Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Long December

It really has been a long December. Graduation was a hoot. We heard President George W. Bush speak. More exciting than that, My parents and grandparents came in for the ceremony. It was a good if somewhat anti-climactic way to wrap up the last four and a half years of my life.

Fundraising went extremely well. If the Lord wanted to tell me that it is not his will for me to go to Uganda, he did not do it by withholding monetary blessings. So, thank you so so so much to everyone who prayed for the fundraising process and to those of you who were able to donate!

I got my yellow fever shot, and bought a plane ticket to Colorado. It would appear that everything is ready to be set in motion. Until the 11th I will be writing to people, pulling some things together for the trip, and enjoying the family!

Almost forgot, my phone turns off in early January, but I will have the same number when I get back.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Purpose

I plan to attend grad school for environmental engineering (essentially water treatment) after I get back from Uganda. This is the statement of purpose that I am sending to the department of admissions. Don't worry, I am asking other people to proofread it, so don't let the grammar turn you off.

During my sophomore year, I almost switched majors to History. Teaching history seemed like the right thing to do, so why suffer through engineering? To be honest, I was a bagel away from switching. Let me explain. I was on my way to the history building with my official form to switch, and I got really hungry. In that moment, all I could think about was the delicious blueberry bagels at Poor Yorick’s. The line for bagels was really long, and I had to run straight to class afterwards, and from there I went home for the Thanksgiving break. There was still plenty of time to talk to the history advisors. While at home I was talking to my uncle, a wise and learned man, about my decision to change majors. He asked me an excellent question. He said “Andrew, has the Lord gifted you to be an Engineer?” I was dumbfounded. The Lord has wired me in such a way that the math and science of engineering comes easily. It is just the way my mind works. His second question was even more insightful. “If you got an engineering degree, could you teach if you still wanted to?” Once again, the answer was yes. I could teach with an engineering degree, but I could never engineer with a teaching degree. So I decided to stick it out.

A few weeks later I was having lunch with a friend in the department. He was very excited about a group called Engineering Ministries International. EMI has an intern program where juniors, seniors, and recently graduated engineers move to a developing country for a summer or semester and do free design work. It sounded good, but graduation was still a long ways away. It wasn’t until my junior year that I really discovered my purpose. In the Bible, Jesus says that more will be expected from people that have received much. When I read that verse I immediately thought of my engineering career. I have been blessed with so much ability and the privilege of attending college. How could I use those gifts for myself? I decided then and there that I wanted to use my engineering degree to serve people. The second thing that popped into my mind was EMI. There are people out there doing the kind of work that I wanted to do! I applied for one of EMI’s six month internships and was accepted. In January I will travel to Uganda to work with Engineering Ministries International. EMI interns help design things like schools, churches, and clean water systems in the developing world. Eventually, I hope to do this kind of work full time.

Since finding a purpose for my life, civil engineering classes have come alive! I envision myself using the skills that I learn to help people. It isn’t enough anymore to simply make the grade. The developing world needs competent and experienced engineers to find solutions to very serious problems. I have the heart to serve, but I need the skills. By earning a Masters of Engineering from Texas A&M, I hope to become an expert in the field of Environmental Engineering. Once I have earned the degree, I will find a job in the Industry and gain experience in the field of water treatment. Equipped with knowledge and experience, I will be more effective in my efforts to serve the third world.

I also wrote a poem. I was origionally going to send it along with the SOP, but have recently thought better of it.

I would rather tell you face to face.
So you could look into my eyes,
And know that I am serious.
If you could listen, I can talk
We could sit for an hour
And I could ask you the same questions
That I have asked myself
Is all that money worth it?
How many dollars will you make?
Could you live another twenty years,
Never wondering what’s been lost?
And after eating all your money
And drinking all your health,
What will you have?
What will we have?

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Trouble With the Present

I am very excited about working in Uganda. Most people probably consider that to be a given, but it bears repeating. Also, this fact helps explain the trouble with my current situation. The trouble is that I am not in Uganda.

A midterm rapidly approaches, there is a grad school application to complete, and there are so many people around me that mean so much to me. But I just want to get on that plane. I don't procrastinate when it comes to the trip, support letters are squared away, I already got my shots.

Why am I struggling so much when it comes to studying for this midterm? Why am I not spending time with people that I care about?

I need grace to live in the present.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Vaccinations

Just an FYI, the first modern vaccine was for Smallpox. In 1796, Dr. Edward Jenner discovered that exposure to the cowpox virus could prevent someone from contracting the much deadlier smallpox. Thanks Ed!

I went to the Brooks Army Medical Center (BAMC, pronounced Bam-See) in San Antonio on Friday to get my vaccinations and medicines for the trip. It is about a 3 hour drive, and this Friday was homecoming so we made a weekend of it. I was supposed to get 6 shots, but they only give out the yellow fever vaccine on Wednesdays, so I only got 5. Two in one arm and three in the other. One of them is a triple, three diseases for one stick in the arm. I am currently immune to Meningitis, Influenza, Tetanus, Diphtheria, Acellular Pertussis, Hepatitis A, and Typhoid. So if you were planning on giving me any of those diseases as part of a foul plot, you missed your chance. Sucka.

Did you know there is a Hepatitis E? Africa is an exposure risk.

I also have 6 months worth of medicine that will make me impervious to Malaria. The only possible side effect listed is nightmares. I am not making this up. We will see how that works out. Time to start keeping a dream journal.

So, the sum of all this is that God is so good. I heard Chris speak last night about desiring to hear from God. How badly do I want to hear from him?

Thursday, October 16, 2008

Getting Started

It is all coming together. I found out two weeks ago on October 3rd that I would be travelling to Uganda in January. While there, I will work on one or several engineering projects with Engineering Ministries International. EMI is a Christian non-profit that does development work in the third world, designing schools, orphanages, clean water systems, you name it.

Their website, which you should check out, is http://www.emiworld.org/

The first hurdle is the support letter. I just got it back from Megan (the Uganda intern coordinator) with comments, and they will be going out soon. The one issue right now is that my name is misspelled on the official endorsement letter from EMI, so I need to get that cleared up before I can send anything out.

There is a facebook group to receive prayer updates, and for anyone that wants to support me financially.

What else... Oh yeah! Shots! (not the kind you drink, I don't like liquor). I need 5 immunizations including Typhoid, Yellow Fever, and Hepatitis A to name a few. My Dad is in the Air Force and hooked me up with a clinic in San Antonio where I can get everything I need, including Malaria meds! The catch is that San Antonio is a 3 hour drive from College Station, so I will be getting all 5 in one go. I hope they are all in the arm. The drive back is a lot of sitting...