So I realize I've been really bad about updating this, lets just say jet lag plus going back to work, mom having surgery and getting sick all got the better of me. So I'll tell you a brief story tonight about the lost luggage.
I think losing my luggage was one of my biggest concerns. On my flight from Amsterdam to Entebbe my carry on was checked, which was actually a relief, I wasn't using it and it was too heavy to lift over my head, but when the flight attendant wrote down my destination she wrote down Kigali. We had stopped in Kigali for some to get off and others traveling back to Amsterdam to board. So I was concerned told the flight attendant close to our arrival in Kigali and got everything squared away. It was the one piece of luggage I didn't want to lose, it had my Bible, journals and camera in it. But I was assured it would all be okay and that it was put back on the plane. I didn't really think about the other ones being lost.
But alas I was one of the last ones that wen through the line to get my visa. When I made my way over the belt to pick up my luggage most of it was already taken off. I saw my carry on and personal luggage right away and went on a hunt for my red duffle bag that held all the donations that I had brought. If you ever lost luggage you know it's a bit of a hassle to claim it and eventually get it back, and being in another country it made me very nervous.
On Monday night Thomas told me that they had found the luggage, which I was very excited about. And then Tuesday Morning I had to actually go back to the airport to pick it up. They were obviously curious as to why I had so much medication with me and we had to explain what we were doing. I found out later from one of our translators that a friend of hers had picked up the bag by mistake. She called her friend to let her know and returned the bag to the airport.
It was frustrating at first, but I knew that God was in control and that he had a reason for everything and for why he had that happen. I didn't necessarily like leaving the clinic for pretty much the whole morning, but obviously the Lord had his reasons.
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Thursday, October 11, 2012
The Perils of Luggage!
As promised I will start to write on here about my week and everything that happened during it. But for now lets just start with the travel.
I don't know about you but just the mere thought of traveling for 24 hours makes me tired, add on top of that the stress of packing for a week to go to a country you've never been to before with very limited resources. On Friday night I had my mom and dad over and with the help of my mom and cousin Beth I finished all my packing and triple checked my list to make sure I had everything that I needed. I even questioned whether or not my bags were too big, did I really need that much (and no I didn't), and would my carry on fit?
My carry on was probably my biggest concern. I was already checking two bags. One to completely donate in whatever way I could and the other with my clothing and necessities in it. But I had a nagging feeling about my carry on luggage. On Saturday after checking my luggage and getting all set to go through security I checked to see if my carry on would fit in the little box they have to test it. And behold...it was too big. The wheels stuck out too far and the front pockets made it slightly too wide. I wasn't sure what I was going to do. I really didn't want to check it as well and pay extra money. So I just trusted that the Lord would take care of me and that He had it all under control.
After leaving my parents and cousin at the security check point I began to wheel myself to my gate and walked around a bit. I stopped at my gate but then decided to head for lunch. When I did as I rolled my suit case along I started to notice that it was rolling rather rough. It wasn't rolling very smooth even though the floor was smooth, at one point it felt like I ran over something and when I looked back there was a chunk of my wheel sitting in the middle of the floor. At that point I was a little annoyed but then I realized that the Lord really had a sense of humor. He was causing the wheels to lose the outer shell so that it would fit in the overhead compartment. Both wheels eventually lost all of the outer shell. But God wasn't done yet. I was still concerned about it. Right before boarding they announced that all larger carry on bags would be stowed underneath the plane because the overhead compartments were too small. So once again I need not worry about it.
