Questions from a college kid

I recently wrote this in response to questions from a Christian college
student who is preparing to go to Kenya for a two-week missions trip. These
questions were part of a pre-field assignment. I thought my answers might
be of some small interest to my readers. In other news, we finally had rain
today and our bean field trials are up and growing and will most definitely
appreciate the rain. Because most of the Fulani have fled from our area due
to bandits, it is getting harder and harder to find beef for sale and the
price is increasing. This makes a perfect opportunity to distribute bean
seeds and to really preach the replacement value of beans for meat. Will
let you know how it goes.
The questionnaire:
My name is Angela and my husband Darren and I are missionaries in the
Central African Republic. Where are you working?: We are into the second
year of our two year term here. We live in a small town called Gamboula on
an old mission station first established by Swedish Baptist missionaries
nearly 60 years ago. While the village has no running water or electricity,
the mission station has 24 hour electricity thanks to a small hydro-electric
turbine built on the nearby river. Power is supplied to the 7 missionary
homes, a 125 bed hospital, bible school and nurses housing. We are very
close to the tropical rainforests of Congo and have a short dry season in
the winter months. When we are not here, we are ministering in the Bayanga
region of CAR, in the middle of the rainforest zone on the border with Congo
and Cameroon.
Who are you ministering to?: Through our skills as agriculturalists we
minister to a broad group of people. There are three people groups in CAR.
The Bantu's make up the majority of the population and can be subdivided
into more than 100 tribes and languages. The Fulani are a nomadic cattle
herding people with some Arab origins and are almost 100% Muslim. The third
group are the pygmy peoples who themselves can be split into different
language groups depending on which part of the forest you are in. Through
seminars and one to one teaching and visiting gardens we are able to meet
and have relationships with a variety of people. We also minister to
missionaries in the country helping them start good development projects
with the people to whom they minister. Do you have a targeted group you are
ministering to?: We do not have a specific target group although when we
are able to go south we specifically target the Aka pygmies. Our original
intent was to work specifically with this group but it worked out to the
contrary. How long have you been there?: We have been here 14 months so far.
What is the biggest lesson(s) you have learned in your time in Africa?: We
have learned a lot of lessons and learn something new everyday. I guess you
could say the biggest lesson I have learned is to keep on learning and never
think you 'know it all now'. The other lesson I have learned is that God
really does put you in places, He decides when you leave, how long you stay
and when it is time to go. Sometimes this produces anxiety but He really
does know best. What are your biggest challenges personally and in ministry
in Africa?: Africa is a very challenging place to live and our country in
particular. We are living in one of the bottom 15 countries on earth in
terms of poverty. We are ministering to some of the poorest of the poor and
while we are trying to help, the fact is that most of the people we work
with will always be poor and will always struggle and this is very hard to
come to terms with. We are constantly bombarded with requests for help, for
requests for work, we see needs everyday--they come right to our door. It
has been difficult and will always be difficult to not help everyone, it is
just impossible. Jesus promised us that the poor will always be with us and
so we do what we can. The best thing we can give is hope and encouragement.
The other challenge is learning a new language. We are in a French speaking
country though most of the people only speak Sango, a national tribal
language. I picked up the language inside
of 2 months but for Darren it has taken longer and is sometimes a source of
frustration. Challenges in our ministry are there as well and many stem
from the lack of funds to do the things you really want to do. It forces
you to be more creative, however. For us in particular, we do not have our
own vehicle so this limits where we can go and when. We also have trouble
with bandits that make certain roads unsafe for us to travel on. What is
one thing you would tell me before coming to Africa?: BE FLEXIBLE. I can't
stress it enough and the more flexible you are the less frustrated you will
be. Nothing is at is seems, everything has a spiritual root or a reason why
things are done in a particular way. Nothing ever goes as planned and this
is OKAY, as long as something happens. The key is flexibility. If you go
with the flow you won't have any problems. What can I do to be as effective
as possible during my stay in Africa?: To be as effective as possible,
besides being flexible, remember that you are the outsider. As much as you
don't want to be, you are. Before you even arrive, they will have
assumptions about you and ever so slowly you can break through these
assumptions. Remember that you don't know everything and neither do you
have the answers to everything. You are a learner and the people you will
meet will be happy to teach you things about the themselves as they see you
have an interest in their culture and their way of doing things. One thing
I learned the hard way is not to be too quick to share what things are like
'where you come from'. Often times this can be seen as you asserting that
how you do things is better than how they do them. What are things I could
do that would bless missionaries and national church leaders while in
Kenya?: Things you could do to help missionaries would be to not have too
many expectations upon arrival. Be grateful for everything, even if your
bathroom has cockroaches crawling around and you aren't quite sure what the
pastor served for dinner but you ate it anyway. Flexibility. Also, a
little encouragement goes a long way. Many missionaries are tired, they are
'given' out, they are stretched and are under enormous pressure from the
groups they minister too and from their churches back home. Encouragement
and prayer are wonderful tonics for hurting hearts. This is also a good
thing to do on behalf of the locals you meet. A large part of my job is
encouraging women who have nothing but their gardens, and when I go visit
their gardens, ask questions about what they are doing and praise the work
of their hands they are significantly lifted up. You don't know how far a
kind word can go in cultures where their skills and worth as people are
underappreciated. M and M's are also appreciated! Can you describe for me
what kind of group a missionary loves to have and what kind they hate to
have?: Not having hosted a group before I can only guess but I have been a
short termer and I have heard from missionaries who spent many years hosting
groups. Groups that get the most praise are the groups that are there to
serve, who are willing to do anything to help and don't have an agenda of
their own. Make all attempts to communicate with nationals on your own
before asking for the missionaries assistant in translating. Try to be
happy with your accommodations and food even if it isn't quite what you were
expecting. Above all, the most complaints come when groups are noisy and
disrespectful in public places. Remember that as a group you are a
reflection of the missionary and the missionary will be in that culture a
lot longer than you will be. What is something I can be praying for you
about over the next 6 months? We are in a very busy time of year, doing
lots of travelling, giving seminars on tree planting and gardening, etc.
Please pray that we have safety on the roads, that bandit activity is not a
threat and for good health while we are in many small villages.

