October 2007 - Posts

• Kendall Update #112

  Glenn and Kathy Kendall Update #112 of October 20, 2007, Kampala, Uganda A Silly Saturday in Kampala, Uganda, October 20, 2007 Likely you have read and laughed over the children’s books in which the main character, Curious George, does whacky, foolish, and silly antics.  But have you ever lived with a ‘curious george’? It is amazing how living with a troop ‘curious georges’ changes the antics and one’s perception of them.  As we sat writing email this Saturday afternoon, we soon saw the afternoon progression of monkeys ambling into the yard by the window.  There was momma with baby clinging upside down to her underside.  Soon seated on the grass momma began picking things off baby.  Other adolescent and adult monkeys ran through the branches, walked along the wall, sat picking things from the grass.  And soon they saw us in the window and came over to stare. Thankfully there were windows, bars, and screens between us.  (See attached picture.)  Monkey business is no joke where monkeys are concerned.  The speed and dexterity and rapidity with which they can swipe things is astounding.  But with all these layers between us, we were able to laugh at their silly antics as Kathy egged them on holding a banana in the window while Glenn took pictures. They jostled each other to try to get it, opened their mouths to try to eat it, pulled each other’s tails to get others out of the way, and cleverly walked to the other side of the house to look for openings to enter from the back.  We had a great laugh over silly monkey business while at the same time each day being very cautious to keep windows closed that did not have screens. Earlier in the day another animal had been a topic of prayer.  In Kiburara, western Uganda, is a Bible school.  For several years the students have had very poor crops due to draught.  This year the rain fell at the right time and in goodly amounts and the crops were growing excellently until just a few days ago when elephants walked through the crops eating, devouring, smashing, destroying as they walked.  Some of you have trouble with rabbits in the garden and try ingenious ways to defeat their rapacious marauding.  Others of you have deer delighting in your garden delicacies and that is a greater difficulty to overcome.  Others of you have birds swooping through the air and swiping fruit from trees and you try hanging netting to preserve your fruits. But what do you do with elephants?  It is not a silly question.  It is vital for the welfare of these students and their families.  It is the coming months’ meals that have been demolished. It is the students’ livelihood that is at stake. It is the ‘pantry’ being emptied. It means empty stomachs. It is a forecast of hunger.  Children will be crying and parents desperate. How do you stop elephants? These students are silly (New Shorter Oxford definition 1.b. “helpless, defenseless”).  But then British writer of the Celtics says, “It is better to die for something than of something.” Monkeys and elephants … silly. Posted Oct 22 2007, 10:17 AM by chriswynn with no comments

