elEven minutEs

We headed for the airport with five hours to spare and chilled in the lobby of the airport with our new Egyptian friends for an hour. We were eleven minutes late checking in for our flight to Nairobi and the ticket counter lady was stone walling us.
Initially, I believed that after serving others in the jungle and helping different organizations the time here in Africa might be less gratifying. Over the past week we have had numerous gratifying and meaningful interactions with the Egyptians and tourists alike in this country! Heidi and I have been blown away with the opportunities to share ourselves and our thoughts with people, at the same time receiving more than we could possibly give. In Aswan my huge obnoxious beard brought about an interesting conversation with a devout Muslim man and two days of apartment hunting with our brilliant friend Mason brought about several late nights discussing everything under the sun. We have been blessed and challenged beyond our expectations!

We decided to join the herds of tourists enjoying the Nile valley from the deck of a boat and so we boarded the vessel "The King Of The Nile" to travel up stream to Aswan. Three days of sheer bliss is actually much too generous but we soaked in the flavor of the valley and watched life pass by on the banks of the river that breathes life into this land. Having a place to store our gear for three days and meeting fellow adventurers and "soft" tourist was well worth the price and Aswan greeted us with open hands (asking for "baksheesh",tips, often : ) Two of our favorite days passed in Aswan starting with an idyllic feluca (sailboat) ride preceded by fierce haggling over the price. We asked them to take us across the river to a beautiful sand dune that we wished to jump down and it was all that we hoped for!

After playing with some kids in a Nubian village we sacked out for the night and slept fitfully for three hours until we were startled from our slumber by a knock at the door alerting us that our bus was about to leave for Abu Simbel, a famous ancient Egyptian temple. After three hours on the bus down to Lake Nasser we rubbed the sleep from our eyes and peared at the towering colossi of Ramses II. Two hours later we were herded back onto the bus for the long ride back. Still attempting to be the non-typical travelers we left the tour near the Aswan High Dam to float the Nile back to town. With five hours until our train was to take us to Cairo we plied the waters and pointed our bow down stream. Local feluca drivers exhibited the gamut of emotions, from cheering us on to one man trying to run me down, with two hours to spare we landed in Aswan and proceeded to prepare to leave. After a comical dinner party with fascinating fellow travelers Heidi and I ended up running down the platform to catch our train just in the nick of time.

After boarding the train we ended up sitting in the wrong seats on the train and had the greatest conversation and eventually two days with a local Egyptian woman named Monna! She literally took us under her wing and answered all of our ignorant questions about her culture, country, and politics and many other things besides. She treated us to lunch and an evening of conversation with her and her friend Muhamad. Her great sense of humor and intelligence won us over. We learned so much about her in such a short time and treated us like a true friend, thank you Monna!

So yes, we missed our flight by eleven minutes and now we are stuck in Cairo.

I think when we get to heaven God will say to Dave "Well done, you have used up the earth I gave you, you have gone and done as much as you possibly could!"

Karen Eubank

Camel Spit

Armed with a very little knowledge from late nights in the book stores reading guide books and not wanting to waist a single day, we hatched a plan to go into the heart of the tourist trade and visit the massive towering pyramids. We knew enough not to trust all the crowds of Egyptians trying to sell us a ride on their donkey or the folks trying to usher us into their shop, but we were duped before we even arrived at the pyramids. Being the thrifty traveler we rode the subway most of the way then a cheap group taxi and that is where we were taken. He befriended us on the way and ushered us in the ally way only to empty our pockets with sweet tea and cheap talk. We did ride a camel and a tired old horse through the blowing sands and thoroughly enjoyed our whole experience except for that sick feeling in my gut at paying double for a our excursion.

There are four pairs of underwear on this manikin . . .

Our time in Thailand wrapped up with only a few loose ends that Heidi and I had to pass off to other people taking our place. After only a week of traveling and seeing the sights we realize how much more rewarding working with a group like the Free Burma Rangers is. Their mission and values are easy to take on as our own! Heidi and I felt such a connection with our new friends at FBR and we are thankful to be involved with such a needed organization. We believe it was a total God thing for us to be there when we were and to do the things we did.

After chasing our tails with the Brazilian Embassy we finally freed ourselves of their grasp and abandoned the big city, Cairo. We took an over night train "saving money on a hotel" but believe me that plan did not pan out as the bus careened through mountain passes and over giant pot holes tossing us to the ceiling. We did enjoy a pleasant day in the tourist trap of a city called Hurghada. After surveying the property we promptly donned our swimsuits and swam out to an old boat that had sunk in a storm, then over to the adjacent property and snuck through the gate. I gave Heidi her first windsurfing lesson in the light breeze off the Red Sea. The kiddie water slide was fun then we retired and nursed our sunburned bodies in our hotel room. The next morning we made our way into town and caught the first bus out of that town for Luxor.

