Ethiopian Adventure Review: DAY FIVE

Thursday, June 19, 2008.

We went to the airport today to retrieve ONE piece of luggage. We took 'bets' on what we thought it would be--I vote the guitar! *I* was correct. lol There was an armed guard & he would not allow all of us to go into the luggage area, so Larry & Brent went in.

They did tell us they found all the bags & the rest would arrive tonight, which means--which means it will follow us to Jimma on Ethiopian Air & meet us there.

I am seeing a lot of familiar plants & flowers: fern, palms, vincas, hibiscus, morning glory's, ivy & other familiar plants that I can't remember the names of.

I mostly feel homesick @ night when I am cold & uncomfortable. But it's ok & not that bad.

There is some construction going on but the scaffolding is made of sticks & thin logs.

We drove 7 hours to Jimma. Along the road I saw traditional round huts made of mud & sticks w/ thatched roofs. Appears to be much more agricultural living. I saw women & young girls washing clothes in muddy water. We passed by the beginning of the Rift Valley & a river that leads all the way to Kenya.

While we were driving & passing the homes & huts, in the 'window' of one of the huts I saw a very evil face--not a human face though, it was larger & when I looked again, it was gone. Then I had thoughts (heard thoughts) of a threatening nature--to leave, don't go, turn back & w/ a 'threatening' tone or feel to them. I began to pray & then, in my mind, saw an image of an angel above our car & then it sped off ahead of us & was fighting things that were coming in it's path--w/ a sword. Then I felt @ peace.

We went straight to a church & Larry spoke, it was very inspirational.

There is a graduation this weekend from a big University, so all the hotels are booked. We are staying in a lesser motel. Angela & I lucked out & got a room w/ an actual toilet, that is nice. The first room they were going to put us in was filled w/ extra 'guests': lots of cockroaches & mosquitoes & only had a squat toilet.

They wanted to put us in separate rooms, we said NO WAY! lol They don't keep Gideon Bibles in the nightstands---there is a box of condoms instead. We have to prepare our testimony & I feel @ a total loss. We are not even sleeping under the covers--we are sleeping on top of the bed, in our clothes.

We spread out our new jackets & I spread out my new skirt & slept on top of those. I used my Bible as a pillow...Larry told us to expect bed bugs.

Ethiopian Adventure Review: DAY FOUR

Wed., July 18, 2008

Today is Berty's 6th birthday...& I'm in AFRICA!
We went to a museum, a historical, national museum. The artwork was 'painful', of war, famine & genital mutilation. There were many ancient artifacts & I was sad to see it displayed in a way that left the items not so well preserved.

We passed 2 palaces today, of a prime minister & a king.

We also passed a beautiful park w/ a nice & new looking playground. But it was empty. Our guide said that no one plays @ the park because they are afraid of terrorists. :-(

We went to the Light & Life 'study center'. It is a center where children come in the middle of the school day for lunch &/or tutoring. All of the children are orphans of Aids. I did not know what to do w/ myself @ first....then we found the kindergartners.

They were taking a nap in this concrete room, on mats, but as soon as they saw us, they lit up. They immediately got up & said hello & began to touch us, hold our hands, hug us & want us to pick them up.

My dd Berty is very physically 'needy', she is very touchy. I felt like her personality had somewhat prepared me for this moment...it was a mob of kindergartners that could not physically get enough. I felt like this was the perfect way to 'celebrate' my dd's birthday, by ministering to these 'littles', in this way.

They loved my hair, they were fascinated by it. @ one point I was bending down & told them they could braid it...so they did, I was surrounded & afraid if I actually sat down, I would never be able to get up again...because they would sit on my lap & be so crowded around me

The children had ill-fitting clothes (school uniforms) w/regular clothes under. Their front teeth had black spots, sores around their mouths...& yet they seemed to be some of the most beautiful children I had ever met.

It was all quite overwhelming & I did not realize how draining until we left. Although, I wished we could have stayed longer. I could have felt content to spend the entire 2 weeks just HUGGING those children & filling up their physical need for love, every day.

Looks like rain again & no electricity in the city today.

