Nkosi Sikelel' Afrika (God Bless Africa)

Doctors always ask why I send photos, why I don't just send the X rays and blood studies. I want them to know this is a human being. This isn't just a back. This is a soul. Dr. Rick Hodes

Do you remember back in the 90's when Kevin Bacon was popular and so was the game "6 Degrees of Separation"? For people like me who cannot remember how many ounces are in a cup but can rattle off to you most of the Academy Award nominees from 1986 this was a great way to pass time. The trick was to connect any actor back to Kevin Bacon within 3 movies. For example Rob Lowe (very easy). Rob Lowe was in The Outsiders with Tom Cruise and Tom Cruise was in A Few Good Men with Kevin Bacon. Someone a little harder like Jessica Simpson. Jessica was in Dukes of Hazard with Seann William Scott. Seann was in Old School with Vince Vaughn. Vince Vaughn was in The Breakup with Jennifer Anniston and Jennifer was in Picture Perfect with Kevin Bacon. (I could do these in my sleep).

As I was talking to Emily one day about the people going on the trip she started describing all the people who had a connection. There is an adoptive family who lost their son and now collect baby formula in his honor. They happened to correspond to the Alexanders over the years and several weeks ago drove in hundreds of pounds of formula for us to take with us in our luggage to feed the babies when we get there. People who are passionate about Ethiopia are much like Kevin Bacon. Not just the fancy dance moves and rockin hair, but the connection to others with the same passion is uncanny.

I first discovered this one day at at lunch. When I was an intern at the DA's office another fella who was interning with me became a lifelong friend. He has sinced moved on from the meager pay of the public sector and now works at a high toned private firm in Wise County. One day I get a call from him about a young lady who wanted to be a DA. I'm always more than happy to meet students who are interested in criminal law and will gladly spend a lunch discussing the possibility. Well one thing led to another and the young lady had a little bit of a life change and was not going to be able to work with us. BUT, as a sign of her appreciation she wanted to take me and the friend that introduced us to lunch. This young lady's name is Michelle Simpson and my friend's name is Allen Williamson (or as I refer to him as Big A). Delightful girl and I know she will make an excellent prosecutor. So where is the connection to Ethiopia you ask? So glad you did.

When I get in the car that day for lunch Allen and Michelle are talking about adopting twins from Ethiopia. Michelle, who got engaged since the last time I saw her (hence the life change), was about to marry a wonderful young man whose mom and dad adopted 2 sets of twins from Ethiopia. I really didn't think much about it because I have been talking about our trip incessantly and assumed they just brought the topic up since I was leaving on my trip within the month. It was only later during the lunch when I mentioned something that we were going to do on the trip that they both realized I was going. The crazy part is Allen brought up the fact that they adopted because they were twins and Allen and I have both serendipitously had boy/girl twins. He thought he was making a twin connection and it was so much more. Michelle proceeded to tell me that her mother worked for years as a dental hygienist and she couldn't wait to get back to tell her about this trip. She wants to get information to possibly go in the future. And Michelle's future mother-in-law couldn't believe the connection either.

That is where I found out about Dr. Rick Hodes. Michelle said her mother just finished the book aboout Dr. Hodes called This is a Soul. It tells the story about this diminutive Jewish man from New York travels the world and ends up dedicating his life to the poor and disenfranchised in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. His main clinic is at Mother Theresa's home run by her Sisters of Charity. Sounds like a good read, but at the time I was deep in the other book and thought I could pick it up after I got home. Two days later my mother hands me an article from Ladies Home Journal. It tells about a journalist from New York who follow this doctor in Ethiopia and ends up "adopting" a young boy. You guessed it....it was also the story of Rick Hodes. So....I bought the book.

If you ever start to feel sorry for yourself or thing that the donation that you make to the local charity is a REAL sacrifice, pick up this book. Devotion doesn't begin to describe what Dr. Hodes feels about his patients and the people he serves. If each of us had 1/10th of his passion our communities would be unrecognizable. You can read more about him and donate directly to him here. As I was trying to mentally and spiritually prepare for this trip I has blessed to have some time alone. I was able to go with work to a conference on South Padre Island (I know....rough gig). While I was there I had an afternoon to go to the beach and finish my book and truly check my motives for going. This was my view as a read my book.


There is something so soothing and so introspective about water. Throughout my life being new water whether it was the small pond I grew up on, the lake where I spent my summers at Kanakuk Kamp, or the chances I have gotten to be by the ocean - it never fails to remind me of just how small I am. It's trite to say and authors and composers have written about it from the beginning of time. But there really is something about looking out into the ocean (or the nasty oil infested Gulf of Mexico...whatever) that reminds me when I think I have control over everything I have not a clue what tomorrow will bring.

I started thinking about a question I was recently asked. During a conversation about the trip the question came up about what my "goal" was and it caught me off guard. I had never really thought of the GOAL. My purpose was to serve the people and love them the way Jesus does, but what does that mean. That I just fly in for 10 days and give away candy and toys and then leave them behind. As I walked the sandy beach and thought about this I couldn't help but think about Dr. Hodes. In his book he refers to the Talmud where one of the rabbis asked Elijah the prophet where he could find the Messiah. He responds, "At the gates of the city, dressing the wounds of the lepers, one by one." Dr. Hodes ponders, "With everything the Messiah has to do - rebuilding the Temple, returning Jewish people to the ways of Judaism, bringing peach to the world - he is spending time treating the lepers." And his thought.....our job is not so small after all.