Beyond Salone

This is our first blog in a very long time.  What can we say – we’ve been busy.  This is just an explanation (not an excuse) as to why we have not posted for months now (maybe a year?!)  What have we been busy doing? To make it easier (and less timely) we will itemise the reasons:

1)      Packing and saying our goodbyes

2)      Catching up with family and friends

3)      New country, new language  - learning French

4)      Unpacking

 

Packing and saying our goodbyes – to Sierra Leone (Salone)

You can just imagine how much packing needed to be done!! We started serving in Sierra Leone in October 2007.  Joelle had just turned 2 years (she is now 9 years old).  We’ve lived and worked extensively in the east (Segbwema) and in the west (Freetown) of Salone. We have had an addition to the family (Janelle – now 5 years old).  And so in June 2014, after much prayering and soul searching, we thought we had done our best. It was time to leave. So began the sorting, throwing, giving away and packing. Doing all this after 7 years was not an easy task!!!! Another difficulty was saying goodbye to some very special people (at home, in the office and at school). We had made so many friends. We had come to depend on so many (and they on us). It was like saying good bye to family.  But God was good (as He always is) and the time flew. We actually managed to do all we had to do.  In the end we had packed nearly 30 boxes of ‘stuff’.  This was to be transported by road to our next station – in Benin.  This has its own story…..                                                                                                                                        

We said good bye to our home country of 7 years (all of Janelle’s life thus far). It was a difficult task. Then the infamous Ebola epidemic ravaged the country in the beginning of July.  It was so sad to learn of the suffering of so many.  We lost many colleagues especially at the hospital.  Those in school had to halt their lives.  We mourn and wept with them. We also live in hope that this epidemic will cease very soon.

Catching up with family and friends – In UK and Jamaica

This was always fun (and expensive but necessary) especially since it meant travelling a lot!!!! In the UK we were well received.  We missed them all so much.  They missed us too as evidenced by the mountain of mail we had to sift through! We had to catch up on graduations, births and so many other stories.  We had to also do some shopping for those of us who are growing.  This was always the less stressful part of coming home to the UK.

Relaxing at our holiday hotel.

It was not long after we had to jump on the plane again to see family and friends in Jamaica (especially Grandma).  This trip is done about every 2 years (10 hours to and fro on the plane) and it is sensible to maximize our stay by spending a few good weeks just trying to get over jetlag, visiting family and friends and catching up on Jamaican cuisine! And of course swimming in the calm, warm Caribbean Sea.  We all had a great time and made some unforgettable memories. 

  

New country, new language – learning French.

For our next tour, we felt led to serve in the French speaking West African country of Benin.  We loved the region (West Africa), we loved the work (with the mission hospital) and we thought learning an entirely new language should be relatively easy (especially after all we have previously experienced).  So in September 2014 we arrived in Cotonou with great expectations.  We were warmly received. Hospitality is foremost here!!  The children started their new school (English International) within a week – they LOVE it!!!    Then the whole adaptation to the new culture began.  It’s very, very different!  We had to sort out our work permits BEFORE we could work – in Salone we could work while the papers were being processed. We had to have a police check (from the UK), health checks (Blood test etc. at their own Police hospital in Cotonou). We were interviewed by the relevant authorities and had to maintain a valid visitors’ visa (more paperwork) throughout the process.  Lunch break in Benin starts at 12:30 and ends at 3 pm.  Then they work to 6pm.  Nearly everyone does this (except a few supermarkets).  It was a lot to get used to. The paper work took a while. We had to go to the Immigration Bureau to submit AND to collect our documents. This needed to be done AFTER collecting the children from school.  They wanted to see EVERYBODY.  We were SHOCKED!

The waiting time, however, gave us a good opportunity to start to learn the language at a reputable school (CE.BE.LAE).  It was then we really learnt that ‘Francais c’est difficile’!!!! (French is hard!!!). Or maybe the learner is slow? Anyway, it’s been 3 months (minus a few weeks) and we have been able to communicate enough (still with the use of a lot of hand signals). It’s hard to hear ‘je ne comprende pas’!!!! (I don’t understand!) and to see the blank look on the recipients’ faces. But we continue to try to communicate and continue to hope that the language comes alive for us. In the meantime we have our support personnel / interpreter (Brother Constance) who is nearly always there to smooth the communication pathway.

Unpacking!!!!

Our 30 boxes arrived in November after leaving on the last bus out of Freetown (to Accra) in August.  It then had a very interesting journey through 6 West African countries - Sierra Leone, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana, and Togo before arriving in Benin.  They took a short rest in Accra (Ghana) before we received them in Benin in November. We are still unpacking!!!! But we think we received all we packed.

AND NOW…..

 We received a visit from Sister Bunmi – Partner Co-ordinator for Africa at the World Church Office.  Seeing her was good for us as we had the opportunity of her ever listening ear.  We thank God for the support we get from our employers. The plan is to officially begin work at the Bon Samaritan (Good Samaritan) Polyclinique in February this year – armed with our language skills, support personnel and work permits!!! The hospital is in Port Novo, so we will be many hours on the road travelling to and from home in Cotonou.

Please pray:

-          For the people of Salone to be free of this Ebola epidemic

-          Our language skills improve

-          As we start to officially  work at the hospital in February, God will prepare the minds and hearts of our co- workers as we work alongside them to make the service more efficient.

-          For continuation of good health ( in body, mind and spirit)

-          For continuation of good experiences at school for the children

-          For continuation of good health ( in body, mind and spirit) of our family members

-          For safety on the roads as we travel to and from work and school