More Pictures

Pictures and commentary below from our 2nd and 3rd weeks in Burundi:

 I continue to be thankful to live in such a beautiful location. The above and below pictures were both taken from our front door. That was actually one of my big prayers when I first visited Burundi in 2011 - that I would experience natural beauty. I know God reveals His glory and creation everywhere, but it's so restorative to me to live in a place where the heavens and earth declare His glory in obvious ways. Burundi certainly does that! And we're looking forward to seeing how the scenery changes in the next few weeks as the rainy season has now begun. 

 Like many developing countries, there is a very wide discrepancy between what resources are available in the city (for those with means) and what is present (or, more likely, absent) in the rest of the country. Nairobi (Kenya), for example, had malls that would rival high-end US malls in both appearance and prices, but Kenya also has many citizens who live in extreme poverty and suffer from severe malnutrition. Burundi is significantly poorer than Kenya (per capita income of $400 instead of $1700) and has a much smaller ex-patriate population, so we weren't sure what would be available in Bujumbura. We knew we would miss Nakumatt (similar to Wal-Mart)! But we have been thankful for missionary friends in Bujumbura showing us around to the few stores that sell things like shampoo and conditioner (at high prices, unfortunately - $10 for each!) and we were especially excited to find some treat places like Cafe Gourmand above (similar to a French bakery), an Indian restaurant (below), and a Catholic co-op that sells delicious ice cream (including my favorite flavor - cinnamon!). It's another blessing to know special treats are available a couple hours away. 

 At the back left of the table above are Randy & Carolyn Bond. We overlapped with them in French language school for the 2nd semester and they will finish their French studies in December and then join us in Burundi early next year. We're excited to have another World Harvest team starting in Burundi and are thankful for the Bonds' friendship. Randy is a peds emergency medicine doc and toxicologist and Carolyn is an English teacher. You can read more about what they will be doing with Hope Africa University in Bujumbura here. 

 While Burundi is a landlocked nation, it does border Lake Tanganyika (longest freshwater lake in the world and second deepest) - pretty for pictures (Maggie and I above) and beneficial for shipping and fishing, but not recommended for swimming due to crocs and hippos! 

 Scenery on drive from Banga to Bujumbura

 Brick kilns like the one above dot the countryside in our region

 Bicycles are the most ubiquitous form of transportation - on mountain roads the above is a frequent sight as cyclists catch a ride uphill on the trucks. We wonder if we will see trauma patients frequently from this practice. 

 The highlight of last week was a visit by some very wise and experienced friends who gave us a cultural orientation to Burundi. We learned many practical things such as no whistling or yelling and also historical & broader insights. We are so thankful to understand more about this unique culture and also to have trusted folks to ask when we don't understand something. We continue to pray for Burundian friends for each of us who can guide us through some of the cultural differences and who we can mutually encourage. 

 A hike on Saturday provided an excellent opportunity to practice my simple Kirundi phrases - and to enjoy exploring with teammates (Micah and Elise above). 

 Houses on the top of the hill and banana trees

 Our entourage and language helpers. They were very happy to answer all my "What's that called?" questions. (Iki ni igiki?) One way we're studying outside of class is through a curriculum developed by a missionary lady here several decades ago. In Lesson 1 she teaches the verb for "to hoe". That wasn't on my list of most useful verbs to learn, but I memorized it anyways. But it seems Betty Cox knew what she was doing as we saw many people hoeing in their fields on our hike - you can see two kids carrying hoes above. And I can accurately say, "The woman hoes in her garden." Maybe not relevant for the hospital setting, but seems to be important for daily life in rural Burundi. 

The poverty is dramatic, especially at the end of dry season. Hopefully the hoeing and new rain will result in crops growing soon and more food being available for the hungry. 

Psalm 35:10 My whole being will exclaim, “Who is like you, O Lord? You rescue the poor from those too strong for them, the poor and needy from those who rob them.”

Psalm 140:12 I know that the Lord secures justice for the poor and upholds the cause of the needy. 

Banga one week update

At one week into our time in Burundi, we are figuring out a routine for our months of intense Kirundi learning. It's certainly a time of transition (and even chaos :)) for everyone as many things are out of our control such as meal times and whether there will be electricity or running water on a given day. But this continues to seem like an ideal setting for learning Kirundi and we're thankful to be here. We've been welcomed enthusiastically by the nuns who run this guesthouse and they continue to teach us new Kirundi phrases all the time. Thankfully they also speak French, so we're able to continue practicing that. French actually feels quite comfortable, now, in comparison to the many strange new sounds of Kirundi! 

 Meals are at 7:30am, 1pm, and 7pm - not quite what we (especially the kids) are used to, but we're adjusting. The food has been delicious, though - much better than I expected! An answer to prayer for a picky eater. :) And see the gorgeous view behind us as Sarah Storm, Maggie, and I eat breakfast in this picture! Sarah Storm is spending the semester with us (before she starts college in January) to help with the kids. I'm thankful to share an apartment with her! 

We attended church on Sunday and were warmly welcomed. Though we spoke no Kirundi at that point, they translated a little bit of the service into French for us and we followed along by observation. The singing in particular is quite beautiful here as the voices harmonize. Looking forward to understanding the words of the songs at some point! 

