A Longer Than Intended Intermission and Catch Up

As with many of the last entries, I am going to start this one off with a very sincere apology for the incredibly long absence from writing in the blog. I was thinking about coming up with some creative reason for not having written in so long but being that that would not only defeat the purpose of this blog, it would also be a lie. Therefore, nothing but the truth will have to do and thus an explanation of what has happened and indeed what will as well. So without further adieu...here I go.

It has officially been 1 month and 5 days since the last time I updated the blog and needless to say more than can be imagined has happened in that time. I would say one of the biggest developments since the last entry is merely the fact that I am actually no longer in Africa anymore, our project having ended on the 1st of July. You are probably saying "but we never found out about what happened with the library and the project!". You can rest assured that I will more thoroughly than ever describe to you all that took place in the final weeks of the project (better than normally probably because of the reliability and availability of internet here in the states) with the only difference being a slight time delay. But I am sure with a bit of imagination it will be as though all the reports are live!

Before I pick up where I left off in regards to the project however I feel it necessary to go into a bit as to why I have not been writing for so long. I wish I could say that it was because my computer was stomped on by a rhino or that I have actually been sick with malaria but the simple truth of the matter is that I just have not really had the energy to get around to writing yet. It is not that I am lazy but more so that, in a way, I am actually quite exhausted from the whole experience, both physically and mentally. The reason I have not written until now is purely because up until this point, I have not had the mental energy and will to once again recount all that has happened. It is not that I had a bad experience in Africa. That isn't the case at all. The case is more that when I returned from Africa, for the first time it hit me as to how stressful and exhausting the trip had been for me.

As I have mentioned in the past, Africa itself is a difficult place to be. The continent, the culture, the atmosphere, the people, the way of life, as beautiful and captivating as it may be, is vastly different from our own and can be exhausting to deal with. No matter how much you adjust, it is not quite possible to ever be truly "comfortable" and thus spending any extended amount of time there can be very difficult for your body (this is most easily seen by weight loss...I myself having lost an additional ten pounds and being the lightest I have been since freshman year in high school*). *others in the group have lost up to 20 pounds.

As though the physical and cultural difficulties are not enough, this time I also had the added stress of being in charge of 14 Americans. Though it was an absolute pleasure being the leader of the group (one of the most amazing experiences I have ever had in my life) it would be a total lie to understate the incredible difficulty of the job. It was hard and when I got back into the US I let out a huge sigh of relief knowing that it was over and that everyone had gotten back to the US alive. That might sound ridiculous, but never in my life had I had such a responsibility. Regardless of what people say, when it comes down to it I was responsible for the lives of 14 people and, though it was great that we happened to build a library, the biggest goal I had on that trip was ensuring the comfort and safety of my team. Needless to say it was a bit stressful! Praise be to God for helping me through it and protecting my team.

So, back to the reason it has taken me so long to update my blog, when I returned to the United States, I was exhausted: physically, mentally, emotionally. I needed a break and a break is exactly what I have been taking. It is hard to explain but I knew what my mind and heart needed and I have been trying my best to give it that since coming back and am finally starting to normalize again (though I concede normal for me is quite a relative term!). Now that I have finally "caught my figurative breath " I can finally get back to where I left off with this blog and inform you all of what happened in the final weeks of our project. Sadly though that will have to wait for a few days being that I don't want to flood people with my updates!

So once again this is a "to be continued..." but I promise that this time I will be much more prompt in writing. But until then, I am in the US, I have my girlfriend, and I have an appetite so I am off to have lunch!