On the second flight from Detroit to Amsterdam I did have to carry it on. And I learned a valuable lesson, always make sure you can life it above your head before you leave. I had to have help getting it up over head because it was too heavy for me. (Maybe by next time I'll build up my arm strength) :) So then of course I worried that I would have the same trouble on the next flight and I wouldn't have someone kind enough to lift it up for me. But alas God had that worked out too. Once again it was stowed underneath due to the full flight and little overhead space. And after a little worry that it wouldn't make it all the way to Entebbe with me (we stopped in Kigali, Rwanda) the Lord worked that out as well. (Let me just say that I highly appreciate KLM if you are flying internationally, they are the ones to fly with.) So in the end my personal luggage and my carry on made it all the way to Entebbe with me and I didn't need to worry. However my bag of donations was missing! But more on that later. :)
I don't know about you but just the mere thought of traveling for 24 hours makes me tired, add on top of that the stress of packing for a week to go to a country you've never been to before with very limited resources. On Friday night I had my mom and dad over and with the help of my mom and cousin Beth I finished all my packing and triple checked my list to make sure I had everything that I needed. I even questioned whether or not my bags were too big, did I really need that much (and no I didn't), and would my carry on fit?
My carry on was probably my biggest concern. I was already checking two bags. One to completely donate in whatever way I could and the other with my clothing and necessities in it. But I had a nagging feeling about my carry on luggage. On Saturday after checking my luggage and getting all set to go through security I checked to see if my carry on would fit in the little box they have to test it. And behold...it was too big. The wheels stuck out too far and the front pockets made it slightly too wide. I wasn't sure what I was going to do. I really didn't want to check it as well and pay extra money. So I just trusted that the Lord would take care of me and that He had it all under control.
After leaving my parents and cousin at the security check point I began to wheel myself to my gate and walked around a bit. I stopped at my gate but then decided to head for lunch. When I did as I rolled my suit case along I started to notice that it was rolling rather rough. It wasn't rolling very smooth even though the floor was smooth, at one point it felt like I ran over something and when I looked back there was a chunk of my wheel sitting in the middle of the floor. At that point I was a little annoyed but then I realized that the Lord really had a sense of humor. He was causing the wheels to lose the outer shell so that it would fit in the overhead compartment. Both wheels eventually lost all of the outer shell. But God wasn't done yet. I was still concerned about it. Right before boarding they announced that all larger carry on bags would be stowed underneath the plane because the overhead compartments were too small. So once again I need not worry about it.
On the second flight from Detroit to Amsterdam I did have to carry it on. And I learned a valuable lesson, always make sure you can life it above your head before you leave. I had to have help getting it up over head because it was too heavy for me. (Maybe by next time I'll build up my arm strength) :) So then of course I worried that I would have the same trouble on the next flight and I wouldn't have someone kind enough to lift it up for me. But alas God had that worked out too. Once again it was stowed underneath due to the full flight and little overhead space. And after a little worry that it wouldn't make it all the way to Entebbe with me (we stopped in Kigali, Rwanda) the Lord worked that out as well. (Let me just say that I highly appreciate KLM if you are flying internationally, they are the ones to fly with.) So in the end my personal luggage and my carry on made it all the way to Entebbe with me and I didn't need to worry. However my bag of donations was missing! But more on that later. :)
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Back From Uganda!
Well I'm back from Uganda and I had an amazing time!!!
Unfortunately I wasn't able to post anything here at all during the week but I did keep a journal so I will post updates as I can over the next couple of days of what we did and what I experience and what God taught me (Which I still feel like I'm learning and thinking over).
Traveling to and from was definitely exhausting but everything was so worth it. I can't begin to describe how awesome everything was and how beautiful the country was. I will start sharing about everything a little later either today or tomorrow, for now my brain still seems a bit scrambled and overwhelmed.
Thanks to everyone who was praying for us!
PS: Those that prayed for team unity, I can't thank you enough. Our team was awesome and we got along so well, it seemed like we had known each other forever.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to post anything here at all during the week but I did keep a journal so I will post updates as I can over the next couple of days of what we did and what I experience and what God taught me (Which I still feel like I'm learning and thinking over).
Traveling to and from was definitely exhausting but everything was so worth it. I can't begin to describe how awesome everything was and how beautiful the country was. I will start sharing about everything a little later either today or tomorrow, for now my brain still seems a bit scrambled and overwhelmed.
Thanks to everyone who was praying for us!
PS: Those that prayed for team unity, I can't thank you enough. Our team was awesome and we got along so well, it seemed like we had known each other forever.
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