Back in the U.S.

Certainly I'm not the first person to return after an absence. I'm told, however, that just because others have done it, does not mean that I should expect an easy time of it. We will have to see.

Yes, I am back stateside. I got back on Thursday, August 9, after a smooth flight from Entebbe and then Amsterdam. Then it was 24 hours of adjustment for me, and off to Indiana for a wedding. My buddy from Calvin got married to an amazing woman, and all of my friends were there to see it. It was a pretty great way to come home, if a little overwhelming.

Here is a picture of me and my friends at the wedding (thanks Joe).

Most of my time home has been spent catching up with my friends, hence it has been quite wonderful. I am also preparing a small talk at CRWRC this Friday, and after that I will be giving some sort of presentation at my church, Madison Square CRC, in the coming week. This will be an opportunity for me to thank some of my supporters, without whose prayers and constant encouragement I would not have been able to make much of this whole experience.

Now my plans turn towards graduate school. I'm heading to Chicago in less than two weeks to begin graduate studies in the Clinical Social Work program at Loyola University. I'm excited about the work this will let me do, but how I'm going to pay for it and how I will fair re-entering school remains to be seen. I'm actually fairly anxious about it. It helps however, that I get to live with Matt and Mandy, two of my good friends:

Maybe it is my training in Sociology, but I keep noticing mostly cultural stuff since I've gotten home. It amazes me how much the U.S. is caught up in obtaining comfort and convenience. In some ways this is why we are such an economic powerhouse, but I wonder how the quality of our lives might improve if we learned from Africa how to be content with what we have?

Another thing I feel since moving home is pressure. People are much more focused on accomplishments in the U.S. and I feel that strongly. There are an enumerable amount of things to accomplish here, and no matter how much you do, there is always more you COULD be doing. It is exhausting. In some ways this makes me miss Uganda already, I can only imagine what it will be like once I've started school again. I'm imagining it will be hard to remember what my real priorities are.

Rev. Jacob has emailed me to let me know that Davis Omanyo and Tim Dam are in the Diocese to do a Board Training to increase the capacity of the Diocese to do their work. So work is continuing and continuing well, according to Jacob. Please continue to remember the Diocese of Lango and CRWRC - Uganda in your prayers. Thank you for your continued support.

I wish I had some sort of "Final Thought" or "Reflections on Africa" that I was ready to put here, something nice and tidy that could wrap up this blog and remind us all of an important lesson, like an old episode of "Full House". Unfortunately I don't have anything like that yet. I've been sharing lots of stories and reflections with my friends, but hopefully the lessons I've learned will be revealed to me over time and I'll be able to share those with the people around me.

For now, I'll close with this Franciscan Benediction my dad gave me while I was still in Uganda:

May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half truths, and superficial relationships
So that you may live deep within your heart.
May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people
So that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war,
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and
To turn their pain into joy.
And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done:
To bring justice and kindness to all our children and poor.