Day 27: Laziness Is Asking Someone To Brush Your Teeth.

I woke up to Musa walking down the hallway to bring us water from the well. He comes once a week to haul buckets with well water up to the second story for our bathroom and kitchen. We have asked him to let us help on more than one occasion but have grown to find that Nigerians find it incredibly rude to impose on their hospitality in that way. He doesn’t want us to feel like we need to assist him, he wants us to appreciate this gift he gives us. That has been difficult for me to accept because I am one who always feels the need to repay people for whatever they have given to or done for me. So this morning I applied this new way of thinking while eating breakfast and instead of insisting I lend a hand just took the time to talk to Musa when he was done bringing up the water and thank him for his service. He laughed and told me he is glad we are becoming more Nigerian.

 

            Today was the last day of feasting after Ramadan so, like yesterday, things were pretty quiet around the neighborhood. We walked to the Clinic for a little while and ended up helping Dr. Chris round up his three out-of-control children for a good part of the time there. Passing an apartment complex that is in the midst of it’s final completion I witnessed one of the most outstanding pictures of community. I will always kick myself for not having a camera on me. There were huge piles of rocks and dirt on the street being shoveled by teenagers, carried by able-bodied men, and transported to three levels of people who were working together to put this building together. On each level there must have been thirty men and women, working hard with huge smiles, singing as they went along. They stood on wooden planks out along the far side of the structure; probably not the safest environment but no one looked afraid. Who needs to hire construction workers when you live in a neighborhood?

 

            We made it back for lunch followed by another lazy afternoon of reading, Pilates, and long conversations. Kristen and Jon both worked in the Boundary Waters region near the Canadian border so I always enjoy hearing their outdoor adventures. It’s also fun to hear what life looks like in different parts of our country. It is so diverse! I really enjoy being with the Draskovics and know that once they go back to Fargo we will still be hearing quite a bit from each other.

 

            Baba cooked us “Special” dinner which ended up being a delicious meal of rice, veggies, meat, fried plantains, AND a fruit cobbler. A huge meal to end a lazy day--perfect! We made things even better by sitting around and watching an hour of America’s Funniest Home Videos before heading off to bed. Not the most productive day here, but definitely one that adds to the adventure of Jos.

Day 26: I Used To Have A Lisp. Luckily I’m Much Cooler Now.

This is the first celebration day for Muslims after the season of Ramadan, a day devoted to prayer and thanksgiving, so it looked a little different around Jos. For one thing, the normal hustle and bustle of daily living was much quieter this morning since so many people have gone back to their home village on holiday. Muslim or not every person in Nigeria loves a holiday! Most shops are closed, traffic is not as heavy, and things are generally much quieter. Even the Clinic is only open to out-patients until noon and almost everyone has taken the time off to be with their families.

 

            Because of all this I was able to sleep in a bit this morning and wander down to work whenever I felt like it. I went downstairs at about 8:30 to grab a quick breakfast and Baba insisted of walking me the few blocks to Faith Alive. I felt like a celebrity. Baba is the most loved man in this neighborhood (and I believe if he traveled would quickly become the most loved man in the world) so we greeted every person we came into contact with and he checked up on how they were getting along. There is a bit of a language barrier between the two of us, but my sweet little old cook sure knows how to speak without words. He handed me a banana in case I got hungry later and told me to have a good day until we saw each other again at lunch. If only we could bring him home with us!

 

            Emma told me I could take the monstrous book back to the flat to work on instead of in the M&E office/club. I took a few minutes to say Hello to the few workers who were present before heading back home with Adrie. Dr. Onyijiaka (we call him Old School) gave me the compliment of my life when he walked up to me and, taking my hand, told me in his wonderful wise Nigerian accent, “Cait, you are REALLY cute today.” How can you not feel good about yourself when a doctor in his 60s tells you that? We walked home and it was nice to keep working on my project with Glen Hansard playing in the background instead of some Nigerian playboy.

 

            Lunch was followed by a grocery run with Biana and Naomi and I had my first experience with the beggars. I had heard that there is a subculture of young boys in parts of the city who spend all day walking from person to person begging for food. Many of them are orphaned, some live on the streets creating their own family with other children, and still some are sent out by their poor parents or relatives as a way to get some extra food into the home. I didn’t quite know what to do when I was approached by a seven-year-old asking me in broken English if I had anything to eat I could share with him. I had to tell him the truth that I did not. He looked at me with those beautiful big eyes and I felt my heart break as he started to walk away. Biana said that there are a few organizations that have started in the recent past to work with these children and try to give them a better life than wandering the streets day in and day out hoping for a hand-out. I guess part of being in a new place is seeing things you aren’t comfortable with.

 

            When we got back home I did my pilates, enjoyed looking through some pictures on my iphoto, and had a fabulous dinner of curry and fried plantains. I will never get over fried plantains. They are just too good. Tonight’s dinner discussion started with kidney stones (Biana and I were the only two experienced stoners) and ended with embarrassing moments our families caught on tape. The Bairds seem to have a few more than others...thank you Uncle Norm! Oh well, I’m glad people still think I’m cute.

Day 25: Whose Turn Is It? This Is Getting Crazy!

I woke up at 8:30 exactly and was more than ready to start another day. Breakfast, chatting with Adrie, and then a nice walk to United Baptist were all very enjoyable. Church has been a little different every Sunday so far so I was interested to see how today would go. We had the normal mix of old hymns and current Nigerian praise songs, the procession of offering, and acknowledged every member who had a birthday in the month of September (which took a while). My greatest hope was that the nice pastor who I can’t understand wasn’t preaching today, but when he got up with his Bible I knew that it was going to be another Sunday of trying to read lips. The reading was from Isaiah 60 talking about the New Jerusalem, a passage I have always found to be really beautiful. Nigerians resonate well with looking forward to a Kingdom where righteousness rules over all and peace resides in every household. I have been spending time over the past couple of years thinking deeper into what ushering in this Kingdom looks like in the here and now, I hope to speak with Pastor Ben and Pastor Esther about what that means in this culture.

 

            We gave Baba the day off so we scavenged for leftovers and made our own Jos version of rice bowls for lunch. I desperately miss the need for chopsticks. After eating Adrie and I decided to try out the Pilates video together and thought we were going to pass out after the extra 12-minute “Energy Boost!” It is difficult to find a way to exercise around here considering a) It’s been insanely hot and/or pouring rain in the mornings and afternoons, b) Once it gets dark no one sets foot outside, and c) Did I honestly think I would find a gym in a place that doesn’t have a post office? We are hoping that with our powerwalking team with the addition of Ana on our pilates video we will be in the best shape of our lives! (Maybe not, but it will at least make up for sitting with our projects all day)

 

            The weather has changed drastically over the past couple of days and is moving into what can only be described as the Insanely Windy time. High winds from the Sahara blow dust over our plateau, drive out the rain, and drop the temperature 10 degrees. Most Nigerians think that the transition from rainy to dry season is horrible but I haven’t found it to be too bad. (They also think that 75 degrees calls for wearing a sweater) The only unfavorable part is the howling noise from the winds that come up at night and make it hard to sleep. Thank the Lord I brought earplugs!

 

            For dinner Biana made a salad, tuna fish, and brownies turned chocolate pudding cake. It was delicious and reminded us all of home. After eating we decided it was a good night for a game of Killer Uno, which soon turned into yelling, laughing, and singing (White Christmas songs for some odd reason) as we took turns making each other draw and throwing down cards out of turn. Sometimes you just need to have some ridiculousness in your life.

Day 24: I Just Can’t Quite Wrap My Mind Around It.

