Brussels, Belgium Here I Come!

I’m ecstatic about returning to Brussels in mid March and seeing Albert & Doreen Walsweer, Fred & Sandra Black, and Michael & his great team of people making all the ministries happen. During my last mission trip to Brussels I was able to help create a fundraising video, speak into the lives of numerous youth from various countries (using an interpreter) and encourage an up and coming screenwriter.

This trip will be a construction trip with hopefully enough spare time to see everyone who touched my life the last time I visited. We’ll be working in Waterloo and I hope to take time to climb the Lion’s mount to see the field where Napoleon’s dream ended in a battle of 300,000 men from seven countries. The last time I was there the fog was so thick we couldn’t even see three steps in front of us.

I have to raise $1,200 to cover the trip’s expenses, so its time to pray and keep my eyes open for those who want to make the trip possible. I’m also hoping to have connectivity so I can upload info to my blog daily.

The count down has begun…. 70 days and counting.

Log Date: 20090520.0112 Location: Kuopio, Finland

Exploring the tunnel to the North Pole was interrupted so we could board the vans for the fishing derby last night. Only eight fish were caught by two dozen people. The first catch came when a Chinese executive fished in the hatchery.

The language barrier hindered a few of us from stopping the executive from fishing illegally. I asked another Chinese colleague to help us inform the executive. She chose not to say a word to keep harmony and show respect, resulting in his unbridled fishing expedition. Once the catch was in hand, a Finn quietly asked him not to fish in the hatchery any longer. It was an interesting lesson in cultural differences as the Americans wanted to make sure he didn’t break the law, while the Chinese respected his decision.

I had an in depth chat with a young French woman who was facing some difficulties and was seeking her purpose in life. I shared God’s perspective on His plan for our lives and she showed great interest in learning more. Unfortunately, our conversation came to an abrupt end when one man who was hoping for some personal time with her, sat in between us and changed the conversation.

We shared a typical Finnish dinner buffet including reindeer. We also ate the fish that we caught (I didn’t catch a thing). All of it was very good. The dessert had some unique little berries that tasted absolutely wonderful.

I woke up at 3:00 am this morning with sunlight pouring into my room. The eye mask I wore didn’t make much difference, as my body felt the light and my mind thought it was 8:00 am. So, I sat in bed thinking until my 5:30 run with my Filipino associate.

While yesterday was filled with two deadlines and an urgent customer issue, today was straight forward and simple. I gave an impromptu talk at the request of an associate and it went well. Our meetings just came to an end and I have some free time to play ping pong with a few of the guys, followed by dinner in the highlands.

I’ll head to the airport at 5:45 am tomorrow for my first of three flights to get home. While the weather and time with the team was great, I will look forward to getting home and enjoying a three day weekend.

BTW, I made a contact that will help facilitate one of my Tween adventure stories being made into a graphic novel. My contact also has connections with investors in the entertainment industry.

Signing out from Finland.

Log Date: 20090520.1527 Location: Kuopio, Finland

The team building program last night was bowling. At home I’d be considered a mediocre bowler, but in Finland among an international crowd I looked like a champion. We had a lot of laughs and cheering as first time bowlers found some success for their first time.

Dinner included reindeer, as did my salad the night before. It didn’t taste like chicken, but did taste a little like Blitzen, or maybe Dasher. Anyway, it wasn’t weird like some Asian meals of kangaroo tail, chicken feet, monkey brains, fish eyes or snake. It was more along the lines of ostrich.

During dinner I responded to religious questions from a Japanese and Swedish man. Both were raised atheist and had an interest in Christianity, although their views and understanding were different than mine. One man asked to continue last night’s discussion.

My workload was heavy today with customer deadlines and feeding information to one division whose new GM is quickly coming up to speed. I was very thankful I took time for a run in the early morning to keep my stress down. The run was fun as I circled a beautiful lake and stopped to throw a snowball. Yes, there is plenty of snow still present.

In a couple of hours I will participate in another team building project; a fishing derby in a river with the catch being cooked for our dinner. The meal will also include a buffet with typical Finnish food.

Well, it seems that one of the men found a tunnel that leads to the North Pole, so I’m off to check it out.

Log Date: 20090519.0120 Location: Kuopio, Finland

Yesterday the team took a bus from Helsinki to Kuopio. The six hour drive was filled with networking, games and laughter. In the back of everyone’s mind was whether or not they would have to use the onboard toilet or if they would be able to wait for one of two stops along the route.

