked on Fatima on Wednesday morning, she was the brightest I have ever seen her.

I said, "Wow, you're looking great! And I can see you've already had your bath. I hope you didn't cry during your bath."

"I did. It was so painful. Why do they have to clean me?"

Later, upstairs, I got the whole story from Julie and Esther, pictured at right.

When Esther pulls back the mosquito net from Fatima's bed in the morning, Fatima greets her with a warm smile and "Good morning, auntie."

However, when it's time for her daily bath, her attitude changes. Fatima hates to be bathed because of her open, oozing wounds. The blisters on her thigh have opened up recently. She tells Julie and Esther, "You people are wicked!" However, that is soon forgotten, and she becomes pleasant once again.

Fatima would spend 24 hours lying down in bed if Esther would allow her. Even when she eats, she wants to be lying down. Esther decided that she needs to start sitting in a chair. When Esther put her on a chair, Fatima said, "I will fall! I will fall!"

Esther said, "Ok."

Then Fatima adjusted herself on the chair and sat there for half an hour.

Esther has been the matron of Bezer Home since 2004. She is HIV+ herself and lives in Bezer Home with her three children. She is responsible for everything that goes on in the home. I marvel at how well Esther handles our toughest cases. She has just the right mixture of pampering and tough love for our full-blown AIDS patients. And she does the jobs that no one else wants to do.

Julie, also HIV+, has been our sewing program manager since October 2008. She does a great job upstairs and then helps Esther in the evenings and mornings with Fatima.

When I saw Julie and Esther dressed in their matching outfits, I just had to take their photo. I am so thankful for their ministry to Fatima. We pray that Fatima will recover as much as possible and go on to live a normal life like Julie and Esther.

Older & Wiser Than His 25 Years

One of Bayo's many dreams is to see that the orphan children associated with Mashiah Foundation get a university education.

He saw that dream come true this week.

Mashiah Foundation became involved with Peter and his siblings near the end of 2002. Their mother died of AIDS complications in May 2002 and their father followed in August 2002. Peter, the eldest of the five children, was 18 at the time. He remembers that period as extremely difficult. Not only had he lost his parents, but now it was his responsibility to feed and educate himself and his younger siblings. His greatest concern was their education.

Over the past six years Mashiah Foundation has paid school fees, provided money for feeding and money for their transportation to school. Peter's uncle has also helped them out from time to time as he is able. A relation has taken in the youngest child who has HIV. The four oldest children live together on their own.

Bayo refers to Peter and his siblings as an example of one of our "best practices." Peter didn't just accept handouts, but he really put his mind to work and started small businesses that would help to support his family. He has done shoemaking, sold phone recharge cards, and currently they are raising 300 chickens and selling the eggs. Peter is a very enterprising young man.

Peter now has a degree in Economics. Later this year Peter will go for his mandatory year of youth service. After that, he is thinking about becoming a stockbroker. Peter is well on his way to providing for his siblings and then his own family one day.

In the Land of the Living

On Monday I went into Fatima's room to greet her. She seemed more relaxed and in less pain than last week. She was actually stretched out on the bed with no blanket instead of being huddled in a fetal position.

Two of the church youth who had cared for her for three weeks in the hospital came by to see her. I am amazed at the commitment of these young men.

Since Fatima has been on the brink of death, we have really been pampering her. We ask her what food she would like to eat, and then we do our best to get that food for her. Over the weekend, she was craving chips (fried potatoes). Esther, the matron of Bezer Home, made them for her. After she finished eating the chips, she stretched out and crossed her legs as a sign of satisfaction.

I bought suya (thin strips of meat coated with spices and grilled over coals) and gave it to Fatima. It was the first time I had seen a real smile on her face. I said, "Are you sure you're strong enough to eat this meat? You know you need a lot of strength to eat this suya." She smiled and assured me that she could handle it. I was a little worried because recently just the aroma of food has been making her nauseated.

I needn't have worried. She ate that whole bundle of meat and was thoroughly satisfied with the experience.

What joy to see life gradually return to Fatima.

