Thanks, Continued

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I thank God for the people that were in my life in Tanzania.

Where to start? Certainly with Sossy. I met Sossy within days of that phone call from Rome. He happened to be in the United States, so I flew up to Berkeley from Los Angeles in order to meet him and the equally wonderful Deogratius Rwezaura, then a graduate student at the Jesuit School of Theology. My initial excitement was only confirmed in my talk with Sossy about the need in Dodoma. He seemed like someone I could work with, a fact that was confirmed over the course of our three years together. Not that everything was always smooth, mind you. We had our differences but the respect that we have for one another helped us to manage those moments. It was a delight to see Sossy during the recent colloquium in Boston and an even greater delight to spend a couple of days relaxing with him after the meeting.

There were other Jesuit companions in the community in Dodoma, of course. Michel Ruasha could not have made me feel more welcome to the community; his departure from the parish was not easy for me.

I am very thankful for having had the opportunity to live and work with Martin Waweru Kamau. I’ve recounted a difficult time in our life in our community at the parish before those assigned to the high school moved the 17 kilometres to Ihumwa. I was in part implicated in the difficulty. In any case the tension – the details are unimportant, really –  in the community went unnamed and unaddressed until at a community meeting this outstanding young Jesuit so many years my junior called the community to greater growth by naming the issues and inviting us to address them. Thank God he did. We worked well together – and lived well together.  I can say that one of the best years of my life was the one spent living in two apartments – Martin, Brother Vincent, Kizito, and I.

What would I have done without Kizito? He was an ear for me in some difficult times and never gave me anything except good advice – which when ignored led me down some much rockier roads than I would have had to have traveled had I listened. He taught me a lot in his gentle way. Talk about a man without guile!

Among the people I most admired were our domestic employees. They worked so hard on our behalf. The love of Rose Anthony for the Jesuits and her devotion to  work were inspiring. And her joy was infectious.

At my farewell party, I told the story of our day guard Kikwete. This older gentleman had worked on the security team for our contractor. At one time there was a reduction in force among the guards; the supervisor informed him that for a certain amount of money (about half a month’s salary), Kikwete could keep his job. Kikwete responded by saying that he had too much integrity to engage in such a practice: he’d go home before paying such money. He went home and within a couple of weeks we hired him as our employee because we knew from this incident that he was a man of integrity. He exemplified hard work. Dotto the night guard was equally inspiring. This young man worked through the night and then went to the government secondary school during the day. And inspiration.

The volunteers were such an amazing support. I was supposed to be their support person, but they served me as much in that role as I did them! Their own generosity and desire to be with the people and to serve the nation was inspiring.

And the Ivrea sisters modeled for me what religious life at its best looks like. Jesuit life is not their life, but we could stand to learn from them how to live a more communal existence.

Teachers are liars. They say they don’t have favorites but they do. The challenge is to treat everyone fairly. I had my favourites. One was Esdory Richard, who wants to be a Jesuit. I hope one day I can call him a brother. Another is Christopher Massawe. Christopher arrived at SPCHS without much English. After the first marking period he came to my office inconsolable because of the poor marks he’d received for the previous term. I explained – with Kizito translating because his English was so poor – that it would all work out, that he had to give it time, but that he had to be more actively involved regarding his studies. From that day he showed up every day for extra help from teachers, attended an intensive English program for English language learners during the June break, etc. He finished his first year with B’s. The third is a young girl named Brigiter –  pronounced "brighter," and she is! She comes from a poor, single-parent family. She’s receiving substantial help for her fees, and she never missed an opportunity to thank us for the chance she was receiving. Finally there is Calvin Massawe, who combines maturity and real kindness. He really understands our mission. These four stand for so many others – and they’re going places!

Those are just some thumbnails of folks I’m thankful for. They stand for many others unnamed here.

As I wrote, I’m thankful to have had them in my life.

Next, I think I’ll recount some moments I’m particularly thankful for.

Thanks

Auden is among my favourite poets, and among his poems "Thank You, Fog" is my absolute favourite.

