Zambia is far away

From the moment that I left home November 6, I have been going. My time away from the church was packed with action and events. I am not complaining, but it means that I have not really had time to process all that I saw and did. One way that I plan to do this is through writing. I want to share with the church what I learned, as I figure it out for myself. Buckle up, this may be a crazy ride.
The adventure began an hour before we left our house. The text came through: your flight has been delayed. The problem with this is that it forced us to miss our connecting flight in Europe. Our itinerary was quickly changed, giving us an 11-hour layover in Paris (daytime in France, but overnight for us), along with a longer flight to Johannesburg before heading on to Lusaka.

Flying out of Vancouver also gave us the joy of dealing with the Canadian border. Though we got pulled from the car and questioned, they let us go in plenty of time to catch our (now delayed) flight.

The 9.5-hour flight to Paris was uneventful. We landed in the city of love at 1a Washington time. We went through customs, stowed our carry-on baggage, and hopped a train into the city. We spent the next several hours on foot, seeing: Notre Dame Cathedral, the Louvre, Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel tower, while eating pastries and sipping on espresso. Our delay gave us time to sightsee and to keep ourselves awake to adjust the 10-hour time difference from Washington to Zambia. What originally seemed like an inconvenience turned into a blessing.

By the time that we got on the next plane, it was 12p PST, and we had been up for 30 hours. The plan was to sleep on the plane to get our bodies aligned with the time zone. Unfortunately, due to switching flights, I lost my exit row set, and the girl in front of me decided to recline for the entire 11-hour flight. With my knees pinned, I had a very difficult time sleeping and did not get more than two hours total. Airplanes do not seem to be designed for tall people; the girl in front of me slept the entire flight (for the record).

From Johannesburg, we had a short layover, before a 2 hour flight to Lusaka, Zambia. After sorting out an issue with lost luggage (my travelling partners, not mine), we made the drive to Camp Ciyanjano. Once we got settled, had a men’s Bible study, and had dinner with the Huckaby family, we got some much-needed shuteye. At that point, I had slept 2hours in the last 48 and it did not take long for my eyes to close once my head hit the pillow. — Below Photo: Huckaby Family Home

What all of this travel reminded me of was just how far away Zambia is. While I realize that a hundred years ago this trip would have taken weeks/months rather than days; it is still a great deal of work to get there. For those who have committed their lives to serving here, home is far. Friends and family are distant. Every time you think about those you are missing, you are also reminded of the work it takes to get to them. While missionaries get used to these long trips, they are never easy (especially with kids).

As we get together with our families to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner, let’s remember those who have chosen to serve God far away. They know what they are missing, but see faithfulness to God’s call as worth sacrificing for.

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