WHY DID THE FOOT LONG SCORPION CROSS THE ROAD?

Why did the gigantic scorpion cross the road? So I could run it over with great prejudice, that's why! One down... a bazillion to go.

Part of the 1.5km dirt road leading to my Malawian home in area 43
This picture was taken from the porch of the house, and that wall with an electric
fence on top is ours

The thought has crossed my mind...what do I do if I see such a creature in my room?  I have determined that the books I brought to read shall be used as missiles to dispatch the creature while I run for my life in search of my car key so I can drive my Toyota into the house to run it down and dead. You might say, "That's over kill," to which I shall respond, "Exactly!".

TIA - This is Africa!

A Prayed for Mantis

Sadly this has now become a missing bug poster.
If anyone sees Fred, please let me know!
There are mosquitoes to be eaten in vast quantities!

Being in malaria country is no joke. You put on your mozzy spray, wear trousers and long sleeved shirts (even in the heat), sleep under an incubator of a mosquito net with fans blowing in every direction to make it hard for them to land on you… then you still get 100 bites!

“Africa's not for sissies!” – Dave (my host, Martin's brother-in-law)

So in my ever present battle against all sorts of bites from all kinds of creatures this little fella shows up in my bath room.

What you are looking at is a 2.5” Praying Mantis… or as I like to call him, “The Jesus Bug!”  Let me explain why he has received this nick name.  One: He is praying… all the time.  Jesus prayed a lot.  Two: He has freed me from the constant agony of mosquitoes in my life; Jesus freed us from the judgement of sin and helps us out of its destruction (like MALARIA) and into new life! Three: Because Jesus gives us new life we are free. Green is often used as a colour to symbolize this - my Mantis is green.  And there you have it, my explanation to the Jesus Bug!  To keep his title he must practice resurrection, walk on water, then ascend into the heavens, and return to judge all the mosquitoes and burn them in hell for their vicious crimes against mankind!

Joking aside, this insect has been a God send and a happy companion to have running round my bathroom.  Now, to find something that eats tarantulas, that won't kill me... new prayer request!

The First Couple Weeks: COBT

Hello Canada from Lilongwe!

It has been a busy couple of weeks here at Children of Blessing Trust (COBT)! I will say off the bat that I will not have any pictures from the centre for a while yet and I thought this should come with an explanation. Often people come to help and volunteer in places like Malawi and these folks often choose to hide behind a camera. I don't want to do that. Building strong relationships with my clients and fellow co-workers is priority one. Then, when these friendships have been built up and trust is built, I will ask if it's okay to take a picture. Sorry if this is disappointing to anyone. It's just the way it is.

Wow, so COBT, what a place! Busy doesn't even describe how much gets done around here!  Monday, Wednesday, Friday mornings are mostly for children with Cerebral Palsy (CP) and epilepsy to get physio treatment. We see a lot of children in a very short period of time. It's crazy busy and fast, "GO, GO, GO!" or no one gets seen. Once treatment is completed we start the nutrition section of our day by giving out a soya/maze based porridge to the mums to feed their children. It's not bad, most of the staff including me have a bowl at the same time. Once nutrition is completed we start our Standing Program for CP level 1. Using home made standing frames we "strap" the kids to the frames to weight bear through their feet. This is done to help in preparation for future standing practice, cruising, and walking. However, these other activities only take place in CP levels 2 and 3, in which I have not yet worked. Post Standing Program it's lunch hour, then off to the outreach clinics. There are six different clinics in total and each is serviced twice a week. Fridays is the only exception to this. There is a staff run prayer and worship time that happens after lunch followed by home visits.

Now, Tuesdays and Thursdays both deserve special explanation into what happens on those days. I'll save that for another post soon to come.

I will end off by saying this. I am out of my depth here. Malawi is a beautiful country with wonderful customs I'm not yet accustomed too. That's overwhelming, but okay. This will be and has been a real stretching experience. One thing I have noticed while being here is how death is very much a part of everyday life, or least it appears so for the time being. We had a death last week. One of our COBT kids who had full sponsorship and who was making big improvements, choked. We were all completely heart broken. This is not uncommon with CP as the condition can affect the swallowing mechanism. A few days after this tragedy, one of our staff had to leave for a funeral. Her sister-in-law had passed away. Life in a developing nation is not life in Canada, yet parts are so similar. People are people - and in the end there are human traits that cross cultures so that no ocean, landmass, language or socioeconomic status could possibly separate them from being almost universal to humanity. We deal with things in ways our OWN cultures have taught us; we express ourselves through different customs. But grief is grief, and joy is joy. Here a funeral lasts three to seven days. It starts the moment someone dies. In the west, it's a short event. It lasts maybe a day at most. In Malawi, when a loved one dies everybody stays with you in your house and goes with you wherever you need to bury them even if that means traveling across the entire country to do so.