Thank You, Fog
by W.H. Auden

Grown used to New York weather,
all too familiar with Smog,
You, Her unsullied Sister,
I'd quite forgotten and what
You bring to British winters:
now native knowledge returns.

Sworn foe to festination,
daunter of drivers and planes,
volants, of course, will cause You,
but how delighted I am
that You've been lured to visit
Wiltshire's witching countryside
for a whole week at Christmas,
that no one can scurry where
my cosmos is contracted
to an ancient manor-house
and four Selves, joined in friendship,
Jimmy, Tania, Sonia, Me.

Outdoors a shapeless silence,
for even then birds whose blood
is brisk enough to bid them
abide here all the year round,
like the merle and the mavis,
at Your cajoling refrain
their jocund interjections,
no cock considers a scream,
vaguely visible, tree-tops
rustle not but stay there, so
efficiently condensing
Your damp to definite drops.

Indoors specific spaces,
cosy, accommodate to
reminiscence and reading,
crosswords, affinities, fun:
refected by a sapid
supper and regaled by wine,
we sit in a glad circle,
each unaware of our own
nose but alert to the others,
making the most of it, for
how soon we must re-enter,
when lenient days are done,
the world of the work and money
and minding our p's and q's.

No summer sun will ever
dismantle the global gloom
cast by the Daily Papers,
vomiting in slip-shod prose
the facts of filth and violence
that we're too dumb to present:
our earth's a sorry spot, but
for this special interim,
so restful yet so festive,
Thank You, Thank You, Thank You, Fog

Though these past weeks have not been spent in the English countryside during winter, they have been a "special interim, so restful yet so festive." Much of the time was actually spent alone. It was only in my early thirties that I learned how to be alone, and now I can say with the famous eighteenth-century historian of the eighteenth century, Gibbon, that "I was never less alone than when by myself."

The days have given me time and space to think about these last years. There is only one word, really, that captures my present attitude and disposition as I consider them: gratitude.

I never tire of recounting that March morning when I was awakened a little after 6:00 a.m. by a phone call from the Jesuit provincial, my friend Tim Kesicki, SJ. He was calling from the office of Fr. Joe Daoust, SJ, at Jesuit headquarters in Rome. They had a proposal for me: Would I consider helping to start a high school in Dodoma, Tanzania, and then do the same for a teachers college?

Without that request, I would not have had the graces of the last three years. As i was preparing to leave, I had the chance to visit with a Jesuit friend of many years. I first met this man when I was a scholastic studying philosophy at Loyola University Chicago and he was a priest on the faculty at that time. He asked to see me before I left for Tanzania, certain that due to his failing health he might not see me again (I can report that he is still with us, doing okay). During our visit he said to me, "Marty, I have never been asked by the Society to do anything remotely challenging, anything at all close to the edge. What a grace for you in your Jesuit life to be asked to do so." And he was right. I've never felt more like a Jesuit than these past years.

I've jokingly told people that it was my version of a mid-life crisis -- half-jokingly. The mid-life crisis is about identity formation. The existential question one faces at different periods of life is "Who am I now at this stage of life?" In fact the question is better asked as "HOW am I now at this stage of life?" What I was facing before agreeing to move to Tanzania was a life spent coasting, really. I did not need a sports car or a paramour, but I did need something to give me a sense of being a bit edgier. The mission to Tanzania fit the bill. And I'll be forever thankful for the opportunity.

To be continued...

Wow!

It's been forever since I've posted anything here at CHoP. My apologies.

I am presently at Boston College, where I am a participant in a fascinating colloquium: The International Colloquium on Jesuit Secondary Education. It has given me a chance -- among other things -- to visit with my friends from the Eastern Africa Province, including Shete Wangira, Sosthenese Luyembe, Ahmed Andrew Omondi, and the provincial, Fr. Orobator.

On Thursday, I'll deliver a keynote address to the assembly (almost 400 people), which I have spent quite a bit of energy preparing for -- I am excited and a bit apprehensive about this. If there ends up being video of it, I'll share it with you here.

