A letter from Debbie Blane in South Sudan
February 2013
Dear Friends,
Greetings from the Hilton Hotel in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia! I am here at the Hilton in the Business Office downloading three episodes of Rome that I purchased in Nairobi in December. I thought that I had downloaded all of the episodes while I was able to access free wireless Internet in Nairobi, but it turns out that six of them were not downloaded. It was disappointing in Malakal, South Sudan, to discover this as wireless Internet is not available to me there. So now I am paying for the fast wireless Internet and am hoping that two hours will get the episodes available to me!
It is a treat to come for R & R to Nairobi, Kenya, or Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. I find Western food, fast wireless Internet, or even just faster Internet, cooler weather, electricity 24/7, running water inside the houses and buildings and refrigerators. It is relaxing and less time-consuming to live with such luxuries that we take so for granted in the United States and other Western countries.
This morning here in Addis Ababa I began to work on the revisions for my Research Proposal for the University of South Africa (UNISA). My computer was plugged in and I could type (or keyboard) away to my heart’s content. This was interrupted only by my need to leave for a dental appointment, something else that I cannot take care of in Malakal.
Last week I finished teaching Theology 4 (Ecclesiology, Missiology, Eschatology) in the Concentrated Course for the seniors at the Nile Theological College. We had a good class time together. While I will see them on campus through their graduation on May 18, I will not be teaching them again. When I return to Malakal the week of March 10 I will begin teaching the juniors and will do so for the next five semesters until they graduate as seniors in May of 2015.
The current seniors are preparing themselves for leaving the college and their peers as well as their instructors. They have been quite focused for several years now on their education and it will be time to go out into the world and put their learning into practical use. They have received a solid education. I trust that they will contribute a great deal to the churches in South Sudan that have invested in their education and spiritual formation here at the college.
Please join me in praying for their continued formation as well as their education, whether it is in a formal setting or something that they pursue on their own as lifetime learners.
Blessings,
Rev. Debbie Blane
The 2013 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 103
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