These are a few of my favorite things… about ‘Toto’ (by: Evelyn)

  It’s just not fair that Mama and Da-eee have been taking up all the blog posts, so in honor of my 18month birthday I decided it was time to write one myself and tell you about all the truly interesting things in Togo (or, as I like to say, Toto)!

  First off, I really like it here. Mama says I fit right in! I guess if you are Togolese, greetings and goodbyes are really important and extensive. Well, I’m a Togolese in disguise I guess because they are really important to me too! For instance, in the morning while I eat my breakfast I often say “hi!!!” (in a loud shriek) to the guest house staff ladies (Miss Amavi, Mrs. Florence, Mrs. Elizabeth, or Mrs. Enyonam – some of my new best friends) at least 60 times or so. And the best part is, they answer me back every time! But I have to say I don’t really like being grabbed… and here the grown-ups do like to grab my hands in greeting. But no worries, I just get even by attacking their kids – usually with hugs and kisses, uninvited. Oh, and I never met a baby or kid I could walk by without stopping to talk and play. I usually have one of two effects – I either make them really excited, or really scared. My favorite thing to do every morning now is to go to the hospital, and when Mama tells me we’re going to go see Daddy and the babies I get really excited. The first thing I do is walk right in the door and shriek “Daa-eeee!”. This usually gets everyone’s attention, just the way I like it. I usually bounce from doctor to doctor for a few minutes while they say hello, and then the Togolese nurses come up and say hi to me. After that I have a few favorites I go and visit. There are a few preemie (I’ve learned that means itty bitty baby) babies and their mommies around who are always there, so I kind of know them now and will let them hold me and everything while I point at their babies and shout “Beebee!!”, just in case someone missed the obvious. Mama tries her best to keep me from doing such things as licking the floor and swiping a baby’s bottle (which I did!). After blowing a few kisses we move on to see the kids. I have two friends named Delphi and Sarah that I play with every day. Their little brother is one of the itty-bitty’s so they are always there. We really like to blow bubbles, play with stickers, and color together. I think their favorite is bubbles, because it just makes them giggle and giggle. After that we go to the peds ward. The little kids there are pretty sick, so we usually just greet them and give them a few goodies (coloring books, or little beanie babies). We then go visit the women’s ward, which actually has some pretty young girls in it too. We greet everybody and then spend some time playing with the younger ones. Today we taught one girl how to play tic tac toe! At least, we think we did… but it’s kinda hard to say when we can’t exactly understand each other. Sometimes we share some lotion and stuff too. Then we move into the maternity ward, my favorite! We go from bed to bed to say hi to the babies. For some reason all the babies here are always asleep? And I find it necessary every time to declare each one “Night-night!”. I blow them kisses of course, because that always makes their mommies laugh. Sometimes the moms try to hand their babies to me, at which point Mama insists on rushing to my side and helping me “hold” them. I mean, what does she think I’m going to do, drop them?!?! Squish them? Poke their eyes out? Sit on them? I digress… Anyways, I always talk to the nurses here, and if there are older siblings around sometimes I play with them too. By this time I’m pretty exhausted and ready to head back to read a book, cuddle with my Quack-Quack, and take my pre-lunch nap (not to be confused with my pre-dinner nap – life here is tiring!). Though I always have to stop to talk to the pet monkey that belongs to my friends on the way back…

  Don’t tell anyone I said this, but the doctors here aren’t very smart. They are always asking me where my trachea, xyphoid, liver, and spleen are. I keep having to tell them over and over again! Sheesh, what would they do if I wasn’t around? I’ve noticed around here mealtime talk is usually about something medical or gross, so I just join in by pointing out everyone’s body parts – you know, I’m trying to help them out with their medical education. My current favorite is pointing out everyone’s “Belbows” – especially when they lean them on the table. I’m the only toddler around here, but there are some other MK’s (missionary kids) around. I really like hanging out with them and they like me too. What in the world am I going to do when I go back to boring ol’ home and it’s just me and Mama all day? Oh, and another cool thing about this place is the basketball court and swimming pool! I was afraid of swimming at first, but now I’m pretty much over that. And everytime we leave our room I point to the basketball court and talk about balls and kicking them. Of course, when we go down there to play – I still just want to talk about playing with the balls, rather than actually doing it.

