Bob is home!

Bob is safely back with us at home.  We will be sharing more about his experiences in the future.  You can also check out his journal entries over the last week here on the blog.  His arrival back was fairly eventful with his last plane being canceled and choosing to fly to a different airport.  HIs suitcase didn't get the memo and we had to file a lost bag claim.  We should be receiving the bag in the next day or two.  Bob and I snuck in a short getaway when I drove to pick him up.  It was a great thing for our marriage and relationship.

Please pray as we continue to process what Bob learned and make decisions for our future life in Nigeria.  

Bob's Thoughts: Nigeria Day 10

Bob recently went to Nigeria. as part of a short term trip with Wycliffe Associates.  You can find out more HERE.  You can read the previous journals here; Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9

6/13/11

I walked to the Nigeria Group office from the NBTT compound this afternoon right after lunch. It was almost exactly 10 minutes, so not a bad walk at all. I never thought of it (and you don't really realize it when you look while driving) but although there aren't sidewalks, there are thousands of feet walking along the side of each road daily, and they make a pretty good sidewalk. Really, I think you could take a stroller along most of them. I had this sidewalk most of the way to the office. At the office I met Robyn Crabtree and Pam Gaddis, as well as a couple others who are there. There weren't many people in the office that day; Ian Holman the director was out for the day, so I didn't get to meet him. They confirmed the price estimates I'd gotten for the housing options, and I think they've said that afterhours work shouldn't be too much of a factor. A little later, the Nigerian IT volunteer came in, who is named Sunday. He comes after school; he's in college somewhere. He showed me around the IT office and answered a few questions about what he sees the most of and what considerations they have to deal with. He seemed like quite a sharp guy.

Bob's Thoughts: Nigeria Day 9

Bob is in Nigeria right now as part of a short term trip with Wycliffe Associates.  You can find out more HERE.  You can read the previous journals here; Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8

6/12/11

I got to eat dinner at the Rowbory's tonight, and they're very friendly people. David is from Scotland, and Julie is from Ireland, and their kids are right on par with Lydia and Caleb. They're terrific people. They showed me how their gas stove worked and how their washing machine worked and how their water filter worked and what they canned and froze. They said that milkshake mixes were great for slushies (they called them “lollies”), and they get them shipped from the US. We had pizza, which was pretty good, and had some vienna sausages on it which gave it some meat taste along with onions and cheese. It was pretty good. She said she made the crust herself from scratch from a recipe online.

I have been asked a couple times what my impressions have been coming here, and I'm not sure what to say. I think I've been encouraged that it doesn't seem overwhelming to me; I can see other people doing it and it doesn't look too impossible. I think it's clarified in my mind some of the dangers, irritations and risks that were just academic to me before. They seem real to me now. However, the realities that people really do deal with these just fine on a daily basis encourages me even more, and the fact that they're willing to help us is key. This will be a terrific group of people to live with. I don't think I could do the living out in the village thing: I still have respect for the people gearing up to do that with their lives because I don't think I could hack it. However, living in the city with other missionaries and the community that's here looks very doable to me and part of me is even looking forward to it.

Bob's Thoughts: Nigeria Day 8

Bob is in Nigeria right now as part of a short term trip with Wycliffe Associates.  You can find out more HERE.  You can read the previous journals here; Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7

6/12/11

I ate a mango off of one of the trees on-center here, which was really good. I know they have those in Florida but I was never in a place where I could enjoy that. I may be able to here.

The market Andy took me to yesterday where they looked for tomatoes surprised me by how small it was. I was envisioning Oaxaca City and San Salvador with the sprawling miles of market stalls selling almost everything imaginable. Here I think people sell stuff all along each major road, and there isn't a central huge market like I was remembering. It somewhat surprises me. It makes Jos seem like a smaller city than I was envisioning. In the whole market I think there were only 4 people selling tomatoes (which are not rare here), and only 2 selling carrots (a little more rare, but still not unheard of). It's probably seasonally different, too.

I went to church with the Kellogg's this morning. Several other missionaries and missionary families go there, although it's primarily Nigerian. He said that I will get asked to speak  sometime whatever church I pick, so I guess I'll have to be ready for that idea.

Oh, the church that I went to was raising money for a parsonage to be built, because apparently their old had been burned down during the recent violence. I didn't see any evidence of damage to the church or anything, though. Andy and I talked a little about the violence recently and he said that we just have to accept for ourselves that the people that are left around the world that need to be reached are in difficult places; all the easy places are gone. It's a sobering outlook, but I think it's what God is calling us to.