Culinary delights?

Darren suggested I write about the interesting culinary delights of the past
week so you all know that we are 'real missionaries' in a strange land.
Custom has it here that everyday at 10:00 is break time. Because of Roy's
big, soft heart, he agreed to provide coffee, tea and 'donuts' for all the
agroforestery staff everyday. This was great and we were all happy until we
had this great brainstorm that maybe if we order food from a local
restaurant it would be less expensive each day. Ends up it isn't! However,
for the equivalent of $3 each day, we are provided with 6 balls of gozo (the
local starch made from manioc which isn't at all nutritious but extremely
filling) and a bowl of meat and sauce that sometimes has greens in it. The
local restaurants are nothing more than a few local women who serve food to
the public in front of their houses, thus, a restaurant. We started by
ordering from a different restaurant each week until we decided on the best
one and she comes with her food everyday at 10:00. It happens that our cook
is Nadege, Clarisse's younger sister and my Gbaya teacher. Her food is
really good but in the last week beef must have been hard to come by or bush
meat is preferred, as we have been served gorilla, monkey and wild pig all
in the same week. I didn't try any of the above, and especially objected to
the gorilla and monkey. If it is an animal that women aren't supposed to
eat according to local custom (like gorilla, sorry, it is for the men only)
she always sends a small plate of beef and sauce for the women and for our
one Muslim employee. Muslims here don't eat anything with top teeth,
including pig and forest rat. We had the pleasure of eating forest rat the
other day after the women I had hired to work in the nutrition garden killed
two while cutting down brush. It was quite tender and not as bad as it
sounds. Darren partook of the monkey and forest pig as well as lele (forest
rat) and found them all to be quite ordinary tasting. I may be a
missionary, I may speak sango, know how to plant gozo, and wear traditional
clothes, but I am a North American and I don't think I will ever want to eat
a bowl full of monkey.

I also learned today that eating dog is quite a delicacy around here, if you
are a man. They are also forbidden for women to eat. I also learned that
if you eat cat and then subsequently find yourself in a bad traffic
accident, you will be the only one to walk away without a scratch, because
you ate cat of course! Guess I best keep a close eye on Coco, our dog,
right now. This is the time of year for cooking up dogs as people have big
work parties in their gardens and as payment they cook food for all that
comes. The favourite item on the menu for these work parties is dog. One
more reason to bring Coco home with us.