  Well, those are a few of my favorite things about Togo. In conclusion, and in honor of my 1 ½ yr birthday, I will give you a list of “firsts” that I have experienced here in Togo:

·           1. Skinned knees (and 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th … all “Oweeeees”)

·         2. Riding in the car without a carseat! (don’t worry though, that’s only for short, squished trips)

·         3. Cooo-keees, Ca-ca (chocolate), and cu-cakes at almost every meal! I now ask for them all by name     =-)

·         4.  Mangos! Mmmmm…

·         5. Soda (ok, this one has a story – the Fulani shopkeeper we met gave me one, and Mama thought it would be rude to refuse so I got to try my first Pepsi =-)

·         6. I have consumed part of a stick. Strangely, that wasn’t quite as good as the previously mentioned items.

·         7. Money… for some reason this one lady in the hospital keeps giving me coins to keep! I’m rich…

·         8. Bugs – I now recognize them and talk about them!

·         9. Fufu, Gawu, and various other African dishes

·         10. Medicine every morning! Mommy says I’m weird that I actually like my anti-malaria medicine that is supposed to be so bitter and awful

·         11. I now say Amen! I especially like to say it right in the middle of prayers, loudly =-)

·         12. Saying I love you (I wuh-woo), and singing along with the song in the “Love You Forever” book too!

·         13. Dancing in church – I’m a huge fan! =-)

·         14. Going to work with daddy…I think I help his patients feel better!

·         15. Antibiotics – yay…

P.S from Evelyn’s mommy… Sadly, the little stinker got quite sick yesterday with a very high fever. She likely has typhoid or something similar, but she is being treated for it and seems to be improving. Please keep her in your prayers!

"Wawa" II

  Please pardon the double use of the corny title, but I think I have a good reason. As I was thinking about it, I really thought it was a perfect description of Mango. A place where West Africa has been “winning” for… who knows? Centuries? Millennia? The town is beaten town, one of the poorest and most undesirable in Togo. It is a dustbowl this time of year – the most immediately striking thing about the town is the dirt and trash everywhere. It seems like no one really wants to be there. There are 5 main tribal groups in town, and traditionally they all hate each other. Even now, most people walk around with a stony expression on their face. I guess there isn’t much to smile about living in Mango. As one of the missionaries here said, “Living in Mango is like living in hell; it’s incredibly hot and the people hate each other.”

  But things are changing. ABWE has been present building this hospital (which the town leaders begged for) for about 5 years now. Church planters are already at work learning languages, building relationships, and building the hospital. They are also building trust. Now, when you stop and greet someone you are normally met with a warm smile. Children excitedly wave and call out “Batture!” (white person) when they see you. A handful of people in this Muslim dominated town have already come to know Christ as their Savior. The church here is beginning to sprout. It is a young fragile sprout, and does not yet have roots. Nonetheless, for the first time in Mango – there is life, and hope.

  The hospital being built here is called “Hospital of Hope”, and for good reason! In a town with no resources, it offers hope to the sick and hurting where none exists. But more than that, the opportunity to be a beacon for the gospel in this whole region (the hospital will be attracting those from surrounding countries as well, as there will not be anything like this anywhere nearby) will be unparalleled, here at least. During our trip up here, Stephen and I really had the opportunity to pick a lot of people’s brains. We are super excited about the team’s vision and philosophy of ministry. The medical work here is only a part of something much, much bigger. It is a part of the unreached ends of the earth, but it appears God is doing something. He is beginning to make His name known, and He is planting His church. And from Mango, who knows the influence that church could have? The opportunity for evangelism and then discipleship through medicine here is huge!