Nigeria isn't real hard as countries go (we could be planning to go to much worse places) but in Africa a lot can change in a very short period of time. Things like Ethiopia becoming communist and persecuting Christians or Zimbabwe being ruled by an insane dictator or Ivory Coast plunging into civil war, can happen literally overnight with a new government or a military takeover.

Bob's Thoughts: Nigeria Day 7

Bob is in Nigeria right now as part of a short term trip with Wycliffe Associates.  You can find out more HERE.  You can read the previous journals here; Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6

6/11/11

Today I got to look at our housing options, and I was favorably impressed. Both buildings actually look nicer than I was expecting, and I can easily see us living in either one.

Andy took me around Jos a little bit, with Jonathan Barnholm, and I got to see shopping a little as well. You haggle for most everything, but I don't think it'll be too bad. There's literally only 2 “supermarkets” in Jos, where they have specialized imported goods. Those are the only places you can get stuff unless it's locally made, in which case it can be found in the local stores.

Andy told me today that Daniel knows only Hausa, his native language and English, so everything I heard him speaking on our trip was Hausa (and that was every stop to ask for directions, and saying hello to every Nigerian we met who was hosting or meeting us). I do need to learn Hausa pretty well, especially if I'll be helping these translators with their computers.

Bob's Thoughts: Nigeria Day 6

Bob is in Nigeria right now as part of a short term trip with Wycliffe Associates.  You can find out more HERE.  He is sending his journals back to me on email.  He has not been able to access the internet on his own computer.  This email came from the BGAN system he finished installing with the C'Lela language, in the far west of the country, near the Benin border.  You can read the previous journals here; Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5

FuFu, a common Nigerian dish

6/10/11

We have finished the Kambari Project BGAN installation and are driving home today. We finished it last night so we could get an early start today. I felt like we were rushing to get it finished last night, but I guess they don't want to stop anywhere along the way, and since it's 9 hours drive to Jos Daniel wanted to get an early start so we could finish it in one day.

We were served authentic Nigerian dinner and breakfast. Dinner was FuFu, a pasty white substance the consistency and taste of cream of wheat on it we had beef in a tasty red sauce, and some okra soup.

This morning for breakfast we had a very heavily salted onion omelet and bread with butter. They serve instant coffee and tea; those seem to be the universal breakfast drinks in Nigeria, and since I don't really like either one I've just been going with water every morning.

The Kambari cluster project has been going on for over 20 years I believe they said. They told us that of the three dialects, one has the NT printed, one has it drafted and are nearly ready for printing, and another one is still in progress. They're going to start on the OT soon, I believe. There are a bunch of people working on it; we set up email on 7 different computers so any of them could use the BGAN.

I asked our driver where he was from and he said from Delta state, which is way south. In further conversation, he told me was born and raised in Jos, which confused me until I remembered that someone told me that where you are from means what is your tribe, and is unrelated to where you were born and/or live currently.

Bob's Thoughts: Nigeria Day 5

Bob is in Nigeria right now as part of a short term trip with Wycliffe Associates.  You can find out more HERE.  He is sending his journals back to me on email.  He has not been able to access the internet on his own computer.  This email came from the BGAN system he finished installing with the C'Lela language, in the far west of the country, near the Benin border.  You can read the previous journals here; Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4

6/9/11

We got in late last night to our first project, C'lela. They put us up for the night at a guest house (Nigerian word for hotel, although they also have “hotels”; I'm not sure what the distinction is). They had a wonderful feast prepared for us. Bob Bates and I had been snacking throughout the trip, and since it was 9:30 in the evening we didn't want to eat much, but our host insisted that we eat as much as possible. He was very nice. 

I noticed that our driver and Daniel, the NBTT guide, hadn't eaten hardly anything all day, and I learned why when they got to the food: they each ate a huge portion, probably three times what we Americans ate. I think Nigerians must just do one meal a day or something. Anyways, they had chicken, fish, rice and a potato stew, and all 4 were extremely tasty.

We finished the C'lela installation around noon. All I had to show the translator was Pidgin for IMing. He has a staff of about 10 full- or part-time workers, so he'll do the training for them. He was a very nice guy, and treated us very hospitably. We had a nice breakfast and lunch with him, and he even gave each of us a nice set of clothes. Apparently, a missionary came 30 years ago and began a translation, but he went a decade or more without really doing anything, still learning the language. 

