Sobering History Lesson

Two days ago (Monday) we had our first history lesson taught by Namibians about Namibia. It was interesting hearing the perspectives of those who had been without freedom, and had personally experienced their country's fight for freedom and independence (which happened only 18 years ago). As part of the lesson we took a tour through Windhoek and the area to learn of the significance of certain areas in the fight for freedom.

Early in the tour we went to the "Heroes Acre" on a hill outside of Windhoek where many of the heroes from the struggle for independence are buried. Of course, in spite of the respect we had for those being honored there, we quickly surrendered any personal respect for ourselves... :-)

(that's a real sign. We didn't see baboons that day, but we had our eyes out for them)

After our time at the memorial, we drove over to an area nearby known as Katutura. Katutura plays a role in the history of Namibia because it's an area that all the blacks in the Windhoek area were relocated to in order to keep them separate from the whites. Though the fact that the name "Katutura" has a meaning is nothing special, since most towns have names of significance here. The actual meaning, though, speaks volumes about how the black Namibians felt about where they were forced to live. The name means "not my home" or literally translated means "we do not have a home". After hearing about their struggles I found myself actually feeling some of the hopelessness in my heart that was associated with that name.
Here are some sobering pictures from Katutura and an area nearby Katutura that I took during our tour that I think speak for themselves...



We are continuing to learn quite a bit about Namibia. Please pray for us - that we would have or develop the sensitivity and understanding that is needed to minister and work with a people that have current or recent experiences with tragedy and trauma. Please also pray that God will lift these people from their despair and redeem their lives in a genuine way.

We arrived in Namibia on Wednesday

We arrived in Namibia Wednesday. We flew into Windhoek's international airport joining the other plane there (literally). It took us about 45 minutes to go through customs and get our baggage. Because we sat in the last row on the plane, we were last in the customs line- otherwise we would've made it out much quicker. The airport was immaculate- even the restrooms! It was definitely the best airport experience I have ever had!

We were met there by our country director, Mick who drove us 40 minutes to his house in Windhoek where we will be staying for a couple of weeks. The scenery on the way was quite fascinating with mountains all around. As we'd heard, Namibia is indeed quite dry. It looks very brown and rocky with spots of green here and there and scattered with small trees. Windhoek is a little greener than most of the rest of Namibia apparently. I am looking forward to seeing all of the wildlife we've heard about- the desert elephants, sea lions, penguins , etc!

Tomorrow begins our two-week orientation to Namibia and language learning. Then, hopefully, we will be able to move out to Arandis. Today and yesterday we went vehicle shopping. We need a "people-mover" as we are calling it. So far it looks like we will have another white van! Only this one will seat 11 (plus a few extra if need be!). Pray I will be able to drive it. It is stick and the driver's side is on the right. Will I be able to shift with my left hand? I guess I could still use my right if I really wanted to!! It is so hard to get used to the cars driving on the other side. I'm glad Arandis is not very populated so I can learn to drive this monster vehicle on the correct side of the road and hopefully not hurt anyone. But I can do ALL things through Christ, right? There is so much we must learn.

-Karrie