Visit Every City

Day 3 – 16th January 2023

No matter how tired I was or how comfortable my bed for the night was, I had trouble sleeping. At one point I had said goodnight to Lena, shut off the lights, and closed my eyes. Moments later I was busy thinking, praying, and writing. I finished a blog and then received a notification about a podcast recently posted by Victor Kubik. He interviewed Gerhard Marx, a longtime pastor serving in the UK (Link to the episode: https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-gh74i-1363813). I had wanted to listen to this particular conversation so I decided late last night was the perfect moment. Honestly I slept through the second half. I guess that’s just what I needed. Maybe the room was just too quiet and I need more noise to sleep these days. Maybe it was the late night coffee. It’s tough to tell for sure. Thankfully I managed to get a few hours of sleep and also to wake up and repack with plenty of time to spare.

I finished my breakfast and my second cup of coffee which was better than the first cup (brewed coffee is almost always better than instant). Someone almost shared a table with me for a moment, but he was coming and I was going. I headed out to catch the shuttle bus to the airport. They let me on last. I think I need to relearn how to queue in different parts of the world. It was fine because I got to sit in the front seat and only had to climb over a couple of bags to get there. I was first off the bus and headed for a long line through the first set of security scans. I’m getting faster at emptying my pockets and consolidating everything efficiently. Good thing because once inside the airport there was a second security checkpoint. Once fully inside the airport I bought a few trinkets, headed to my gate, and was easily convinced to buy a cup of coffee at Kaldi’s Coffee. It was a delicious macchiato. Just the thing I needed. Not exactly traditional Ethiopian coffee, but I assume the beans were local. Next stop: Harare!

Coming down through the billowing clouds above Zimbabwe was an awesome sight! No matter how many times I fly that never gets old. Thankfully it wasn’t raining when we landed, but you could tell God has blessed the people with rain. The grass is green, the rivers are full, the trees are lush, and the potholes are especially large. Mabasa mentioned there have been some days recently that you just couldn’t go outside since it was raining so much.

After deplaning and moving smoothly through the various checkpoints in the airport, I finally made it outside and into the fresh air. All along I was checking to see if my phone could get service as planned. It seems that so far the only plan that has worked for communication in this country is using a local SIM card. The only problem is, if I swap out cards I’ll have a new phone number temporarily. I still haven’t decided fully on that. The more immediate problem at that point was contacting Mabasa to let him know I was there. I’d have to apologize to Lena later since I couldn’t immediately let her know I had arrived safely. She had been tracking my flight so she was aware the plane had landed, but I knew she would want to hear from me to know I was alright.

Since I hadn’t immediately seen Mabasa’s pickup truck, I figured he either wasn’t there yet or had decided to park and wait for me. I knew at certain times of day it can be difficult to navigate the Harare traffic, especially in the rain. On my very first visit in 2019 during the Feast of Tabernacles I was accompanied by Nick Lamoureux. We had flown over from Malawi in a large prop plane. What an experience that flight was! Mike Mukarati had met us at the airport and I remembered that he had parked across from the departures entrance so I decided to walk over there to look for Mabasa. I only found people coming and going, and a few taxi drivers and staff trying to help people. One man asked me if I needed a taxi. I told him I was trying to find my friend and my phone wasn’t working. He doesn’t use his phone so he couldn’t help me. I walked back over to the arrivals side of the small airport and looked again across to the car rental parking lot. Driver after driver went by but none of them were Mabasa. But thankfully the next man who asked me if I needed a taxi had a phone I could use. I called and reached Mabasa to let him know I was there. He had arrived in Harare but had to make his way across town.

As I waited a heavy downpour began. It seemed no one was prepared for it until it really started coming down. Porters and drivers were running to get to shelter. The longer it rained the harder it rained and the more umbrellas I saw. Eventually I saw a familiar truck with a familiar face. The face I knew I would recognize, but I wasn’t sure about the truck. A number of months ago Mabasa was in an accident in his truck. The truck had rolled and was pretty smashed up. Miraculously Mabasa and the engine of the truck both made it out alive. He was able to purchase an almost identical truck body which he was able to put the existing engine into. The engine and transmission were so well in tact that even the engine oil made the transfer to the new truck body. As I climbed into the pickup it was as if I had just climbed out of it only yesterday. A few minor differences here and there but essentially the same as before.

After picking me up, Mabasa mentioned that this rain had delayed him a little. One of his windshield wipers broke. Thankfully there was a man selling them on the side of the road. I had prayed that God would let the rain stop enough for our trip to Kadoma, and He heard me. The heavy rain had stopped before Mabasa got to the airport and we only had a few drizzles for the drive. Almost none of the traffic lights were working in Harare. Apparently the solar powered lights don’t tend to fail during the heavy rains but the ones connected to the power grid do.

As he drove along the highway leading out of the big city, Mabasa discussed the plans for the week while I observed Zimbabwe in the rainy season and tried not to fall asleep. I caught a second wind as we drove along highways lined with green fields of grass, lush trees, people selling mushrooms and fishing worms, dodging potholes, pedestrians, and other drivers. We discussed church matters of the country and of the world. We’re going to try to pack as much into this week as possible. God willing I’ll get a chance to see the new property, visit some places I haven’t yet seen, meet some brethren I haven’t yet met, and help make plans for the future.

We reached the house with no interruptions. I carried my bags into the house and was greeted by Chisomo. She always makes sure her guests feel welcome and comfortable. It was another moment where it was as if I had just been there days before. I enjoyed a quiet afternoon of not going anywhere except to walk once around the house. Mabasa has installed some new fish ponds on the premises and the garden is thriving in the rain. After getting settled I sat in the living room and watched cartoons with Christal and Layla. I tried to stump Christal with difficult spelling words. She demonstrated her skills in drawing and knitting. Layla brought out her singing doll who apparently only drinks milk. Mabasa enjoyed some evening Ethiopian coffee I had found in the Addis Ababa airport while Chisomo cooked dinner and I tried not to fall asleep too many times (I think I only fell sleep 5 times before dinner).

The five of us had a nice meal together. I think I must have needed food because I caught my third wind and was able to tell stories about traveling in the US, a few sights in NYC, and then field some phone calls and messages. As we finished dinner I did receive a call with a prayer request. I had a chance to video call with Lena before falling asleep. I was only woken up a couple of times with calls or messages from home. One call was a positive update from an individual who has been through quite a few trials in recent months. One message was another request for prayers. Apparently I can make and receive calls over wifi, and can send and receive iMessages, but not regular text messages.

I usually have a Monday night Bible study no matter where I am if I can manage it. One difficulty with that is the time difference. At 7:30pm on a Monday night in NYC it’s 2:30am on Tuesday in Zimbabwe. Although Lena was right, I was awake by 2:30am, I figured that wouldn’t be the best time for a Bible study. Plus the scenery outside is so much nicer in the daylight.

– Lewis VanAusdle