We went to a business building to check on the status of our luggage. Brent & Angela went to have coffee...TJ & I walked around & went up these nice stairs...all the way up. We saw an emergency exit & i wished I could exit it & take pix of the view of the city...then we saw one more set of stairs, followed it up & there happened to be a door being held open by a rope. We went out & were on the ROOF! The view was amazing--you could see all of Addis!!! It looked beautiful from afar. I took pix of the bird's eye view.

I learned a few new words today: Jesus getano---Jesus is Lord.

Ethiopia Adventure Review: DAY THREE

Journal Entry:
I think it's July 17, 2008. I believe it's already Tuesday. We can see the sun rise outside our plane window & it's beautiful--red, yellow & blue. I keep expecting to see the silhouette of a tree & a lion. lol I have Lion King music in my head now....

In flight dinner was ok--I avoided the salad. The restroom was gross but it's all getting ready for Ethiopia--up close & personal right?

I feel like I've let my guard down--but I pray as i try to sleep and sing worship songs in my head.

Will I feel closer to God when we get there? Maybe it's like limbo being @ the airport. Like I couldn't do 'God's work' @ the airport? Why didn't we pray for some divine meetings @ the airport? Already a wasted opportunity these 1/2 day long flights & yet I spoke to no one but my teammates. God can & will meet me anywhere & we can serve God anywhere so why not try & serve while we were there? Did we miss an opportunity? I hope God is not disappointed & understands....

Journal Excerpt 11:43 am Ethiopian time:
We got in line for customs from the plane but we needed to get a visa. We got into another line to get a visa--it cost $20. That took about 40 min. While we were in line the lights of the airport went out. After a few minutes they came on partially.

Our luggage was supposed...to travel w/ Larry & Brent. We checked anyway jic--there was a wall of luggage but none ours. We finally stepped out & saw a guy holding a sign that read: TJ TAYLOR. We were so happy. Then he asked us: You lost your luggage too?

All our luggage was w/ Larry & for some reason--NONE of it made it to Ethiopia!!! Part one of the Ethiopian Adventure. LOl

We are staying in a 'mission guesthouse' and it looks & feels just like Tijuana, Mexico. The weather is cool--almost chilly actually. The city of Addis Adaba looks very much like Tijuana or downtown LA except all the citizens are black instead of mexican....

It was a bit of a drive from the the airport to the guest house. At first, I thought the city looked colorful & joyful but the more we drove, the more it did not appear that way. The roads are a mess, there is rubble everywhere, no sidewalks and amidst the city feel, there are goats & goat herders, very strange. There are run down buildings & shacks. Al the rubble makes it appear almost as a war zone. It looks as if @ one time it tried to look modern & then gave up? I'm not sure. It became more & more depressing--a lot of people just sitting around....

Journal Entry (late):
We went to the city today to buy a few necessary clothes & items. I had to get a skirt & Larry got me a jacket. It is way colder than we thought or expected & it did rain for a bit.

I am very cold but I am ok. I don't feel scared or anything.....

When we were prayed tonight I got a picture of a fountain & children playing in it & I was looking out a window or something. The luggage thing seemed like it could be stressful but I am not stressed just tired.

Ethiopia Adventure Review: DAY TWO

A 10 hour layover in London Heathrow Airport for 3 of us, Angela, TJ & I. We are required to stay in the airport. I need the sun! I need to see a real sky. It was boring. Security was annoying.

Journal Excerpt: Mon. July 16, 2008:
My watch says it's just after midnight but the sun is bright & it's 8:30am in London--our destination. Of course I barely got any sleep or none. I tried--but it was too hard. My mind wouldn't sleep. I mostly prayed.

Dinner was pasta, carrot cake & I can't remember what else. Breakfast was apple pancakes or cheese omelet. We chose cheese omelet w/ chicken sausage, fruit cup, strawberry yogurt, orange juice cup, tea & blueberry muffin. It was quite filling.....

12 days seems so far away. How will I be when I am on the flight back? Will I be changed? Will this trip be 'amazing' as I hope? Will it be the adventure of a lifetime? Will we get a chance to serve? to serve people & God? Will I really get to see God work? I hope so....Will I really make any difference @ all?......