My body is incapable of sleeping in so I was wide awake at 6:45 this morning. It was still nice to be able to lay under the covers and read for a little while before wandering downstairs for breakfast. I had intentionally made no plans for today so I could take some time to do much of nothing. So after getting food in my stomach I headed back to my room where until lunchtime I was able to organize my stuff, get a load of clothes washed, and start reading Pride And Prejudice (I’m trying to branch out. I need to read things other than depressing memoirs!). It was very relaxing and helped me catch up on some things I hadn’t gotten around to in the past few days.

 

            At lunchtime we sat down to eat and got the devastating news that our coworker had just passed away. Hannatu was not a woman I knew well but I had heard of her before coming here from my friends Val and Char who had worked at Faith Alive last spring. She had worked at the Clinic for a few years with the financial aspect of things and everyone enjoyed being around her. She had been away at a conference the past few days and decided to take public transportation back to Jos. I don’t know the details, but there was a bad accident and she passed away a few hours later in the hospital. Travel can be dangerous if you take public transportation because there are no traffic laws. People can cram fifteen adults into a minivan and it is not uncommon to see commercial trucks plowing down the highway with four or five teenage boys holding onto the back. Yesterday I saw a woman seated with three children behind the driver of a motorbike. Biana was very upset and spent much of the afternoon without saying much. When we spoke in the living room we remembered that life does not end with death for us as believers but is actually the beginning. Unfortunately it still leaves behind sorrow--the Faith Alive staff will need time to recover and heal.

 

            The rest of the day was a little more low-key than other Saturdays. Adrie and I each read our books and watched part of the original Planet of the Apes, we ate dinner together, and spent time speaking of happier subjects around the table. After laughing through stories about Kristen’s family cruise episodes we decided it would be an early night.

 

            Encountering death is always difficult. In Nigeria it is an aspect of life that people must deal with more often and more intimately than I am used to. With the strong presence of disease and malnutrition here many people born into poverty don’t expect to live a full productive life. And sadly the rest of the world believes the same thing. Many of the patients I see in the hospital each morning are living in the shadow of death, diagnosed with a virus that will allow illness to attack their body. It is hard to have hope when you spend time with a man suffering from HIV and TB with bedsores on his back from lack of strength to turn his own body. It is hard to give a smile to a woman who has just heard that the dreaded condition that has weakened the bodies and spirits of people important in her life is also living in her. It is hard to be okay with death when it chooses to dwell among the people with so little in life, the people who are trying their best to live a normal life day to day. I just have to trust that God knows what is going on, even if I don’t.             

Day 23: Aww. That Is So Precious.

I was glad to wake up feeling nearly back to normal and ready to enjoy my Friday. We walked down to the Clinic for devotions with Uncle Thomas, which were focused on the need for power. He spoke of a person’s desire for strength and control in their lives, especially for men. There is an undercurrent in their culture that men should be more powerful than women not only as the head of the household but also as the decision-maker all across the board. Thomas capitalized on that and reminded his group of listeners that God wants to be the power-source behind all of his creation. It is interesting to hear a message I hear all the time in a new environment. God can teach you a lot when you hear from different voices.

 

            My system is working out well and I am plugging along on the government book. I am in the middle of February 2005, patient number 987. I honestly believe that this project will take me the rest of my life to complete...

 

            To loosen up a bit after lunch Adrie I decided to join Jon and Kristen in their daily power-walk excursion rather than heading back up to our flat to get things together for the rest of the day. I got to see some new pieces of our neighborhood and, as usual, had a wonderful time saying hello to our neighbors. Near the football (soccer) stadium we turned into an oyibo choir and belted Bohemian Rhapsody to get the song that had been playing in the office out of my head. Adrie is in desperate need to good walking shoes so we decided to cut our walk five minutes short of the half-hour in order to get her a band-aid before heading back to the Clinic. As we were walking home a group of young girls leaving school (in their matching uniforms) decided to walk with us. I held the youngest one’s hand and she did a great job of keeping up with my long-legged pace. They needed to cross the busy intersection before we reached home so I insisted we wait a couple extra minutes to make sure they got across okay. Adrie reminded me that they did this every day, but I have a pretty loud maternal instinct. They waved to us from across the packed two lanes and we headed home for a quick shower before going back to work.

 

            The rest of the day went smoothly and we were exhausted once we walked back to the apartment for dinner. Biana made the executive decision to have girl’s night in so we each grabbed a bowl of trail mix topped with peanut-butter m&ms, kicked off our shoes, and watched Love Actually. I don’t know if it was hearing Aurelia speak her broken English to accept Jamie’s proposal or the sentimental value peanut butter m&ms hold for me but by the end of the movie I had tears running down my cheeks. Definitely time for some hard-earned sleep. Nigeria is turning me into such a girl!

Day 22: Oh C’mon, Everybody On Your Feet!

I woke up this morning feeling and looking pretty nasty, so after breakfast Kristen and Adrie decided for me that it would be a good morning for me to sleep instead of work. I slept soundly from 8 until 11 and then decided to take a bucket bath since, well, at home showers always make me feel better. The cold water at least made me feel alive enough to eat some lunch and head down to the Clinic for the afternoon.

 

            Thursdays we have staff prayer meeting after lunch so I was glad to survive the walk from our flat to Faith Alive in time to sit in on that. Today Uncle Thomas (also known as Pastor Love) informed us that it was praise day at the Clinic. A full hour of dancing and singing for our Lord--it doesn’t get much better than that. Or does it? See what us visitors didn’t realize is that Thomas was not leading the praise, oh no. WE were leading the praise. If you were the lucky (or unlucky) person that got called on you would run up to the front and start the next song to keep the cycle of music going. I was terrified when Thomas called, “Cait! Lead us in a song!” and explained that I only knew one-and-a-half Nigerian praise songs, and they had already been used. He laughed and told me that he would wait for me to share next week. Thankfully he called on Jon right after me and told him that he needed to lead us all in Kristin’s favorite Nigerian song to the Lord. Jon chose the song we sing in church that only has two words, which I thought was a smart idea. Kristen didn’t seem offended by his selection. So it went on like that, Thomas calling on people to lead us in their husband’s favorite song, their church’s favorite hymn, whatever came to his mind. We sang songs in Hausa, old Baptist hymns, and some song about humility where you had to “bend low”, which immediately reminded me of Edison High prom. My favorite was Dr. Kanu getting up and belting out a song in his native tongue that we all tribal danced to. Very few people chosen had choir-worthy voices and the microphone kept shutting off, but I think that is what made it so beautiful. A little taste of what praising without ceasing looks like.

 

            Ima told me not to worry about work just make sure I got better so I went back to the apartment when I started getting light-headed again. I slept for another little while and got up to get ready for the rest of the afternoon. Today was Jon’s 26^th birthday so we decided yesterday to give Baba the night off and take Mr. Draskovic out to the Net Cafe for dinner and dessert. Greg took us over to the restraunt and we grabbed the table near the fish-tank. Biana and I got burgers and fries (sometimes you just need American food), Adrie and Kristen got Greek, and the birthday boy got spinach and cottage-cheese ravioli. Good times! We all enjoy laughing so tonight we shared some good birthday stories. I fell upon a memory of a certain cousin blowing out my birthday candles one year because when the family started singing Happy Birthday I hid under the table... We enjoyed a scoop of gelato after our meal (Jon also got a monstrous piece of chocolate cake because, of course, he can) before heading home. I feel like I should continue in our time of praise but that will have to happen in my dreams.

Day 21: I Think I Was Meant To Be Royalty.