 Five of us have class in the mornings and 3 in the afternoons. Gilbert teaches Kirundi and French at a local high school and seems to understand what we need to learn. He's already given us a couple medical dialogues as examples! We're thankful for God's provision of a good teacher. We also meet with a language partner (Eugene) in the afternoon in small groups to reinforce the concepts learning in the morning and to practice more interactive exercises. Yesterday three of us went into the nearest town with Eugene and visited some small shops. That was a very helpful language exercise - and also good to know what can be purchased locally! 

For those interested in reading Kirundi, see the chalkboard from a couple days ago. My notes are a mixture of Kirundi, French, and English - with a few Swahili words thrown in occasionally. We definitely are grateful to have started with French as we are indeed learning Kirundi from French. And, especially in this rural area, people are unlikely to speak much English, but most speak some French, and those who have been educated beyond primary school speak French pretty well. So far, Kirundi learning has been pretty overwhelming, but we're starting to recognize the sounds and we're getting more comfortable with greetings. Even the kids are practicing their Kirundi greetings as we walk along the road! Mwiriwe! (afternoon greeting - pronounced mngee-ree-way)

Arrival in Burundi!

After two years away, it feels comfortable and familiar to be back experiencing the sights, sounds, smells, & tastes in Africa! We arrived in Burundi on Wednesday. Our flight in Brussels was delayed due to the fire in the Nairobi airport (our plane was originally scheduled to fly to Nairobi after Burundi), but thankfully the flight continued it’s route to Bujumbura, Burundi and we arrived just a couple hours late. And, amazingly, all our bags arrived, too!  

We spent the first 2 days in Bujumbura sleeping and purchasing supplies - SIM cards, internet modems, laundry baskets, mosquito nets, etc. It was nice to have 2 nights there and we had a lovely place to stay thanks to some missionary friends. Yesterday we headed up country to Banga. We’re staying at the Banga guesthouse for three months in rural Burundi so we can get started on learning the local language of Kirundi before our hospital responsibilities overwhelm us. Banga is a beautiful setting - cultivated hills and banana plants everywhere with smoking brick kilns dotting the countryside. (Houses here are made of brick which evidently must be fired in these homemade kilns for a week before it is hard enough to build with.) Temperatures are in the 70s/low 80s and things are quite dusty and brown now in the dry season but we’re looking forward to watching things become green when the rainy season begins in a few weeks. 

Our team is happy to finally be in Burundi together after years of preparation. It felt monumental to land in the country and then to be reunited with most of our other teammates in Banga yesterday. When I stop to think about what we’re doing here, I realize we’re crazy (I mean, we just moved to Burundi - a country many people have never hear of and we, in reality, know very little about firsthand!), and yet God continues to give us peace and the sense that this is right - this is what He has called us to for such a time as this. 

We begin Kirundi study on Monday. Thus far, communication has involved combinations of French, Swahili, English, & sign language. (The language center in my brain is flashing warning lights at being overloaded!) We look forward to learning more of the people’s heart language - Kirundi - during this time, so as to communicate more effectively. But we are getting by for now and are so thankful for the foundation we have in French. Our Kirundi teacher speaks French fluently, so we will use, and hopefully reinforce, our French in the process of learning Kirundi. Kirundi class starts Monday, so we’ll see how it goes! 

Thanks for your continued prayers - they are truly sustaining us through this transition! 

(Pictures took a while to upload so there will probably be more picture-free blogs from now on! :))

 Kids in Bujumbura, jet lagged but mostly still smiling :)

 En route to Banga

 First meal together in Banga

 Sunset from our apartments

 Adult meeting to discuss language learning plans

Banga countryside

Burundi Bound!

These four weeks in the States truly have flown by! And now it's time to get on another airplane - well, three, actually, over 24 hours of flying time. As my mom always says, the people really do make the place. I've enjoyed eating Panera and drinking cherry coke zero, but the highlights of this short parentheses between France and Burundi have been the time with friends and family. Here are a few more pictures from the last couple weeks:

 My friends Shannon and Jed with their four children traveled from Boston to see me in Nashville. I loved spending time with them and getting to know their adorable kids again at their current ages - busy years! 

 One of my favorite restaurants - Pancake Pantry - a Nashville tradition! 

 And everyone knows ice cream is my favorite food! 

 A new friend - my mom's French teacher! I loved getting to know Monique and speaking French over lunch. Thankfully I still remembered French after a couple weeks of hearing and speaking lots of English! I look forward to connecting with Monique more on future trips to Nashville.

What a serendipitous blessing that Abby, Kathryn, & Clara came to Nashville on a youth group trip this week! Abby and Kathryn have both spent significant time with our team in either Kenya or France and I look forward to all three of them visiting/working with us in Burundi someday. It's such a blessing to see God raising up others with visions for international development, missions, justice, etc. 

And one last family meal in Nashville (sadly without Lauren and Wei Chi) - hot dogs, hamburgers, and mac & cheese (my requests) for an American sendoff! 

