Niger: Day One

*This slide show is of pictures taken throughout our time in Niger (not just on Day One). I'll post a few pictures pertaining to each day as I go.

We arrived in Niamey, Niger, at about 3 in the morning on Saturday, April 5. We were herded through customs, where there wasn't much organization. There weren't really any lines--it was just everyone pushing their way through. We carried everything we needed in our backpacks, but the team did check a couple of bags (mainly for toiletries). I was impressed that the bags made it to Niger when we did. We then met Brad Womble, the IMB missionary who would be helping us throughout the week.

We loaded onto a bus and headed to the guesthouse (pictured right), where we would be staying. We didn't know what the sleeping arrangements would be, so Ryan and I were so excited to find out we would have our own bedroom and bathroom. It was about 4 in the morning by the time we got ready for bed. We were exhausted (especially after getting very little sleep since we left Louisville at 10:30 on Thursday morning, April 3) and were so thankful that Brad said we would be able to sleep in. We were to meet for lunch at 12:30. Ryan and I slept really well and were eager to start our time in Niger.

We went over to the Wombles' house for lunch and then had our orientation. There we learned more about Niger and the Songhai people. Here are a few things Brad and Sally told us that really stood out:

•Average life expectancy: 27 years
•3 out of 5 kids die before the age of 5
•Highest infant mortality rate in the world
•Second poorest country in the world (behind Sierra Leone)
•Average annual income for a family of 10: $250
•Literacy rate among Songhai: 15%
•The Muslim/Animistic faith accounts for 99.8% of the Songhai people
•Out of 100 people baptized to the Christian faith, 93% turn back to Islam
•Malaria kills someone every 15 minutes

We were warned to be cautious about what we touched after being with the people because at any given time, we could have Yellow Fever, Malaria, Meningitis and Leprosy on our hands.

The Wombles also told us about how "pink eye" is perceived among the Songhai, which of course interested me. They call "pink eye" "Apollo" because they believe that it is caused by moondust falling in their eyes. They believe the moondust was stirred up by the Americans walking on the moon. To treat it, they believe they must crush red peppers to form a paste and then rub it in their eyes.

Brad also mentioned an experience with a family where two of their kids looked very ill and the other two kids were healthy and eating. Brad asked what was wrong with the two sick-looking kids, and they told him that they had determined they only had enough food to feed two of their kids. They had chosen two kids to live and were letting the other two starve to death.

We concluded the orientation with a prayer session. I was already broken-hearted for these people I hadn't even met yet. We were confident that God was going to do big things in the week to come.

That night (as we did every night while we were there) we met at the Wombles' house for dinner. A mission team from Hurst, Texas, was also there at the same time. Our two teams would do ministry in different places during the day, but we all met together at night. On their team was a girl named Heather, who is a chef at a restaurant in Fort Worth. We were blessed to have Heather cook a wonderful meal for us each night. Ryan was able to play some basketball with Brady, the Wombles' son. It was pretty cute because Ryan was showing Brady how to juggle the ball. (By juggle, I mean soccer-style--keeping the ball in the air by kicking it repeatedly.)

We concluded our night with some Bo Bo, which is a card game that Dr. Martin introduced to us while waiting at the Casablanca airport. Basically, four people can play. One starts out as King, one as Queen, one as Jack and one as Peasant. After each hand, you switch positions based on how well you did during the previous hand. Dr. Martin, of course, started out as King, but he was quickly dethroned. I think by the time we left Casablanca, he was residing in the Peasant seat. In this picture, note that Ryan is King, I am Queen (but taking the picture), Bob was Jack and poor Dr. Martin was Peasant. :) Anyway, all throughout the week, there was much smack talk about who was King.

It was a great day, and we were all very excited to head out to the village and proclaim the name of Jesus.