Journal Excerpt: Mon July 16, 2008 London time 9:43 pm
Bag x-ray is separate from shoe x-ray. My backpack was selected to be gone through manually & have every article taken out. Line after line after line. I'm glad I stayed awake mostly because even though it's barely afternoon CA time, it's nighttime for London. So if I can sleep now, in the morning we will be in Ethiopia. Let the adventure begin....

Boarding the plane was an interesting process. Everyone rushed & crowded @ the door--they called seat numbers but everyone just stood crowded @ the door--no order--You could not get through even if you had a number they called. I wondered if that was how it would be in Ethiopia--no more personal space--less order--respect?...

So much prayer & mixed emotions accompany this team & this trip--I wonder if that means there will be no danger or if we may still encounter dangerous situations but we will be safe within them? Will we still encounter various questionable situations or not?

Our bags were supposed to be transferred automatically but wen we got to the counter--we discovered that they had all gone w/ Brent & Larry. We can only hope that they knew enough or realized that ALL the bags had been transferred w/ them.....

Here we go...Ethiopia Adventure Review: DAY ONE

We were the first, of our team, to arrive @ the airport. I FORGOT my sleeping bag. Good thing a couple other team members had NOT left yet & could stop by my (messy--embarrassing) house real quick & grab it for me.

As I kissed & hugged my family goodbye, DH surprised me w/ 12 cards w/ sealed envelopes. Each envelope addressed as Day #1, Day #2 & so on all the way to day 13! I was so surprised & touched & of course then felt guilty because unbeknownst to him, I had planned to do the same thing for each of them but did not get a chance. Berty gave quite an extra long hug as I said goodbye. I think she did not want to let go.......

Journal excerpt June 15, 2008 3:47pm Sunday:
We're @ the airport. Got about an hour till we are in the air. Finally got a moment to sit. Passed baggage check-in, then baggage drop off, then line for check-in security, thru the x-ray machines and now we sit.....

Journal excerpt 4:39 pm:
I don't think it's much fun to watch a movie alone, I've decided. We are not even in the air yet. Seems like this flight & our time trying to get to Ethiopia is just a few minutes short of forever....

...I got 2 dolls done before I left & was able to give them to Berty for her birthday. One had black fabric (w/ stars) for skin & deep burgundy colored velvet for her dress. The other had brown floral fabric for a dress. She said she liked them. :-) Here we go--taking off--we're over water--I saw a boat. I got Daddyboy a smaller version of the "Dangerous Book for Boys"!

This adventure would require I miss both my littles birthdays. One 2 days after I left & the next, 2 days before I return.

The airplane seats have a screen on the back of them & a remote control on the arm which controls the screen in front of you. You can from dozens of movies to watch, or some tv episodes or play a video game. It was boring but what else was I going to do?

I had wanted to bring my crochet but had no room to pack it. Kicked myself for that. I did not bring any reading material besides my Bible. Figured I'd be too busy and it was all I really was going to need anyway....so I 'wrote'! lol

yah, yah, yah...

It's been harder than I expected being back home. I was prepared to experience 'culture shock' (which I didn't) but not when I returned home, not this 'Reverse Culture shock' madness.

I feel like I have been back forever, but it's only been about a week.

I've been processing everything, the trip, the faces, the children I met ect.
I haven't even been able to bring myself to open up my journal & read it.

I've been documenting the pix online w/ my online board friends & that has helped, but it's not the deep stuff. It's superficial experience.

I hope to be able to start blogging my adventure this week w/ excerpts from my journal.

It really was a truly amazing experience & adventure of a lifetime.

Some things just seem so silly now, back home. Useless....& it's hard to realize where you fit in again when you feel so different.

It doesn't help that everything I eat has done nothing but make me sick for the past week. It was awful & no fun. I didn't get any mosquito bites in Ethiopia but I brought something back w/ me that has covered me w/ tiny, itchy bites. yuck! SO I now have all these tiny scabs. Nice. Add jet lag & major fatigue, physical & spiritual, to the mix & you've got the makings for one crazy momma & wife.