The group was pretty lethargic this morning, but I know that is because we were thinking about what our day at the Clinic had in store. So we ate breakfast and headed over to staff meeting without too much excitement. I’m glad God always knows when you need some extra thrills. The staff meeting turned into an argument over the upstairs toilets for a good twenty minutes; what shouldn’t go in them, who has the privilege to use them, where are all the keys going to unlock the door, it was quite the skirmish. I found myself more awake once I left the room to continue on my documentation project.

 

            I can almost guarantee this is the most tedious task I have ever been assigned but I got through every patient that came through the doors for HIV testing in January of 2005 over the course of five hours. The guy next to me watched a movie for half of the day with headphones on, which, needless to say, was driving me absolutely crazy. He’s getting paid by a non-profit business to do this?! (A rant for a day when I have more energy) Ima, the guy in charge, keeps thanking me profusely and telling me that if I ever need to rest my hand or walk up and down the stairs to get my blood flowing to not feel bad about leaving the room for a while because I am being such a great help. So at least I have a good supervisor. Plus, today there was the added bonus of enjoying an hour’s worth of boy band music coming from our speaker-system. Apparently the Backstreet Boys are still good to go in Jos, Nigeria! I wonder what they would do if we all decided to listen to my itunes one of these days...

 

            A quick lunch and then back to the grind where I was able to come up with a quicker writing system; at least working on this is giving me the time to experiment with how my brain organizes things. After work Adrie and I dragged ourselves the few blocks to the flat where we collapsed until dinnertime. I was able to finish reading Dry and am now on the hunt to read everything that Augusten Burroughs has ever put on paper. Oh memoirs and bizarre life stories. After dinner it was another crazy night of Phase 10 and Adrie schooled us! (I on the other hand had a score that looked like all of our combined weights) After deciding that going to bed at 8:30 was a pretty good idea we said our Goodnights and Jon spoke up, “I think I was meant to be royalty.” Without waiting for any questions he went on, “I just require a lot of sleep.” Good point.

 

            After a day like today it is always interesting to take a step back and think through what it is I am doing here. I am a volunteer from a different country who is working on random tasks at a health clinic, trying to overcome the social and cultural barriers that comes with being a foreigner, wrestling with questions about God and life, and missing my family and friends back home. It doesn’t sound like such a glamorous experience but the truth is I am eating up every second of it. When will I ever get the chance to live without any sort of structure again? It is very freeing and I know I am learning a lot. Maybe one of the best things God could ever teach me will come from sitting at a desk and silently scribbling names and dates into a giant Nigerian government directory.

Day 20: Hey, Turn It Up!

Uncle Thomas took center stage this morning and gave a devotion based on how the Pharisees, a sect of religious rulers during Jesus’ ministry, were such hypocrites when they should have been godly men. He spoke on how we, as Christians, find ourselves so many times being individuals who can say wonderfully profound things but can’t find the passion within us to live out our convictions. Offering is a big deal in churches here so everyone in the congregation dances down to the plates on Sunday mornings. Thomas said that we like to do the dancing to the front of the church but many times only pretend to give a gift back to God. He does a great job of making things culturally relevant here.

 

            I started my new assignment today in the Monitoring and Evaluation section of the Clinic. It is the data processing group so my first job was to take the patients already put into the computer system and write them into a government directory which they will take in a few weeks. It is a bit tedious and, because of my attitude towards handwriting, really makes my hand hurt. Though my current task isn’t the most fun I really enjoy the atmosphere. The ten other M&E staff are my age, there is constant American and Nigerian hip-hop blaring from speakers, and all the girls wear heels. Basically I feel like I am back in my classes at Edison. I think I am going to have a more difficult time remembering everyone’s names since we don’t get to look at each other as much as other departments! This takes up my morning and afternoon shifts at Faith Alive so I will have to get used to writing hundreds of dates and names every day. If I wasn’t helping them out so much I would probably ask for a job that would allow me to step outside...

 

            Adrie started her task of calculating all ARV drugs given out over the past six months in the pharmacy so we were both really out of it by the end of the day. We ate dinner (Mac and cheese plus fresh papaya) and I started my first of several hundred loads of hand-washed laundry. It is pretty fun to try and wring out your jeans over a bucket in the bathtub. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that everything will be dry by next week! We decided there was not much we could do besides stare at the wall so we chose the next best thing and watched Across the Universe on my laptop. There is something very bizarre about finishing a movie and coming back to reality in Nigeria. Sometimes I forget that I am really here.

Day 19: I’m Glad God Doesn’t Tell Me Everything.

Pancakes with Nutella gave us the energy to start another week at the Clinc. Pastor Ben opened the day with devotions about God’s bride, every person, being torn between the World and God. He decided to give a visual illustration and asked a man in the front to stand up and represent people. Ben became the World and Uncle Thomas got to represent God (of course! This man is so full of love) and the bride had to stand in-between. Ben spoke about the things that we desire and where we normally turn to get those desires fulfilled: Love, a sense of Purpose, Wisdom, Joy. In the end the bride must realize that their God is the one who is the source of all these things. It was a very good message and, while we were all processing what we had just heard, Thomas made it all make sense by taking the man’s hand in his and proclaiming loudly “He is my wife!” Thank God for starting off a Monday laughing hysterically.

 

            I had the joy of spending another morning with my friends in the pharmacy counting pills, organizing, emptying boxes, and giving encouragement to Peju after yelling to an unhappy customer. There is something very fun about working this job; back home I would never be allowed to step foot inside a pharmacy until I at least knew what B6 was used for (...Isaiah told me, but I forgot).

 

            Adrie and I arrived at lunch just in time for a huge downpour to appear outside. The rain has become more sporadic as we move from the Jos rainy season into the time of Sahara winds. Jon wasn’t so fortunate and walked through the door completely soaked and muddy. We enjoyed our food for a little longer than usual but realized the rain was not letting up. As a Nigerian you learn that anything must wait until the rain lets up a bit so Adrie and I headed upstairs to read until we could make it back without wading across the river/street. Once the water turned from cascades to a mere sprinkle we headed back to Faith Alive. Forty-five minutes later than normal days but no one batted an eyelash. It made me think of my job and that if we are five minutes late the whole team must come earlier. I’m glad that rule doesn’t exist here!

 

            The rest of the work day was a little off and we headed back home early since a thunderstorm was moving in. Back at the flat we enjoyed our nightly meal and table discussion and Biana headed off to bed early. Adrie started up a conversation with Kristen in the kitchen and Jon and I lounged in the living room bouncing ideas off each other. Jon and I have realized that we share many things in common (including a distaste of musicals and admiration of Shane Claiborne) so we started talking about, well, God. What is the American Church missing? What makes the Nigerian Church so focused on sin? Why do we always want to know what’s next in God’s plan for us? What does peace really look like? How am I being an example of Christ? It was wonderful. A couple of hours later we were trying our best to keep our eyes open so we agreed to call it a night.

 

            “You know what,” Jon said at one point in our conversation, “I want to live like every day is a new part of a great adventure.” Amen brother.

Day 18: We Are Turning Into A Family.

Baba had the day off so Biana took the motherly responsibility of cooking for all five of us. Breakfast was scrambled eggs with tomato and onion along with toast and jam. It was really good and got us off to a good start. Jon and Kristen went to church at 6 this morning (I thought American churches start early) so while they went back to sleep Biana and I headed off to United Baptist. The fellowship there is always great and I’m sure it was a great message today but the pastor who spoke is so hard to understand I wonder if the locals even know what he is saying. I know the message had to do with what is means to be created in God’s image so I listened in to what passage he was using and did some of my own soul-searching. The coolest part of the service came at the end when they brought up a very bashful young couple who had been married this weekend. It is tradition in the Nigerian Church for brothers and sisters in the congregation to celebrate a couple’s marriage by taking an offering to help them start off on the right track financially. The music began to play, everyone started clapping, and people danced their way up to the ushers to bless these two people with a few naira. What a sense of community!