One man waited as long as he could and finally entered the very small closet like restroom. A few moments later, the bus took a hard left turn. I heard a shout followed by a thud.

Silence.

A minute later, the door slowly opened and a head peered out, glancing around to see if anyone was looking. With all eyes on the man, he said, “That was challenging.” Laughter broke out as the bus pulled into a truck stop that very moment.

Several other peculiar and humorous things transpired, encouraged by the various forms of jet lag from our international team. Everyone seemed susceptible to uncontrollable laughter or instant naps that snuck up without notice.

We arrived at our chalet and I quickly changed into my running clothes in hopes of stretching from the long bus ride. Four of us decided to run up the ski slope, but found ourselves walking or climbing the steep slope after the first 100 yards. My heart was pounding and I was sucking more air than I thought my lungs could hold. I had a new respect for Walter Payton who ran up hills (at a lower altitude) regularly during his workouts.

The view was amazing at the top of the slopes. The beauty was beyond what I had ever seen. Hundreds of lakes with hundreds of islands were in view and the air was crystal clear, giving view for miles. It was definitely a place where God spent time and I chose to do the same as I took in the beauty.

The way down was treacherous as we picked a black slope for our descent. A Frenchman selected the path for us – Chosen for adventure not safety. Loose rocks gave way under my feet and I slide down twenty yards before coming to a stop. Thankfully I stayed on my feet during the rapid descent. My heart pounded once again, but this time for the adventure.

Later that night, we went to dinner and took time networking with new people. The meal lasted four hours and we finished dessert around 11:00 pm. It was still light outside as we walked back to the chalet. The sun finally went down around 11:30 pm, only to rise again at 3:00 am. With sunlight pouring into my room, I gave up trying to sleep.

The meetings went well today, although many nodded off. Having jet lag in the northern mountains has been a new experience for me. I should adjust by the time I head home. We’ll soon be off for dinner and a team building experience, so I need to bring this entry to a close. So far I’ve met people from seven different countries and started to make arrangements to pay a few of them a visit in the coming months.

Tuesday is winding down nicely.

Log Date: 20090518.0818 Location: Helsinki, Finland

I got to bed after the sun set at 11:pm and was woken by my daughter calling at 1:am to tell me she was locked out of our house. She figured out how to get in and all is well. I didn’t get back to sleep until about 2:am and was woken by 6:am for a run.

Romeo and Bill ran with me. They are both very skilled marathon runners, so I was the one holding us back, especially since the first half mile was all up hill. After we went about 2 miles, I returned back to the hotel while Bill and Romeo continued the 14K trip around the sea. I’m confident they picked up their pace after I headed back.

In a moment we board a bus for a 6 hour scenic trip north into the colder weather. Down here it is about 50 degrees. BTW, when I went out running at 6:am the sun had already been up for some time. This area seems to get a lot of sun during the summer (warm winter) and very little sun during the winter (cold winter).

Log Date: 20090517.1547 Location: Helsinki, Finland.

I was bumped up to business class on the flight to Munich, Germany and sat by a woman headed to Italy and another man who was bumped up as well. All of my previous overseas experiences had me flying in coach or economy class. It was a pleasure to have much more comfort than I was accustomed. The flight was without incident and I enjoyed two movies, which both used the same story structure I wrote about in my latest article due out Monday.

Our second flight to Helsinki, Finland took 2.5 hours and found me dozing off 90% of the time. Four of us stood at the baggage claim waiting for two suitcases, one being mine. There had been difficulty for me getting on the United flight as I had to purchase my tickets through Lufthansa. This resulted in me having a boarding pass for Munich, but not one for Helsinki. Fortunately, I was able to get into the country without it and register at the Munich ticket booth. With a quick click of the scanner, the agent was able to redirect my bag and it showed up on time. Unfortunately my associate’s bag didn’t arrive.

Way up north here, I saw a stuffed reindeer and trees that are very sparse or thinned out. The place is very green, but the trees don’t have the same thickness as back home. There is a theatre nearby that I thought would be fun to attend tonight. Unfortunately, the show isn’t native to the area – High School Musical 2. Can you imagine coming this whole way and learning that the hit theatre show is something from home? Where is your native culture Helsinki? I’ll probably head into town later today and look around.

Have a great Sunday morning. BTW, Facebook came up in another language due to my location.