Short Stories: Masses, Blood, and Rodents; Thanks; and Goodbye Switzerland

Masses, Blood, and Rodents – Welcome to Africa

We arrived in Lomé on the night of 16^th around 7 pm after a long 20 hours of traveling.  Our first observation of our new home was it was already dark –we thought maybe we had the wrong time!   But we found out that Togo is just above the equator and as such it has 12 hours of night and 12 hours of day and the change between them is quick.

We then spent a hot two plus hours in the airport waiting for our bags (all arrived safely except for our stroller that came the next day –thank you God!) and filling out VISA forms.  Our second observation, there are no lines in Togo!  Instead people form a mass that moves towards things.  Surprisingly, the mass was mostly polite and considerate.  And thanks to Noah, we were moved, by security, from the end of the blob to the front with no real objections.

Leaving Lomé, we drove for a little over 2.5 hours on paved and then dirt roads to the HBB hospital in Tsiko, where we will be stationed for the next two years.  Our third observation, this part of Togo has a lot of vegetation, and the Chinese are here!  On either side of the road one appreciates large tracks of land that appear to be over grown with vegetation, that is until you come to the Chinese agriculture school.  Here, a large section of land has been cleared for growing among other things rice.  I hear rice grows well here in Togo.

Arriving at HBB we slowed down at the first missionary house to say “Hi” to the family playing.  The conversation turned quickly to an inquiry of blood type.  At the hospital was a young lady pregnant with a hematocrit of 11 (normal is 30 to 45) and they were looking for blood.  Lydia won and gave up 2 units.  Our fifth observation, the missionary families are direct and to the point.

Our fifth and final observation, in Togo any kind of meat can make a good meal! This morning as we were walking through the kitchen, we saw our gardener outside our door with a rock above his head in his hand looking intently at something in along the side of our house in the bushes and there was another person at the other end of the bushes and they were yelling something to each other.  A few moments later, one of the rocks flew and the other man held up a giant rat about the size of a small dog!  The gardeners had seen it -they were happy -they are now going to have meat for dinner!  Welcome to Togo!

Thank you Dave and Ann, MAG and Friends

Just after leaving Switzerland and before coming to Togo, we spent 10 days in Madison Indiana.  During this time we also made trips to Northern Kentucky and Indianapolis to visit friends and supporters. 

While in Madison we stayed with the in-laws, Dave and Ann.  Outside of the “bed and breakfast” that they provided for our time there, they also took care of Noah so that we could spend time repacking and re-organizing ourselves for the time in Togo.  The stay was capped by a water fight and fireworks show on the 13^th of July that will be remembered for a while!  Thank you Dave and Ann for all that you have done for us.  We would not be where we are today without your encouragement, support and thoughtfulness.

On the 7^th of July we went to Grace Fellowship (our old church in Northern Kentucky) and spent time with our past small groups.  On the 14^th of July, we made a small presentation at MAG (Madison Assembly of God) about our upcoming two years in Togo.  The presentation was topped off by an after church lunch which was attended by many.  Thank you very much Grace and MAG for your prayer and financial support. We are where we are today thanks to you and our other supporters.

Goodbye Switzerland

Our last week in Switzerland we made a trip to Canton Uri, in which we visited family in Altdorf and Unterschachen.  Altdorf is home of the legendary William Tell. From my aunt I learned that my great grandma was an only child who had 17 children.  Each of the 17 children had 7 to 15 kids and the majority of them live in the Altdorf area.  Yes . . .  there is a chance that I am a descendant of the legendary William Tell!!  Unterschachen is the birth place of one set of my grandparents (the Muller family), where we spent time in the Alps with Uncle Sepp and Cousin Doris milking cows and watching cheese be made.  We also visited Sursee, which is the birth place of the other set of grandparents.    From there we traveled to Zug to say goodbye to Cousin Renate and Franz and their family.  We will miss you Switzerland!

God bless.