abysmal frequency

What does it take to be a good blogger? I suppose doing so more than once every couple of months is a prerequisite. Sorry, folks. I'll try and do better.

Last week was a doozy, with a multiple changes of plans in terms of how and when we go to Mozambique to do our 737 acceptance, plus a drive to Joburg and back on a failed attempt to get Shell & the kids on a flight to the States. Yesterday the four of us drove down here to Johannesburg again, and God be praised the family got on the flight. They'll spend a week or so in Seattle before flying to Ohio for sister Sue's wedding, where I'll meet them and the rest of the extended family for resounding celebrations.

I am now sitting in a hotel lobby near the airport, waiting to hear the plan. . . looks at the moment like I'll meet our chief engineer here and then we'll fly to Maputo for a few days. I hope to be off to the States by Thursday evening.

Caleb writes

This picture is me with a dead hornbill that my Dad ran over. I am chopping its head off so that I can use the beak for a necklace. My Dad ran over it while we were going to a lodge near Victoria Falls. When we went to Vic Falls, we went through all these points next to the falls so we could take pictures, and at the end we rode a zipline that was 500' in the air. We went on a sweet boat ride along the Chobe river, and saw many hippos, elephants, and crocodiles. During the whole trip we saw exactly 497 elephants. We got blockaded by elephants three times, and all three of those times we almost got killed. Before we got to Vic Falls, we went to to Makgadikgadi Pans, and we ate the ground which was salt. Since the pans are very flat, the water goes out a long way, but it's not deep the whole time - maybe up to your ankles. We saw many animals, including giraffe and a lioness and her cubs. It was a fun trip.

Malena writes

This is when I went to vic falles one of the 7 wonders of the world. on this same vacaction we went to THE VICTORIA FALLS HOTEL and looked around.I went on a zipline and over a gorge and if we fell we would have fell 100 meters down. We were staying in the town Kasane and we could see elephants and worthog (wild pig)and other animals like: leopard ,cheetahs, lions and jakals and hippo. My dad accidentllay ran over a hornbill and i felt so sorry that i almost cried but i told myself i was a big girl now . we almost died because an elephant was walking in the road and behind the car and a herd was walking in the middle of the road toward the car so if we wanted to go back the elephant still would kill us if we did but we went to the side so that they could cross and then we were fine. By Malena

hospital outreach

We have long been wanting to start some sort of ministry in the local hospital, Princess Marina, and this week things took a big step forward. Here's an excerpt from a letter I wrote to a friend yesterday:

"Just a bit of background: For decades Flying Mission has been doing a Bible distribution on Boxing Day (the day after Christmas, for you holiday-illiterate Americans) in the Princess Marina Hospital, giving out several hundred Bibles, and stopping to talk and pray with people that are interested. It’s a great time, but there’s no real opportunity for the building of relationships or the meeting of long-term needs due to the merely annual nature of the event. When we Weiseths joined the rest of the Flying Mission family this year for the event, I got separated from the herd, and ended up spending an hour or so with a young paraplegic named Kabelo. I resonated with this bright, hopeful guy, and found myself returning to visit him and a few other friends regularly. In the meantime, a few people at our church, unbeknownst to me, started talking about a hospital outreach. Additionally, Flying Mission saw the arrival of an Australian nurse named Laurel who started engaging in home-based care ministry.

 

In the past month or so, it occurred to me and and others that we might join together – Open Baptist Church working with Flying Mission in Princess Marina Hospital. Two initial fronts are envisioned: men working in the Orthopedic ward at the hospital, and women reaching out to expectant and new mothers, many of whom are far away from their home villages for the delivery of their children, and who often face difficult circumstances. We met with the Head Matron at the hospital, and received permission to begin outreach there, with no restrictions upon any kind of ministry we wish to do. And I stood in front of our church this last Sunday and announced our inaugural planning and training meeting this coming Saturday.

 

We are excited for this new open door, and think it only right that you guys, our Tacoma family, would know about it. If you have the opportunity, Shelley and I would ask that you pray for all of us here. In future updates, I look forward to introducing some of the other people involved in this to you. . . and to telling you how things are taking shape. Much remains to be decided. We don’t even know what we’re going to do in the hospital beyond talking and praying with folks! But God has planted something here, and I know He will make it grow."

 

 More soon. . .

Stasis?

As cooler temperatures set in here in the southern hemisphere, it would seem that hibernation is beginning in areas other than the animal kingdom. You may recall that I flew to the States in February in order to qualify as Captain on the B-737, with the hope that Flying Mission would initiate airline operations on behalf of Air Botswana soon thereafter.

Well, here's June. And no 737 has darkened the ramp at Sir Seretse Khama International Airport as of yet.

Why the delay? The reasons are myriad, and I am unfortunately not at liberty to discuss them in any detail. And the future looks pretty murky as well. But. We came to Africa as a result of a series of opening doors which I frankly would have called impossible a year earlier. Our time here has been both transformational and fulfilling, with a clear sense that the Lord has prepared a way for us all along.

Is this stasis? Emphatically no. Yes, I and a number of folks in Flying Mission Services are frustrated that we aren't yet flying jets. But there is more going on in the meantime, details of which I'll relate in my next post.

waking from dormancy

Holy smokes, I have neglected this blog for too long! Stand by for some substantive updates later this week. . .