  We spent some time with Anna, an incredible young missionary lady working here who took us around town to meet her friends. She is focusing on the Fulani people group (she is the only one working with them, and this is the people we are very interested in too!), and so we were able to meet and “talk” with several of them. We reeeaaallly enjoyed that! We also were able to have a lot of meals with the other missionaries, pick their brains about the plans for the hospital and ministry up here. We got to hang out in their incredibly cool pool. We went to market and met some amazing people. We got to help the DeKryger’s unpack, and we got to attend the little church here. In all, it was a privilege. Yes, there are a lot of inconvenient things about the place. The water is not clean (the hospital is working on digging its own well, but has so far come up dry). The dust is unlike anything I have ever experienced. The bugs are annoying. The heat is, well… “uncomfortable”. It’s more isolated and not really as pretty as down south. But I hardly think those things should really be a consideration in deciding whether to move to a place, do you? ;-)

  Pray for Mango. Pray for the missionaries in Mango, that they would not grow weary because life there can be hard! Pray for the people there, that the Holy Spirit would soften their hearts and they would be receptive to the message of Hope. Pray for real discipleship and true strong churches to grow. And pray for us, as we consider whether this place and work is where God is calling us to be. There is a unique opportunity here to combine our two loves – medicine and discipleship. You see, “Wawa” has been true in Mango for a long time. But by God’s grace, West Africa WILL NOT Win Again – God will, through the power of His gospel. 

"Wawa"

  The missionaries have a phrase they like to use here. When things go wrong in a uniquely frustrating but almost humorous way, when you get the run around instead of straight answers, when the horrible roads beat up both you and your cars… they will have often shrug their shoulders, give a little laugh, and say “Wawa” – West Africa Wins Again. Because sometimes it is better to laugh than to cry ;-)

  Such as yesterday. A driver from the hospital in Tsiko came up to get us on Sunday, and the plan was for him to drive down one of the missionary’s cars to try to sell in Lome (the capital), dropping us off in Tsiko on his way. Why did the missionary want to sell his car, you ask? Well, ‘cause it was a dump (and why was it a dump, you ask? Probably ‘cause they have car-eating and man-eating roads here). By the time we pulled out of Mango at 8:45am yesterday (much later than planned), the car had already been to the mechanic because it wouldn’t start, had its battery changed, and had a flat tire changed. Oh yeah, and then it still wouldn’t start at first. And when we got gas on our way out of town, it wouldn’t start again. I joked with Pericot, our driver, that we would have to pray the car to Tsiko. Well, I guess someone wasn’t praying hard enough (kidding!) because less than an hour out of town the car started pouring out black smoke. For a second we all thought the car was on fire as Pericot started pulling us out. Well, it wasn’t. But it definitely wasn’t going any further. Wawa.

  By the way, we were stuck on the side of a little two lane road (I say little, but it’s the main highway in Togo!) that’s riddled with enormous potholes out in the middle of nowhere. It’s 100+ degrees (glad it wasn’t their “hot” season yet, or it would have been 130+!). Thankfully, our driver had a cell phone and could call for help. Also thankfully, we had plenty of water. But we spent the next couple hours toasting by the side of the road. I spread out my “pagne” skirt (the traditional African cloth) under a shrimpy little tree and Evelyn and I sat and read books and sang our ABC’s, as we waited for an unknown amount of time and had no real idea of what was happening and what the plan was. And you can imagine the stares we got from the occasional truckers passing by. What, you don’t normally see a white woman and baby camping out in the African bush by the side of the road? Have you ever been in one of those weird situations when there is absolutely nothing you can do to fix it and you can only sit and wait? Yeah, it was one of those. Wawa.

