And don't I forget it..

So now when I turn the tap water comes out.. that wasnt happening the other morning

And now when I switch a light it comes on.. that wasnt happening the other morning

When I turn the airconditioning regulator cold air comes out.. that wasnt happening the other morning

I expected dinner at 5, it was there at 5.. that wasnt happening the other morning

Safe to say the other morning I wasnt on the ship and now I am. Its at times like this I really appreciate the huge creature comforts we have onboard. I spent an overnight in Palome this weekend, a town about 3 hours up country, out in Africa!!

Yes, surprisingly it is Africa you step into when you walk down that gangway and out of those gates.

Funny, I see scores of patients coming onto the dock each day, I watch them wait and come and go and yet it is so easy to forget where we are. So easy to get caught up in the jobs that need done and spend the rest of the time just 'hanging out', and forget what is out there and how lucky I am!

Take a globe, spin it to the southern hemisphere and pull a line down from London, see that sliver of land? Yes, the one just beside Ghana. No thats Ivory Coast; we're on the other side.

That is Togo. Thats where I am. As much as I sometimes forget and kick myself for it, I am in Togo.

Serving, living, fighting, hurting, laughing, in Togo.
And I better never forget it.

Apologies, travels and premature balding..

I have failed... failed... failed..


My New Years resolution coming into 2010 was to update my blog regularly and now I have let 3 weeks go by without a word.. my sincerest apologies..
And how much has gone on is those 3 weeks.


The main thing for me has been the opportunity we, the Academy staff, had to join the Missionary Teacher in Africa ACSI teaching conference in Kenya. The Rift Valley Academy, the oldest missions school in Africa, hosted this 4 day meeting of teacher from all over the continent.

This gave us the amazing opportunity to interact/network/get feedback from school in somewhat the same situation.
Wes Stafford, the president of Compassion International spoke to the conference at one of the meetings.. WAUW!! What an amazing and inspiring man of God. He brought tears to many an eye and made me prouder than I have been in quite a while to be a missionary teacher.


There was 1 big downside to going to the conference though..

I AM BALD..

To raise the necessary funds to go to the conference we held an auction on the ship. Many an item and service was auctioned off. Everybody had a lot of fun and it was so amazing to see people giving selfishly to help our cause. $100 for Amy's brownies still jumps out as the most amazing (high quality brownies..). We raised over $4000 dollars that evening, all from African missionaries... also known as friends.

I got to play auctioneer for the evening until I was hijacked at the end and our Principal sacrificed me for the cause.. Tommy Farrel (only other male staff member and Brit) stepped up and was enjoying selling me and my services of.

Clean a cabin,
dance around,
shave the beard,
shave the legs..

then the call went up: shave the head.. and there was silence.


All the above including a bald head and the asking price was $700.. suddenly a light bulb lit up above someones head.. if everybody is willing to bid against each other, what if we work together? In 2 second flat the money was raised: SEVEN HUNDRED DOLLARS!!!!

Then Tommy, looking sincerely into the crowd, dropped the bombshell: 'Ill do the same thing; legs, head, beard.. but we want to see 4 figures.. You could have heard a pin drop.. Screwing Ben over was fun but Tommy had taken it to another level... Once.. Twice.. SOLD!!!!

For ONE THOUSAND AND FIFTY dollars Tommy and myself are bald, leg hair free and clean shaven. But we got to go to the conference!


Last week the time came to pay our debt and I think the pictures speak for themselves.
All I can say, with a tear in my eye, is thank you Tommy for selflessly deciding to go through this with me!!


The winning consortium.. The process.. and the result..