Letter 3

wiriwe Neza. Good afternoon! We hope you are all doing well. We are two weeks into our time here- in
some ways it feels like itʼs flown by and in other ways it feels like time is standing still. We have no contact
to the outside world- these emails are sent by a jump drive with a friend into the nearest city (1 hour
away)…. In fact, I hope you are receiving them because I have no idea of knowing!! If you want to save
some of the current events that are happening and email them to us as necessary when we return we
wonʼt be so behind…. Not that a lot happens in 6 weeks… but it would be fun to read up.
" Things are going well here. Weʼve had 3 beautiful days of bright sun. We are just south of the
equator- so when the sun is out itʼs really strong! Donʼt worry, Grandmas- the boys are wearing 50
sunblock! It has been nice getting to know the medical students. Some speak English very well. It is nice
to have them translate sometimes. The culture here is to hold one anotherʼs children and help keep them
contented. They really donʼt like a crying baby and will do everything to make him happy again. I think
they have met their match with Clayton! He is often handed back to me. I just smile. Itʼs so nice that they
like to hold the boys. They want pictures with them. They want to show their friends a picture of them with
a mzungo baby! I get yelled mzungo frequently… MZUNGO MZUNGO!! At first I was offended to be
yelled “white person, white person”- but I have since learned it is a calling of endearment!
" I have really connected with a few of the nurses. They are very sweet and fun to be with. They
love the boys and are eager to learn English. They came over last night and we had a nice time. They
have so many questions about the United States. They want to come and work there. They asked how
much a plane ticket costs- about $1000- which is more than 3 yearsʼ salary. Itʼs hard to talk about money
because you really canʼt compare the cost of things in the US to the cost of things here. In fact, when I
find a price of something here I tend to add two zeros to see what that would be like on a $30,000 salary.
So when itʼs no big deal to put 5000 francs on a phone card- thatʼs like spending $500 to them. (1200
francs is about $1- but I just do 1000 to 1). As you can see thereʼs no real good way to look at it because
itʼs just so different. The nurses like to see pictures of the United States and see where we are from. I
showed them pictures of friends and pastors in Detroit- they couldnʼt understand that Eric Russ isnʼt an
African- like a recent immigrant. They thought he had come from here- so we had to explain that his
family has probably been in the US for a couple hundred years…. But that they originally came as slaves.
The reality of our history broke my heart. When I think of the African slaves being exported to the various
countries and so many dying of diseases- the cultural differences- itʼs all very real- and very painful to
know that is our history. It took probably 10 min. to convince the girls that we have blacks in the US who
are Americans and not Africans… but once we spoke of slaves the room got quiet and everyone
understood. (A note to Eric- sorry if I inaccurately portrayed anything about your family- I was speaking
more of the collective history of African Americans in the US).
" There are 3 men who are around the majority of the day- Ezechiel is the cook and runs things
from in the house. He is a kind Christian man- the father of 5 beautiful children (1 set of twin boys!) He
and Bentley have become buddies- he is sooo sweet with him- and I REALLY appreciate the help. There
is no “baby jail” in Kibuye! Camaro hand washes any laundry and hangs it out to dry- he also “mows” the
grass by cutting it with a machete. Boteyi is in charge of the gardening and basic grounds keeping. He
has an issue with his leg and I am daily impressed with his work ethic considering the amount of pain and
inconvenience he is faced with by his leg. They all double as guards. It is so great to have them here- the
boys really like them and they keep me company.
" Dr. Rusher and David are often gone. Dr. Rusher is the only doctor here- and of course David is
close enough and can do just about everything with him- they double as teachers to the 16 medical
students. There is not enough time in the day to see every patient- Dr. Frank Ogden (surgeon) who was
a missionary who lived here for over a decade advised David and Dr. Rusher to do what they can in the
time that seems fair and to let God do the rest. It would be impossible to meet every patientʼs needs. That
is not the American way though- we see problems and we want them fixed, NOW! But if they did it the
“American way” they would eventually burn out and the boys and I would be on our own! I look at them
and I think it must take an extreme amount of faith in the Lord to trust that they are doing enough- and
that God will take care of His people. The difference in medical care here vs. any hospital in the US isnʼt
even comparable. It seems that at times a month or so will go by with no doctors in the hospital. If a
patient has an emergency they can seek a way to Gitega (1 hour away) or they can wait in a bed for a
doctor- or come back later. Dr. Rusher was surprised by the patience people have to be seen by a doctor.
They donʼt demand it, but wait in hopes of being cared for.
" The church service was 4.5 hours long on Sunday! It was a celebration week- the celebration of
baptisms, baby dedications, welcoming new members, music, etc… Four and a half hours is a long time
to keep 2 little boys happy. I ended up leaving a little early to put Clayton down- there came a point where
I couldnʼt keep him quiet- but Bentley made it through- we had help from a sweet medical student-
Ferdinand.
" I have made some friends in the house- lizards. Oh yes, lizards, lizards, lizards! I just canʼt get
used to them scurrying across the walls! I called Ezechiel in the boysʼ room today to get it out and he just
looked at me with his sweet accent and said, “Not bad,” and walked out! I guess I will have to get used to
them. In fact, even as I write this I see one on the wall. Dr. Rusher and David often remind me that they
eat insects and are good for the house…. Really!?!?!
" I feel very safe and cared for here. The people are so kind. I have less “followers” on my daily
walks as everyone is used to seeing us on a regular basis. I am learning some sentences! Abahungo
mfise babiri. I have 2 boys! I do like it here. Itʼs very beautiful and calm-although I do miss contact with
friends and family. We can see us coming here again- probably for a longer period of time. Weʼll see what
the future holds. I definitely need to learn more Kirundi or French if we do come longer! Also, coming with
another doctor and his wife (hint hint Scott and Kristen- or any of our medical friends!!) would help with
the loneliness. Perhaps even having older boys would be enough to make it a little easier!
" Thatʼs all for now! Thanks for continuing to pray for us. Pray for continued health (Clayton is
getting over bronchitis)- and that we wouldnʼt get any weird parasites! Pray that I will be able to learn
more of the language to talk with people- and that I would be a disciplined parent as I try to teach the
boys to be obedient. Pray for Dr. Rusher and David to be effective in the hospital- that they wouldnʼt take
on more burdens than they should. Also, please pray for the medical students – Dr. Rusher has them
watching a video series called The Truth Project- Hope Africa University has a statement of faith, but that
doesnʼt mean all the students are Christian. So pray for us as we seek relationships with them.
We love you all!
Amahoro,
David, Adrienne, Bentley, and Clayton.