Things Don’t Always Go Smoothly in Congo

On Friday morning we awoke after our first night sleeping in the same room with Matteus and noticed he wasn’t on his mattress on the floor. He was sleeping on the floor on the carpet and seemed content! I found out Saturday morning he rolls around a LOT.

On Friday morning was my first daddy practice going solo with our 20-month-old and I thought I would sit him on his Congolese porta-pot. Actually it’s just a medium sized bowl that they fill with water and sit on the floor. I had tried the night before to get him to go kuyamba (Swahili word you’ll figure out in a moment). That morning he did a good kuyamba and as I picked him up off his pot, his pot was stuck to his bottom and it came up with him and spilled all over the floor of the guest house making a ginormous mess! Where is Jaime when you need her? I quickly ran to the door of the guest house, and blessing of blessings, Jaime was already walking back from the orphanage! “Honey, come quick!!” Thankfully she did and we teamed up to clean up the mess.

I have been so glad Jaime was able to come with me to Congo for many deeper reasons but I especially was glad for my helpmate for times like that. Later I tried to get him to go kukoyola and also had an accident with the other one, too, as a rookie with the Congolese porta-pot system. Hopefully I will get a better handle on this now that Jaime is gone because this stinks when I don’t (pardon the pun).

Friday afternoon another thing that went wrong was my flight was delayed 2 hours. Then after flying about an hour the plane landed and the stewardess said a bunch of stuff in French and I got off the plane with some other people (not all were getting off). I thought just to make sure I should ask someone on the tarmac if we were in Kinshasa … thankfully I found out we weren’t in time to get back on the plane or this would have been a real bummer of a post if I was in the wrong city waiting till the next day for my next flight.

I’m still not quite sure what went wrong with my luggage or why it didn’t make it to Kinshasa with me, but after a long time at the airport and a super long time sitting in traffic we made it to our host home. For carry-on I just had a small backpack and laptop bag and Matteus, which kept my hands plenty full. Wouldn’t you know that Jaime took my small carry-on suitcase home and so I didn’t have the carry-on suitcase I normally keep my toiletries, underwear, socks, etc., and am still not sure as of Saturday night when I will have that. Another missionary spent several hours with me going downtown, getting stuck in some of the worst traffic I’ve seen in my life, to try to talk to the travel service to track down my luggage, and we’re still waiting to hear back on my duffel bag with all my and Matteus’ stuff for the next 3 weeks.

Saturday afternoon we were playing softball with a bunch of missionaries and I had a terrible at-bat where I not only hit the ball incredibly poorly, but to add insult to injury, I got an injury when I started to run to first base. After 36 years of life, many of which I played organized sports daily, for the first time in my life I pulled a hamstring in my first couple steps! If you’ve heard of Murphy’s Law, I think there is also something called “Congo’s Law – if there’s something that can go wrong, it probably will … in Congo.”

This is a pretty inconvenient time to be limping around, hardly able to walk, when I need to be walking all around town next week. But in God’s Providence (orchestrating all things, big or small, bad or good, according to His will, Eph. 1:11) there have been evidences of grace in the midst of all these as well.

When you’re nearly 6’6” it’s a little hard to borrow clothes and it’s a little embarrassing asking to borrow deodorant or athletic shorts for underwear, but our gracious hosts the Greene family (missionaries) have been so wonderful to me and Matteus in the last 24 hours. I praise God he has allowed me to be with them this weekend rather than on my own next week. He has also kindly provided me with a warm shower, clothes from others, toothpaste, toothbrush, and even some diapers and kids clothes just my son’s size from a neighbor with a 2-year old!

In God’s Providence, my parents sent an email out to their supporters asking them to pray for me travelling to Kinshasa for adoption, and one of their supporters emailed them about dear friends of theirs who are missionaries in Kinshasa and said I should get in touch with them to see if they can help. Right before we left America this couple emailed back and they have already been a big help … and amazingly, they live right across the street from the Greenes! The world says, “wow, it’s a small world.” Christians should say, “wow, it’s a Big God we have!” Christians should instantly think of Providence and our God who moves in mysterious ways.

Our extra travel time Friday was actually a blessing in that it was extra time for me and Matteus to bond. His deep dark eyes looked into mine for hours as I had him in my front-pack chest-to-chest (baby carrier with straps). Travelling into town today with the Greene’s neighbor was also a blessing to be able to ride with a man who knows the ins and outs of Congo, works for the embassy, has adopted himself 2 Congolese boys, has a wife who was born and raised here, and whose family has had missionaries in this country since 1917! If anyone can help me get my luggage from the Twilight Zone of CAA Airlines, it’s them. Our big God moves in mysterious ways.

As we talked with the Travel Service, they said for them to find and deliver my lost bag would cost $50 (I only brought $30 with me but didn’t tell them that). This missionary then put his wife on the phone with this lady at the travel service and she was amazed how well the missionary wife spoke fluently her native dialect, and she said, “Ok, for my white sister, I will say only $30.” Exactly what I had in my pocket and paid gladly and will be glad when I see my bag! My leg hurts pretty bad but my stomach is full with wonderful pizza and lasagna and noodles courtesy of Mrs. Greene, and my son has been such a joy and the life of the party to everyone today, and I have to rejoice in that though today didn’t follow my script. I also need to be thankful for inconveniences and situations that remind me of my inadequacy (like a fish out of water in this French-speaking world) so that I pray more and lean on the only One who is adequate.

Please join with me in praying:

• I will see my bag with all my stuff before I leave the Greene’s Monday morning
• That my torn or pulled muscle won’t hamstring my downtown plans next week carrying around my son to several appointments
• That the visa process I hope to begin Monday morning will proceed very quickly
• That my beloved bride will arrive home safe and sound in California Saturday night and that God will give her much grace with her husband being gone another 20 days or so

Me and Matteus hanging out at the Greenes, lining up “motor-kars” and being introduced to these fascinating green men

Me and Matteus sticking together while Didier and I part ways for next 10 days

Saturday night live starring Matteus as comedian and entertainer

Pre-injury softball pic

Ditto

A sub ready to fill in for the injured center-fielder

Father and son with a backpack almost as big as him

Matteus excited to see American football for the first time

Ready for bed after a full day

Wouldn’t you know it, right when I finished preparing those pics and saved this blog, the power went out, quite appropriately to match the title of the blog! But God in His grace let me send this using an alternate power source before going to bed. Things don’t always go smoothly in Congo, but all things always go according to God’s will or Providence (Ephesians 1:11).