That's not the most exciting ending to a post but that's where we will leave it for today.

Thank you all for reading, and for your prayers.
God bless you,
Jason - Lilongwe from Home

Canadian Thanksgiving

Hello all,

Malawi is wonderful! The people are very welcoming and smile often. The sun is shining...and hot. Today I am not in Lilongwe, but instead, Blantyre (I think I spelled it correctly). The Bowlers in their kindness allowed me to join their family for Canadian Thanksgiving, with turkey and ALL the fixings! Well, except brussel sprouts...but really who likes brussel sprouts? Sorry Dad =p My dad loves brussel sprouts.

We are staying with good friends of Steve and Kathy, Harlen and his wife. They are a loving couple who work in Blantyre at City Sentore Church.  Harlen is training and discipling Malawian nationals to be pastors and leaders in the community, one of whom was just recently ordained and is now a pastor at CSC. Because their church is in midst of the city there are a lot of beggars and street children in the area. They have a wonderful ministry called 'Street Kids' (not unlike Broadway's old KIDS STREET outreach in Vancouver). I had the opportunity to serve in that ministry this morning. Now before I go calling it wonderful, I should explain what it is. Essentially it's a Sunday school/food program for children aged one to eighteen years old. I was in one of the three rooms where school was happening. The youngest crowd, whom I was with, was in a very small room. Everyone all squished together on the flour, about 90 + in total. There are approximately 130 kids who come every Sunday morning to learn and to eat. However, this is not a totally free service the church offers and for good reason. Kids who make a living off of street life hustling and begging choose to stay on the street. This is terrible. Statistically children on the street over three months will contact HIV AIDS. This is because they are abused and/or raped. This picture became ever so graphic this morning at 8:20 when a young girl walked in who had been badly beaten before she arrived. Her eyes were so puffy you couldn't see the white of her eye, there was also a large gash to her left temple.... So many of us westerners think "WE HAVE THE MONEY TO_______! SO WE CAN FIX IT!", this is a total lie. I don't know her name let alone her story, but from what I have learned from my hosts, giving her money would only prolong her time on the streets leading to more abuse. Who even knows what else happened to her? Because of this huge issue the church asks the Street Kids to play the role of Guard to the vehicles of the congregation. The kids watch over the cars to prevent vandalism and are told not to beg for money afterward. That may sound harsh to us with our Canadian mind set. It should sound strange. We have all watched a few hundred World Vision commercials in our time or at least the equivalent. When we left the service a National came to the window selling mangoes from his tree. Simultaneously one of the street kids was asking for money. Steve blew my mind with his response! First he bargained those mangoes down to half price, secondly... he looked at the young man selling mangoes from his tree and said "Malawian should take care of Malawian. You buy this boy food. You take care of your own." At first I'm thinking, "Man, those were tough words," but this didn't last long, my thought. The young man was nodding in hesitant agreement, but as soon as he got his Kwacha (Malawi Money), he was gone so fast you couldn't see him. Then Steve turned to me and said "Nothing will change until people here start to take care of one another." He's right. If he had given the money to the young guy and let the young man rip him off for the mangoes nothing would change. 'The white man is a cow to be milked.'

Malawi is an interesting place. Like I said, the people are very warm and welcoming. This is how Malawi got the name "The Warm Heart of Africa". However, like every nation, Malawi has its areas of hurt. We in the west so easily point out the 'flaws', we see in another culture, but not everything we call a 'flaw' is one. We do not see the poverty of our own nation in the same way. Poverty is more than socioeconomic status. It's more than human rights or famine. It can be relational, psychological, spiritual, and in love. Now I know what phase of culture shock I'm in, so understand that what I am saying will be biased toward Malawi over Canada. They call this phase: Anticipation and Excitement. Believe me I'm there, all except for my countless mosquito and flea bites. Yes, you read that right. I do not have fleas, but the pets do and they love to share their affections... and pestilent insects afflict whomever takes their fancy. But, I digress. Today I was a stranger in a church without a welcome team. They didn't know who I was with as I wasn't sitting with the Bowler family who came later than me. I was welcomed, sincerely and warmly. Genuinely I felt that this church in Blantyre was home for the few hours I spent there. As I said, I am biased and I know that, so please do not see me as some cultural expert of any sort here when I say, "You do not get that in Canada very often... if ever." Malawi is poor in earthly wealth, but Malawi is rich in love and relationships. Did I mention that almost every little village we passed on our hours long drive down from Lilongwe to Blantyre had a church?