Finally, NBTT started a project and they have managed to merge the two efforts into one project. I understand that the Roman Catholic bishop is the chairman of the translation committee, and there is strong Roman Catholic support for the effort, as well as the Protestants who do most of the work. The place we stayed at was actually owned by a Muslim, whom we met, and they mentioned how Muslims and Christians get on seamlessly here. He said that his own sister married a Christian and is now a Christian, so it's not a big deal to them.

Bob's Thoughts: Nigeria Day 4

Bob is in Nigeria right now as part of a short term trip with Wycliffe Associates.  You can find out more HERE.  He is sending his journals back to me on email.  He has not been able to access the internet on his own computer.  This email came from the BGAN system he just finished installing with the C'Lela language, in the far west of the country, near the Benin border.  You can read the previous journals here; Day 1, Day 2, Day 3

6/8/11

The most unique impression I've felt so far driving through Nigeria is people. There are people literally everywhere. In the cities it seems absurdly packed with people walking, standing, sitting, driving, etc. everywhere, but it's also true in the country: there is always someone in a field hoeing, walking along the road carrying something, flagging down passing vehicles to get a ride, sitting at a little stand waiting for someone to come, etc.

We went through one military checkpoint, and I saw the soldier look inside, say to the driver, “missionaries?” and he replied, “yes, missionaries”, and then they waved us through.

Being able to see where the schools are and where I see kids in school uniforms walking along the road, I can say that kids walk literally miles to go to school. It's pretty amazing.

Most surprising thing so far: a small compact car carrying three men and three goats.As we travel further, people definitely push their transportation harder out here. I was impressed when I saw 7 people crammed into a compact car, until I saw a 9-person family crammed into one, and that was only impressive until I saw 4 grown men riding a motorcycle. Whew.

I got to talk to Daniel, our Nigerian Bible Translation Trust (NBTT) coworker and guide. He started working for NBTT when he was in Bible school and pastoring a church. He decided to translate the Bible into his native language, and so he contacted NBTT. 6 years later, in addition to coordinating the other 81 projects in NBTT, he is finishing up his New Testament translation and is planning to finish the Old Testament in the next 3 years. He is a busy man. He isn't married; when we asked about his family he talked about his mother and father and 9 siblings. I think only a single guy could have so much going at once.

Bob's Thoughts: Nigeria Day 3

Bob is in Nigeria right now as part of a short term trip with Wycliffe Associates.  You can find out more HERE.  He is sending his journals back to me on email.  He has not been able to access the internet on his own computer.  This email came from the BGAN system he just finished installing with the C'Lela language, in the far west of the country, near the Benin border.  You can read the previous journals here; Day 1, Day 2

6/7/11

Andy, one of our Wycliffe Nigeria coworkers, assured me that I'll be working mainly on translators' computers; the ex-patriot staff can keep their own computers up mostly, most of my work will be on Nigerian computers, he also assured me that I'll be an electrician, too...

We'll be traveling a long ways; almost all the way to the Benin border of Nigeria. It'll be very dry; it's right on the border of the Sahara, I believe. Daniel, our Nigerian Bible Translation Trust (NBTT) coworker and guide, said that I'll get to see camels there :-). He said they recently turned the C'lela (pron: chi-LE-la) language project over to NBTT from Wycliffe Nigeria group. 

I am also going to be working on the Kambari three-language cluster project, which is one of the very few Wycliffe Nigeria Group-run projects. Andy said they're using it to train themselves as consultants (he, himself, isn't technically a consultant; he's a consultant-in-training).

It's been mostly business so far. The Nigerians we've met are pretty inspiring; seem to be great people to work with. It was cool to hear yesterday as the director greeted us with “your comfort is our comfort”. We are obviously appreciated, which is nice. We are told that the places we visit will be holding celebrations for what we're doing for them, which will be cool.

Bob's Thoughts: Nigeria Day 2

Bob is in Nigeria right now as part of a short term trip with Wycliffe Associates.  You can find out more HERE.  This is his second journal from the trip you can see Day 1 Here.  

6/6/11

When we were stopped at the Plateau State border at a military checkpoint searching for guns (and with the fighting in Jos recently they really are serious about looking for guns) our driver told us that if the soldiers ask to see the luggage, he always just says that we're missionaries, and the soldiers just wave him through.

At lunch we ate at the NBTT center; we sat down and there were some people seated in the corner. A man stood up and told us all that he was a consultant who was working with a language group that was in the far north of the country: 25km from the northern border. There are 50 literate Christians (and another 50 non-literate) out of a population of 25,000. They are working on the Luke translation to get a Jesus Film done and will be doing a New Testament after that. He said that right now he travels to Nigeria 4 months out of the year; one month each quarter. He can do no work other than those times. However, he was excited about the BGANs because he said they would allow him to check the translations before coming over and answer questions as they came up, instead of once every three months. He was very excited to see us and that we were installing the BGANs around the country.

