Gabon - January 2011

Gabon Blog January 2011

January 14 Friday

So far it has been a rather uneventful journey. We are now flying over the land of Nigeria. The flight over the Sahara was less than stellar as the dust was quite dense and unfortunately little of the landscape could be appreciated. But this airplane is quite comfortable, almost luxurious compared to the prior two flights. Plenty of room, pleasant service, and relatively quiet. Caught up a bit on sleep. Johari and I watched “Inception” - brought back a lot of memories, no pun intended. I wonder if the writers really grasped what they were portraying? Obviously someone had some insight into the reality of the influence of Satan on human minds. I know from personal experience the reality of what was portrayed. Thankful for God who is able and ready to redeem and save us from guilt and sin - there IS true life and it IS worth living!! The movie ended almost exactly as I anticipated.

Yesterday we left, Dr. Miller and I, from Indianapolis, travelled through Atlanta without difficulty, then crossed the ocean during the night, landing in Paris in the dark at 5:30 am. The oceanic flight was less than desirable. Not sure what happened but Delta/Air France used their oldest, smallest airplane to transport a packed group of people. None of the workers were very happy about it from what I could tell. Reminded me of the plane I took in ’91 - and I’m sure it was as old. We arrived, so no complaints.

Another adventure (story) in the making. Every day is an adventure to be lived whether or not we recognize it. Unfortunately so many days pass by without ever realizing what is transpiring. To the untrained eye it appears so mundane, “normal”. There are moments which catch our attention, when something appears to interrupt the daily ebb and flow of routine. But then we quickly settle back to normalcy, never recognizing those moments are just as influential and profound as the ones which seemed to rouse us from the complacency of life for few seconds, minutes, or hours. Every moment is unique, lived only once. And the multitude of those moments drives us to consider them routine. Nothing is routine when you look below the surface. No more than the river rushing through a gorge may appear routine. Every second brings change even if unnoticed by a casual observer. Each life - yours, mine - is lived in the moments. Sitting here enjoying the music through my earphones while watching the clouds over the edge of the Atlantic slide below is a once in a life-time experience. Nothing like this will ever be exactly the same. Without relating with God I would have no context, no reference, and certainly no certainty of knowing that these moments exist for a purpose. To know there is real joy in living. Not just felt or hoped for, but true meaningful joy. Joy that comes from walking in relationship with the One who created us to know and relate with Him deeper than we can yet imagine. To smile and know the joyful contentedness goes deeper than eternity. We are made to relate. No matter where you are or who you are with, He is always there relating with you. There is joy in learning to recognize His smile in the moments.

And...just finished supper here at the Guest House in Libreville. Very nice to receive a warm welcome from the Straws. Nice to catch up with Drs. Dave Thompson and Keir Thelander, Philadelphia and Simplice. Great guys and great surgeons.

Now to get some sleep since we are leaving again in 7 hours. Looks like a nice bus ride (Philadelphia says the bus drivers are crazy) tomorrow - warm and sticky for about 7-8 hours before getting in another vehicle for the additional 2+ hour drive to the hospital. Keir drove up today - left at 5:30am and arrived at 9:30pm. That is a little bit of a day :)

Thankful we are all here and safe!