• Kendall Update #111

  Glenn and Kathy Kendall Update #111, Kampala, Uganda Webster’s Dictionary definition of silly: 1. Foolish 2. Lacking good sense, seriousness or substance Saturday, October 13 found us at 7:00 a.m. On the back row of the 30 passenger post bus heading east to Kampala from Kabale, Uganda, a distance of about 250 miles. The post bus stops at many, many villages, towns, hamlets to pick up packages, even of bloodbank blood and sacks of mail as well as passengers to fill the aisle of the lurching bus as it rumbles, rattles, squeaks, and groans over roads in which the pothole is the rule and not the exception.  This two lane road is the main route crossing this country once known as "The Pearl of Africa".  The abundance of potholes, edges of the road falling down  into the grass on the shoulders of the road, motorcycles creating 3rd and 4th lanes, bicycles carrying heavy loads of bananas, boards, passengers, crates of eggs all combine to make this two lane road a driving experience for any road rally enthusiast. And so along the route we looked for the 'silly' of life and found it within ourselves.  Two men standing alongside the road eating bananas caused within us the reaction of what rude fellows they were.  And you ask yourself, ‘why'?  The simple answer is that having been in Rwanda for days where people do not eat in public like that caused us to take on that value.  Now in another country and culture, we had assigned rudeness to an act not perceived as rude.  Silly us. We do that, though, don't we?  We see, we judge, we assign values or motives....and yet we do not know the real intent or thought.  Have you ever been silly like that?  Foolish isn't it and lacking in good sense. Further along the road twisted through the high green hills blanketed in clouds and mist in the valleys rising to meet the sun on the tips, we came to the broad plains where herds of cows grazed; magnificent beasts with racks of horns that would put an elk or moose to shame.  Some of the value of these cows is in their horns, the beauty of which is expressed in many words in the local language which we do not have in English.  Americans tend to look at these beasts and disparage their magnificent horns caring more for the value found in the meat. But these animals are a 'bank account' on the hoof and to be gloried for their spender of appearance.  Aren't we silly not to understand that?  And again we found silliness to reside within me. For Glenn this trip is a progressive dinner, an epicurean delight.  Every time the bus stops for mail roadside hawkers rush up with sticks of roasted meat,  sliced pineapple, large eating bananas, roasted cooking bananas, chapattis, ears of roasted corn...the fast food restaurant comes to you.  All this exchange of goods and money must take place within minutes before the post bus moves on after receiving the sack of mail and signing in the receipt book.  There is nothing silly about this business.  It is done quickly, expeditiously, and with much planning.  Each seller is his or her own  producer and hopes their goods will be accepted, so there is much pushing and shoving and hustle and bustle.....and for my art a thankfulness that I do not have to make a living that way. Eight an a half hours later we bounce into the hurry and scurry of Kampala, claim our luggage, and Glenn heads off to find a vehicle to take us to our destination while Kathy stands with our luggage.  Glenn returns shortly and as we load our suitcases into the trunk of the car, we had to chuckle because wedged into the trunk is a U.S. postal mail basket...fitting ending to a ride on the Uganda post bus. Posted Oct 16 2007, 02:41 PM by chriswynn with no comments

• Kendall Update #110

  Update #110, Saturday, October 6, 2007, Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo Silly Saturday Several weeks ago we were asked what the topic of this year's travels' update would be. While there were various thoughts tumbling through our heads, there was nothing concrete.  And so we were offered the topic of 'silly Saturdays’ by the venerable Mark Weckesser, treasurer extraordinaire of WorldVenture.  So if some of you are not into the idea of ‘silly Saturdays’, please feel free to let us know and we will remove your name from the list which receives these updates. This first ‘silly Saturday’ takes place in Goma, Congo.    However, while thinking I knew the definition of ‘silly’, I decided to look it up in the dictionary just to be sure.  These following definitions are from “The New Shorter Oxford Dictionary". 1.  Deserving of pity, compassion, sympathy 2.  Esp.  Of a woman, child or animal, helpless, defenseless 3.  Weak, feeble, insignificant 4.  Low in intelligence 5.  Displaying lack of judgment, foolish Silly is also a cricket term and poetic epithet of sheep.  The source of silly is Middle English.  Not what I was expecting in terms of a definition.   And so being the author of 'silly Saturdays’ I will take poetic license to choose the definition for the day. This evening we sat with our folks who work in this war torn corner of the country with over 200,000 internally displaced people (refugees in their own country) where over 5,000,000 have been killed in recent years by war and the effects of war.    Our folks here are involved with the church through schools, hospitals, centers for grieving and traumatized children. WorldVenture partners with 287 churches, currently 203 have been disrupted, displaced or destroyed due to war. Slowly the stories started tumbling out of people who make up those horrendous numbers in the paragraph above.  The home of a pastor was invaded by one of the marauding armies in this area.  While the husband and children were forced to watch the mother was repeatedly raped and then killed.  One of the young sons began to slowly loose his mind after this event.    The pastor remarried the younger sister of his murdered wife.  The son grew worse.  Another pastor and through a WorldVenture ministry to grieving children intervened in the family talking to the boy and his father and began to bring about some healing.  A few weeks ago the home was again invaded by one of the local armies.  This time an older sister was taken by the soldiers to be raped.  In agony the father cried out for his daughter.  A soldier knifed him in his side and left him to bleed to death while they continued on with their vile acts.  After they left, the father was found to be alive.  He was taken to a clinic where he received free treatment and lived.    The fiancé of the ravished young lady broke his engagement and now the pastor has to return the bride price which they don’t have because it was stolen and used. When the telling of this story was completed we were silent.    How does one contemplate such a 'silly' story-deserving of compassion and pity?    Finally one of the six of us commented that this story could be repeated by the 1000s.  Another commented that there is no way that we can help so many damaged lives.  But we can reach one person, care for one person, touch one person, and show the love of Christ to one person.  And  that is the hope with which people who live here face each day...one life can be touched out of the hurting 1000s. There was one other very telling comment to describe people and life here.  To understand this concept, stand up.  Are you standing?  Now look at your feet - straight down at your feet.   Now walk forward, keep walking, and don’t look up.  How far can you get without walking into something? Now that is a silly action-foolish, displaying lack of judgment.  But if tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow are filled with armies invading your home and garden, you do not plan for the future step.  You only take one step and stop.  You do not look up.  If you look up there is nothing that can be imagined.  There is no future.  There is no tomorrow.  Gardens are not planted.  One does not even pay for a semester of school fees because one does know if the semester will even be completed.  And that is a ‘silly Saturday’ in Congo.  May your Saturday have been otherwise. Thank you all who are praying for Kathy’s mother and have written such kind notes.  Mom is back home with Dad.  Kathy’s brother from Vermont and one of his daughters have shared many days with my folks.  And my sister who lives in the area is a frequent part of everyone's life who shares in Dad and Mom's life. Posted Oct 09 2007, 12:23 PM by chriswynn with no comments