Bob's Thoughts: Nigeria Day 1

Bob is in Nigeria right now as part of a short term trip with Wycliffe Associates.  You can find out more HERE.  THis is his journal he has written so far on the trip. 

6/5/11

I'm traveling to Abuja, Nigeria now; I'm sitting in Frankfurt airport. I've had really cool connections in my last two flights; in Indianapolis airport before flying I talked for awhile to some people who were going on a medical missions trip to India, so that was cool. I gave them a prayer card. On the flight from Chicago to Frankfurt, I sat next to a guy who was a metallurgist for Cummins fuel systems, but was going next month for a relief missions trip to the flooding in Tennessee with his church, a Methodist church. He was a great person to talk to, and we had a really interesting conversation, and also with our stewardess who was sitting with us because we were on the emergency exit row. We asked her some questions about Germany, where she's from (being a Lufthansa employee). I gave Steve a prayer card, as well.

I slept a little bit on the plane, but I think this'll be a long day until I get to sleep tonight. Hopefully this goes okay so I don't get hit by jet lag too bad

We have just flown over the Sahara Desert. It's an incredible experience to fly for literally several hours at 500mph and the whole time you can see nothing but unbroken desert all the way to the horizon. After a while, you start to see a dot of a tree here and there, and then gradually more and more trees and then lines too regular to be streams; they must be irrigation or roads. You even see something metallic here and there. Such a contrast to flying over the US, where every single mile that isn't dense forest is either packed farmland or sprawling city. Even now that we're south of the Sahara proper (I think, is Kano still part of the desert?), most of the land still looks like isolated trees with maybe some huts around. A little further on (around Kadano?), I can begin to see actual towns and identifiable roads, and the land looks much, much more cultivated, although in plots that are smaller than in the US.

Technology speeding up Bible translation

This article was recently posted @ One News Now.  It describes the technology Bob will be setting up on his trip next month.

Technology speeding up Bible translation

Charlie Butts - OneNewsNow - 4/25/2011 3:30:00 AM

Wycliffe Associates is using modern technology to help Bible translators reach people in remote areas.

The technology provides for translators a way to connect when they are in locations with no Internet access. CEO Bruce Smith recently returned from Nigeria, where the technology was put to the test.

"We split up into five teams of two, and actually, within one week, [we] connected 25 Bible translation programs in remote areas of Nigeria for the very first time to the Internet so that they could share files and connect with their consultants who are...a long distance away," he shares.

The Translation Acceleration Kits, which are similar to a modem, include a small, portable netbook computer, a satellite communication terminal, a solar panel, battery, and power supply. Once fully implemented, they could potentially shave years off the Bible-translation process, says the Wycliffe spokesman.

"They're actually smaller than a laptop computer; they're very lightweight and portable and can be run on solar power," Smith explains. "We have a solar panel system, and in a remote location, within about three minutes you turn this on, tune it in to the satellite, and you can have an Internet connection first time every time."

He adds that the units, which cost about $3,500 apiece, are constructed to withstand extreme conditions like heat and dust.

Prayer Request: Visiting Nigeria

A couple months ago we found out that Wycliffe Associates (a Wycliffe partner organization) is sending a team of volunteers to Nigeria to do some IT work in June, so I asked if I could be included, and a few weeks ago I was able to confirm that I will be able to.

On June 4th I will be traveling to Nigeria with 10 other volunteers, and we will spend a week installing satellite internet systems in remote locations around the country for translators to use. JAARS (yet another Wycliffe partner organization) has a self-contained box that creates a satellite connection specifically tailored for translation and collaboration traffic. It's locked down so it can't be used for regular internet browsing or other things; the connection is too expensive to use for anything except translation and backup purposes.

I'll get a chance to travel around the country quite a bit to install several of these systems. I'll also be getting an initial look at them, in case I have to help with one of them later. Additionally, I'll be able to meet some of the people I'll be working with in the Jos office and also see a couple of the housing options waiting for us in Jos. It's going to be a great opportunity, so I'm excited to be going over soon.

We do have to cover the cost of my plane ticket over and back, so if any of you feel led to give anything toward that we'd appreciate it. Please also keep me in prayer June 4-13 that logistics work out well, that everything goes smoothly in-country, and that I learn what I need to while I'm there.