Well...I've been bitten at least 50 times in the short time I've slapped this together so I am going to call it quits for tonight. It's 11:25 here in Blantyre and the malaria mosquitos come out between 2 - 4 AM. I want to be long asleep before they open up their BEDDSC (Blood Exchange and Disease Distribution Service Center).

After dinner conversation
Steve is to the left on the coach, and those are my feet.

To the right is the Bowlers youngest daughter, in the centre is Harlen

Two wonderful women from Quebec, Canada are on the left side of the photo. They are both nurses who have come to work with Kathy before. Right now they are finishing up their current trip to work with Harlen and CSC church. To right side of the photo is Harlen's Wife. The world is so small. All three of these woman know Steven and Lora who just got married. 

Bowler's Lion Dog named Sammy

Lion dogs were bred and trained to chase down lions!
I don't usually get intimidated next to a dog...but this one could
easily destroy me in a second if he chose to. Beautiful, incredible
animal

Relaxing and sheltering from the midday sun

Highway between Lilongwe and Blantyre.
A huge section of this high way borders Mozambique.
On the drive up we saw several left over bombed out buildings
from the civil war that took place there years ago

One of many, many markets we passed on our way to Blantyre

P.S. I uploaded only a few pics from our trip yesterday. They take a while to upload and internet here is expensive when it is available.

Heathrow - God save the Queen!

IT'S EVERYWHERE!
but no sushi?

So we have made it this fair with out mechanical failure or screaming children. WIN! The British Airways staff are a nice bunch of people. I'm hanging out in some sort or rest area. No sushi in the air port from what I have been able to find yet! YVR just has all the right restaurants in all the right places vs Heathrow. Heathrow has Giraffe, not the animal, the restaurant. The food there may be good, but I am going to be in Giraffe country for a while, so I think I will pass on trying out their menu. I've got 6 months for trying out that menu.

Heathrow Rest Area

CBC - reporter's bag

I'm glad I have these Anti Jet Lag pills. I'm hoping they work out. I'm already exhausted tired and confused as what time it is and where I am. I mean, I walked into a plane and it made noises and rumbled and then I'm in England... sounds like voodoo

to me vs Science and tech or what have you.

Any way I still have 20 minutes of free Wi-fi before Heathrow starts consuming what's left of my very dry bank account.

I miss you all and I can't wait to share with you more, but for now... Tarah! (Apparently that's a British goodbye)

Final Packing

What do you take? Look at your home and its vast plethora of stuff and think, "What is actually important?"

I did that. It's incredible how the hoarder in all of starts kicking and screaming obscenities as soon as push comes to shove. "THATS MINE! ITS MY PRECIOUS! IT CAME TO ME, PRECIOUS IT DID! GH-OLOM! GH-OLOM!" .... In truth. Everything important can honestly fit into a couple very small bags.

The Legendary Wall of Fame!
Holding many of the best and worst memories of all time!
This treasure almost covers an entire wall in my room

In the midst of all this packing and fighting off of the insatiable whines of my internal hoarder something else came to me hard, and fast. "What am I bringing in my heart of hearts to this. Am I ready? Am I really able to do this? Will I even be a blessing, or instead, a bother?"  It's a lot to think on in a moment of anxiety. So I sat down for a moment to collect myself and try and be ready for tomorrow. New last minute requirements came in a fresh Email from Malawi that will have me scrambling all over Vancouver tomorrow instead of resting and enjoying my last moments with friends and family, but in the end that's not important. What's important is my heart and bringing this all, all this stuff racing around me to a place where I can let it go, and know that the One I'm trusting it all with is capable of handling it all. I'm so glad I have Someone to trust this with. "Lord Jesus take the wheel! Take it from my hands!" As an old friend so eloquently put it, "Anxiety is a waste of time. It distracts us and robs us of peace. That sucks lots..." It does suck!

Thank you Lord for your peace. That it is something that cannot be so easily shaken or taken.

______________________________________________________________________

This last weekend was incredible! So many heart felt 'farewells', and tearful send offs with amazing people. Youth Church Vancouver where I have served for over 5 years gave me a great send off, as did my home church, Broadway on Sunday. I will miss every one so very much!

It is imposible to put into words my gratitude and overwhelming sense of love and support shown by all of you! In the last few weeks 90.5% all required funds were raised. Enough to keep me there in Malawi until March. I have faith enough that the rest will come in soon so I can stay my projected course and be there until my pre-planed departure on April 8th six months from now.  Thank You again everyone!

Shout out to my SNAB and CR families for your love and support! You guys will be greatly missed!

I'm really not sure what else to say for the moment except that I should be asleep, but typical me... not being able to sleep well the night before a big trip. Thank you again, everyone. Thank you most of all for your prayers. They mean the most to me in the end!

Good night!

Jason