 

            Biana made tuna for lunch and we enjoyed hearing more of her life stories. She shared stories about living in a tent doing reforestation projects in Wyoming for a year, sneaking out of church services with Martha to get soda from the market and making it back in time for closing prayer, growing up with a Slavic mother and Italian father, raising a family in an intentional community in Kerman, lots and lots of things I have never heard! It has been really fun to learn about the lesser-known side of this woman, I can tell she hasn’t changed much over the years.

 

            The rest of the afternoon was very relaxing. Adrie and I caught up on e-mails, I started reading Dry by Augusten Burroughs (because memoirs make the best reading material), did a pilates video (and remembered how flexible I USED to be), and took a bucket bath by lantern light. Dinner was an amazing leftover stew and the five of us spent a couple of hours together eating, cleaning dishes, doing some chores, and sharing funny stories. Somehow accordions popped up in conversation so we had a good time sharing about Grandpas and family reunions and polka weddings. It is always a good time with our little group. We miss our families so much, but God is showing us that we don’t need to worry because we have our own support group right here: Mother Biana with her two children Adrie and Caitlin along with Auntie Kristen and Uncle Jon who live right around the corner. What an unexpected blessing.

Day 17: I Could Fall Asleep Right Here...

Saturday mornings are my only chance to sleep in but with the constant stream of Jos sounds I could only make it until about 7:45. Oh well, it is still waking up later than usual! With all the extra time this morning I was able to do some cleaning, wash my hair, and start a new book. I also proved that I should have gone to beauty school and cut a few inches off of Biana’s hair (at her request!). It is a nice break from anything structured.

 

            Goddy came and picked up Adrie, Jon, and myself right after lunch to take us to Miangu where I was asked to speak. Dr. Chris and his three children came along as well as Pam, an older nurse from New Mexico who is working here for a few weeks. It was a bumpy car ride but offered me more breathtaking views of the area around Jos. I learned that the area we were heading to was formed by volcanic activity so there were boulders everywhere! My favorite thing had to be all the orange and yellow wildflowers that were growing in abundance along the hills and around the mud huts, though.

 

            After an hour of driving we came to a gated retreat center where currently some high-achieving university students from around Jos were having a weekend together. We were escorted to a large fellowship hall where about fifty students were waiting. I was told not to be nervous about speaking, so I tried my best not to be. Dr. Chris had been the planned speaker but everyone seemed excited that an American their age was leading Your Work In Ministry instead. It was a very interactive hour revolving around how people are called to serve God in whatever capacity He puts them in. We looked at Jesus’ disciples, serving God in different jobs, and took the time to reflect on how we need to view our own jobs as a way of following Christ’s example. It wasn’t incredibly churchy, it wasn’t even very scholarly, but it was a wonderful time of dialogue and laughter. I felt good about how it went and was very encouraged by the number of people who stopped me afterwards to say hello, tell me about themselves, and think through some of their struggles in their work.

 

            We stayed in Miangu for a while more and entertained ourselves by running around with the Isichei children and eating guava that Goddy was beating down from a tree with a giant stick. It was nice to feel grass between my toes after days of walking along trash-lined dirt roads. The ride home was a little more difficult since the kids, especially Prince, were overly hyper and wanted everyone’s full attention. Jon ended up doing math problems with Emily (age 7) while Adrie played with Joey (age 3) and Prince taught me some new songs (age 5). We were exhausted when we got back to Jos just before dinner. Biana and I took a quick lap around the neighborhood before sitting together for a meal of coos-coos and beef. We called it a day earlier than usual and watched a bit of Arabic satellite television where Grumpier Old Men was on with weird subtitles. It was a long day, but a very good one, and we are all hoping to be able to get up refreshed and ready to go tomorrow!

Day 16: You Are Experiencing Real Nigeria Now My Friends!

George and Naomi came back to the Clinic to give devotions this morning before they fly home to Buckinghamshire. They spoke about the armor of God and encouraged patients to put their trust in God for strength. I’m glad they understand that sickness is not a punishment, just a part of life. I wish we could have talked before they left but they had to get to the airport in Abuja by the afternoon and it is quite a long drive.

 

            It was a much quieter morning at the Clinic so after a few hours at the pharmacy (where I counted pills, talked to Peju, and played with a coworker’s baby) I got to talk a while with Jon and Kristen. They are such amazing people and I feel they are wise beyond their years. We talked about how being here helps put life as a whole in perspective and asked a lot of questions of each other and God. I think it’s good to be in a spot where everything isn’t spelled out for us--I have a feeling this is what walking with the Lord looks like most of the time!

 

            After lunch Biana decided it was time for us to go grocery shopping so we drove down to the Tamerash Market, the only market that specializes in American products on this side of Jos. It was funny walking the aisles and finding Pringles for $5.50 a can and Frosted Flakes for just over $10. I guess these are quite a rare commodity around here! Luckily I found hair gel so I will look a little more presentable as the wind continues to pick up. None of us have had ice cream(or dessert of any kind) in the past two weeks so we hit the Net Cafe for Tiramisu gelato, which really hit the spot. The afternoon at Faith Alive was even quieter than the morning so I got the chance to think through my discussion for tomorrow. I’m surprisingly not stressed about it.

 

            Dinner was fabulous (I could eat my weight in fried plantains!) and shortly after we finished Pastor Ben stopped by for an unexpected visit. He told us to start getting used to that, Nigerians don’t have any sense of business or time. The next two hours turned into one of the greatest conversations I have had the chance to be a part of in my life thus far. What started as a nice talk about what the Church in Nigeria is focusing on turned into a real life game of Battle of the Sexes! Ben is very interested in what different aspects of America looks like and asked about the institution of marriage. We pulled apart every aspect of it; polygamy, intercultural unions, legal issues, and, most importantly, the role of the man and the role of the woman. Divorce is frowned upon in the Nigerian culture but on the rare occasions it does happen the man gets custody of the children and his wife must live with a bad reputation. What that means is that a woman basically gives up her entire family and future in a divorce, one reason Ben thinks divorce rates are so low here. Back in the States divorce does not spell disaster for a wife but Ben believes not enough Americans take the time to work out their problems before turning to drastic measures. He also talked about how the man needs to lead his family because women are “weaker vessels.” The sparks began to fly... That debate never got settled, but to summarize the Americans believe God sees men and women as equals and the Nigerians hold to the belief that God ordered Adam to rule over his wife because she was not as intelligent. After all SHE was the greater sinner, she ate the apple first. I spent a lot of time laughing and left the arguing to the rest of the group. He ended the night thanking God for Jon and Kristin’s strong relationship and then praying for the future spouses of Adrie and myself. I thought that was really neat.

            Jon and Kristin found photobooth on my laptop so we closed off the night laughing until we couldn’t breathe. We all agreed it still wasn’t as funny as the conversations we just had.

Day 15: That Is Great News! You Are Now Mine!

Baba always makes good breakfast and it is nice to start off the day with a group of friends before walking down to the Clinic so my days have pretty much all started on the right foot. The staff has been talking about fruits of the Spirit recently so this morning’s devotion highlighted producing good qualities in yourself and striving to be more Christ-like. It was more a time of personal reflection than the last few days and was definitely more encouraging.

