Questions I sometimes get

Well, its Saturday morning. Michelle is somewhere over the African continent, hopefully sleeping. She should be landing in a couple of hours.

The kids are in their normal Saturday routine. David came in to our bedroom earlier, to give me the normal nod of, "I am a wake, and going downstairs to watch cartoons." Abby got herself dressed. I have had my first cup of coffee, and we are getting ready for our day.

The following are a list of questions/statements I have heard consistently from different people that know Michelle and I and about her going to Ghana. I thought it would be interesting to do a post on some of them.

"Why are you letting your wife go to Ghana?" - This question in itself probably deserves its own post, but I am going to try to simplify it somewhat. Michelle has to be one of the most amazing women I know. God has blessed her with gifts of compassion, ability to adapt to situations, and of course her physical therapy abilities. God has blessed us to have her be a stay at home mom presently. This role, also allows her to do these things as well. Michelle loves children. This is something you all I am sure know about her. And of course, sharing her faith is something that she never keeps quiet. These two passions are a perfect fit for a medical mission trip. If you still don't get it, then you need to read the previous posts as she describes this passion of going to Ghana.

"Are you going to Ghana?" - At the present time, no. Michelle and I agreed a few years back that both of us would not be off the North American continent at the same time without our children. With me going to China periodically each year, it is just not feasible for me to go Ghana. We do intend to go on mission trips together, when the chldren are older. Lord willing, we will do these as a family. I believe it is important that children gain an appreciation of where they are in the world, in relationship to others that just don't have anything. We learned this most evidently last year, when we had David and Abby in tow with us as we went to Bayou La Batre to build houses.

"Who is going to watch the kids?" - I am not really sure how to take this question. The children are still my responsibility. Even when Michelle is home, they are my (our) responsibility. True, Michelle takes a more open role with them (being a stay at home mom), but I still am involved in their lives! I think the real meaning of this question is "who is watching the kids while you are at work?" This has been taken care for the entire week. In the evenings, our normal routine stays the same.

"Aren't you afraid that something will happen to her?" - This is a difficult question to answer. I am concerned that something may happen, but that is because I am her body guard, just like she is mine (she doesn't like it when I go to China. She can't protect me). She is out of my control. I have to trust that numerous conversations, the planning of how to pack, the duplicate ids, etc. is going to be enough. Plus, she has 4 doctors, 7 nurses, 1 guy that is a black belt in ninjitsu, and another guy that is right at 6'8", and over 300 pounds on the trip. But more importantly, God is with them all. This I know. She will be fine. Do I worry? of course. Do I pray for her? Of course. But she will be fine.

"How are the kids doing?" - The kids are actually doing really well. We were at the airport yesterday, sitting around as everyone was checking in. We had been there for about an hour, when David came up to me and asked, "Dad, can we go? I am hungry." To them, this is just what mommy does. Just like daddy going to china. Mommy is going to Africa to help the little chldren. They understand this, and it makes sense to them. True, they miss her, and want to know where she is, but they are not upset. They are not crying. They know she will be fine. God is with her.

"How are you doing?" - I'll better answer this question in a few days.....