Where do I begin? This is the problem with me and blogging, when I go for such long periods between posts there is too much to catch up on and I don’t know what to include. I’m more of a twitter / Facebook status updater I guess.
So anyway, I will back-date from my last post and briefly summarize what I have been doing.
In October both D’Andra and I began teaching English courses. She has level 2 students and I have level 1; each class with approximately 15 students. It has been a wonderful experience for me; reminds me that I enjoy teaching and am honored to be using a natural and spiritual gift God has given me! I only have 1 woman in my class, so I admire her for her desire to learn and willingness to be a strong minority. All the men in my class are great as well. It is fun to run into them around town. One of my students works at our favorite fruit and vegetable stand and ends up giving us free fruit!
October was an eventful month for us. Not only did we start our teaching, but we also had a team of 4 guys from Dallas Baptist here leading a conference on leadership (and in between I had a bout with the flu – no fun!). What a wonderfully busy and productive 8 days while the team was here!
We hosted a 4 day conference here in Koya for educational leaders from all the major cities of Kurdistan. Around 80 people attended and were infused with the idea of servant leadership. It was really remarkable to watch the participants grow in their understanding throughout the 4 days. The culture and climate of Kurdistan – in many facets of society, is that of just getting by. Looking back at their history of war and oppression, it is no wonder why people are not empowered and don’t know how to lead even in small ways. My passion is education so it was an even greater joy to see that these administrators and leaders were learning a concept of serving those whom they were leading.
Not only did the team from DBU lead the conferences, but because they were here we had some amazing experiences.
We had the university president and VP and his wife over for dinner, we were the VIP group (on Kurdistan TV!) at a celebration of a famous Kurdish singer, we had lunch with the mayor at her home, we went out for dinner with the staff of the Ministry of Education in Erbil, and the thing that topped the cake……we went on a real live hog hunt (complete with machine guns and all!)!
Many great relationships were formed while the team was here that will lay a foundation for future work. Many people were greatly affected by those few days. And for D’Andra and I – we were greatly refreshed and encouraged by having the team here! You know me – I thrive from being around people so it was wonderful to have a full house for a few days!
Also, in October, the same time the DBU team arrived, 2 contractors from TX arrived. Eric and Ryan will be here through December 18 and have been a huge blessing to us. They are working on various aspects of getting the project ready to begin again. And they have been a joy and blessing in our lives. We have had some fun times having them around.
A few weeks ago (early November), Eric, Ryan, D’Andra, and I took a weekend hiking trip around the mountains of Kurdistan. We saw some of the most breathtaking views and I was in utter amazement of God and his creation; amazing mountains, canyons that rival the Grand Canyon (and are more beautiful in my opinion), waterfalls, etc.
There were many “adventures” on our weekend trip which will have to wait for “in person stories”. But one of my favorite was as we were at one scenic point, waiting for Eric to rock climb his way up to a cave, this un-Kurdish man walked up to us and in perfect English (with a beautiful Indian accent) said “Are you Americans? It is so wonderful to see you! My name is Van. I am from IL and travel all over the world!” He proceeded to tell us he had been to over 150 countries in the world! It was defiantly one of those amazing God moments.
Another highlight of the fall has been “our puppies.” In Islamic culture dogs are considered unclean animals so there are many that run wild and are filthy and unkempt. In fact, people are downright cruel to the dogs; we often see children kicking and throwing stones at the dogs. Well, a momma dog in our neighborhood had puppies a few weeks ago and we have taken them under our wing. They are now known as the “American’s puppies” and even the little boys are nice to them – they made them a little house, bring them food, and check on them and play (nicely) with them on their way home from school. There are 7 puppies – the biggest of the bunch who looks just like Marley!
As for hospitality, not only is that the greatest thing about Kurdish families (they are so welcoming and inviting; you never meet strangers), but we have been trying to be good hostesses! We have had our Kurdish family over several times along with some of the other American workers. The other team that’s here had all their female workers off at a women’s conference in Thailand; so while they were gone, we had the “single parenting dad” and the 3 kids over! It was so much fun!
Then there comes the holidays. This was the 2nd Thanksgiving I have spent overseas (the first being with the Adair Community Choir in 1998 to Vienna), but the first Thanksgiving without my family. While I did miss gathering together with them and giving thanks, there were 22 of us (20 Americans and 2 Kurdish friends) who gathered together to celebrate. And I must admit that it felt like celebrating with family; cuz after all, we are all brothers and sisters in the Lord. And wow, we had some good eats, not going to lie! We can whip up some pretty tasty traditional Thanksgiving food using what’s available here and from generous packages from back home. It was a beautiful and wonderful day (we even watched “Elf” – oh yes, a holiday classic!).
Then, the day after Thanksgiving while crazy folks in America were “celebrating” Black Friday, our team celebrated Quarbani (or Eid Al Adha, the Feast of Sacrifice) with our Kurdish friends. We went to 6 houses in 1 day; and ate sweets and drank coffee/tea at every one! Talk about a gorging experience. The Feast of Sacrifice is one of two great festivals in the Islamic faith, the other being Eid Al Fitr, the Feast of Breaking the Fast, which occurs at the end of Ramadan. Eid Al Adha occurs on the tenth day of the last month of the Islamic year, Thul-Hajjah, which also coincides with the last day of Hajj, the pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca. Eid Al Adha is called the Feast of Sacrifice because it is observed to commemorate the prophet Ibrahim's (Abraham's) great faith in his willingness to sacrifice his son as an act of supreme obedience to Allah (God). Since Abraham is a revered prophet who was considered a friend of God and father of the faithful, Eid Al Adha is the greatest feast in the Islamic year. Every Muslim household is required to make a sacrifice on this day. Many families chose to kill a sheep to commemorate Abraham's submission to God (thanks to my friend Bethany for letting me “borrow” the explanation of the holiday from her, http://agape824.blogspot.com/). Many people here seem to celebrate it as a cultural holiday rather than a religious holiday, like its history suggests. But because the historical nature and focus of the sacrifice, it is a great time to share about the ultimate and complete sacrifice of Jesus. If nothing else, we were able to plant seed and share our joy. At one house, we were watching CNN and Steven Curtis Chapman was on Larry King Live, and we were able to watch the interview and him perform a song from his new album –all with our Kurdish friends! It was pretty spectacular, I must say!
Although these are days of mixed emotions for me, I look forward to my final 28 days in Kurdistan with eager expectation to see, experience, and be a part of the work of God. I have been reminded again in these days that nothing in this life is mine, really. Everything belongs to the Lord. So, as “tradition” has it, I will close this post with selections from Steven Curtis Chapman’s song “Yours”:
It’s all Yours God, Yours God, everything is Yours
From the stars in the sky to the depths of the ocean floor
and it’s all Yours God, Yours God, everything is Yours
You’re the maker and keeper, Father and ruler of everything
It’s all Yours, God
The glory is Yours, God
All the honor is Yours, God
The power is Yours, God
The glory is Yours, God
You’re the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords
And it’s all Yours God, Yours God
Everything is Yours
From the stars in the sky to the depths of the ocean floor
And it’s all Yours God, Yours God
Everything is Yours
All the greatness and power, the glory and splendor and majesty
Everything is Yours
It’s all Yours
I’ve walked the valley of death’s shadow
So deep and dark that I could barely breathe
I’ve had to let go of more than I could bear
And questioned everything that I believe
But still even here
in this great darkness
A comfort and hope come breaking through
As I can say in life or death
God we belong to you!
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