Scorpions and Rabies

Today is a huge day in my life. It has been exactly 1 year since I had my Achilles tendon reconstructed…and wow, there is so much to be thankful for! After not even being able to walk for a few months, I can now walk, swim, ride a bike, jump, jog, and even sprint! I’m not 100% of what I was a year ago, but God continues giving me encouragement to keep getting stronger and to use my body for His glory.

Achilles severed

Less than 8 months after one of the worst athletic injuries possible on a bicycle, I was on my bicycle riding across the USA at 100+ miles per day. It’s a huge praise. My surgeon was amazing. My dad took really good care of me during the time around the surgery. Sarah, who is now my girlfriend, looked after me amazingly…and we had only been on 2 dates before I had my injury! She’s a champ. I knew she had to be my girlfriend when she brought me peanut butter ice cream ;) Oh yeah, and yesterday she found and cataloged a brand new tree species in Botswana!

Me with the plant princess

My buddy Josh, who had a bad leg accident about 2 years prior to my accident, encouraged me last summer to keep growing and depending on God through the tough times. Finally, my best friend Goose and his wife Kelsey let me stay in their house while I stumbled around on crutches and was not able to contribute much in terms of household chores. I’m so grateful to have such amazing friends and family in my life J

Achilles reconstructed!

 Now I’m so much more thankful for the use of my body…and I hope to never take it for granted again!  

Finishing the cross country cycling trip 8.5 months after Achilles reconstruction :)

  

 3 girls from Charleston, who were volunteering in Burundi for the past month, went to the zoo yesterday. The zookeeper decided to let them in the cage with one of the monkeys. Not only did the zookeeper let them in there, but he locked them in. The monkey did not like people in his space, so he began jumping on the girls and he bit one of them 3 times! He even drew a bit of blood…so guess what? That girl is rushing back to the USA to get rabies shots. One of the girls who was not bitten videotaped the entire ordeal. It was actually a pretty hilarious video. But pray that this young lady, who shall remain unnamed, doesn’t have some sort of weird disease.

Holding a crocodile's tail

 Last night Zack, JD, and I found a scorpion scurrying up the wall in JD’s room. Needless to say, we caught it and are keeping it as a pet. Now we’re searching for bugs to feed it.

Lastly, planning for Gitega International Academy is going well. JD and Freddy are going to Kigali and Kampala this week to recruit teachers.

Gitega International Academy (GIA)

YFC Bujumbura office, where we are planning for the opening of GIA

Thanks for the support. Good things are happening here. 

Grace and Peace,

jeff

I slept like a breast

Things are different in Burundi. Sometimes there are power surges that surge protectors don't stop...then all of the computer chargers instantaneously break. That happened. Bummer. But we are learning how to cope with the technical difficulties and are still working away to get Gitega International Academy up and running.

Barack Obama has lots of stores in Burundi. Freddy says, "Yes, he's a very rich man!" People here will sell anything with his name on it...even bubble gum!

If you slept well the previous night, you don't say "I slept like a log," "I slept like a rock," or "I slept like a baby." Rather, in Burundi, you say "I slept like a breast." Interesting...

Speaking of which, for ladies to be dressed decently, it doesn't matter how much of their upper body is covered up. Guys here are apparently extremely attracted to knees and ankles, so this is why ladies wear long skirts to cover up...can't say an ankle has ever caused me to do a double take...

The beach here is nice!

Memorial for 100 kids that were burned alive in the Genocide. The writing says "May this never happen again!"

Holding the cute little impene (goat) that Tyler Heights Elem donated

I played volleyball on the beach last weekend and one of the guys referred to me as "fried chicken." I was a bit confused at first, but then I realized that I was wearing my Kentucky t-shirt that my lovely girlfriend's family gave me. 

Speaking of which, this past week was my 1 year anniversary of dating Sarah. It was sad to not be with her, but I took a picture on the top of a mountain I climbed and pretended she was with me. Even though it's tough with communication, it's great to write letters back and forth. We're also studying a book of the Bible together, which has been very nice.

I saw Burundian drummers for the 1st time this week. The rhythms are amazing and are intensely powerful. It almost feels like the beat is kicking you in the chest. They dance and play the ridiculously heavy drums while they are balanced on their head. These guys are crazy talented!

