A Final Word

Having read "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad in high school, I began this summer having some inkling of Africa's unique powers over the human spirit. Granted, I didn't think I would be transformed into a bloodthirsty maniac wanting to "exterminate the brutes!", but I did know that Africa doesn't go easy on anyone. However, I didn't anticipate how comprehensive the challenges that Africa could bring would be. During my brief stint on the continent I faced the assumed difficulties of finding a place to live, a car to drive, and a community to build, but I also found myself having to persevere in the face of questions about what route my life's path should take, who and what I value, and what sort of man I am called to be.

There were many times on my commute when I would rack my brain, wondering what the events of the day and week meant in the context of my life. Was I being called to missionary work, let alone a nonprofit career? Was I being too controlling over what I wanted my life to look like? Was I pushing myself in the right direction, or just the direction that seems most appealing? Though I did indeed find answers in this time, I still carry some of these questions with me, and I think I will for a long time to come. What matters is that I'm thinking about them.

To my delight, though, the payoffs for having taken on such challenges were well worth the tension of dealing with them. This summer has had me exposed to the human spirit at its most resilient in bare township shacks. I have swum with the most fearsome predators of the deep and encountered giants of the bush. Africa has shared her secret beauty with me, a beauty that seems boundless, timeless, and irreproducible. I've witnessed smiles in the face of uncertain fate, humility in moments of passion, and wisdom among angst.

I guess Africa's beauty is bought at a price. Like in her people's lives, what is good and worthwhile comes only after toil- only after tears have been shed and failure has been faced. I come from a place where awe is expected, where the unexceptional is thought of as the exception. Something is expected to come from nothing, and it frequently does, though at a deferred cost. That's not the case with Africa- any amount of awe has been born of toil and uncertainty, making it so much more valuable and inspiring.

This has been a summer worth reflecting upon, and I plan on doing that for some time. I come back to the states with a lot of raw life material, and I plan on processing it in hopes of its quick application in my life. I want to thank every one of you who has showed such breathtaking generosity in taking the time to follow me on my travels as I collected this life material. Writing is a pleasure for me, but to hear response from people I love who have a displayed interest in my life really humbles me and makes me appreciate how fantastic all of the people in my life are. Thank you for your interest and encouragement. My only hope is that in spending the time to read through my thoughts and travels you have somehow benefited. I hope you are motivated to have a heart for those unfortunate but amazing people in townships who long for God, compelled to challenge yourself in whatever ways you can, or just energized to go on your own Old School Adventure.

This has been the summer of 2009, and I couldn't have wished for anything better. Perhaps next summer there will be more to blog but until then, Reader, you stay classy.