From Owatonna to Africa: 25 years . . .

On Tuesday, July 2, we celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary. On Monday evening we left the ship and got a hotel room near the beach. There had been an unexpected water outage during Monday and had been cautioned that there would be no hot water through Tuesday! We had a wonderful dinner and enjoyed walking on the boardwalk. On Tuesday morning we rented a car and drove around the island. Gran Canaria is about 60 km north and south and about 50 km east and west. About halfway down the east side of the island we turned inland for about 10 km to the village of Guayadeque. This picturesque little village is built almost totally in caves in the side of the mountain, everything from the houses to the little church to the bar and restaurant. We went about 2 km past the village and the road ended at a restaurant about halfway up the mountain. You entered through a cave and we sat in a room over the ravine looking out across the valley to the ocean.

Most of the western side of the island is mountains. For the last 80 km or so, we were driving primarily in mountain passes, kind of fun but still challenging!! All in all, we had a very relaxed day.

I am still amazed that I have had the opportunity to be married to Denise for the past 25 years. I am a very lucky man!! We have been blessed with two wonderful sons and are now given the opportunity to serve others not so fortunate. As we see people in third-world countries, I marvel at how we won the birth lottery. This has given us chances that most of the world will never have, simply because we were both born to loving families in a developed nation.

On Sunday, we will travel to Barcelona where we will meet up with our son Jake who is on a vacation trip with close friends. We are VERY excited to see them.

It has felt strange being back in a first-world country for a short time, able to celebrate our life together in a manner similar to what we have at home. Yet, in a few short weeks we will be back in Africa, this time in the Republic of Congo. That experience is expected to be like none Mercy Ships has ever had before. We are venturing into a new country in Central Africa, but also to a port city (Pointe Noire) that is fairly developed due to the oil companies. However, when you leave the city, you find yourself back in extreme poverty. Congo is a big country largely without a reliable road system. We are still planning how to get to the more remote regions of the country to reach the rural population.

Off to bed soon as I have another 3:40 am airport run!!