 

             I decided, with the help of my friend Sholah, to check out the lab this morning and see what goes on there. At 8:00 I walked through the doors and into a heated argument between the lab technicians and some man I didn’t. I felt I had interrupted and said I could come back later but Mary, one of the chemists, insisted I stay. Perhaps she wanted me to hear what was going on, I don’t know, but I picked up from the conversation that the lab was having problems with a program that sponsors many of the patients here. Unfortunately I have heard a lot of negative things about this certain group over the past two weeks, a very different view for the American who only sees the financial side of it, and have come to realize that some programs can do much more harm than help if not utilized the right way. Anyways, once the man left I let Pastor Ben (the head of the lab) know that I was there for the morning. He let me know he intended to have me the rest of my stay at Faith Alive, which I think would be good thing, but I reminded him that he at least had me for the day. He immediately put me to work cleaning and organizing the chaos that is the lab office. I spent most of the standing on a chair or sitting on the floor putting things in cupboards and getting pretty dusty. Mary insisted I wear gloves in case any chemical spilled on me. It was a tiring morning but I have always enjoyed projects where people can see the physical progression as you work.

 

            We had a quick lunch since Biana got stuck at the Clinic breaking up arguments in every department between the Faith Alive staff and members from the program. Baba insisted that he pack up her food and take it to her himself, a kind gesture from an even kinder old man. When I got back to Faith Alive we had a good time of fellowship and thanking God for his blessings, which eased the tension most of the doctors had been dealing with all morning. Ben wasn’t in the best mood so he told me to finish my project in the morning when he was done dealing with our “guests.” I spent the next little while on the computer and talked with Biana about what the heck was going on. Sounds like everyone was having a rough day.

 

            We are moving into the windy season in Jos so I took off down the road after work in a cloud of Nigerian dust. Thank God a woman who sells corn at the corner near our flat started up a conversation with me as I walked home. Her name is Dorothy and she is wonderful! She wants to teach me Ibo (which will go great with the three Hausa phrases I can remember) and marry me off to her brother. I told her I would love to learn her native language but asked if I could substitute buying some of her corn instead of becoming her sister-in-law. She said she would think about it, even though she believes my boyfriend would willingly give me up to a Nigerian man I have never met.

 

            A bucket bath to get the dust off, a full Baba-cooked dinner, and an intense game of Killer Uno wrapped up the day well. I am getting progressively more tired each night, but I think that means I am living each day to the maximum capacity. What an adventure!

Day 14: Well done Cait!

Wednesday mornings are staff meetings at Faith Alive. Today Shegan shared a devotional about how God speaks to each person individually through the Bible followed by announcements from every department. Wrapping up the business side of things they presented the Person of the Month award for the person who others have noticed living out God’s intentions for the Clinic. They gave it to Dr. Kanu who from what little time I have been able to spend with him seems like the best candidate for anything related to loving people and working hard.

 

            I was sent down to the pharmacy for the morning to do some more pill counting and prescription writing. It’s a great environment to work in with friendly coworkers and the added blessing of having a television, which keeps me up-to-date with Nigerian politics, media, and hip-hop culture. I got into the zone and ended up counting out seven bottles of medicine between conversation and my own thoughts. Isaiah came over with a huge smile to tell me I was doing a wonderful job, one of the fastest pharmacists he had ever seen! I was so proud of myself! I beamed and asked for another task when his face got serious. “Cait! You are working too hard. You need to take a break. Now.” He handed me my purse and scooted me out the door. American and Nigerian work ethics are worlds apart. I took that extra half-hour of free time to enjoy my lunch and take a nap before heading back.

 

            I stopped by the Faith Alive sewing shop to say Hi to the women there and get measured by Blessing. She is making me two traditional outfits from the fabric I bought at the marketplace. She claims she already knows what will flatter my features the most so I guess it will be a surprise what they turn out to be!

 

            Joshua had told me earlier that he wanted to set my laptop up to the network so I went upstairs to his office before going back to the pharmacy. He got me onto the server without a problem, but I couldn’t log in to anything. What seemed like a simple problem ended up taking two hours to make right. So I guess working hard in the pharmacy this morning made up for the lack of my presence in the afternoon. Taking my functioning computer (followed by a thousand Thank Yous!) back to Biana’s office I was surprised to see Dr. Chris there. He told me he had been looking for me because he had something for me to do. I felt honored that there was a task he thought I would be good for. He is giving a message to a large group of university students on Saturday about being able to do ministry in any type of work setting. I told him I would love to help him out with his sermon and presentation, it would be great to finally hear him speak. “You’re not understanding,” he told me, “I want YOU to give the message.” So just like that I was signed up to give an hour-long message to a group of peers I have never met in a place I have never been. Let’s start collecting some thoughts, Miss Baird, God is making you fly.

Day 13: Do You Understand?

Adrie woke up this morning with the unfortunate addition of a sinus infection so she had to stay home with antibiotics and her bed. The rest of us walked over to hear Thomas give the morning devotion on the importance of being obedient to God’s will, a huge turnaround from yesterday’s morning rant. I was then invited to join in staff prayer time, a small group that gets together to pray for their coworkers needs once a week, and got strengthened for the day. I really enjoy that fact that Nigerian prayer has no structure: everyone speaks out loud and at once and you are always invited to burst into song. It is so refreshing coming from a “Dear Heavenly Father Lets-Take-Turns” approach to talking to God.

 

            Today was my start with the Social Services aspect of Faith Alive. Pastor Esther took me to the sewing class where HIV-positive women are learning how to support themselves and their children while learning more about the love and grace of the Heavenly Father. Most women who are positive have no husband to support their family since the men usually die first. About twenty women are currently enrolled in the program and I got the chance to share in Bible study with them. Esther believes it is most important that these women, many coming from a Muslim faith, understand who Jesus is first. The discussion started about Jesus being fully God and fully man but ended with trying to discover what makes Christianity better than Islam. Esther wrapped it up saying (in her Nigerian accent), “Remember that God did not make Christians and Muslims. He made people. We need to learn how to look at our brothers and sisters past their beliefs.” I’m going to enjoy getting to know this woman better.

 

            The rest of the morning I had the privilege to spend with and HIV counselor named Emmanuel. He described to me the process and allowed me to experience all three aspects of what being tested looks like. A patient who wants to get tested is assigned a counselor who sits them down and tells them about what HIV is, how it is spread, and what can be done to treat it. Once the person(s) understands they go down to the lab to get tested. The doctor there takes their thumb, wipes it with cotton, and jabs a thick needle into it. (I had never seen so many people jump out of a chair in my life) They then squeeze the blood into a pipette and put a few drops into a little tray with a white strip. It takes about fifteen minutes for the test to show one (negative) or two (positive) lines so the patient waits until their name is called. The doctor hands them their diagnosis on a sheet folded in half and stapled shut. It is the counselor’s responsibility to tell them the news. So they head back to their counselor who will give them the diagnosis and help from there.

 

            I was able to follow a woman named Aliah today. Her husband had come in the day before and tested positive so she was obviously nervous. Her eyes were teary and she looked tired, just as any woman would who just received devastating news from a loved one. The couple only spoke Hausa but Emmanuel asked them if I could go with them and she agreed. I sat next to her as she got her finger poked and she flinched a little. We then waited together for her name to be called before heading back to Emmanuel. The whole time I tried to imagine what was going through her head. A normal Tuesday for most people was going to be the determining factor of the rest of this thirty-year-old’s life. She handed the note to Emmanuel while her husband put his hand on her shoulder and we all held our breath.

 

            “Aliah, your test came back positive. You have HIV.”

