Goals...

One of my goals is to go on at least one more missions trip this year. I’m on the team going to Japan so I’m well on my way to fulfilling this goal. There is still a lot of prep work that needs done though.

I’ve already checked the CDC site for Japan. The recommended vaccination is Hepatitis B which I covered while in Africa and Japanese Encephalitis but only if travelling to rural farming areas. We’ll be working in the mountains and not on farms so I’m opting out of that one as well. The third one they recommend is a rabies vaccination. We’ll be working out in the forest so that might be one to look into. I’ll call the travel medicine clinic to follow up on that one.

I also need to look into the climate of the region. I need to know what clothing and gear will be appropriate to pack. That’s on my to do list.

The final more immediate task is to draft a support letter. I plan to have this done by the end of the week and hopefully in the mail by Monday.

Japan Trip

In June I'm going to Japan with my nephew. We will be working at the Northstar lodge in the Norikura mountains. One of my goals this year is to go on at least one more missions trip. I'm more of a third world kind of fella but I also like the outdoors and I wanted to get my nephew involved in missions as well. I think he's one of those exceptional people who can make a real difference in the world and I feel privileged to have the opportunity to nurture his character in this way.
I was impressed with Northstars core values statement.

Man is designed for adventure, for full life and we believe that everyone, regardless of creed, age, gender, faith, ability is entitled to experience the stoke for which they are designed.  We have had people of all walks of life, faith, and perspective come to NORTHSTAR and enjoy our hospitality, experience our adventure, and share our joy.  I hope that as we respect others and their values, that others will respect our core values as well. 

The work is mainly trail maintenance and possibly some repair on the lodge itself. Ultimately though the work is secondary. The real purpose and benefit of short term missions work is the relationships and the gain in character. I hope to build relationships as strong as those I built in Africa and to come back with stories that will inspire others to go on a short term missions trip.

Mr Grisson and Peter Mardsen

Mr. Grissom lived across the street from my best friend when I was a kid. He spent hours building what he said was a James Bond car. It was an amazing car and he’d gotten quite far in the project. The last time I saw Mr. Grissom working on the project he was sanding the fiberglass body he had prototyped himself.  Ultimately the project failed. I’m not sure if he ran out of money or interest but he stopped working on it. To this day if I bring his name up to anyone who knew him back then the first question they ask is “Isn’t he that crazy guy that tried to build a James Bond car”.

Peter Mardsen is a Danish hobbyist who built, at the time, the largest homebuilt submarine in the world – UC3 Nautilus. The Nautilus is a 58 foot long submarine capable of diving to 500 meters with a crew of four. In August 2008 the Nautilus made its maiden voyage.

In the beginning the ideas of both these projects are equally absurd. There isn’t anything less crazy about the goal of building a 58 foot submarine than there is about building a James Bond car. The only difference is one was a success and the other was a failure. Had Mr. Grissom successfully finished his car, to this day he would be viewed as one of the most interesting men I’ve ever met.  The only difference between a crazy idea and a genius idea is the end result.

Life Changing Goals

Like most people I get a little reflective at the beginning of the year and start thinking about goals and changes I’d like to make in myself. What my life is and what I’d like it to be are stark contrasts. My belief is that just like me, most people aren’t doing as well in life as they’d like.

I’ve come as far in life as can be reasonably expected doing things the way I’ve always done them. In order for my life to change and become more like I would like it to be I need to make some BIG changes. This is where the bulk of us fall down. I believe the most common hindrance to making big changes is the fear of failure.

This fear makes us set the bar much lower than is necessary to realize the big gains in life we hope to achieve. If you have a true passion for something then do that thing, don’t settle for a version of it. I know a couple corporate trainers that settled into that position after giving up on their ambitions to become a licensed teacher. They are just as unhappy as they were before they started down that career path. They settled an the illusory version of their dream rather than taking the hard road and going for the real thing.

Fear helps us talk ourselves down from the ledge. Life changing goals are scary. If we succeed then much greater opportunities and happiness await us. If we fail we face disappointment in ourselves. Forgive yourself; there are always bumps in the road and wrong turns. One of my favorite quotes is from Kurt Vonnegut “A step backward, after a wrong turn, is a step in the right direction”. Just remember that until you give up you haven’t failed.

Peace Agreement in CAR

I’ve received word from Dr Ngoumape. A peace agreement was made between the rebel leaders and President Bozize. According to Dr Ngoumape the people are freely wandering the streets again. School started back up yesterday.

Update on the Central African Republic

Since the last update I received from Africa rebels have taken two additional villages – Alindao and Kouango. Alindao is south of Bombari while Kouango is south of Sibut. Neither village is on the main road to Bangui. In addition to overtaking the two villages, rebels have also destroyed a sugar factory.  Despite the scheduled peace talks coming this week it seems they are still active.

A more immediate threat to the people of the Central African Republic is the troops sent to “assist”. These soldiers are setting up roadblocks and demanding money and possessions from the Bangui residents. The people they should be protecting are unable to purchase food for fear they will be stopped and robbed on the way.

Rebels Halt Their Advance on Bangui

By now you’ve heard rebels have ceased their advance on the capital city of Bangui. I was very hopeful but wanted to wait until I heard from Dr Ngoumape who has been sending updates when he can. I received an update from him this morning.  He expressed his hopefulness that a peaceful resolution could be met but warns there is still much uncertainty on both sides. He requests that we pray that everyone involved in the discussion will hold the interest of the entire country above personal interests or revenge.

He said the schools were supposed to reopen today but are still closed. The principal will broadcast when the schools are to reopen.  His wife and children are all doing well. They were sent to a city by the Cameroon border in the event of a worst case scenario. He stayed behind to care for a group of orphans and a friend who suffered a stroke and is too ill to travel. He made no mention of the children or his friend so I assume they are all doing relatively well.