We are well despite the things we eat, though I have a wicked cough from
what I think is a bacterial infection of some kind. Don't worry though, I
am drinking all kinds of concoctions from local herbs and bark to get rid of
it (just kidding, I am on antibiotics instead). If the antibiotics don't
work I will resort to the potions from the medicine man. I hear he is very
good. Things are progressing well and the rains have started so we and
everyone around us here are busy planting gardens.
Till next time, Angela

The Chief's Son Returns

I am writing with gladness and sadness all mixed into one, as life tends to
go here. While death is a thing of daily life here, being so close to the
hospital, and bandits and disorder are no longer news to us but part of life
here, we are happy to report on some good things in the midst of it. As you
may or may not know, New Year's day the eldest son of the local Fulani chief
was taken captive by bandits and held ransom for 10 million CFA (20,000
USD). Initially we were told that if the ransom was not paid in three days
he would be killed. It ends up that the bandits had a little more patience
than that and after a 2 and half month ordeal, he was released by the
bandits this past Saturday. It is through much prayer by many people around
the world that his life has been spared. The family had only been able to
pay 5 million CFA (about 10,000 US) through the sale of cows both in CAR and
Cameroon. He has been held out in the bush for the last two and half months
with only the clothes he was taken captive in and a straw mat for shelter.
His legs were held in chains and he was given only small amounts of food as
there were leftovers. This past Saturday there was a lot of discussion
amongst the bandits as to what to do with him. They told him that since his
family didn't love him enough to pay the full ransom that they should just
kill him but the captain said they should just set him free. Eventually
they agreed just to set him free and he made it back to Gamboula on Sunday
to the great relief of his family and of the missionary community. In
Fulani culture, the first born son of the first wife becomes the new chief
of the clan when the father dies and as the chief is nearing death it was
very important to have the son back. They are all thanking and praising God
for the son's return.

In other news, our turbine has finally been fixed and we now have power and
water back at our houses. It is amazing how much more complicated life is
without running water. And, while the Eastern half of Africa is suffering
in a drought we are having a remarkably wet dry season. As I type I feel
like I am back in Victoria as it has been raining off and on all morning
just as it would be at home in the spring. We thank-you each one for your
prayers regarding the chief's son and regarding our work here. We are very
busy as this is the time of year for travelling around giving seminars on
agroforestery, grafting, banana production and gardening. I also just
finished writing a seminar guide book in Sango which was a fun challenge.

Kete voundou laso

I know this entry is going to come across a little strange to all of you but
some things just need to be said. A month ago our neighbours surprised us
with a new pet. A bush baby, a really little one. A bush baby is in the
monkey family and kind of looks like a lemur more than a monkey. We named
him Pip, after Pip Squeak and he has been bringing us happiness since we got
him. He has free reign of the house and he is small enough to curl up in
the palm of your hand. We had been feeding him milk from a syringe, bits of
bread, banana, papaya and termites since the bobos starting coming out two
nights ago. Well, this morning when we woke it was thundering and raining
and Pip came straight to the bed to greet us and all was normal. I lay on
the couch with Pip curled up in my shirt while reading this morning and then
maybe an hour later I went looking for him to hold him for a bit and I found
him dead curled up amongst my hats in the bedroom. I am feeling quite sad
at the moment and homesick all at once. It has been raining since early
this morning and has that grey cast to the sky and slight rain-cooled chill
to the air, just like at home in the winter but 15 degrees warmer. Pip's
death and the rainy day have me thinking of home and feeling rather pensive.

We have had a challenging couple of weeks in February that has tired us out
with no time to rest. February 11 we held an "agroforestry recyclage". We
invited one member from each of the 25 cooperatives to come to Gamboula for
four days of teaching and hands-on learning at the agroforestry center. We
had over 40 participants as a contingent of 7 Aka pygmies from Bayanga came
up with Raul, the American missionary there, as well as all of the ag center
staff. I played a big role in helping organize things and in teaching.
Darren taught on the banana technique he learned in Cameroon, Bruno and I
taught on grafting and we also did an afternoon on vegetable gardening. We
also spent one full afternoon talking about cooperatives and their
importance in development. It was an excellent week despite the fact that
during day 2 our energy generating turbine went on the blink and is still
broken nearly two weeks later.

Now I know what you are thinking, 'big deal, the power went out. Don't you
live in Africa?'. And yes, we do live in Africa but our houses are set up
with full reliance on the turbine and so is our hospital. We do have an
emergency generator which is too big for its purpose here and drinks 15
litres of fuel per hour! We have been running the generator for six hours a
day in order to give us a chance to cook, for the fridges and deep-freezers
to stay cool and to pump water. Hundreds of people rely on the mission for
water and our pumps need electricity. The unfortunate part of the set-up is
that our house is the last in line to get water so right now we are only
getting water for maybe an hour a day. We have been showering in agri's
outdoor shower or at Roy's house and storing up water in buckets for use in
the kitchen and to flush our toilet. The part for the turbine has to come
from Spain so we will be without for most likely the rest of this week. It
is not that being without power and water is the end of life, as this is how
most everyone else around here lives, it just means that it takes up much of
your time to do really basic things and this is something that while I knew
it I didn't fully understand it in a practical sense. We surely are a
spoiled bunch in North America that is for sure. I am just really grateful
for our back-up as is the hospital. It is really hard to do surgery without
power.