 

            Emmanuel spent a lot of time talking to the couple about what will happen next. They will need to be put on ARV drugs immediately. They will have therapy appointments with Dr. Chris once a month. They will need to eat right, live healthy lifestyles, support each other. They will need to have hope. Because all is not lost, life just changes, and God is still the same God he was two days ago. Aliah and her husband left with a quiet strength, life had changed for both of them in twenty minutes.

 

            I got to see more patients after that. Most came out negative and Emmanuel reminded them to stay away from harmful lifestyles. One woman got the same consultation as Aliah and is bringing her husband tomorrow. In-between patients I got the chance to speak openly with Emmanuel and try to process what I was experiencing. “We must always remind them,” he told me, “that God is not punishing them with this infection. This is not a death sentence. It is a new chapter in their lives.” I want to bring that same truth back to America, I think we have forgotten it.

 

            After an emotional eye-opening morning I was able to have a good conversation with Helen and join in at the pharmacy again after lunch. Peju, Grace, and I are starting to become good friends and I love being able to have girl talk with them. Peju has dreams of coming to America to get her Masters of Public Health, something she said her professors had been trying to push her toward, but she said her entire salary at Faith Alive over the past year would not cover the expenses. I am now on a mission to get this girl information on programs and scholarships to look into! Who says a smart Nigerian woman should be left out of the education she wants and deserves?!

 

            After a long day of emotions, questions, and reality I am ready to go to bed. I won’t fall asleep upset, just a little more aware of what this world looks like. I pray that Aliah finds some good rest as she starts her new life.

Day 12: God Is Going To Slap Those Who Oppose Him!

It was a little more difficult to get out of bed this morning since I was awake for part of the night trying to drown out the noise of a couple arguing loudly in the field next door (no one seems to do any disagreeing quietly here). I hope they woke up this morning ready for a new day.

 

            We walked to the Clinic in time for morning devotions led by Pastor Ben, which turned out to be a little uneasy. I am slowly discovering that the spirituality of Jos is not what I had planned for, and, unfortunately, does not resonate with my theology some of the time. Today’s talk was from Acts where King Herod (one of them) did not listen to God and was consumed by worms. The story always grossly amused me when I was in junior high, but hearing it from an adult perspective is different. Ben spoke of how Herod, like many people today, did not listen to God so he “got slapped”, got what he deserved for being a sinner. He went on to compare Herod’s disobedience with prostitution, greediness, and the Nigerian government, all things this community struggles with. Giving this message to spell out God’s wrath and judgment on sinners without any mention of redemption did not sit well with me. At all. John and Kristin all always good to debrief with so we had a meaningful lunch discussion. We decided that there is a place for God’s anger and disappointment with humanity but that it is much more important to discover how much God loves us despite our shortcomings. God’s love is so much more powerful that anything else we can describe, and consequently is what so many people are missing and seeking in their lives. We want to be able to live out God’s love and grace instead of dwelling on the Lord’s anger with what people do that is wrong. John said he will now picture a giant hand coming down from Heaven to smack someone across the face whenever he hears that story.

 

            There is an underlying tone of guilt and condemnation here that I really can’t seem to understand. Working with people with so little hope left, individuals who know pain and suffering, I can’t justify continuously bringing up the topic of sin with so little room for grace. Maybe that is one of the reasons God brought me here...

 

            We headed back to the Clinic where I finished our alphabetizing project (Hallelujah!) and got to spend more time in the pharmacy. There is something very refreshing about getting to change tasks every so often--I feel like I know the inner workings of Faith Alive now! Conversations are getting more personal with the people I work with (“Cait are you married yet? What is your University like? Who are you voting for in your presidential election?), which is such a blessing. These people enjoy discovering new things and sharing what they know.

 

            Dinner was a little quieter after a day with so much thinking and discussion. I finished the Kite Runner, one the most fabulous stories I have had the pleasure of reading, and started The White Man’s Burden: Why The West’s Efforts To Aid The Rest Have Done So Much Ill And So Little Good. The author did in-depth research on poverty around the world, failed attempts to squelch it, and tries to bring up new ways of looking at the problems of malnutrition, diseases, and corruption. It is one that takes a while to chew on but gives me a more political perspective of what I am living in the midst of. Hopefully Bono will be up for a book discussion when I’m done.

Day 11: Thank God For Giving Me HIV!

United Baptist started their revival week this morning, which means long prayer sessions, multiple chances to give offerings, and more than anything lots of dancing and praising Jesus! I must say that I’m glad I have pretty good rhythm because here once the music starts the entire congregation bounces to the beat and yells out their praise: one giant godly mosh pit. It was difficult to understand the guest pastor this morning because of his thick accent on top of speaking very fast (and loud!) but I picked up that he was speaking about following God despite being unworthy of His standards.

 

            The rain still hasn’t let up so we walked home in the sprinkles and enjoyed another delicious meal from Baba before heading to the Clinic for support group meeting. Today was testimony day so a few people got up and shared the journey they have been on since being diagnosed with HIV. Everyone gave thanks to God reminding us all that it is not by their own strength or even the ARV drugs that get them through each day. The most amazing part of the entire service was when a guest speaker was introduced to give his story. Bob is a tall graying white man from Santa Barbara who by looking at him would never be suspected of carrying such an unforgivable disease. His story completely blew me away:

 

            Bob was diagnosed with AIDS in 1985 when little was known about the condition and superstitions were running rampant. When the doctors told him the news he knew his life was about to change. He was advised to keep it confidential. Worse than realizing he would soon be a social outcast in the posh society he lived in was the terror of solving how he had contracted it: Bob had cheated on his wife...three years earlier. He had carried the disease for three years before coming to the hospital with some unexplainable aches and pains. At this point in his life he had a wife who didn’t know of his actions of 1982, two young daughters, and a comfortable lifestyle. He told a few people close to him about his recent discovery and had to confess to his wife what had happened. Bob was dying and there was not much time left. But God is good. Bob’s wife was tested and found to be clean, something that is almost unheard of. She forgave him of what he had done and promised that she would stand by his side. He broke the news to his daughters a few years later and they jumped in to help. What was the greatest miracle is that five years went by and he was still alive. Bob knew that God had let him hold on a little longer to do the thing that terrified him the most: share his story with others. His health started to fail him by 1990 and his family started getting ready for his passing. About this time medical science had just come out with the first drugs and Bob was a test patient. Another miracle--they worked. Flash forward to 2008 and Bob has three grandchildren, the same loving family, and renewed strength. He believes God works through mistakes, even deadly ones, so he now goes around the world to encourage support groups and remind them to keep going. It is his calling. 26 years living positively.

 

            When he finished Bob got 21 fist-throwing “Bouzas!” the highest respect a group of Nigerians will give. He also made a blonde cry.

 

             It was a pivotal moment in history: A group of people who are labeled as hopeless in the world’s eyes, who have watched their family die, most waiting for their own turn to fade away, were given the chance to realize they could someday hold their grandchildren. THAT is a miracle.

 

            Jump up and throw your fist in the air! Bouza! Baba God, Bouza!

 

Day 10: Oyibo, Can I Have Some Money?

Adrie and I knew we had a big day ahead of us when Blessing, the energetic woman who runs the sewing school, told us yesterday that she would like to make us some traditional clothes. She offered to take us to the market and we excitedly agreed. So we slept in a little, tidied up our rooms, headed to the Clinic for a bit, and had lunch before our great adventure.