My family has been so great & understanding, as well as they can be, considering.

Reverse Culture Shock is real.

Symptoms of Reverse Culture Shock

Challenge to self-concept:
torn between two cultures
loss of national identity
changed behavior
changed ideas and values
changed way of thinking
international experience has to be integrated in the day-to-day realities of life in the home country without compromising important values acquired in the home country

Disconfirmed expectations:
nobody is prepared to experience a culture shock in coming home
most returnees have extremely unrealistic expectations for the home culture
the reentry is idealized
friendships aren’t as intense as they were the day one left
others have not enough capacity to listen to fulfil the returnees need to communicate about his experiences abroad
family and friends expect that the returnee will be happy to be back home, which is not always the case
they want him to get back to normal as soon as possible
family and friends do not expect the returnee to be so critical of the home culture
family and friends generally expect the returnee to be interested in catching up on popular culture and local gossip
people will be confused by the returnees’ lack of interest in things about which he once was passionate

Sense of loss:
much will get lost forever when returning home (friends, landscape, career, lifestyle etc.)
one gets less value, notice and appreciation back home than abroad
loss of status, salary, benefits
loss of the closeness of the expatriate community

The ten top immediate reentry challenges
Boredom. The excitements and challenges of the host country are gone.
”No one wants to hear”. Everybody deals with his/her own concerns (the ”uncle Charlie syndrome”)
Difficulties to explain coherently what really happened. Those who listen don’t have the frame of reference or travel background to understand.
Reverse ”home” sickness. Feelings of being lost and lonely.
The relationships at home have changed. The returnees as well as those who stayed at home have altered.
Some people don’t appreciate the changes of the returnees. This may be caused by jealousy, fear, or feelings of superiority or inferiority.
People misunderstand. They interpret words and actions. Humor may be understood as sarcasm, an offer to help as criticism, the expression of affection as ”showing off”.
Feelings of alienation. The feeling of being ”back home” is not as natural or enjoyable as expected. Inability to apply new knowledge and skills. Lack of opportunities to apply the newly gained social, linguistic, and practical coping skills.
Compartmentalization and loss of experience. The pressures of job, school, family, friends, often combined, may contribute to a feeling of loosing the experiences.

Preparing to return home: Quick tips
Prepare for the adjustment process. The more you think about what is to come or consider the alternatives, the easier the transition will be. ”Worrying helps”.
Allow yourself time. Give yourself permission to ease into the transition.
Understand that the familiar will seem different. This might cause new emotional and psychological reactions to being home.
There will be much ”cultural catching up” to do. A lot has happened at home during your absence.
Reserve judgements. Returning home requires as much openness and tolerance as the entry into the host culture.
Respond thoughtfully and slowly. Quick answers and impulsive reactions in connection with frustration, disorientation, and boredom in the returnee can lead to behavior which is incomprehensible to family and friends.
Cultivate sensitivity. Showing an interest in what others have been doing while you have been on your adventure abroad is the surest way to reestablish rapport.
Beware of comparisons. Making comparisons between cultures and nations is natural, particularly after residence abroad. However, you must be careful not to be seen as too critical of home or too lavish in praise of things foreign.
Remain flexible. Try to establish a balance between maintaining earlier patterns and enhancing your social and intellectual life with new friends and interests.
Seek support networks. There are lots of people back home who have gone through their own reentry and understand a returnees concerns.

Tips for those who stayed at home
Support the preparation of the returnees for coming home. This can be done even from far away.
Be prepared that a new person – somebody you don’t know – will come home.
Mark the reentry clearly for the returnees and for those who stayed at home.
Avoid criticism and mockery for seemingly strange patterns of behavior and new attitudes.
Be attentive towards your own expectations. Avoid to push the returnee into old roles.
Create opportunities for the returnees to report on their experiences. Listen carefully and try to understand their significance for them.
Acknowledge that the returnees have lost something: friends, a stimulating environment, the feeling of being special, responsibilities, privileges...
Encourage contacts to friends and institutions in the former host country.
Encourage contacts to people who have successfully gone through the experience of returning home.
Accept critical comparisons of culture and lifestyle – you might be able to learn something...