At this moment Heidi and I are exhausted after a tiring day of driving our bicycles all over Luxor exploring the valley of the Kings and other nearby sights. Over the loudspeaker the Muslim call to prayer is lilting through the air adding a surreal feeling to the hot evening sun peeking through the cracks in the un-finished, semi-covered roof we are sitting on. All this after a fitful nights sleep on this same roof of our hostel listening to the sounds of a city like a child that will not close its eyes to rest. Thankfully Heidi has seemed to recover fully from her duel with the little malaria bugs. We must be careful as sometimes those little creatures hide in the liver and make a nasty come back down the road a piece.

"Cheap rubbish for sale" he said with a smile "why should I lie!"

Bazaar shop owner in Luxor

Poke Me, Prod Me

Yesterday Heidi and I experienced the Thai health care system. We were very pleased with the whole experience and we heard today on the final results from the tests. We know for sure it is not twins!!

These few weeks we have been out of the jungle have been punctuated by huge transition for Heidi and I. It is interesting to say the least to go from the jungle where at most moments we are within easy striking distance of the bad guys and many of the people have fled within the past month or year. There we were sleeping on the floor, eating much the same thing every day, walking anywhere and everywhere you needed to go. Maybe living simply is the best description, the only concern is where the bad guys are, how to help the good guys, food, shelter, and a bath now and then, that is all. The contrast to here in the city is so vast, we have not a drop of fear in our veins, all of our needs and many of our desires are easily met, a warm comfy bed waits for us and a hot shower. The deadliest issue around is driving the streets and those pesky mosquito's buzzing around. If you walk through the markets there is more food and trinkets and JUNK than I ever knew existed. Heidi and I have asked ourselves over and over why we are the ones that come and go so easily and in reality have this seemingly perfect life. We keep repeating the truth to each other "to whom much is given much is required and we try to do more and give more, and ask God to show us how to do it better.

Through our time in the jungle both Heidi and I waited eagerly for the day when we would see an elephant. There were numerous signs of their presence but all we managed to see were their mountainous piles of poo and the gigantic foot prints they left behind. In order to satiate our desire for the mighty elephant this past Saturday we joined the other tourists and went for a ride on one of the beasts. The crazy tourist type folks we met and the giant animal between our legs made for a great day and a fun adventure.

As for the hospital visit Heidis test came back negative for Malaria, Typhus and Dengue Fever (sorry no baby either) : ). Praise God we are in a place where we have doctor friends who speak English and deal with these problems every day. The Malaria is a tricky one and several varieties do not show up on the tests so at this point we have not ruled it out. Heidi feels fine today but yesterday she felt quite ill. Please pray for her health and a fast recovery!

My beard is getting obnoxious and hot and not fun. Heidi is getting board of the three shirts she has (especially now that I have washed them with my clothes and marred their brilliant colors). We lost over ten pounds each in the jungle but the ice cream twice a day hasn't helped keep it that way. Thai parking tickets are 12 dollars, don't be alarmed if they keep your drivers license until you pay.

From what I can tell people are getting decapitated all the time in here but the Saints have never been in the Super Bowl, I gotta go!

Anonymous

Sloth in a Foot Race with Kenyans

I held my breath for just a second as my entire body stiffened. Then, after two shallow, quick breaths, I resigned myself for the hundredth time as the words "buck up" flashed across my mind and I plunged my body into the icy river water - for my bath. As I stumbled out of the river I often thought "burr this water is freezing" and "man, this is inconvenient taking a bath with a body size wash cloth draped around me" or "quick, where's my towel" but this time I thought "phew, I'm so glad I cut my hair; it makes bath time quicker!!"







Lyle and I entered Karen State under a tarp in a wooden long boat. As we road along, suffocated from the heat under the tarp, it dawned on me that I was under this tarp because of what I looked like, where I came from, who I was. I was too different to blend in and my difference wasn't allowed where I was. I can't remember that ever happening to me before and it made me think of the thousands of people throughout history who have had to hide, run, or change because they where different. My situation was nothing compared to theirs, in fact the absurdity of it all was it felt like just another day.


After my very first cold shower in Karen State I realized what a pain my long hair was going to be for the next two months while I bathed in cold rivers. So, upon Lyle's suggestion we cut off a healthy chunk of my hair and I realized that particularly cold bath day it was much easier to manage in the jungle.

