Weekend in Kinshasa

A little more from the Weekend


As we drove back from the Kinshasa airport in the dark to the Greene’s house Friday night, it was a strange feeling but I immediately felt as if I was back in Manila, Philippines, in my high school years, as if I had time-travelled and lapsed back to my memories of growing up. In the dark it’s almost impossible to tell that you’re not in the Philippines, the landscape, shops, buildings, signs, traffic, millions of people all over the place, etc., is very much the same in Kinshasa as Manila. Only in the daytime can you tell you’re in Africa instead of the Philippines. I feel very much at home here, though I wouldn’t want to walk around certain parts of town alone as a tall white guy here anymore than I would certain parts of Manila (but even less so here because I don’t know any of the language or culture).


I especially feel at home here because my hospitable and gracious guests the Greenes have made me feel at home and more than a part of their family, an honored guest. The missionary community is a real family here, and actually on this street many American families are close-knit geographically as next-door neighbors. The missionary families that all live next to each other (Wards, Greenes, Grings, and Clancy clan staying with Grings as they prepare to train pastors in the Congo interior Lord-willing next year) have been a great blessing to get to know. They have also been a big encouragement and help to this new non-African non-French-speaking non-shaved guy with non-luggage to get acclimated to this new world and prepared for the next week where I will be non-accompanied most of the time, solo with Matteus downtown. I can’t imagine trying to do this trip alone while Didier is in another country, but God predestinated and orchestrated exactly what was needed in His all-seeing providence.


How did we get connected with these Americans in Kinshasa? When Didier and Stuart were in Kinshasa in July, a woman from Stuart’s church “just happened” to be in the same small online Christian forum for women called HK, and posted something about Stuart being in Congo and the Greene family gave their information and managed to get in touch with Stuart and Didier and had them over to their place. Another lady from another part of the U.S. who is adopting from the same orphanage as us also “just happened” to be in that group of 100-some ladies … one of those “small world” moments that could also be called “big God” moments.


Stuart and Didier were both very blessed by their time together and Stuart recommended if I’m in Kinshasa I should see if I could connect with the Greenes for help or fellowship. Being the gracious hospitable people they are, they not only gave me advice over email, but Mike Greene offered me to stay with them, and since I didn’t have much time to make reservations for my first weekend before starting my downtown business next week, I took him up on his offer for the first 3 days in Kinshasa. Little did I know, his adult daughter Bethany had been following our blog and didn’t know I was staying with them until shortly before I pulled into their compound Friday!


What about the missionaries across the street? When I was here the Greene’s said all their neighbors knew who I was. How, I wondered? The other 3 families actually met my parents and family at missions conferences in Idaho (Boise area) years ago, when I was a scrawny shorter guy. It’s really neat how God does things like that in our lives so many years ago, and I could write a whole blog post about how hopelessly lost I would be in this city if it weren’t for these people God has brought back into my life at just the right time to help me and the newest member of the Layton family. It makes me want to sing “He’s a Big God after all” to the tune of a Disneyland song.


Some firsts:
- First time I gave my new son a bath Sunday night at the Greene’s. He stood content in the tub as I soaped him down and hosed him off – I think he’s used to bathing now, but when Mama Angelique bathed him his first day at the orphanage he cried, which made us wonder if he’d ever had a bath before.

- First time Matteus did a bowl movement since the guest house incident Friday (3 and ½ days later). Without his regular “toilet” (which is still with my missing luggage) he hasn’t been wanting to go to the bathroom on an American toilet and instead just goes in his diaper, but I’m glad he at least went kukoyola. I will try to re-potty-train him once I have his “potty” bowl next week as diapers are super-expensive here, as are all baby products. No picture for this one.


- First time I got Matteus to take a nap was Monday (previously he zonked out in church and right before our delayed flight Friday and missed the much-anticipated airplane ride he had been talking about all week, but he’ll have plenty other chances to experience them before he lands on U.S. soil). Here he is napping. It's hard to tell from the angle of this pic, but his body is down while his arm is in mid-air as if to give an elbow high five Jose Canseco style.