This Congolese Life
Thoughts on living and working in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Sunday, March 5, 2023
Mother Languages Day 2022 (Jennings)
Monday, July 19, 2021
The Amazing Race, Eye Surgery Edition (by Jennings)
(Note: This is how I experienced the days leading up to Douglas' eye surgery. He plans to give his perspective in a later post.)
One Saturday in early May, Douglas told me that he was having blurry vision in his left eye. He had something very similar in his right eye in January 2020, and that turned out to be a tear in his retina that he was able to have repaired in Birmingham. We assumed that he was having the same problem in his left eye this time. He needed to have his eye checked ASAP, and he would probably need treatment. But we didn't know where to go, only that he would most likely need to leave the country.
At this point, it started to feel like a nightmare episode of The Amazing Race:
"Your husband's left eye needs urgent treatment or he could end up with a detached retina. You will need to do the following:
1. Get his passport back from immigration (it had been sent in for a new visa) or get a document to stand in place of the passport.
2. Find out where in east Africa you can get retina treatment
3. Figure out how to get there and buy a ticket
4. Get a COVID test
5. Find a place to stay in a place where you might not know anyone
Also, time is of the essence, as he could end up with a detached retina and lose sight in his eye.
Okay, go!"
Friday, January 22, 2021
Guest post: the Omi New Testament
A dear friend in the UK, Dr. Sarah Casson, has been working for many years as a translation consultant with the Omi Bible translation team, near the border of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) with South Sudan. She recently wrote a beautiful newsletter about the translators, their community, and how the translated Scriptures are already being used. The Omi are set to publish their New Testament + Genesis in the coming months. I asked if I could repost part of her newsletter here, and she kindly agreed. I have edited slightly to remove names, and added emphasis (bold).
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“By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance, O God of our salvation; you are the hope of all the ends of the earth…” Ps. 65:5


The New Testament and Genesis, combined in one volume, are now typeset and awaiting printing. It’s hard to express how extraordinary this achievement is! Before preparation for Bible translation work began in this disadvantaged community, the Omi language had never been written. Speakers were used to their language and culture being despised and overlooked. Even in other parts of DRC, people have rarely heard of the Omi people. Church services in the Omi region are frequently led in more dominant languages such as Bangala and Lugbara, though Omi speakers often only understand these partially. This gives the message that Omiti is not a worthy medium for communicating important information and that God speaks a foreign language. Gradually as the translation has progressed the Catholic church has started to use passages in church services, following the lectionary. Scripture read in Omiti triggers lots of animated discussion outside church. People are starting to grasp that God speaks their language and loves them and their culture!

church choir and traditional harp on the move
Tuesday, August 25, 2020
Virtual Scripture checking (Jennings)
Tuesday, June 23, 2020
The Calm and the Storm
In March, we watched in horror and wonder as COVID-19 spread
through much of the world. In DRCongo, we began to prepare and brace ourselves.
But so far, there have only been 2 confirmed cases in our province, and those
were months ago. So it was as if we were living in the calm before the storm.
Except we had our own storm. Here’s how it all looked to us.
March 31, 2020: Coronavirus had begun to spread in the
capital, Kinshasa, and there were 2 confirmed cases in Ituri province, where we
live, including one in our town of Bunia. The Congolese government issued
restrictions: schools, churches and restaurants were closed; public gatherings
of more than 20 people were prohibited. Our administration decided to close our
office. We had a final prayer meeting and said good-bye to each other.
Wednesday, May 20, 2020
Home Improvement!
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After a storm, layer of dirt and debris on the patio (including broken bottle) |
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We tried adding sandbags, but they also got flooded |
Monday, March 2, 2020
Back in Bunia!! (by Jennings)
Well, here we are!!! We are so thankful to God that He has allowed us to return.
Much is the same. Same house, same furniture, same employees, same dogs, same office. We're all a bit older, and I do feel the effects of the cancer treatment on my body. But it's been mostly a very smooth transition back to our Congolese life.
Monday, February 17, 2020
Bonus Time (by Jennings)
Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money". Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that." James 4:13-15
When I heard that my cancer had returned, as a metastasis (one to be treated "aggressively"), my whole outlook changed. Would the treatment work? Would I make it to age 53? To 60? Suddenly, planning for the future took on a new meaning... would I *have* a future, in this world? For how long? I was still reeling, emotionally, when Douglas called me from Uganda. "I have bad news." One of our dear friends in Nairobi had died of a heart attack. Out of the clear blue, at his son's soccer game. He was only 62, a runner, in excellent health, as far as we all knew. I was worried about my lifespan in terms of years... but nothing is promised to us, not the next five minutes.
Saturday, November 9, 2019
Home Sick (by Jennings)
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What "coming home" looks like, every day, in Bunia |