Travel Day(s)

We made it to Liberia! In case one might be curious about what kind of travel day getting to West Africa entails, let us tell you! Our travel “day” was thirty-four hours. After wrestling our bags through check-in (four bags full of clothes and donations weighing 40 lbs each), the real challenge began. If you have done international travel, you know it takes a certain amount of mental and physical fortitude. It is such a gift to travel but it is not always easy (or pretty!), with restlessness and lack of sleep. Unless of course, you can sleep on airplanes, which neither of us are great at! But we are glad to have each other – we can always find something to laugh about!

The airport in Monrovia is small and this was the first time I (Jaye) did not have to go from airplane to shuttle bus to airport. But nevertheless, the moment the door opens, you can feel the sticky air. And there is a certain smell in the air here that I kind of love – it’s like a low-grade campfire with smoke only sometimes.

The migration off the airplane funnels us into the passport/customs process. It is a little chaotic without clear instructions. Someone at a kiosk with some kind of “health check” label (maybe it was more official than it appeared) looked at our passports. Our passports were reviewed a few times as we made our way to baggage claim. There were many badged workers, but most were standing around observing the confusion. It seemed like the whole thing could move faster but there you go. Liberia time. You realize very quickly that there really is no hurrying.

Eddie (our co-founder who is from Liberia) arranged for a ride for us from the airport to our first week’s lodging. I was dreading this ride, not because of the driver, but because of the quality of the road. Under construction since I first came in 2022, the road is marked with not just many potholes but random speed bumps, sharp drop offs, and broken concrete that makes your teeth chatter a bit as you drive slowly over them. And with no roadside lighting, it is a risky drive. But not last night! The road is nearly finished! It was glorious! I have never appreciated a road so much – room for more than one car in each direction (hard to call them official lanes!) and smooth sailing over most of the trip. And to be honest, it gave me a renewed sense of hope. Literally experiencing progress was so encouraging. I probably made more comments about it than was appropriate. Liberians can and will and already accomplish many great things! It was a great reminder and start to our time in Liberia.
Would you please pray for;:
*health
*rest and endurance
*God’s leading in relationships