  Well, eventually help arrived in the form of a mechanic to try to get the car to Mango and a driver +taxi to take us the rest of the way. This guy drives crazy fast so we actually make pretty good time, until we get to the mountain pass. It’s blocked by a traffic jam, caused by a semi towing another broken down semi up the mountain at a rate off approximately 0.25mph. Once we finally start moving again, on our way down we pass truck after truck that is turned over, burned out, or just plain not working. I’m telling you – they have car-eating, man-eating roads here. Wawa.

  The rest of our trip was uneventful. We made it back in record time, exhausted and covered in red dirt (no a/c so the windows were down the whole time). Evelyn did amazingly well, a little whiny at times but that was the worst of it. Our only injury was the thorns I stuck my bare foot on while we were sitting on our pagne under our tree (oops). So that was our trip back, and we learned a few lessons. Such as: if/when we move here, a reliable car is a must! Cell phones are pretty useful too…

  On a more serious note though, we are so thankful for God’s protection in an uncertain situation that could have been much worse than it was. Without that, “Wawa” would be more than just a little joke you say when you are trying to roll with the punches! So that is the story of our adventurous trip back – tomorrow I will write more about our actual time in Mango, which was just what we were hoping it would be.

Home again, home again, jiggedy jog!

Only a quick update so that everyone knows we are safely back in Tsiko. We had a terrific time in Mango, and Evelyn did really well. Our trip back though was an "adventure"... ;-) I'll try to update more tomorrow! We just filled our bellies and are off to get this 1/2in thick layer of dust off ourselves... Au revoir!

Learning to Rest

  (I'm posting this for Stephen, who wrote it last night and didn't get a chance to post it. He is currently on his way to Mango, and we will be joining him tomorrow)

  Did any of you look at the title of this the post and think, “Wait, we didn’t support Stephen so that he could have a vacation”?  Besides, Togo is not exactly the place one would come if he had relaxing in mind.  So why this post?  In seeking to be open and honest about what we are learning and how we are serving, I wanted to share how sometimes the challenges we face come in ways we may not expect.  I pray that it can lead you to better pray for us and for other missionaries you serve.

  Serving in Togo is like working in most of the world – there is more work than time in a day.  For the past week and a half, I was essentially the OB department from the hospital.  Considering there are about 400-500 babies delivered at the hospital (per year), that makes for a significant amount of work.  Unfortunately, babies are noncompliant little creatures who don’t work with their doctor’s requests to come between 9-5 on weekdays, but avoiding the lunch break (come to think of it, they don’t always comply with your request that they sleep through the night either as the get older).  Add into that the occasional birth emergency, the phone call about a new patient when you try to take a nap, the missed meals – and you can see the potential for being a bit tired.  On top of this, my daughter has had a cold (hence the other cause of interrupted sleep) and I want to be a good father and husband by spending time with my family.  You can see how this can lead to being tired and even (gasp!) grumpy.

  Don’t feel sorry for me…I’ve enjoyed serving, I’m learning a great deal, and I’m getting experience that would be hard to get back at home.  It’s not like things cannot run without me – the nurses here are very good, there is another Family Medicine doctor here who knows OB (but usually does surgery), and I’ve been told to take time off so I don’t work too hard.  However, I’ve noticed there can be a proud part of me that says, “I can do this,” and wants to feel indispensable.  Yes, I should work hard – I know how to and the Lord’s work is worth it.  Besides, there are full time missionaries who face these situations every day, so it’s an honor to take some of the load off them, even if it means expending myself.  But it’s a fine line between putting your all into your work for God’s glory and seeking your own glory. 

  I’ve realized it’s necessary to take some time off.  I can’t operate on 5-6 hours of sleep every night.  My family needs me.  God calls me to enjoy spending time with him.  None of these things happen if I make my work my sole focus.  Additionally, I come from a task-focused culture.  Here in Togo, the people are much more relationship-focused.  The reality is, God is very relationship focused.  If I neglect relationships (spending an extra minute getting to know the Togolese believers, praying with my patients, enjoying the company of the other missionaries) to accomplish tasks, there is something wrong with my focus no matter how hard I work.

