My life is ridiculous, but I like it!

It was raining, not pouring, just the typical Congo rainy season constant flow of rain. I felt blisters forming on my toes because I was wearing a friend’s shoes that were a size too small. All of my shoes were stolen and it’s not like you can buy shoes in the middle of nowhere. I was trampsing through the woods on a muddy path pushing my motorcycle because I had a flat tire. As I curled my toes to try to avoid the rubbing of my newly formed blisters against the harsh leather of my friend’s shoes I asked myself a question that comes to my mind often while I’m in Congo, “What am I doing here?”

As I continued down the path starting to get tired I realized I had made it about a mile and only had one more mile to go before reaching the mining camp. I thought about my current predicament and how it illustrated my life at the moment. I had been on my way to the little farm I had been working on for 6 months when my tire went flat. I left my motorcycle behind and walked the rest of the distance to check things out. To my dismay I found a colossal failure. My guys had abandoned the project when all the craziness happened and my company was kicked out. Had they just worked a couple hours a day in the garden they would be sitting on a few thousand dollars worth of crops (that would have been theirs to keep), but in typical African fashion they didn’t think about the future. TIA

“Ick!” I stepped in a huge mud puddle. I stopped thinking for a moment while I focused on where I was stepping again. A few moments later my mind went back to my situation. The past 3 months have been almost stranger than fiction. I was kicked off the mine by armed soldiers who barricaded the mine and eventually stole it from my company. As a result I lost my job. Went back to America for a wonderful whirlwind month of traveling seeing friends and family. Came back to Africa and thought I’d have to say good bye to Congo forever. Stayed in Lubumbashi and there was an attempted coup. It failed, no big deal, but since this is an election year more craziness is sure to follow. Found out most of my stuff was stolen from the mine by my favorite employee who was by far the strongest Christian! And now I find out my projects failed! Not to mention the fact that I am currently walking through the woods in the rain pushing a motorcycle in shoes that don’t fit.

As I kicked down my kickstand and went inside the office for a drink of water I saw the new site director of the new mining company that had bought the concession from the people who stole it from my old company. I met the CEO and he impressed me with his desire to start social programs so I accepted his job offer. I officially start in March although unofficially I started a couple of weeks ago. They offered me a decent salary and more money for projects than I had been allowed before “Things are about to change.” I told myself with a smile. I just have a feeling that this is going to be a great year. My life is ridiculous, but I like it!