Our lack of power may also help to explain my failure to write in the past
month. Since the recyclage we have been planning for this season's work
including 6 big seminars that will be happening in large towns starting
March 6. The day after the training here in Gamboula Darren and I took off
for Berberati with Roy, Aleta and BJ to go and help fix a missionary house
there. Actually it is the house of Roy's son who recently came out with his
wife for a 2 year term. They came down here this past weekend and we had a
good chance to dream about what our futures in CAR would look like. We are
all talking about starting a model/research farm in Berberati connected with
a new development NGO in CAR. Anyway, for us this would be a few years off
but we are glad to be included in the development stage.

I feel as though my thoughts are very scattered today so I won't say much
more. The next few months will be taken up with travelling to seminars,
grafting, and more travel as we have said that any cooperatives that want
extra teaching on grafting, banana multiplication or that want women
specific seminars, that we will travel to them and do the training on-site.
There could be a big demand for this. Come summer we are hoping to be down
in Bayanga for a few months. Our mission director is planning a visit in
September/October which will be good to share our dreams with him as well.
We are planning on returning to Canada in late December in time to celebrate
Darren's Granny's 90th birthday. A second recyclage is planned for the
beginning of December and the guys insist that we be here for it!

As for next year this time, plans are evolving and it looks as if we may
find ourselves back at ECHO for a few years while I work in the nursery and
Darren attends FGCU. Please be praying for our 2006 seminar and follow-up
program, for continued safety on the roads and for change on the lives of
those we work with. These are exciting times for us and we know that there
are battles being fought all around us in the spiritual realm.
Ange

Special Help

In an update to the last Blog about extra help out here we would like to say
that anyone wanting to help send donations to our mission agency clearly
marked Boss-Special Projects.
In Canada the address is: CCWM, Box 25, Stouffville, ON L4A 7Z4
In the USA the address is: NMSI, Box 547, Fort Myers, Florida, 33902

At our discretion we will use the funds to help pay school tuition for
teenagers we see that have the potential and the desire to graduate and go
on with their education.

An update on the Women's project:
We started our new project in the nutrition center the first of this month
and so far the mother's are very enthusiastic and do not skip a day unless
they cannot leave their child. Three times a week we are prepared to have
any of the mothers with children at the hospital's nutrition centre come
down to the nutrition garden to learn from me or Mama Paulien and to help
with the garden chores, thereby learning how to grow the veggies that they
use in the nutrition centre. The hours they do are recorded and if they do
10 hours during their stay then when they leave for their villages they will
receive a machete and veggie seeds to take back with them. So far we have
given out 3 machetes. The women participating all work with joy and we can
see a genuine desire to learn, even the centre staff are participating and
learning and asking questions. I am happy to see one of my ideas come to
fruition and be successful.
Please note that this address sends and receives e-mail via a satellite
phone connection. All e-mails over 25 kb will be returned to sender
unopened. Sorry for the inconvenience. For more updates on the Bosses,
please log onto http://thebosses.blogspot.com

Help wanted ads...

I am not sure if this is an acceptable thing to use my blog for but since it
is my blog after all, then why not. I have been learning a lot about myself
over the past year and one thing I have noticed is that I am more and more
willing to give stuff away than I once was. Not just stuff even but my
time, talents and resources, such as this blog. I suspect this has
something to do with growing in the faith and being in the kind of place
that I am although I am sure that some people can be hardened to giving if
it is asked of them too often. All of this is to say that I want to present
you all with the opportunity to help a few people. I know that you are
already helping because of your gifts of your talents, time and resources
that you have not only given to us but probably to many others as well.
However, for some of you that is just not enough and I want to give the
chance to be blessed and be a blessing even more.

