Pray For SAMMY

It is Wednesday evening 2-20-08 at 6:50 PM.

I just got a call from Jean Paul who is at the hospital. Their 5 year old son Sammy fell and bit his tongue severely....they are waiting on a surgeon. He will have to be put under general anathesia (wish Judy was here to spell that for me)...that is troublesome for JP and Clementine. So please pray for a great surgeon to arrive quickly, and that Sammy will be fine, heal quickly, and they will feel God's peace and presence during this time.

Since I'm blogging, let me quickly say that I have had a wonderful day of rest, shopping, haircut, journaling, emailing, reading, and yes, a great cappuccino at Java House at Yaya Center. This evening I am going to reveiw a micro-finance proposal JP has been working on for several months, and see if I can help with it. TV is out of the question; poor reception, mostly in Swahili (can't get CNN), and same news recycles every hour for the day...honestly. So, I'm also enjoying 93.3 FM----Christian radio station.

Since I'm in the mood, may I also say that it is really interesting to be in a country that is 50% Christian, but very openly so. We were at the Karen Bank Corporation (secular)for the 2 day retreat. It is a management/leadership retreat of multiple buildings, overnight accomodations, and meeting rooms of all sizes. At the entrance to the restaurant (cafeteria style) is a prominent sign that says: "Our food is a gift from God; please take what you need, but do not waste it."
While getting my haircut today, I noticed music was playing in the background..."Our God is an Awesome God". This was a very nice, upscale barber shop. Isn't that wonderful?

Try those two things in America where we say it is a Christiam nation..98% at that....hummmmmm.

Evidence that cultural/language issues are still a challenge for me:
I told JP I wanted to get a haircut; he said that where he was dropping me for 2-3 hours had two saloons and I would enjoy them. I'm thinking, o.k., so that's interesting... having a beer while getting a haircut...didn't want to question him in front of his wife...not good culturally. But I thought"That's certainly unique, and almost appealing this hot day" So, I checked out four floors in the center looking for a saloon. I figured if he thought I should have a beer with my haircut that was o.k., and I didn't want to offend him in what I assumed was a cultural thing here. Real Macho type of thing....I should comply.
No Saloon...anywhere.
I finally spotted a store that had a sign: "Beauty Salon" I thought about it, and finally realized 'saloon' was how he pronounced 'salon'. I laughed out loud as I entered the shop, which was playing "Our God is an awesome God"...the receptionist just thought I was a very happy old guy with grey hair and glasses.

So after the haircut I settled for a wonderful double expresso cappuccino at Java House... the best saloon in Africa!!


Pray for Sammy.