In Karen State I'm the white girl with no hops and everyone else is a Kenyan. Kenyans are known for their runners. They are born with it, it's easy, natural. The Karen are born into simple living in a war torn land. They know how to bathe in cold rivers in a dress, cook amazing food over a fire, walk for days with 30 kilos, build anything out of bamboo, and, most importantly, live under the constant threat of being attacked. Through it all they have a grace, like Kenyans running, in their actions and speech. Times when I was almost paralyzed by the hopelessness of the situation they laughed and said "we have to keep going, we wont be at war forever". When I was exhausted, sweaty, and stinky from a 10 hour hike and all I wanted was to sit, they ran about, with a smile on their faces, preparing hot water and food . . . FOR ME! and often wouldn't even let me help. When I took a bath with my hand always ready to grab my surong before it fell of, which it inevidable did at the worst times, they seemed to perform a smooth dance as they skillfully took their surongs on and off. When I carelessly loaded up logs full of ants into the firewood basket slung across my back and they worked their way down into my pants causing me to suffer from bights all over my bottom that itch even as I write this, a month later, they seem to never be bothered by the biting, stinging, poking wildlife. When I'm constantly questioning God about why these people have to endure years of injustice they are praising Him for His rich blessings of life, food, education, and family. When I cry after hearing a teacher's story about running from the enemy the same teacher tells me, with hope and joy in her eyes, that the only way we can form relationships with each other and make things better is to "pray for each and every family and for each and every village". And then they came to me and asked how to improve their education system, or how to make things better for their children, or how to play with Lego's.

Grace, humility, hope, generosity, humor, determination, and love radiates out of these people. If life was a foot race the ethnic groups of Burma would be the Kenyans. I was privileged to watch them run, just for a bit, and see what it looks like to really run.

"We talk different but we laugh and cry the same"

- Htoo Htoo Eh; FBR Ranger

The Enemy Without

How do you summarize two months of heart rending, life changing, explosive moments in a few short paragraphs? I didn't know whether to laugh at the absurdity of my position or poop my pants at the possible outcomes. Heidi and I huddled under the tarp in the early morning dawn as the long boat sped down the river to deliver us to our jumping off point to walk into the Burma jungle. All we could see were feet of our security and the buts of their AR15 rifles. Hiking under the cover of darkness the first night with a few hours rest then over the mountains to the FBR training camp we felt like we were coming home as the Eubank family and many other local folks greeted us and welcomed us to the camp. The adventure was only beginning.

I don't think there is a single person in America that can truly relate to our friends in Karen state Burma. Imagine living in a beautiful country ravaged by constant war since your grandpa was a boy. Imagine, if you can, not having a penny to your name, the home you lived in as a child was burned; then you were forced to move not once but sometimes more than once a month as men encroached on your territory that would not hesitate to kill or torture you for days at their leisure. If the bad guys are coming you may have several hours warning or they may sneak to your village, surround it and shoot into your bamboo houses, killing children, men, and women as they run. Imagine, if it is possible, to raise a family in a situation were you have no security at all other than the faith you may have that there is a God and He really cares for you. Can you imagine these same people sharing their rice with you, smiling, and laughing and loving? I could never imagine anything like it unless I had seen it with my own eyes. These people are so genuine and speak of their trials so easily I feel embarrassed that I ever complain about anything at all.

The first section of our trip we had the privilege of seeing the new batch of graduates from the FBR training camp complete their three day exam in which they are not allowed to sleep or eat on a race type situation through many different obstacles testing their skills in everything from land mine detection and disarming, medical trauma patient assistance, multiple river crossings, and navigation. Heidi and I stayed busy doing any task we could lay our hands and brains to before we all packed up and headed down the trail to start our actual missions into the different areas to help people. Heidi joined the GLC group and I joined the headquarters group and we parted ways for two weeks. For our first anniversary we could only dream of each other and by our second Christmas we still had a few more days to wait before reuniting.

I thought it ironic that a man with an AK-47 strapped to his back plays with legos.

I spent quite a bit of time contemplating the situation that our new friends are in and how a lifetime of war would effect your perspective. I find these folks no different really than me, they breath air like I do, they grow and marry their true love like I did, they dream big dreams like I do but a big difference is most of their energy is fighting an enemy that they can see and feel. For most of the people reading this your enemy is likely more insidious and deceptive as it is for me. The evil that catches me is not so palpable and blatant. I find myself fighting improper desires for wealth and fame (more likely infamy : ) and to some degree power. How different it is to have your enemy be a honest to goodness bad guy out there seeking to kill you.

Heidi crossing one of the many bridges in Karen state.

A real live super hero, this man killed enimies with his sword and first fought the Japanese in the rice padi that we met him in during World War Two when he was twelve.

Home made land mines by the good guys
Despite what it looks like the two dudes on the right are not wearing skirts, they are lungies and they are very comfortable.

In a discussion among the whities about the proper way for each gender to tie their lungie we were informed that the men have a lump in the front and the womens are flat. . .

