Update Season VI - "A New Day Dawning"

[Brittain33]

I'm just curious - can you describe what spending nine hours means? Is it nine hours of sitting around, talking? I don't know what I would do that would have me continually in their presence.

[Brittain33]

That sort of self-denying behavior is actually pretty destructive to other people as well as to yourself, even if it seems like the "right" way to behave. You end up being manipulative and letting other people down and making yourself a burden to them by not taking responsibility for your own actions. That said, it's hard to reach people who are in that mindset.

[Brittain33]

I will be going down there to just minister to the children and the orphans and love on them.  I am going to school this fall to develop skills and a trade that would be useful in both America and Kenya and that being architecture.  I would just have to learn Kenyan building codes.

There's no shortage of manpower there, Bushie, just white-folks cash.  I honestly believe you'd be doing them a much bigger favor to go pursue money somewhere else (say Saudi Arabia or Afghanistan - both have highly paid 'teaching' positions), and send money to Kenya.  It would probably just get stolen mostly, but at least it has some potential to be of use, unlike your good self.

This is unfortunately true. There are Kenyans who have been trained in architecture and who know the community and needs there who are likely unemployed in their fields because of lack of capital or investment. Africa is a net exporter of human capital in the form of educated people seeking better opportunities elsewhere, like doctors and nurses trained in English-speaking countries who then travel to the UK or Canada to work.

Kenya doesn't need Americans to provide the work they can provide. Kenyans need the resources to do it themselves, or the education to gain those skills.

[Brittain33]

It doesn't mean I should stay home.  I am called by God to minister to the people of Kenya and East Africa and it would be wrong to ignore that calling acting like I know more than He does.

No worries, I wouldn't presume to give you advice, especially when you've decided that God endorses your decision.

[Brittain33]

He's going all the way to Africa to hug children? Seriously?

Yeah it really does honestly sound that way to me.

He's also spoken about planting churches, although according to Wikipedia, Kenya is 80% Christian already. The remainder are primarily Muslims living along the coast.

[Brittain33]

How do you confirm that they come from God?

[Brittain33]

Deleted my initial response to "confirming thoughts."

No point. Critiquing self-serving arguments here is like going to a Star Trek movie and yelling at the screen that you can't go faster than light. Just enjoy the show for what it is, even if it's the lousy sixth season.

[Brittain33]

Do the Christians in Kenya not already have churches?

[Brittain33]

I'm truly not trying to turn this into a long discussion.  I'm just perplexed how it is that you've changed course so quickly from thinking it is decaf to thinking it's not.

It was when the answer he thinks we want to hear changed from "it's decaf" (because of the diuretic issue) to "it's probably not decaf" (it wasn't plausible she makes decaf tea.)

[Brittain33]

I would, but I don't have a lawn mower over there and it's a lot of hassle taking the lawn mower out of Dad's shop, haul it to the house, get gas for the lawn mower, mow the lawn, load it back up in the Jimmy, haul it back home, and put it back in Dad's shop.  It's a whole lot easier and more convenient to find somebody to pay $30 or $40 to mow the lawn.  The neighbor has mowed my lawn several times and he has his mower with him and all he has to do is drag it about 5 feet and he's in my yard.

Not to get all Inks on you, but what about renting your neighbor's mower for $5 or $10 and doing it yourself?

I do understand the hassle of driving far to get a lawnmower and bringing it back, but given that you have time in excess and no money, well, you can expect some judgment from "the hounds" on this. But whatever.

[Brittain33]

The problem is he is rarely home when I'm over there.  Catching him is a task all on its own.

You have the power to make this happen differently. You can make that choice.