 

            The marketplace is not very far from our apartment, only about a twenty-minute walk, so Blessing, Adrie, and myself took off down the noisy traffic-filled streets to the central market for this side of town. Now when I think of a market I tend to think of where I went in Mexico City where traders and craftsmen set up in booths for blocks in a sort of central park setting. Jos is very different. The marketplace could easily be its own city. For miles people have taken over small garage-sized rooms in hundreds of two-story buildings. The lanes are so narrow that you have to touch every person who tries to pass and try not to step on the fish or potatoes being sold just outside shop openings. People are yelling out their bartering bids, walking down the aisles trying to sell live chickens that they are holding by the feet, and perfectly balancing large bowls of fruits and vegetables while they do it. It is one of the most overwhelmingly amazing and amazingly overwhelming places I have been.

 

            Blessing knew exactly where the best fabric shop was (conveniently located in the center of the madness) and we walked into a closet with hundreds of colorful pieces of cloth draped along the walls. It was a tough decision but Adrie and I each chose two patterns that we particularly enjoyed and Blessing haggled with the shop-owner in Hausa to get us the best prices. Once we got our bags we felt accomplished and were free to explore the area. Shop after shop of fabric, American clothing, household goods, books, even X-rated videos. There must have been at least a million pairs of sandals being sold. I’m not joking. People gave us hopeful looks and even (literally) tried to pull us into their shops once they noticed the Nigerian woman was towing two white Americans behind her. One man in a shop picked out an entire outfit for me (it was actually really cute) but I had to tell him the truth that I didn’t have enough naira with me to splurge like that. He was very kind and told me to come back another day for a lower price, he just thought it would look nice on me. It was a strange feeling knowing that when people saw us they immediately thought of wealth and prosperity, consumerism and want. I hate to think that the majority of the white people they have seen bring that attitude with them. Blessing bought some groceries and after standing at the butcher’s aisle for a few minutes trying to figure out what parts of the animal were for sale we decided to head home. Crowds, heat, and raw meat make a lethal combination if you attempt to endure it for too long.

 

            We hung out with Kristin and John for a good while back at their apartment (which is directly downstairs from ours) and enjoyed some more “comparison of cultures” chats. Today’s topics ranged from Catholicism in New York to family values and morals in the Church to the story of their wedding. We also talked about food we wished we could find here; Adrie wants pad thai, John wants biscotti, Kristin wants Mexican anything, and I miss my chocolate milk. We all know quite a bit about each other now and enjoy being able to think through and talk about our experiences here and at home.

 

            Biana and Naomi from the Clinic decided tonight would be a great night to take Adrie and I out to dinner at a more formal restaurant called the Net Cafe. Strange name since there are no computers there and they don’t specialize in coffee... It is instead a restaurant/bakery/ice cream parlor. We enjoyed some Nigerian takes on cultural food and enjoyed homemade pasta, fried potatoes, and chicken of various sorts. It was delicious, filling, and allowed for more great conversation. As we were leaving Biana took us to the dessert side to buy Greg some ice cream (since he drives us wherever we need to go) and I studied what they had there; scones, cookies, bread. I looked into the refrigerator next to the cakes and my eyes grew bright. There it was. Staring back at me. My chocolate milk. If only I had Gavin and Joshua Dow here to share it with!

Day 9: God Is Love. And God Is Good.

A regular morning led to more alphabetizing led to more tiredness among the working oyibos. I’m glad to know that this tedious task is almost over and then I am moving into my real role on staff at Faith Alive...although it will probably change daily! Pastor Ben asked if he “could take” me for the next three months, which I think is an awesome fit for someone interested in different types of ministry. We’ll see how that all works out. Joshua came and got my computer hooked up finally so I was able to get my blog started and check up on some e-mails. It is still strange getting used to the internet as my only real form of communication back home.

 

            Because of our mind-aching task, the heat, and the fact that it’s Friday we were allowed to go home early. This was the perfect opportunity for me to read more than half of The Kite Runner, one of the best reads I have picked up, which ultimately led me to deep thoughts about life and friendship and the role of God in our earthly spirituality. Khaled Hosseni (the author) has an insider’s take on what world religions are doing to God in order to justify their actions. Afghanistan is one of the many places where it has so easily been seen that man will cause harm to others in the name of the Most High and work on incorporating their religious beliefs into their humanly systems. I fall into that trap so many times with the “God will bless me if...”s or “I feel led to do...”s when really it is my own nature that wants to do these things. That always bugs me about us, the fact that we try to make every one of our decisions God’s when we knew deep down that we just wanted to do it ourselves. If a little prayer doesn’t make it fall apart than surely God has ordained it. Riiiight.

 

            So thinking through all these things and living in this new environment I keep wondering what it is that God wants to teach me. I’m sure it is a lot of things. But maybe it is not. I’ll just keep enjoying this adventure and allowing my mind to go places it sometimes doesn’t have the strength to go. Luckily I have an amazing man in my life who is wondering the same things so in an e-mail he shared this with me:

 

            God is love. And God is good.

 

            I’ll keep running with that...

Day 8: Oyibo! Oyibo! Oyibo!

The morning started early so we could pile in the van to start the trek to Kafanchan and Bakin Kogi. Greg (the most sacrificial driver in the world!) drove my trio out with our new English friends the two hours to these villages where Faith Alive is reaching out. The ride reminded me how beautiful this country is, landscape and people. When we reached Bakin Kogi we took a little trek up a muddy hill to the nearly completed House of Hope where a doctor and nurse will soon take residence to give aid to the farmers living in the area. Once this first phase is done (they are planning on the end of this month) then they will start the process of building a small satellite clinic on the same piece of property. I got to walk with some of the local kids for a while and talked to the groundskeeper who is very proud to be taking part in this new development right behind his home. He even let me take his picture. After that it was a short drive to Kafanchan, a city the size of Fresno, where a satellite clinic was started a couple of years ago. Not the most fancy place by any means, their “lab” was a small shelving unit, but still reaching out to its neighbors with love through medical care. The lead doctor there named Andrew told us that through Faith Alive they have discovered that nearly 25% of the community there is HIV-positive. They have more than five thousand on ARV drugs currently. Statistics make you sad when you read them in a textbook, but to be living amid the harsh reality...that is something else altogether.

 

            We made it back in time for staff devotional and prayer meeting where Pastor Ben discussed the need for evangelism from all who worked there. There are people here who actually have never heard the name of Jesus or have completely misguided ideas about Christianity because of tribal rituals and religions. I can’t say the same for the States. Ben actually made someone come up to the front and tell us without any preparation what she would say if she were presenting to Gospel to a villager who had never heard it prior. It was an interesting talk, not one I thought particularly applied to my home situation, and I am glad I am starting to pick up more on Nigerian spirituality. More alphabetizing with Naomi and George followed and I am pleased to say we are almost halfway there!

 

            Tiredness is starting to set in earlier during the day with all the projects we have been put on so we came home to a great dinner of what Baba described as “River Fish” (What kind of fish is this Baba?) and afterwards Adrie and I played Phase 10 with John and Kristin. I won, but no big deal. It’s nice to have other Americans around who can understand where we are coming from, share stories about things back home, and enjoy this adventure together.

Day 7: You Girls Are Looking Very American Today.

I am getting used to mornings here. I wake up to roosters, people laughing and singing, and the rev of motorbikes. It is quite refreshing to talk to God under these conditions. It doesn’t take long to get ready (since there is no need to do my hair or makeup) and then we walk over to the Clinic saying Good Morning to store owners and waving at their children. It is a very different scene than my normal routine in Fresno...