Flat tires, jet lag and culture shock

Have you ever driven a stressed out lady and her young son and infant two hours down a bumpy logging trail after she had major surgery trying to find her husband that lives eight hours walk from the meeting place only to find him not there and then driving on a crazy 4by4 trail and waited for him at that spot until he finally arrived only after trying to use an interpreter relaying through two other people over the radio to try to communicate? Now we can say we have done that. They shared a slice of their giant hot dog the size of a sumo wrestlers arm, literally, the thing was huuuuuuge, for lunch before we disappeared in a cloud of dust.

I have often dreamt of sailing across the Pacific Ocean, actually it is one of my life goals. It took us fourteen hours to cross the great ocean going over 500 miles an hour, it is a stinkin long way over here, that would be a long trip going seven or eight knots over all that water. I think we'll stop in Fiji for a break on the way. We have been in Chiang Mai now for two nights and the jet lag is wearing off. Tomorrow morning we hit the road again heading into the Burmese jungle!!! We are so excited, so excited I just peed myself a little thinking about it. We have been drilling people with questions since we arrived, feeling a little naive as to what to expect and what we will be doing. For the next six to eight weeks we will be hiking the jungle, arriving first at the training area helping the FBR army guys and participating as we can for a week or two. Next, we will be helping with the good life clubs or hiking further into the jungle and visiting villages along the way. We will be unable to update our blog until we return to Chiang Mai in six or eight weeks so both of you who read this (thanks moms : ) will have to hold your breath until we come out!

Before we left our friends in Mexico Heidi and I both filled our days as best we could using up our last hours to finish all the loose ends. Heidi installed all the trim in three rooms that she had been cutting and painting, I built three sets of shelves for Mark, we watched a three hour movie in Spanish, Dave and I agonised over how to get some tires to Mark after his had gone irreversibly flat, and we packed our bags to enter the next phase of our adventure.

Sometimes Heidi and I look at each other and exclaim at how lucky and blessed and fortunate and maybe even a little stupid we are for jumping into an adventure like this. We have had more adventure in the past month and a half than many people experience in a lifetime. Heidi and I are struck at Gods provision for us along the way already, mostly the friends that He has clearly put in our lives to bless and be blessed by, God is so good!! Sometimes we have felt an expectation of what God is going to do and we feel that now as we head out into the jungle, we are waiting, and praying to see His hand move!!

"STINKING POOPY"

Our favorite quote in flawless english by Daves wife Delia after losing a game of UNO

Picking the scab

The flight would have been longer if I hadn't thrown my headset out the door with the air drop we were making. Yes, you read correctly, it seams I have a habit here of destroying things right and left. First it was the pots we scraped some of the Teflon off then snapping one of the living room chairs, cutting the cord on the skill saw, and the list goes on. I feel a bit like an accident waiting to happen. Anyway, Dave and I prepared the airdrops the night before and I was able to ride along with Mark to throw the packages out for John the Mennonite. The first two dropped perfectly with the shoots opening to soften the reunion with the earth. The last one I forced from the plane with half my body hanging out the plane but somehow my arm hooked the headset cord and flung the thing off my head and out into space. Angry with myself I forgot to look to see if the package landed OK and see if my headset missile killed anyone on the ground as it plummeted to earth.

The following day Mark, Carmen, Heidi and I along with Dexter the dog, piled into a jeep to bump our way out to Rowadiche and spend the next three days hiking to rural villages to help the sick and visit friends. Carmen is a doctor at the mission hospital and has spent many of her days off hikeing to the bush villages to help where she can. For Heidi and I it was a spectacular dichotomy seeing the awesome beauty of the high sierra and immensity of the canyons with shear cliffs and unforgiving beauty and seeing the beautiful people that carve out an existence there and their rugged way of life and the palpable spiritual darkness. We feel honored to gain insight into this place and see what life is like for our neighbors here.

It is a staggering reality check for Heidi and I gaining a little idea of life for these folks. Many of the friends we have made live a true subsistence lifestyle growing corn and beans to last the year and find other work occasionally to provide the other necessities. Infant mortality here in the sierra is the highest in the Western Hemisphere. Simple sanitation education would dramatically improve that statistic but new ideas are slow to take root.

One of the nights we spent out in the bush the family we stayed with offered their own house for us to sleep in. We were honored still even when we found that they had been spending the last several moons sleeping under the stars to avoid the starving flees that were infesting their house. We enjoyed an evening under the milky way that night.

Carmen put us to work on one of the children that had scabbed over wounds on his head with the dried puss mounding up in his thick black hair. With my leatherman I cut the hair away to expose the wound and we picked away at the scab to expose the bloody flesh in order to treat it with ointment. If left unattended Carmen informed us the problem would eventually cause serious kidney damage.

We are two days away from leaving our new home down here and looking forward to the next chapter. Mixed feelings follow as we must leave old friends and our new friends alike. I don't think I will miss the flees, but the parasites in the jungle are bound to treat us less kindly.

Chinese proverb say - Don't open a shop unless you like to smile