Tired Brain

We just got back from a 2 week trip to Ethiopia and we are tired!!
 We went there to meet the partners that we will be working with and since they were in Addis for a meeting it seemed like a good time to meet them all. That may not have been such a good idea since there were so many people and names to remember! It was a good visit and I do remember some names and can put them with the right people but there are a bunch that I can't do that with.

As we pulled into the old mission compound there was a feeling of coming home as I looked at the old office building, that still looks the same, where my dad worked years ago. Then I looked around and things had changed everywhere else so it was disorienting. It is funny how a place can feel the same and so different.

We then went to Gambella where dad had a little house and where I remember being so many times. The town has grown SO much and looks nothing like it did before! Gone are the quiet dusty streets and lanes, the one little cafe and the village feel. Now there are paved roads, banks on every corner, electricity and running water(most of the time). We stayed at a guest house that is run by the Anywaa and after a meeting there I walked out of the office and was hit with the sounds and smells of the place that reminded me SO much of time there with my dad. I really felt my dad was right there with me. We then went to the Nuer compound where I meet men who were ordained my my dad and listened to stories about him and was so warmly welcomed as the daughter of Robb (Dhouryaom - his Nuer name). It was a healing trip for me and I was sad to leave but I will be going back!

Now we are back in Juba and trying to get caught up on emails and figure out how to do this new job. It will mean a lot of time on the computer. I am not sure how one person did this job before but I now understand the stress he was under.