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First impressions are often colored by past experiences and expectations. Now that I have lived in Uganda for three entire days, I think it’s time to reflect on my first impressions of Africa while they are fresh in my mind. Having visited other third world countries like Costa Rica, Honduras, and parts of the...
We crawled into bed at around 2:30 a.m. on Friday evening/Saturday morning hoping that our erratic and poorly planned sleep-catching on the way over wouldn’t doom us to a long adjustment period. Joline and Joshua were up by 7:00, while Jessica, Jennifer, and I slept in until around 9:00. A bit about our accommodations...
The day we have been anticipating for more than a year finally arrived. We had very much enjoyed the three weeks since we left Southern California, but our collective sense of anticipation had been building and we were eager to begin the African phase of this sabbatical. Joline artfully quarterbacked the final two days...
Answers to prayers come in many shapes and forms – sick people are healed, loneliness is alleviated, jobs are secured, those in harm’s way are protected, etc. More often than not, God uses people to deliver these answers – doctors administer treatments, new friends enter our lives, others come to our rescue, etc. Occasionally,...
Kids are impressionable. They come into the world with virtually no preconceived notions about anything. Most of what they learn originates from their parents; most of what they learn early lasts a lifetime. Accordingly, parents bear a heavy responsibility for teaching their children the difference between right and wrong, and teaching them to love...
There is no better way to experience a different culture than through immersion. Joline and I visited Western Europe for two weeks in 2002, but didn’t have a sense of what it was really like until we immersed ourselves in it for five months during the fall of 2003. Waking up each day knowing...
Many people have asked me if I’m afraid of going to Uganda, it being more dangerous than the U.S. I always say no, but I’ve recently come up with a more complete answer. A snail is slow, a turtle is faster, a mouse is faster than a turtle, a cat is faster than a...
One of the many wonderful things about teaching at a university is the whole notion of the sabbatical. Every seven years, professors are eligible to apply for a leave from their teaching and committee responsibilities. Contrary to popular conception, however, “sabbatical” is not synonymous with “vacation.” At Pepperdine, like other universities, the application process...
Yesterday, we left Southern California and won’t return until the beginning of August. Santa Rosa will be our home base for the next three weeks before we leave for Uganda on January 26th. Leaving was pretty tough, especially on our kids, as they had to say goodbye to their friends for seven months. The...