  At the end of the day, God is teaching me to balance several important principles.  First, we should work hard in the service of ministry because God deserves this effort.  “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work for the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (I Cor 15.58).  “For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil,” I Thess. 2.9.  Second, all we do must be done in love or none of my efforts are worth anything (I Cor 13.1-3).  Third, all success ultimately comes because God is at work.  “And he said, ‘The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground.  He sleeps and rises night and day, and the see sprouts and grows; he knows not how” (Mark 4.26-27).  So we must work hard for the kingdom of God, but we cannot in pride think that its success is dependent upon our efforts.  So even rest becomes an exercise of faith, not because we are being lazy but because we realize our limitations and trust in a limitless God to accomplish His purposes.  We pursue faithfulness in love in all our responsibilities, pray for God to work through us and give us strength, and leave the results to His sovereign plan.

- Stephen

To Mango, to Mango, jiggedy jig...

   Stephen and I have the chance to visit Mango again this trip, and we just decided today that we will go. If any of you followed our blog during our last visit to Togo, you may remember we made a trip there last time (on the menu on the right, look up 2010 and find the post titled "Our Mango Adventure"). This is exciting for us because that specific town is where we are actually praying about coming back to long term. I'll tell you a bit about it so you can share in our excitement =-)
    Mango is in the far northern part of Togo, about an 8hr drive from here. It is kind of the "ghetto" of Togo. A mostly Muslim town made up of an assortment of not-very-well-liked tribes, even their own government ignores them (case in point - the government has recently decided to turn off their water supply and no one knows why! Also, when the president decided he needed an extra generator for some political rally, he simply took theirs). While they do technically have a government "hospital" in the town, it receives virtually no money and therefore its personnel, supplies, and equipment are negligible. After some of the leaders of the town saw and experienced the care and love at the hospital down here in Tsiko, they begged ABWE to start a hospital up there too. Yes, a Muslim town begged a Christian evangelistic gospel-sharing organization to come to their town and start a hospital. Who can say no to that? For many years ABWE has been raising money to build this hospital, and it is in the final stages of construction - set to open in early 2014. For about the past 5 years, church planters have already been at work there - helping to build the hospital, and in the process building relationships with the community (oh yeah, and learning the tribal languages!). Stephen and I are excited about this project because 1) it is in a completely unreached area 2) the town is full of Fulani, an unreached (and despised) people group that Stephen and I particularly have a heart for 3) the medical work is just part of a team where the whole focus is on planting a church and discipleship, and 4) we really like the team that is already up there working!
   Having said all that, it is also HOT. Dry. Dirty. Not nearly as pretty as the tropical forest and mountains in this area (savannah-type region). Life is pretty hard there. We are visiting now because we likely will not have another opportunity to make a survey trip before we make a decision about where and what we will be doing in the future. On Thursday, a missionary family that has been working here in Tsiko since 2007 (the DeKrygers) will be moving to Mango, and Stephen will hitch a ride with Todd and follow their moving truck up north. Friday morning Jennifer and her boys (along with "Aunt Kelly", a wonderful older missionary lady who has been here forever teaching MK's) will be driving up in their van, and Evelyn and I will join them. I think we'll be headed back down here on Monday via taxi (don't worry, we will drive back with a trustworthy taxi driver known to the missionaries up there - I'm pretty sure it'll be better than the public bus we took last time!). I highly doubt we'll have internet access up there, so please don't worry if you don't hear from us until next Monday. Please do pray for us, though. Obviously road trips don't tend to be super popular with toddlers. Evie has been sleeping great here for almost a week now, and I'm a little sad to potentially mess that up again. Pray for safety, health, wisdom, and all-around happy attitudes =-)
   Thanks all for your prayers and encouragement and love! I believe Stephen has a half-written blog post he will likely try to post before we leave, but other than we probably won't be posting anything until we return.

