YOUTH GROUP CHRISTMAS PARTY

The majority of my time here in Burundi is spent in work/ministry with World Relief. I'm daily at the office or on the field... these days, mostly in the office working on writing reports and concept notes, creating stories and pictures to help the world learn about Burundi and the needs here, and helping the general flow of office activities (sometimes, my job can be quite the potpourri of various activities). However, as much as I believe in WR, enjoy our staff, and am learning so much from (and hopefully helping) the work here, I find my passion remains with young people! I just can't stay away from them.So, here is my crew! A group of approximately 20 students from our church (Partnership Trust International) crash our place every Tuesday afternoon. I think every youth group around the world is defined by at least a bit of chaos. This one is no different. Our formula for chaos= lots of "fantas" (high sugar soda drinks) and kids from at least 5 different nationalities, speaking 3 different languages, and ranging in age from 12-22 years. And they all still have the universal syndromes of kids in that age range... flirting, short attention span, teasing, easily distracted, high energy, etc. Add the additional challenge of language, culture, and huge age range... and there we are! It's crazy and I LOVE IT.

We began a year ago, January... a small, struggling group of 5 (and 2 were the pastor's kids!) and at the end of the summer, we had multiplied! We play volleyball in our yard to start most evenings (and have seen great improvement in skills, I might add) and have studied the books of Matthew and Romans.

It's a pretty unique (if not only) thing here in Burundi. Most churches do not do much for their youth... and what they do is usually a re-creation of the adult's service. Long preaching. Hymns. No discussion. So we make it interactive with lots of activities, food, games. We look at Bible passages (reading it in French and English and sometimes Kirundi) and then discuss together or break up in discussion groups.

Most of these guys have memorized at least 5 different Bible verses from Romans (motivated, I admit, by chocolate M n M's from the US. But hey, it works! I remember being motivated by my growing sticker collection, rewards from memorizing verses in the KJV as a kid!). And most importantly, they are learning (I hope!) that being in the Word is important... that it is relevant and challenging and exciting... and that there is much depth and fun in Christian community.

We had a bit of a Christmas party yesterday. It was pretty different than what I've ever done in the States. I did make Christmas cookies for them to decorate (crazy mess after!)... and Jim (pictured far left in first pix above- WRB intern who is helping me with this group for the few months he and his lovely wife Karri are in Burundi) organized a great relay theme game with- "wise men carrying gifts to Jesus" (on the head as Chemin is doing in the 2nd pix... it was easier for the Burundians than for our Scottish members!), a four-legged "shepherd run" (3rd pix), and of course, "Mary, Joseph, and the donkey en route to Bethlehem" (Mary riding the donkey, pictured last). It was hilarious fun. Much laughter and several wipe-outs. We concluded the evening with Christmas pictionary and a brief Christmas exhortation on joy.

So, with this celebration... and a small but brightly-lit fake Christmas tree in the living room, 5 Christmas cds on repeat, an attempt at Christmas baking, and doing some advent reading... Seth and I are preparing for Christmas despite the warm weather and lack of other festivities. This year, we will be out of town... and we'll post about our adventures in Tanzania when we return. With that, we wish you a very...
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

PEACE MARATHON in BURUNDI

After a week of what we think was amoebas (= fever/stomach issues/diarrhea) and thus against general common sense and my Dad's advice, I ran in Burundi's first marathon last Saturday. Well, I did the half. It was one of those deals that I knew if I didn't at least try, I would regret it. So, I went with the mind-set to at least start… to be a part of the festivities and history (as it was the first official race in Burundi and with the goal of bringing people together for peace.)

What a day it was... Very fun. But very "Burundi." I got up early and headed out the door… I attempted to wake up a very groggy Seth, but he hadn't been sleeping well and couldn't be moved. I headed into town on Rumonge road (the main road into town), and it was jammed packed! Police had barriers up and they were letting NO ONE through! Not even race participants. So, I jetted down to Avenue du Large (another road into town that parallels the lake, near our house). That too was jammed packed! I couldn't even get to the race! I INCHED forward… and told an officer "I am running! I need to pass!!" He just shook his finger at me in an emphatic NO.

But then, in a instantaneous change of mind, he decided to let me pass… but instead of dropping the rope barrier, he made me drive around the road block, through the rocks and grass along the side of the road, to get through.

I met up with our friend Jim at his office and about 15 of his colleagues, and we walked to the stadium where the race would begin. Some people were not able to pass through the car barriers, so they ended up having to run/walk 5-8km to even get to the stadium! There, we met up with some other friends there who were running and others who had just come to be part of the event…

So, the race did not start on time. Eight was the official start. At 8:30am, race officials herded us to the start line (out of the shade… and it was getting HOT!). Then the pre-race festivities began… Burundi style… for another hour and a half... an off-key marching band… speeches… the president of Uganda… another speech... and our president with his entourage. And we had to wait… roasting in the sun. And then, without any fanfare or shooting of a gun (who knows what kind of riot that could have started), we were suddenly off.

I seriously wasn't planning on running very far … but then, probably the adrenaline of the day, I decided to continue. I ran with a few friends, and we all decided to take it easy because of the heat and my stomach.

I was actually quite impressed with Burundi. The whole course was well guarded by police (lots of guns, but at least it was well-marked!). They had water and sponges every 5k and had several ambulance vehicles taking care of people along the race. Even official race numbers and a souvenir t-shirt!

The streets throughout the 21k were lined with Burundians- some saying "courage!", some blankly staring (typical), and a few that were even laughing and pointing at us. Some friends came at different points to encourage and take pix, and it being the small country that it is, I inevitably happened to run pass people who I knew at various points … Gervais the tennis coach who ran with us for a small bit… Melissa and Maria who were coming to cheer us on... Gilbert who plays tennis yelling out from his balcony… another Gilbert who was simply walking to work… and Theodore from church randomly walking along the route, Bible in hand, with about 50 other pastors? Oh, this place can be so random! I love it.

The finish was classic… we ran (triumphantly, I might add) into the stadium and around the track. Some friends had finished before us and others who came to watch were there. So, there were actually people calling out our names in encouragement and taking our pix as we rounded the track for the final stretch. And then, it was done! My slowest half-marathon time yet! But still proud to have taken part.

I was pretty wiped after, obviously, and we all hobbled back to Jim's office and then I made it home to Seth and some post-race ice cream.

And that was the day. A run for peace in a country still struggling for it. But I felt proud to be here. To be a part of it... the race itself...and to be part of the progress of this country towards peace in our own small way through our work and ministry here.