Opportunity number 1: There are two brothers in our church here in Gamboula
with the most incredible singing voices I have been privileged to hear in my
short life. They are both in their twenties from poor families, but they
have managed to scrape together enough money to make a cassette tape to sell
around the country. What they would really like to do is to go to the
capital and professionally record their music on CD. Actually, in their
biggest of dreams they would like to go to a French Conservatory Music
school somewhere in the world. However, given that that is a dream (one
that would be great to come true but not really within any of our means) the
second best would be for them to have the chance to record their music.

Opportunity number 2: As you may have gathered from previous entries,
graduating high school is about as difficult a task as getting a driver's
license in this country. Generally, kids do not make it past elementary
school because it is too expensive to go to school in terms of school fees
and supplies. As well, kids are often set back when the government here
neglects to pay the teachers salaries for a year and they close the school
down for two years at a time. If you do make it all the way through high
school you are required to 'buy' your graduation certificate at a cost of
one hundred dollars. I have the privilege of knowing two exceptional young
men who are near completing high school and who have dreams of not only
finishing high school but going on to University in Bangui (the capital).
One would like to study to be a lawyer, an occupation of which good ones are
in short supply. The other would like to study economics. They are both
fantastic youth with good hearts and good dreams for their lives. The are
doing every thing they can to pay their way through school; even their
relatives are pitching in but I am afraid it will not be enough. The one
thing that so troubles my heart here is that the only ones who succeed
monetarily in life here are those who are corrupt. If it is mostly the
corrupt to get into university and study and become the heads of things in
this country than it is no wonder it is in the shape that it is.

Darren and I are doing what we can and even by writing this e-mail we are
giving them some encouragement to tell them, 'keep it up, we care about you
and we want to see you succeed and rise above your circumstances'. Anyhow,
forgive me for being so bold and feel free to think I am crazy. I know that
if I was given the world, some days I would hold it all for my self and
other
days I would give it all away. I know there is a happy medium somewhere in
there, but I am still trying to find it!
We can be reached via our uuplus e-mail or by bossbugs@yahoo.ca

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Christmas wherever you are is all about what you make of it. Take, for
example, Christmas in Gamboula. How do you make a four hour Christmas day
church service a little more interesting to sit through. The answer is, you
form a choir of all the missionaries and get them to sing a medley of
Christmas songs including Jingle Bells, in front of 300 plus people. That
is good for a few laughs I guarantee, especially since no one has a clue
what we are singing. You could also get your ladies bible study together,
teach them a song in Sango and English and then sing that in front of the
church on Christmas morning.

As for Christmas dinner, ours wasn't a very exciting tropical dinner with
snake and monkey on the menu. In fact, ours was rather traditional in the
American sense. We had roast duck, stuffing, cranberry sauce, corn, sweet
potato, scalloped potatoes and salad. We stuffed ourselves with cookies and
lemon bars and yes, even Nanaimo bars for dessert. This was very exciting
for Darren and I; a) because it is a truly West Coast Canadian food, b) it
wouldn't be Christmas without Nanaimo bars and c). we actually managed to
fabricate all the ingredients necessary to make them and they tasted as
delicious and fattening as the ones my dad makes. Thanks goes to the
Lebanese merchant in Berberati for stocking vanilla custard powder in his
store. The only thing I have ever used the stuff for was to make Nanaimo
bars but I suppose one could actually make custard out of it.

Despite the holidays we are both very busy in our respective roles here,
especially since we keep picking up new ones. I am currently trying to
organize the agri office to help it be more efficient and accurate in its
record keeping and accounting. It is much the same as my job at ECHO trying
to keep my old boss organized. Lots and lots of fun. No, seriously, it is
a lot of fun. Seriously fun. Anyway...

2006 is sure to hold a lot of excitement and busyness for us. Besides
trying to complete an agroforestry manual, the agroforestry centre has 15
seminars scheduled for which the nursery will have to provide over 5,000
trees; we are planning on at least 4 months solid with the Aka pygmies in
Bayanga; Darren is working on producing a couple thousand banana plants for
distribution and I just got word of a good source of funding for a large
women's project for 2006 in which I would be completely responsible. Hmmm,
more fun. Actually, I thrive off stress and Darren thrives on picking up
the pieces of Angela as she thrives on stress.

After having spent one year here we are pretty much hooked and although we
will be going home a year from now, we have set our hearts on returning for
a longer time in the future. We are talking supplementary educated before
returning. Darren in the field of computer science (so he can be a real
expert) and me, most recently, in the field of community health
nursing/work. Does anyone know of a good program for this, preferably
focussed on the tropics? Any info would be helpful as we are
internet-handicapped out here in the wilderness. Thanks y'all.