What Has Been On Your Mind Lately?

Well, on a trivial note one thing that is on my mind lately is the weather. I’m not sure if my body has acclimated to Mexican weather, or if I’ve turned into a wimp, but it’s cold down here. I know, I know “cold” is relative. Here we are living with sunny skies with lows in the 30’s at night and some of you are standing in two feet of snow in sub-zero temperatures. But in my defense let me say that there is no heat in this house. Oh how nice it would be to roll out of the bed in the morning and turn up the thermostat. Instead the “thermostat” is a pair of warm-ups over the pajamas, an extra sweater, hooded jacket, and sitting on the couch for quiet time with an extra blanket and cup of coffee while holding the dog.

Much more seriously, Haiti is on my mind. The images of devastation along with the mounting problems of hunger, thirst, disease and looting reflect the pain of the Haitian people. This is not the first time of trouble in this country as an employee of our company wrote a few months ago, “The really poor have taken to eating dirt cookies to fill their stomachs. These cookies are made of dirt, salt and vegetable shortening and then dried in the sun. I have tried them. They do not taste good. But for the poorest of the poor, dirt cookies are eaten when they cannot afford to purchase food.” Their problems have not all been physical either. Another employee described a conversation with a local mayor who said, "As the mayor, I use the services of the witchdoctor. But, so do all the pastors." That comment led him to this insight, “The area is so steeped in Voodooism… that even the pastors are blinded to the truth they presumably teach.” Haiti needs our prayers on many fronts.

In a word - Daniel. His return to West Virginia for work has preoccupied our thoughts, too.

Out there on the horizon is that word………………..re-entry. Re-entry is a time when you come back to your home country and try your hardest not to go through the same “shock” as you did when you left in the first place. I’m sure we will be posting thoughts about it in the future, but for now it’s on our mind a lot. We are giving thought and conversation to what we have learned, who we are now, how all that translates into the future, and we are reaching out to people who can provide insight. That’s what has been on our mind a lot lately.

Charter Member of Our Wisdom Team