What a Mommy and a baby do in Togo

  I think Evelyn and I are finally reaching our "new normal", thankfully. She's really pulled it together the last few days and seems quite adjusted now (she still has her moments, but doesn't she always!). It is such a blessing and so much fun to have her here. Children bring lightheartedness and joy to those around them, and they also serve as an instant connection and conversation starter for me with fellow moms. Of course, sadly... those conversations last for about 15 seconds, because that is how long it takes me to exhaust my French! 

  This is probably only going to be interesting to my fellow mom friends, but this is what a typical day now looks like for us here: Stephen gets up and goes to breakfast at 6:45. A couple days a week all the missionary medical staff meet in the dining room to have devotions around 7:15, and everyone always goes to the hospital for "rounds" (where the docs go around and see each patient, assess their condition and review their vitals etc, and make a plan for their treatment) by 8am. Evie has been waking up around 7:15 for the day, so we get ready and then head to the dining room for a late breakfast - Stephen always saves some food for us!  After that we head back to our room. I clean up while Evelyn plays (hmmm... that seems vaguely familiar - oh yeah, just like at home!). Now that Evelyn is coughing less, I've been taking her down to the hospital in the mornings to visit Daddy and all the "beebees". We don't stay too long (because I'm trying not give Evie a chance to share her germs, and because she's only now returning to her normal happy self!), but we walk around and greet all the moms and babies. I coo at them and Evelyn shrieks at them - "Beebee!" with her pudgy little pointed finger. We then head over to the peds ward and do the same thing there. After that we head back to our room for a short rest for Evelyn. Lunch is at 12:15, and then the Togolese have this beautiful tradition of napping (or resting) until 2 or so. We often just hang around and talk with the other short termers in the dining room, come back to the room to play, or (now that our swimming suits have arrived, woohoo!) go swimming at the pool they have on the compound. We also spend time playing outside, or with some of the other kids that are around. Evelyn takes her "real nap" around 3, dinner is at 6, and we try to put her to bed by 8 (after a shower). I usually have lots of time to rest or read during the day as you can see - Stephen, on the other, continues to be pretty slammed at the hospital! So there you have it - not toooo much different than life at home, huh?

  It is sometimes hilarious to watch Evelyn interact with people here. The adults often kind of get up in her space and reach for her hands - she's not so much a fan of being grabbed and sometimes gets a little scared, but she will usually happily give them a high five or fist bump if I ask her to =-) She takes her revenge on the kids though, haha! When she sees a fellow little person she excitedly walks right up to them. She often does a little dance, blows a few kisses, tries to give fist bumps, and then best of all - knocks them over with a bear hug! If the kid is younger than 3 or 4 she usually scares them ("who is this freaky looking tiny white person and what is she doing to me?"). The mothers love it though when she tries to play with their kids, and the kids who are a bit older love it too. It's so funny, because she notices no differences and doesn't seem to care either that her "love" isn't always reciprocated. 

  Ok, hope this wasn't too boring of a post! Just wanted to give you all a snapshot of what life is like for this mommy and baby here in Togo. It is not dramatic, or full of life and death experiences, or even full of good conversations (after all, I can't really communicate). But I have no regrets that we made the decision to come. This is a ministry we do as a family. For me right now, that is looking like supporting and loving my husband, mothering and watching out for my girl, and trying to show the people here the love of Christ in any way we can. Sometimes it is hard to leave all the life-saving and gospel-telling and soul-saving to others. But after all, isn't that all God's anyway? I can't tell you, exactly, at the end of each day what we "accomplished", but I can tell you this - we are, as a family, doing what we believe God has directed us to do. So it is not my job to "do" and "achieve" - only to love and obey. I am learning to rest in that, and it is good! Praise the Lord for His sovereignty and goodness in using even us broken earthly vessels to accomplish His work in the world, whatever and wherever that may be. And not only in using us to do that work, but also in deciding what exactly that work is going to be! "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." Eph. 2:10