After work in Africa, I don't watch TV or use the computer. I either read, play football (soccer), play cards, other games, or I teach the sport of lacrosse to Burundians. Here is a picture of the first Burundian to EVER play lacrosse!

I'll put pictures of this up soon, but we had a ridiculous visit to the zoo. We fed guinea pigs to a leopard and a crocodile. The zookeeper put deadly vipers on the ground less than 10 feet away from us, and we fed a chimpanzee tea. JD gave the chimp his mug and we watched it try to figure out how to unscrew the mug. It took him a few minutes, but then he thoroughly enjoyed the tea. Oh yeah, and I grabbed the tail of a 12 foot crocodile.

Lastly, here is the trailer for the Bike for Burundi book. It will be available for order in about a week.

The Learning Curve

2nd week in Burundi...still overwhelmed by the learning curve

I visited the Gitega Homes of Hope for the second time. One of my favorite little kids, Desiree, was obviously dressed for school by one of his older sisters. He is basically as masculine as a little 2 year old boy can be, yet he was wearing a denim skirt and a bright pink and baby blue jacket to school. Hilarious! That was an extreme example, but it's actually pretty neat how fashion isn't obsessed about here the way it is back home.

Desiree aka "The Boss"

There is a pretty interesting thing that happens in Bujumbura on Saturdays. Since this is such a poor country that is not able to raise much revenue in taxes, they have mandatory community service for everybody on Saturday mornings. People are supposed to go around and cut crass, landscape, pick up trash, etc.

Kids from the Neighborhood in Cibitoke

                                    

The Belgians did a lot of terrible things when they colonized Africa...but the one amazing thing they left with the Burundians is the love of frites, or fries. Wow, they are so good and they bring me back to my days in Brussels.  

All of the taxis have bubble words or designs on the back window. I suppose the purpose of this is to make them distinct. The things that are written on the back of them are hilarious. Of course you will see  Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, and other "futbol" teams on the back, but you also see some that say things like John Cena, Boyz 2 Men, and NSYNC. Wow.

This past week Eliza & Charlotte showed up. They are 2 Charleston girls that are helping out at the Homes of Hope in Gitega for the summer. After about a week, it was nice to have some people to speak to in English.

Eliza and Charlotte aka my little twin sisters

I learned that in Burundi, if you want to marry a woman, you do not go to her father and say "Can I please have your daughter's hand in marriage?" Instead, you go to her father and say "I need a cow!"  

Not quite worth as much to me as the woman I will one day propose to 

                                      

This week I used my first latrine. Pretty good experience ;)

Latrine

                                     

Here is a picture of an animated sign in a bathroom with a regular toilet.

Not a latrine

 We drove to a province called Cibitoke this week to go to church and check out YFC's second Homes of Hope orphanage. On the road there, it was extremely bumpy because of all of the craters in a road. It was a reminder that even though this place seems very peaceful, the holes in the road are less than 10 years old, and they are from bombs during the civil war.

Joseph, a kid at the Cibitoke Homes of Hope orphanage

JD (Headmaster of GIA) and Zach (Geography & Computers teacher) arrived this week. It's been great to get started on work for the school. We are planning schedules, making policy handbooks, and working on organizing promotional events for the school in Bujumbura and Gitega. 

Gitega Int'l Academy Logo

I had a few good conversations with Olivia, the woman who is running Great Lakes Outreach in Burundi, this week. One conversation was about how as Americans it's easy to avoid lots pain by distracting ourselves. Then it led to us taking about how even though Burundians have been through so many struggles in their lifetime, most of them still exude joy. Olivia said it's like the verse, "We rejoice in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope." -Romans 5:3-4

All of the Burundians who have lived through the war have chosen to persevere, and the result for many of them is hope for the future. 

Youngsters at the Future Hope School

One of the fun parts of the week was when I got together with a few people to watch a documentary called "I Am." It's essentially about the physics of interconnectivity between organisms...how we are much more connected than we may think...and how we are created more so for cooperation rather than competition. Good stuff. Check it out.

Other than that, it's really nice not having a television or internet access at home. Life is so much easier to process that way, and it gives lots of amazing time to read scripture and pray...definitely excited about that.

Turasubira.

Grace and Peace,

Jeff