 

            We sat in on staff meeting at 8 am (where I finally met Pastor Ben) and started the day right at work with prayer and fellowship. Adrie and I have been working on an alphabetizing project the past two days so the first part of the morning I enjoyed reading every person who has come to Faith Alive whose last name started with a “D” or an “O”. It is a bit of a tedious assignment but it is important to get done and we are the only employees who actually have the ability to sit at a desk for a few hours instead of checking up on patients. We are hoping to be done soon since it bothers Adrie’s back and my brain.

 

            While we were filing away we had a huge surprise when two blonde oyibos walked into the office! White people in Jos! George and Naomi (not a married couple as George likes to point out) are here from Buckinghamshire, England, which is apparently right outside of London. They are in Jos for three weeks with a relief organization and have been assigned to different hospitals in the city to check out what God is doing. We got to spend lunchtime together and it was really nice to be around some Brits again (much love to Simeon, Louisa, and Rachel)! Naomi is going to be a med student and George is starting off his gap year, which will end hiking the Appalachian Trail from February to July. Needless to say they are pretty rad 18-year-olds.

 

            More filing followed by bartering with Helen about some jewelry she made us ended up making this one of our more tiring days. We got to come home early where I enjoyed another freezing cold bucket shower to help me wake up and feel clean! I started The Kite Runner, which I literally can’t put down, and feel very blessed that God has given me time to do some pleasure reading.

 

            Dinner with John and Kristin (it’s starting to sound like a talk show) gave way to conversation about marriage in Nigeria. Marriage here is much more like a contract than a relationship since the most important aspect of marriage is having children. Brides are “bought” in a sense that the family sits down with a potential suitor and spells out how much their daughter is worth. The man then spends the next few months completing the list, which is verified and approved by the village wedding coordinator on their wedding day. They have two ceremonies, one traditional followed by a “white wedding”, which can be months apart. Until the second “official” Christian ceremony the couple may not live together, even after the traditional service. All in all marriage isn’t a very big deal here. People rarely wear wedding rings, spend much of the time apart from their spouse, and husbands are allowed to take new wives if their original is not producing quality children. How different from our ideas of love, sex, and getting hitched in Vegas! I’m glad I will be able to marry the guy I love without my family wanting anything in return and without the pressure of planning two ceremonies. More than that, we will spend time together because we want to and I don’t think I will have to worry about him choosing someone else over me if I keep giving him girls. And I’ll wear a ring. And there will be lots of love. That sounds like a good plan.

Day 6: He Is In So Much Pain.

I saw what dying looks like this morning. The frail skeleton unable to prove he is alive except for the unsteady breath that goes into his lungs and back out again. It may be scary for some, for others tearful, and for the rest of us overpowering.

 

            Doctor Ben and Florence agreed to take Adrie and myself out on their home visit. We all hopped in the Faith Alive van and flew across town to another community. Most people would call it impoverished but here everything looks the same no matter what part of the city you are in. We walked through the alleyway and into a small home where a young woman was tending to a toddler. She pointed to a small room connected to the living room and the doctors pulled out their supplies while Adrie and I entertained the little boy. I couldn’t see what was going on in the medical side of this visit so I spoke to the family members a little bit in my handful of Hausa phrases and hand motions before Florence called us over. It was too much to take in at once. A man was lying on the bed with his shirt pulled up and his pants taken off so his underwear was the only real clothing being worn. He was so thin I could see the outline of every bone in his body. If I had walked over and touched him it looked like he would crumble under the weight of a finger. Florence told us that he was HIV-positive on top of suffering from TB. He had just come home from a long stay in the hospital where the nurses had neglected him enough to allow bed sores to develop on his lower back. Two large patches of dead skin and bloody sores must be unbearable when you don’t have the strength to turn yourself. As the doctors cut off the raw skin then bandaged his wounds I wanted so badly to sit and hold his hand. I admire the fact that I am in no way qualified to be a doctor yet they still want to include me in their act of love by allowing me to be a presence to support this family. We were there about an hour and when they were done the man didn’t have enough strength to say anything, but I knew he was grateful not only for the free medical treatment but for the presence of people. We walked back to the van and headed to two other homes in different parts of Jos. Both patients had family members who met us outside the doors and denied service at their home because they feared their neighbors would realize they were housing someone who was HIV-positive. We went back to the Clinic exhausted.

 

            The rest of the day as I worked sorting patient index cards and files I thought about what had happened in the morning. I was proud that something I would have normally found gross or disturbing instead allowed me to see love at one of its finest moments. But the thing has continually rolled around in my mind are the different reactions we saw from the three families. Who would ever deny their husband or sister or daughter medical treatment for fear of reputation? Kristin shared at dinner that her first home visit was to a family where the mother decided she took her thirteen-year-old daughter off the ARV drugs to die because she was too expensive to take care of. We don’t normally think these things in my community. The pain of suffering physically is horrible, especially those with HIV who are dying slowly. But how much more painful is it to know that you are a burden on your family because of something that has infected your body without your consent. How painful to realize that around the world people are scared of your condition and in many places are afraid to touch you. How painful to know that you will never live the life you had expected. I know it is painful for me to sit and watch, trying to figure out what I can do to help.

 

             I wonder how much more painful it is for God.

Day 5: Give Your Heart A Song.

My gluten-free diet hasn’t worked as well as I had hoped over here simply because our cook Baba insists on making American meals part of the time. I would take coos-coos over macaroni any day. Unfortunately that means my stomach has suffered from the reintroduction to wheat products and I woke up feeling nasty sick. So I missed early morning Bible study but was able to stabilize myself for work at the Clinic at 8:45. (Just for the record I talked to Baba and he is going to make sure on wheat-filled days that I get something else to eat. I want a tummy transplant.)

 

            The first few weeks at the Clinic Adrie and I are helping out in various areas where extra people are needed. Today she went to pediatrics and I got to go to the pharmacy. I spent the majority of my morning counting pills and taking stock while being able to talk to the amazing pharmacists there. Paige, Grace, and Matthew are all exceptional human beings and I had a lot of fun with them. After every task I completed one would walk over to give a big smile and pat on the back accompanied by a “Very good Cait!” Paige and I started up a conversation about life so it was neat to get to know someone new. (My favorite part is that she told me she is that she is “feeling close to getting married. He needs to move faster.”) The television was on the whole time (I guess counting pills can get a little boring if there is no one to talk to) and it was interesting to see how Americanized it was. They were interviewing a Nigerian rapper from Lagos who had made it big and was turning one of his mansions on the beach into an exclusive dance club for Africa’s rich and famous. Strange coming from a people who value community and good work over status and wealth.

 

            We did some more odd jobs after lunch including putting together a new archive room, filing charts, organizing papers, and ended up back in the pharmacy. This time Innocent was there and he took an interest in where Adrie and I were from and what we were doing. He quickly dubbed us “Teacher Cait” and “Adrie Who Will Marry A Pastor”, which I still find pretty hysterical. As time went by the questions got tougher and the mood a little more intense. We spoke of the presidential election, the Church in America, and spiritual gifts--all of which we were criticized about. I never knew that all my opinions were wrong and ungodly but Innocent wanted to make sure we left the day understanding that the debate we never wanted to be a part of would end up his. I am not a debater. At all. So I ended up leaving the day feeling drained and attacked by a guy I hardly knew.

 

            Luckily God knows what we need so I found a little time to talk to Him, journal my thoughts, and have a nice gluten-free dinner. Afterwards the trio was pretty out of it (Adrie and myself having just trying to defend our faith and Biana still worried about a task that hasn’t gotten done) so Biana grabbed a book and Adrie and I grabbed The Darjeeling Limited. Wes Anderson is a genuis. Every day by the end seems to have lasted the length of a week, which is a bittersweet blessing. I’m glad to be able to fall asleep to the sound of Nigerians singing outside my window.