Village Trip

This past weekend we took a little trip (but it was not down the mighty Mississipi). It was six hours there and seven hours back. We took a bush taxi down and a bus back up, which is the reason for the difference; the bus couldn't swerve around the potholes as quickly.

Yes, we were in a village, and we had a wonderful time. They killed a chicken for us on our first night, and normally a chicken is only killed for an important event or holiday. They then proceeded to feed us way too much for the next two days until we headed back home. On our last day we had four meals and two snacks before 4 PM (which was when we left). We could have had a fifth meal but we declined it.

The people were super friendly. They were amazed that we had traveled all of the way from the big city just to visit them. Both my wife and I have visited villages before, but we always had a particular purpose or goal for being there, and the people knew it. They were very eager to help us with our research or our projects or whatever it was that we were doing, but they also understood that we were primarily there for our project and not for them.

This time we had no purpose and no project; we just wanted to meet them. And their reaction was like nothing we had ever experienced. The father of the house nearly broke into tears. We were told again and again how privileged they felt to have us there. Not because we were doing anything; we did nothing for three days but sit around and eat their food! Just because we cared enough to go and meet them and enter into their world. In two and a half days we had a couple of conversations that I'm not sure we ever thought we would have with locals here- and certainly not with locals we barely knew. We never realized how powerful it can be to just BE.

Praise God for an amazing weekend. May He show us how to follow up with this family, and may He teach us to BE with people more often!