Apparently,
it’s been over a month since I last updated my blog. I don’t know about in America, but time
is flying in Nigeria. Every moment has been filled with grace (recently defined
to me as “God working”), and most have been extremely enjoyable. I’ll attempt a brief update.
I continue to thrive in my
teaching situation. Some (including myself) have expressed concern that I might
kill myself with the amount of work that I have to do, but somehow God is
keeping me afloat and quite content in the hustle and bustle of my eight different class subjects. My
students, while sometimes a challenge behaviorally and academically, stave away
any semblance of a dull moment and bring joyous purpose to each day. 2nd
-7th grade students are currently being introduced, along with the
followers of John the Baptist, to “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of
the world.” It’s too cool to see kids begin to make connections between Old
Testament law and miracles involving a lamb, and the Deliverer to whom they are
now being introduced. The 11th
and 12th grade composition class has been a blast so far. As we begin studying logic and argument
in depth, my passion for the subject has been reignited by a passage in 2
Corinthians, “ We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised
against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2
Cor 10:5). I find it an awesome
privilege to be involved in the sharing of tools, like argumentation, which
will be used to destroy lies and darkness in order that light and life might
prevail. I just completed my first debate unit with 8th graders,
which had similar purpose in developing students’ understanding of argument. We
had some rough days preparing, but the public debate last week was a success. A
great highlight of the debate was the “international adjudicator,” which leads
to the major excitement of the month—a visit from my parents!
Last Monday, October 22, my
parents arrived in Lagos for a nine day visit to Nigeria. It was an awesome,
jam-packed trip for them. Those who live near Morristown or happen to phone my
mom will no doubt hear a full account of the many adventures that they had. I’ll
not spoil any of her stories, but give a brief overview. I was extremely pleased
to introduce Mom and Dad to my life in Ibadan—my fellow teachers, my students,
my friends, my compound, my bible study, my city, and my weekly market
experience. Mom even got to dress in Ancara (the traditional Nigerian clothing)
and sing with me in a church choir concert. After a few days at ACA, where I
think they received QUITE the education, my parents and I began a 14 hour
journey up to the Nigerian/Cameroon border-town of Obudu with fellow teachers
and friends.
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| Mountains in Obudu, Nigeria |
After a week (or 1.5 years for me) in a big dirty city, we were
stupefied at the beauty that we found there. We stayed in a lovely little
chalet in the “Obudu Cattle Ranch Resort” which was situated in the most stunning
mountains I’ve ever beheld (save, MAYBE, the Alps).
After
one day of hanging out and swimming, we spent the second day hiking over about
twelve small mountains until we reached a quiet village in Cameroon. We couldn’t
believe our eyes.
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| The hiking crew with the village chief (who has at least 6 wives and 30- children). |
We found a primary school in session and observed about 150
precious children who were released for lunch break with shouts of joy. These
kids, we found out, were in extreme poverty—some barely able to pay the $2.00
per year for school fees, while their peers were kicked out for not coming up
with the sum. Hunger, the schoolmaster said, was a huge problem. Indeed, none
of the kids ate a bite during “lunch break.” It was a sobering experience, to
say the least. But, we did get to teach them a few songs, play a bit of “football”
with them, and meet the chief of their small village. We are now considering
organizing an outreach for ACA students to go and assist, in someway, these
beloveds of God.
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| Cameroonian Kids at a small village school |
My parents’ trip was full of
sights and opportunities that even I had not experienced before. I am so
blessed to have incredible support from such awesome loving parents. I’ve said “Goodbye”
for now, but amazingly, I only have another five weeks before I will be the one
boarding the plane for America.
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