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I've copied my latest update letter below with prayer requests. If you didn't receive this letter by email and would like to (every 6-8 weeks, different information than the blog), type your email address into the "subscribe to newsletter" box on the top left of the blog. 

Three years ago, my teammates the McLaughlins first visited Burundi. I had not yet joined the McCropder team at that time though I already loved working and living in community with them in Kenya. And I didn't even know where Burundi was when the team first started looking at that location! Through significant twists and unexpected turns in our collective journey over the last three years, God has united our team more and more as we've walked through joys and trials together in Kenya, the U.S., and France. And now, finally, the years of preparation with work in Kenya, tropical medicine courses, cross cultural missions and language acquisition training, Sonship discipling, support raising, and French language school are finished, and we begin life in Burundi this week! Through my brief visit to the States between France and Burundi, many have asked how I feel about the transition ahead. I would love to be able to say with Hudson Taylor (missionary to China in the 1800s):

"I am no longer anxious about anything, as I realize that He is able to carry out His will for me. It does not matter where He places me, or how. That is for Him to consider, not me, for in the easiest positions He will give me grace, and in the most difficult ones His grace is sufficient." J. Hudson Taylor

But, in reality, I am still learning to release my anxieties to my Heavenly Father and to trust in His goodness & grace for my life, the life of our team, and the lives of the Burundians. Despite all the preparations, I don't know that we could ever be fully "ready" for what we are about to undertake, and yet I also feel peace that now is the time. We have no idea what is ahead, but we do trust and believe that in the easiest times, God will give us grace and that in the most difficult situations, His grace will be sufficient for each of us. 

Please pray for us especially during these first few months of transition and foundation laying in Burundi:

• Our first three months will be at a Catholic guesthouse in rural Burundi for intensive Kirundi language study. We'll be living in pretty close quarters with more primitive conditions than we're used to, so pray for patient endurance for each of us and for a good situation for the kids with meals, sleep, play, and school. 
• Language learning: Several of us really struggled with learning French and Kirundi likely will not be any easier. Please pray for supernatural ears to hear, minds to understand, and tongues to speak the languages we need for life and work in Burundi. 
• Cultural understanding: I've been reading a book on cultural values and have been struck again at how different my American cultural values are from those in Africa. Pray we will be humble and patient learners who are slow to judge and quick to forgive as we observe the Burundian culture and that we will have wisdom in which aspects to adapt for ourselves and our families as we live in Burundi. 
• Team: Please continue to pray for team unity - that others will know we are Christians by our love for one another and desire to know more about the gospel and our Savior. I pray 1 Peter 3:8 for our team: "Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind."
• Friends: We look forward to developing friendships with Burundians even during these beginning months. Please pray that God would provide friends for us who would graciously help us to understand their language and culture and that we would be able to mutually encourage and connect with one another. 
• Family: My parents have both struggled with some health problems lately. It's been a blessing to be back in the States at this time to attend doctors appointments and help assess the situations, but it's hard now to leave knowing communication will be more difficult from Burundi. Please pray for healing for them, wisdom for their physicians, and peace for all of us as we adapt again to intercontinental relationships. And my sister is due with baby #3 in September, so I appreciate your prayers for her as well. 

I hope to be able to continue communicating regularly from Burundi, though our internet situation is uncertain for the first few months. However, please continue to email and I will love reading your words of encouragement and your personal updates whenever I get the opportunity! 

Amahoro ("Peace" - my one Kirundi word), 
Alyssa   

Family time

My family continues to astound me with their joyful willingness to "stop the world" to maximize our short time together - and to even take group pictures with kids who missed their naps! We enjoyed a fabulous week together at the beach with lots of laughter, sand castles, boogie boarding, & delicious meals. It really was a relaxing and encouraging time together during this brief window between France and Burundi - just what God knew I needed! 

 Emma loves being thrown or spun around - anything active and daring. And she was fearless in the water - jumping into the pool with no warning at all! Good thing my mom and I were lifeguards in our younger days. :) 

 The original Pfisters :)

 Hard to get Emma to stay still long enough for a picture!

 

 Mom and I

 Emma's preferred position - backwards and upside down. I love her enthusiasm for life!

 Sisters

 My knight in shining armor :) This was a huge week for Samuel - 3 birthday celebrations (age 5!) and then the first day of kindergarten. What a joy to be here for those big milestones! He told me at Christmas he was almost five :) and asked if I would be there for his birthday and then when July began he told his mom that he was so excited for July because it was his 5 birthday and because Aunt Alyssa was coming! He's such a sweet boy - growing in stature and in favor with the Lord and with man just like Samuel in the Bible (1 Sam 2:26).

 I got Sam the knight costume, sword and shield at the Carcassonne castle in France. Pretty cool! 

 Splash park friend birthday party

Picture with Gigi on the first day of kindergarten - August 1st! These events are joyous to participate in but also bittersweet as I don't know when I'll next be able to attend Sam, Emma, or Baby 3's birthday parties or first days of school. But my sister does an excellent job of talking about me and making sure the kids know all about Aunt Alyssa in Africa. And I'm happy to maximize the last few days we have together on this visit - meeting for breakfast at Cracker Barrel in the morning!