Dry Season Brings March Flowers

March is our driest month of the year and amazingly the flowering trees/vines are at their best. It never ceases to amaze me. I'm happy to share with you some of the beautiful views that we have every day in March. The photos below are from my daily drive.


Dry season starts sometime in October. In general we have absolutely no precipitation for November thru March. Once in a great while, we'll have a very unusual rain during the dry months. For example, we had a torrential downpour on Friday, Dec. 5, 2008, on the very day we were worried that violence would erupt in our city again. It was so unbelievable that we just had to conclude that it was a 'God-incidence.' That is the only rain we have had this dry season apart from a small drizzle for about 15 min. last week.

We will be expecting a few rains in April, and then the downpour will really begin in May and pick up speed until August when it will rain almost everyday.

The photo below is how I am greeted everytime I drive into our compound in March. The purple tree (to the left) is the jacaranda. It produces a beautiful purple 'carpet.' We call the red flowering tree the Flame Tree. (I don't know its actual name.) The multi-colored flowering vines in the background and in the photos above are bouganvillia.

The Power of Shared Hope

When the HIV virus severely weakened Fatima's body, her family chose to ignore her needs. Neighbors noticed that no one was caring for her. Some youth (singles in their 20s & 30s) from a nearby church began tending to her. Eventually her situation became so severe that they took her to the general hospital. Throughout her hospital stay, it was the youth who cared for her 'round the clock. In Nigeria, a relative must accompany a patient on hospital admission in order to care for their basic needs and feeding.

One of the youth connected Fatima with Mashiah Foundation. Since her family wanted nothing to do with her, the family completed our forms, and 'gave' her to us. When she was discharged from the hospital, we picked her up and took her to Bezer Home which is where we care for women and children affected by HIV/AIDS. She is extremely weak and cannot walk on her own. She weighs about 90-100 pounds and has severe blisters all over one thigh.

On Thursday, five of our Mashiah Foundation staff members in the Women of Hope sewing program went to Fatima's room to meet her. As they approached her bed, they could see that she had her stocking cap pulled down over her eyes. Sarah said, "Are you sleeping?" Fatima responded weakly, "Yes." Fatima appeared to want nothing to do with her visitors. She gave minimal responses to their inquiries about her life and her health. Sarah, as is often the case, saw straight through the situation and said, "Fatima, we want you to know you are welcome in Bezer Home, and we just want to introduce ourselves to you."

"The Welcoming Committee": Nene, Larai, Angela, Nanwor

"I'm Nene. I'm HIV+. You're sleeping in the bed I used to have. When I first came here my legs were so swollen, I couldn't even walk. Look at me now. I'm living a normal life. I've rented my own house and I work upstairs."

"I'm Larai. I lived in Bezer Home for 3 1/2 years. My room was on the other side of the house. I came here as a widow, alone and very sick with HIV, but I got stronger. Later I was able to gather all four of my children to live with me once again. I have a job upstairs in the sewing program."

"I'm Angela, a widow. I have HIV. You see my bed over there? My son and I lived here for 1 year and 3 months. Now I rented my own house. I work upstairs as the purchasing officer."

Nanwor sat next to her on the bed and put her hand on her even though Fatima's leg is covered with about 100 water blisters. "See me? I've known about my HIV status since 2002. My wedding was cancelled because of HIV. I thought I was going to die, but look at me now. I work upstairs."

With new, hope-filled eyes and a strong voice, Fatima said, "So do you want me just to introduce myself or should I tell you my whole story?"The ladies laughed and told her to share anything she wanted.

The power of an introduction.

The power of vulnerability.

The power of shared circumstances.

The power of shared hope.

I have a photo of Fatima, but the time for sharing is not now. We don't intend to make a spectacle of her, but one day I will use that photo when I post her own "before and after" story on this blog. We have a lot of wonderful testimonies of what God is doing in the lives of people who were "quarter to go" as they say here in Nigeria.

It's Raining!!!

Today was a sweltering day...and now it's actually raining! What a sweet relief. I guess rainy season might be coming a little early this year.