TWIR, Part 2

As the school / work week began, Caleb made a presentation on the life of Captain Cook, along with two intrepid compatriots.



Meanwhile, Roscoe P. Coltrane continued to take it easy.


Malena enlisted the help of a neighbor friend, Wapa, as she did a baking project for school. Pancakes.


And I flew a team of doctors with Airborne Lifelink out into the Kalahari desert for a day of medical outreach.

The Week in Review, Part 1

It's been awhile since I've put up any images on the blog; here's a quick review of the past week or so.



My boss, Mark, is friends with a brother and sister who were orphaned at the ages of 10 and 8. Six years later, they are still forging along without the support of any significant family members. We four Weiseths joined him and a few other folks from Flying Mission and from church for a house painting party. Malena managed to get no more than 15% of the paint on herself.




Caleb did great, ascending to great heights in order to get every square inch covered.



On Sunday, Malena and Shelley went and rode horses at a nearby stable, while Caleb and I engaged in more motor-driven activities. There is a nearby motocross track; Caleb shaved a good thirty seconds off of his previous best lap time.



Meanwhile, I studied the adventures of a local dung beetle as he (or she) valiantly tried to wrestle this prime piece of dung up a significant incline.

. . . to be continued

African Speed

Well, it's been a few weeks since my return from the beautiful USA - a whirlwind tour consisting of five or six gloriously busy days with family and friends in Seattle, and two weeks of eating, sleeping, and breathing 737 at Higher Power Aviation in Dallas.

I had hoped that we'd be farther down the road in terms of getting operational here. But the mark of an veteran of Africa - a title to which I suppose we Weiseths can begin to lay claim - is a moderation of temporal expectations. So. . . we are currently at the mercy of the powers that be, both in Botswana and South Africa, as we wait for papers to be signed, licenses to be validated, and manuals to be approved. In the meantime, I am dividing my time between pushing the paperwork forward and starting to fly air ambulance operations again.

homeward bound

Well, after a month stateside, I'm headed back to my beautiful family in Gaborone. It was a dizzyingly fast 30 days, with a week home with my folks and time with siblings, nephews and niece, and friends. . . then on to Dallas where my Flying Mission partner in crime Matt and I got "type rated" in the Boeing 737.

If the reason for getting captain rated in the 737 is a mystery to you, stand by just a few days and all will be revealed. Right now I have a plane to catch. . .

Happy New Year, everyone!

 

2010 was one heck of a year for the Weiseth family.  Casting off, packing up, or packing away all we own and making a new life here in Africa hasn’t been without its share of turbulence.  But we find ourselves slack-jawed with amazement at God’s tender, direct, and faithful guidance over these past twelve months.  He steered us into just the right place for our family, and we are so very thankful to be here.  Here are a few highlights from our year:

 

 

 Flying Mission has a Boxing Day tradition of visiting the hospital, distributing Bibles, talking with and praying for people there.  More than ten families showed up this year, distributing hundreds of Bibles in both English and Setswana, and forging some great relationships.  Caleb and I are headed back today, and it’s a Weiseth family goal to continue visiting throughout the coming year.  The little ones in particular touched our hearts, and there’s been some talk about starting some sort of drama or puppet show for them.  If you have script ideas, let us know!

 

 

 We had kind of assumed that all neighbourhoods in Gaborone would look like this, but in actuality it’s kind of a rarity.  Many have paved streets and a good deal of traffic.  The dirt streets and relative quiet of our little corner of town allow all four of us to get out a lot and spend time with neighbours.  Caleb and Malena in particular are constantly out and about with kids, exploring and playing.  We look forward to continued open doors of ministry on our block.  Here a few kids join us for some of our own 4th of July festivities.

 

 

It’s always great to get out of town for a bit.  In early December the four of us travelled in South Africa, spending a few days at a great little cabin in the tiny town of Groot Marico – swimming, canoeing, rope swinging, bird watching, and star gazing – followed by four or five days with friends in Johannesburg.  Just before the trip I reached my limit with the Botswana heat and shaved my head.  I soon learned firsthand about what I regard to be a highly questionable Botswana practice: when someone shaves his head, people spit on their hands, dip them in the dirt, and slap the unfortunate man hard on the head. . . and laugh uproariously. 

 

2011

 

And what does 2011 hold for us?  O that we had a clue.  I must needs be a bit cryptic at the moment, but the spectrum of possibilities is wide!  Nevertheless, as we look forward to the upcoming year, we do so with great confidence.  Many years ago, my lovely and wise Mom introduced me to the passage in Joshua 4 that speaks of Stones of Remembrance, a memorial that Joshua had the people set up so that they would remember God’s faithfulness and provision in bringing them across the Jordan. Every time they and future generations passed by those stones, their confidence in the Lord was bolstered by that tangible reminder of God’s untiring, perfect, and all-foreseeing care for His people.  The four of us Weiseths have added greatly to our pile of stones this last year, and the beauty of it is that it has nothing to do with our own faithfulness or bravery.  It has everything to do with God and His character.  It is in Him that we place our trust in 2011, no matter what comes.