A busy last day !!

This will be our last report from Burkina Faso.  As I write this we are hanging around the guest house at about 11:00pm Burkina time.  A few are still packing; most are just sitting and talking with Pete and John.

Today was an awesome day!  In the morning we went to the President's Zoo here in Ouagadougou.  This is not like any American zoo you've ever visited.  You can see full-grown lions and tigers from a distance of about 2 feet with nothing but a chain link fence between you.  You can pet elephants' trunks while you feed them over a fence and throw grass clumps to a giant hippo from about 18 inches away.  (If you're Cody Furr you can even grab his tusk for a split second!)

After lunch we went to an Alliance Church in a very poor section of town where we took part in a ceremony distributing hand-tricycles to four handicapped people.  We also spent time talking to and praying with some moms and kids who have been through some of the most harrowing experiences you've ever heard of.  Truly the needs here are beyond measure!  We feel like we didn't come close to scratching the surface during our time here; still, our visit mattered greatly to many, many people.  The Muslims and other non-Christians here in the village around where we're staying seem completely befuddled by what we are doing.  They keep asking the local pastor if all this is for real -- they are influenced not only by our actions but by the compassion and sorrow they have seen in our faces as we have done our best to help in any way we could.  Thank you for sending us here!

We ended our last day here with a (home-made) pizza party and a wedding ceremony.  Cody and Lauren experienced "part 1" of their wedding in traditional Burkina style with a few exceptions (e.g., a performance by FAC's own "Heart Condition").  While their union is not yet official, it was nonetheless a very moving ceremony as well as a touching goodbye to our youth group friends here, most of whom were able to attend the ceremony.

We miss you all very much and look forward to seeing you soon.  Pray for us as we fly back over the Atlantic.  We actually have three legs to our air journey:  Burkina --> Togo --> Ethiopia --> D.C.  Then, we have a six-hour drive back through Virginia.  If all goes according to schedule, we'll return to Arnold Road around 5 p.m. late Friday afternoon.  But first we have to wake up at around 5:45am tomorrow to be at the airport in Ouaga on time.

See you soon !!!

PT