Touchdown Nasir!

Day 4: It was the day I had been looking forward to. I was finally going to set foot on the soil of Nasir, the village I will be living in for the next two years. We anxiously boarded the small cessna airplane and prepared for takeoff. One of the "airport employees" walked onto the dirt air strip holding what looked like to be ping pong paddles in order to direct us in the right direction, so that our plane would not hit any of the other non-existent planes. Whatever looks official I guess? The anticipation during the flight was intense. I was so nervous/excited/anxious. What if I didn't feel anything for the people? What if the heat was too much? What if I was about to find out I wasn't cut out for this work? Soon, the pilot informed us that we would be landing shortly. From high in the air, I began to see mud huts dispersed on the earth below. As the plane began its descent my heart raced. With a jolt, our wheels met the dry soil of Nasir. I gazed out the window watching the desolate land pass by. As we came to a stop, I realized that our plane was surrounded by a crowd of South Sudanese children. The door was opened and the intense heat quickly filled the cab. Standing outside the plane was Peter (my pastor and the executive director of EV) who was leading a group of men on a trip that was a day ahead of us. As we disembarked the plane, we were greeted by a flood of smiling children with outstretched hands to shake and a chorus of the Nuer greeting "Mah-ley". My heart began to melt. Tears began to well up as I tried my hardest to hold them back. It was very strange to me to have to fight off tears in a setting like this, as I am not usually emotional in that way, the only time I really cry is if I am super upset. I believe that this was an answer to my prayers as I began to feel love for these people. The icing on the cake was that there was a boy who was wearing an Aggie tshirt! WHOOP! This was probably the best greeting anyone in Nasir has ever received.

 

Team before takeoff in Aura

Mah-ley! Whoop!!

One of the most profound moments that day was the prayer time we were able to have with the team of men (many were part of the EV board) before they took off to the next village. We gathered under the small wing of the plane to escape the unrelenting sun. It was such a beautiful and refreshing time. After seeing the men off, we began our mile trek through the maze of mudhuts to the compound. The people of Nasir were so friendly, many of them coming up to shake our hands and give us a proper greeting. Very hot and sweaty, we finally made it to the 100m x 100m compound that would be our future home! Upon our arrival we had been warned that there had been a sighting of a snake in the latrine hut a few days earlier. Of course, within 30 min of arriving, we heard a cry out from Cass, who was in the latrine, that there was a snake. She was trapped as the snake was between her and the door. We quickly called a Nuer man over and he fearlessly whacked the snake on the head with a stick (not much bigger than a pencil) until it was dead. When asked if it was poisonous, he responded “snake dangerous for cow, not for man”…. We were all sort of confused because a cow is a lot bigger than a human… but okay I guess??

 

Latrine Hut/Snake hideout

After our snake adventure, our attention was averted to a tree a few yards away that had a goat tied to it. Apparently the goat had been given as a gift to the team ahead of us, and they so kindly left it for us to enjoy for dinner that night. This was my first experience of watching an animal slaughtered right in front of me. Two of the Nuer men brought over a tin mat and began to sharpen the knife. They pulled the goat towards them, and in one swift move, flipped it on its side while holding the legs together.  As I saw the goats’ body become limp and blood begin to gush out of the neck, the reality of what a blood sacrifice really is began to weigh heavily upon me. I just had to pause for a minute to reflect on the significance of the situation. It reminded me how Jesus was the ultimate blood sacrifice for our sins, and how without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (Heb 9:22). Very powerful. The two men skinned the goat and butchered it, chopping up just about every part of the animal to be cooked. It was later served to us in a stew-like manner with rice. However, it was rather difficult for me to eat. There were multiple questionable textures, I still had the image of the goat being slaughtered in my mind, and there were many goats bleating in the distance. But I am sure I will get over all of that pretty quickly. After a very eventful day, I was more than ready for bed. I crawled into my tent and drifted off to sleep listening to the sounds of drums in the distance and the harmonious voices of children singing.

Preparing for the slaughter

"In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness." Hebrews 9:22

What I learned today about Africa/African culture:

-Some official looking procedures may just be for show

-Take Dramamine on every charter plane ride as well as on long bus rides

-Do not name goats, they may become supper

-Always scope out the bathroom for snakes before entering

To be continued...