Multiply Trip East Africa 2015 - Retrospect

Two weeks since landing back, so time for some reflection.

Hilary and Janet were quickly out of the starting gate in proposing a return visit to the Nairobi sewing project and Richard's Children's Home.  They have in mind a couple of weeks in December that squeeze in from the end of Janet's term and before the New Year.   Huw's happy.  I must remind them to take some clothes  pegs for their stay at Sundowner.  If the extra fund-raising goes well enough they'll take a couple of other younger women with them. 

Meanwhile, sadly, Phibian's had to suspend the project for a couple of weeks because Four Square's hall was needed for something else.  But it's a good outcome, because they're finding replacement premises, and they've tapped into some micro-finance to keep going.  Hilary's fund-raising Gala Dinner is Thursday 12 November, and we have some planning to nail down, including video stuff, etc.

A green shoot - cheesy, but I don't care

Janet stole the show at the national celibates and singles event, relating how on the Sunday in Kampala, Pastor Philip was unsure whether to introduce her as Pastor, Bishop or Apostle. 

My enduring memories of Uganda proved to be the amazing bird-life, the abundance of pineapples, and the second-hand European clothes that change hands in preference to new Chinese stuff on quality grounds.  I also failed to mention the rice and tea fields that line the main trunk roads.  Len commented that the place is so fertile that if you stand still for too long, you'll grow roots.  I also recalled a couple of pastors asserting that the country was the site of the Garden of Eden, with the third (unidentified) river being the Nile.  Hmmm.

Cornelius continued his extensive correspondence to Trevor.  I remembered a comment in his garden, after the two-hour evening round of exchanges.  "Milton Obote once took eight hours over a broadcast presidential speech.  His sign off was: 'And with these few words...'."

I went to thank Ali for lending us Len while the Brighton saints endured an arson attack at home.  She confided that she'd been given an unexpected gift, and told to, "Go and have a good holiday yourself."  So a return visit to the literacy project in Zambia is in her sights - apparently with or without Len!  To add to the to-ings and fro-ings, it appears that 42 of the RAW-ites have signed up to go to India next November.  And Andy and Eva have posted photos of Kathmandu on their Facebook.

Because having the use of the minibus was so helpful, I've re-written the draft budget for our trip to Rwanda next March, allowing for hiring one for the duration out there.  On the journey across Kenya I forgot to mention the green and yellow agave cactus that grows by the roadside.  They have just one specimen in the glasshouses at Sheffield Botanical Gardens, and it looks creepy. 

Fatigue hit me about three days after we came home, and I must have been a poor advertisement at the Bank Holiday Festival.  Back at the gym, my body felt like rubber, but I managed a five-mile run round the Memorial Park while staying in Coventry last weekend.   At the last count, Viv had 47 outstanding IT service tickets.

Most worrying, I can't find the Jesus Centre credit card that I put 'somewhere safe' at home rather than risking taking it on the trip.  A confession to the Accounts bods is impending if Mary's 'finding angel' doesn't come up with the goods. I may have said 'apostolic irritation' if Nathan hadn't deflated me with an aside in India, "Don't you think these things happen to anyone?"

Multiply Trip East Africa 2015 Day 13 August 23

I was due to go to Pastor Matuva's Eternal Life Worship church, out towards Entebbe, where the edges of Kampala are rapidly expanding (as in Wakiso). He had been interpreting into Luganda for me, very effectively.  During the group discussion times, we'd leaned across the lectern and had some good conversations together.  I took the chance of a later start to have a nice hot shower - our bathroom has its own Ariston boiler.  Then I'd joined in saying 'goodbye' to the Kenya guys.  On the evidence of the last two weeks' bumps and shudders, the dear travel-stained minibus KCD402Y will probably not survive the seven years that Gregory built into the financial plan: three or four will be good going, despite Toyota's admirable build quality!

I noticed that the Korean resident who always wore a hoodie at breakfast ('the Monk', we'd dubbed him), had also checked out.  Pastor Chris had taken leave from his own church's regular meeting to see us all off in our various directions, and ensure that the host churches knew that we must be at the City Royal Hotel, Bugolobi, before 3pm, for the widely-advertised Business seminar.

An Airport Taxi arrived somewhat late, with Mutuva and the co-pastor.  At one point we used the newly under-construction superhighway that's going to link Entebbe and Kampala, throwing up clouds of red dust.  "Is this so the Chinese businessmen can got to the city and do deals faster?" I enquired.  "Oh, yes.  And they're paying for it.  In fact they're paying for every big scheme that's going on." I was told.

We bumped along a turn-off road and pulled up by the skeleton of a building, with the mandatory blast of PA kit.  "My goodness," I thought, even the worst of our barns at the Farm is better than this."  But it was newly erected, and the worshippers were clearly satisfied.  The sun was hot, and church-without-walls was the ideal arrangement.  I think they hadn't started the meeting properly until I came, which was obviously later than the usual time.

Somewhere along the way, in their obvious delight at having muzumu with them, I changed from being referred to as Pastor Ian, to Rev Ian, to Rev Doctor, to Doctor Ian.  As last week, my skillful exposition of Hebrews 13 was going to need 'dumbing down'.  Unlike in Kenya, we'd already found several folks at the last two days' conference who actually seemed to speak no English. 

There was a clutch of children on the right-hand side of the congregation, who joined in the singing and dancing.  I managed to make a good bit of the teaching down-to-earth, and they enjoyed my loud closing prayer.  Matuva's wife brought over some bananas and water melon for lunch.  It was an ideal arrangement, and meant we could head back to the city centre in good time.  They also related how an angel had come along with a spade to dig their car out of the mud when travelling to the 'Greater Nile Convention' meeting in Jinja.

City Royal Hotel was a marked contrast, with uniformed staff, manicured lawns and plush leather seats.  This is where Pastor Chris holds his Return to Light Ministries meetings, with engineers, accountants, doctors and business people in his congregation.  At 3pm only he and I were ready; we had some prayer and (quite tuneful) worship.  I resisted the urge to set up the projector, as I trusted Viv would somehow manage to turn up. 

When the remainder of our folks had arrived, the room was pretty full - maybe 100 delegates.  This included Pastor Calvin from Abiding Rock Fellowship.  The session went well.  This was a 'first' in our conference planning, and from the follow-on questions confirmed that we'd pitched things just right.  And, glory be, my friend Alfred Okello from Lira, whom I'd met in Nairobi three years ago, was there, too.

Dinner entailed another visit to Cafe Roma, and I was ready for a good meal.  I texted Gregory to see what progress he'd made.  Tomorrow, we'll have to get Rukundo on his bus back to Kigali, and we're heading for a beach resort on the Lake at lunchtime.