Departure

“Kwaheri, Ken!”

“Kwaherini, Rafiki!  Safari Njema!”  And off they went to get to their gate, just after 1 PM our time.  I am not sure who was more excited at their departure, me or the group, them on their way (and leaving our bitter cold) or me, repeating the process is a little less than two weeks.

I arrived to find Jessica and her boyfriend Ryan, then Emily and Laura Kvasnicka and parents to see them off and another and another, all finding their way through the crowd of “Gusties” with Dr. Barb Zust, all going on the same flight to Amsterdam, then Tanzania.  The Gustavus group will stop off at Kilimanjaro before ultimately finding their way to Iringa and Ilula.  Before long, all were accounted for, the extra bags distributed – those carrying books for med student Adile in Dar, supplies for Ilula and materials for the Ilula Nursing School.  (Thanks Jessica Quirk for your extra efforts with Matter Warehouse and numerous text books!  And others for their trip to GHM.)

The intrepid

I noticed dyads and triads of happy conversations and I finally settled down.  Grandson Sawyer took it all in with a little wonderment himself.  Eventually the bags were checked and our group gathered for a “picha.” (You can tell the language origin of this Swahili word is English.)  Then Randy had them “circle up” to make a brief recitation of name and what they would be looking most forward to with this trip.  Emily will be coordinating the daily telling in this blog soon and you will read her own accounting of the day.

I am honored to share my thoughts as my colleagues step into their adventure.  I can’t wait to join them!