• Kendall Update #109

  Glenn and Kathy Kendall Update #109, Wednesday, October 3, 2007, Nairobi, Kenya Colorado, family and are home all seems so far away.  Yet it was just four days ago we were standing in our living room and one of our great neighbors (who also took us to the airport) asked, “Well how are you all feeling about going back to Africa.” We paused, looked at each other and then Glenn said, “We are rather pensive about it all.” We do enjoy Africa, see God at work and are encouraged by what God is doing in lives here.  But life is also hard and there are many sad and hard stories we hear and at times even experience.  Each of our first three countries have serious social even war like issues. Little did we know that the first hard experience would be our own!  For us flying to Africa is pretty routine, much like your commute to work, just takes a little longer, 30 hours door to door this time to be exact.  The ride, check-in, seats, transfers were pretty much as usual.  To Atlanta and then to Amsterdam it was a usual combination of email, reading letters, snacking, snoozing, thinking, devotions, even a bit of praying. Even the three-hour transfer in Amsterdam was going smoothly until Glenn decided to pay the $17.40 for 90 minutes of internet time to send and receive email. (The three free computers had a waiting line.) Two weeks ago Kathy’s family learned officially that there were no more treatment options for Kathy’s mom’s cancer.  We went to Chicago to see them and had a great weekend hanging out, laughing, crying, taking pictures, picnicking and praying…celebrating life. But she had an infection on her leg, from a cut. The infection got much worse.  Monday, as we were flying, she was admitted to a hospital. Kathy’s sister who lives locally spent the day with her parents. Her brother from Vermont will be spending this next week with them and her sister from California has recently been there for a visit.  But still it is her Mom who is in the hospital and her Dad who goes home from the hospital alone and she is not there to be with them. So here we are in the Amsterdam airport reading the email two hours after this happens, an hour from getting on a plane to take us 4000 miles in the opposite direction.  We are very sober, sad. So we go on and even give you our schedule below, not knowing how much of it Kathy or both of us will go through, not knowing the timing, not knowing the uncertainties of life. PRAY for us, for Kathy, to know timing and her responsibility to her parents, to her husband, to our ministry, our friends and colleagues in Africa. Pray that while in Africa we will focus on people and in the midst of difficult lives be able to point people to God. Posted Oct 05 2007, 12:36 PM by chriswynn with no comments