I spent a month in the Colorado Rockies. For those unfamiliar with the Rocky Mountains, they are a grand chain of mountains that stretch from north to south, continuing north into Canada and south into Mexico. My kind sister Colleen and her husband Tim let me use their vacation home in the mountains. I managed to exercise a lot, eat well, rest, read and write, and also catch up on some movies that I'd missed. It was just what I needed!

And thanks to some other good friends, I'll spend some days after this conference resting, too -- for a couple of days I'll be accompanied by some African brothers, which I am looking forward to.

I'm feeling a bit homesick for Tanzania these days -- but that is a good thing to feel, really.

Happy feast of St. Ignatius!  And I might add, that prayers for another more recent holy man's canonization are not out of order -- Solanus Casey, OFM, Cap.

Present Realities

The TED talk below rather captures my recent experience relative to my return to the US. It also captures what I learned from my three years in Tanzania.

Almost Two Months

It's been almost two months since I last posted. I apologize.

In part it is because of a lot of initial travel, and it part it has been because of a little grief. It hasn't been so easy to say goodbye -- certainly not as easy as I thought.

I am often asked about the cultural re-entry. Initially that presented some challenges. In my first days I had to do some shopping and found it extremely difficult to be in a shopping mall. Not so much because of the consumerism but because of the assault on my senses -- having to smell Cinnabun (sp?) and Pizza Hut all at the same time and all of the noises. It was too much.

I had nice visits with family and friends in Toledo and Detroit and Cleveland, where I also had some meetings at John Carroll University. My time here at Loyola University Chicago Jesuit Community has been good. I am especially thankful for the superior here, Fr. Brian Paulson, who entered the Jesuits with me in 1981.

For those who don't know, the main campus of LUC is located right on Lake Michigan. Its location has provided me with the opportunity to get more exercise -- mostly walking. I haven't yet taken full advantage of everything Chicago has to offer, but I will.

I have had a thorough check-up (including a colonoscopy), and everything checked out well -- though weight is an issue (I think I'm one of the few people who has returned home from Africa heavier than when he left!).

I also had the chance to reconnect with a number of Jesuits at a gathering of Jesuits of the Midwest in St. Paul, MN. It was my first visit to St. Paul. It was a great time for me -- my only disappointment was not meeting up with Mary Richards, Rhoda Morgenstern, Ted Baxter, et al.

Next week I will be making my way westward to Winter Park, Colorado. My sister Colleen and brother-in-law Tim are kindly allowing me to use their home for some r 'n r 'n r 'n r -- rest, relaxation, reading, and writing. Among the things I will be writing will be a keynote to be delivered the International Colloquium on Jesuit Secondary Education to be held in Boston at the end of July/early August. After the Boston meeting I'll spend a few days relaxing lakeside in Connecticut, thanks to the kindness of my friends John and Mary Beth.

How do I sum all all of this? Mungu ni mwema! God is good!

Go Forth and Multiply

There have been some additions to the animal population at SPCHS. Another shout out to all those who were were so helpful to us in obtaining the cows and pigs.

Just minutes old! Notice how brown Dodoma's become.

These were born after my departure.

10 piglets! Any less than 7 and mama becomes ham.

Loyola @ Loyola

Today, I had the opportunity to meet someone that I have been corresponding with for the last year: Fr. Pete Henriot, SJ, who is directing the development of Loyola High School in Malawi.

Fr. Henriot's story is an inspiring one and it was good to hear him share it with those of us who gathered for lunch at Ignatius House here at Loyola University Chicago. After starting the Center of Concern in DC and working for almost two decades there, he moved to Zambia to begin work. Among the fruits of his labours is the Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection. Among the projects that has most impressed me is the basic needs basket project.

As I mentioned, we've been in email correspondence about how to manage to infuse a Jesuit ethos in new schools. With a vision like his, they won't have such a difficult time in Lilongwe, I'm sure. Not sure how it is said in Chichewa, but given common Bantu origins it can't be so different from Kiswahili: Mungu akubariki! God bless you, Pete.