an article on the president's death

This is the article we received this morning. I thought some of you might be interested in the information. Please know that I did a different blog entry after this one, just my words. Here is an official article citing more details. I pray everyone has a blessed day. I hope you are interested enough to read the next blog entry. God Bless!

Nigeria President Yar'Adua dies after long illness

By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press Writer © 2010 The Associated Press

May 5, 2010, 6:41PM

LAGOS, Nigeria — Nigerian President Umaru Yar'Adua, long plagued by poor health, has died at age 58, almost three months after his vice president assumed control of Africa's most populous nation, Yar'Adua's spokesman said.

Yar'Adua died at 9 p.m. (2000 GMT) Wednesday at the Aso Rock presidential villa with his wife Turai at his side, presidential spokesman Olusegun Adeniyi told The Associated Press, his voice cracking with emotion. Adeniyi did not give a cause of death.

A Muslim, Yar'Adua will be buried on Thursday, Adeniyi said.

Yar'Adua took office in 2007 in a country notorious for corruption and gained accolades for being the first leader to publicly declare his personal assets when taking office — setting up a benchmark for comparison later to see if he misappropriated funds. But enthusiasm for his presidency waned as time passed and he made no headway in fighting entrenched corruption.

He had tried to peacefully end an insurgency in Nigeria's oil-producing Niger Delta that had attacked the petroleum infrastructure, allowing Angola to overtake Nigeria as Africa's no. 1 oil exporter. Those efforts frayed after Yar'Adua became gravely ill.

Yar'Adua went to a Saudi Arabian hospital on Nov. 24 to receive treatment for what officials described as a severe case of pericarditis, an inflammation of the sac surrounding the heart that can cause a fatal complication. He failed to formally transfer his powers to Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, sparking a constitutional crisis in Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation with 150 million people.

Jonathan assumed the presidency Feb. 9 after a vote by the National Assembly while Yar'Adua was still in Saudi Arabia. Lawmakers left open the possibility for Yar'Adua to regain power if he returned to the country in good health. He returned on Feb. 24 but never reappeared in public and did not assume power again.

Charles Dokubo, an analyst at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, said Yar'Adua would leave a mixed legacy. Dokubo said many would remember how Yar'Adua never fulfilled his promises of increasing power supplies and fixing the nation's shaky electoral system.

Yar'Adua, a soft-spoken former chemistry professor, was propelled into Nigeria's highest through flawed elections but it marked the first time a civilian won the presidency from another civilian in a nation once plagued by military coups.

As president, Yar'Adua was also unable to stem religious violence that has long plagued Nigeria.

The country is split between the Christian-dominated south and its Muslim north. The country's "middle belt," where dozens of ethnic groups vie for control of fertile lands, has become an epicenter of violence where more than 500 have died since the beginning of the year in tit-for-tat massacres of Muslims and Christians. Politics, jobs and land often motivate the killings.

Yar'Adua was committed to ending the violence in the oil-rich Niger Delta, where the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta had been attacking oil installations, kidnapping petroleum company employees and fighting government troops. MEND began its fight in January 2006 to protest the unrelenting poverty of people in the Niger Delta.

The unrest had cut Nigeria's oil production by about a million barrels a day. Yar'Adua started formal peace talks earlier this year with MEND and met with Henry Okah, the group's longtime leader. The entreaties drew more than 8,000 militants into surrendering their arms as part of a government amnesty program.

"The general amnesty I extended to all militants in the Niger Delta has led to the laying down of arms and a return of peace," Yar'Adua said in October. But militants later resumed attacks, saying the government had failed to own up to its commitments under the amnesty like sharing the nation's oil wealth with the delta.

Born into one of Nigeria's best-known political families in northern Nigeria in 1951, Yar'Adua earlier worked as a chemistry professor at a university in his home state of Katsina. He became Katsina's governor and later emerged as the consensus pick among the ruling Peoples' Democratic Party, run by then-President Olusegun Obasanjo, a former military dictator.

The 2007 presidential election was meant to end a cycle of military takeovers while cementing democratic rule with Nigeria's first-ever peaceful transfer of power between civilian rulers. International observers said the vote was rigged. Thugs stole ballot boxes and electoral officials thumb-printed stacks of voting cards with police looking on. However, Yar'Adua wasn't widely considered to have arranged the stolen vote.

"We acknowledge that our elections were not perfect and had lapses and shortcomings," Yar'Adua said in his May 29, 2007, inaugural address. "I also believe that out experiences represent an opportunity to learn from our mistakes."

That admission alone offered a break from the bluster that characterized Yar'Adua's predecessors, including some of Africa's most famous "Big Men." Many in Nigeria hailed his announcement that he would be a "servant-leader."

While a careful approach to governance distinguished Yar'Adua from his predecessor, it failed to move the machinery of government and the public soured on the president as electric power remained scarce and blocks-long gasoline queues remained common in Nigeria's major cities.

Yar'Adua also fell ill repeatedly. He flew away on long overseas trips to Germany and Saudi Arabia, where he availed himself of first-class medical treatment for his chronic kidney ailments. Meanwhile Nigerians saw little improvement in their own country's hospitals and health care system.

Even after Yar'Adua moved into the presidential palace, Aso Rock, many of his family members continued living in the modest family compound where Yar'Adua was born. He leaves behind his wife, Turai, and nine children

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/top/all/6991826.html

a time to mourn and a time to celebrate

a time to mourn....

This morning the nation of Nigeria is going into mourning as the announcement has been made that President Yar Adua has died. It has been declared a day of mourning for all. We just found out that all banks, places of establishment and the kids school have been closed and will resume tomorrow.

There are no protests as he was not killed. He has passed away from his long enduring sickness. Please pray for this nation as people are working through another political change (even though there has been a new acting

president for the last couple of months) and the loss of a leader.

a time to celebrate...

A couple of days ago two of my friends here, Emilee and Kimberly, celebrated my birthday with me by taking me out for a chinese lunch. It was super fun and I was greatly encouraged to be able to do some "normal" things for a birthday. A little bit of normalcy can be found and is being found amidst constant day in and day out changes.

new stint housing

Good Morning!! I have pictures this morning of the finished (well almost) stint housing. This is the renovation that was being done behind our house to fit our two new stinters (which are the one year term staff, considered short term). I meant to have this yesterday but we have not had working internet until late last night. So, here they are! I am aware that most of you will not care too much about the individual pictures, but I promised the people moving in (which are my parents) that I would show them so they could see them, along with some other people. So, I hope you can picture their place just a bit better. I personally think it is cute, small but quaint....

The picture above is when you are walking behind our house you enter their courtyard. Isn't it cozy? I love it!!

This is their front porch, pretty much right in front of the front door.

The new living room/dining room. It is obviously missing their personal touch, but they can add when they arrive to make it "their" home.

Okay, the little kitchen. This is going to be a stretch for whomever lives here, whether it be my parents or the next stinters, but the cabinets come in tomorrow and I think it will help.

Front door. Doesn't it just say, "Welcome and come in and sit awhile"

Their bedroom. It is missing a bed. This is also supposed to come in tomorrow. I hope these things really do arrive because it will be hard to not have it complete. But, we are praying.

Here is a picture of the new laundry room that we will all share. It is also our guards kitchen. So, it is tiny, but a lot has fit in there.

I guess that is it really. I didn't want to bore anyone with a picture of their bathroom, plus I didn't want to scare my parents off before they arrive (which is Thursday). Overall, it is complete and I think John did a great job. We have learned a lot about building here with this project (and by the way, when I say "we" I really mean John). We are very excited to have my parents come serve with us for the next year as my kids are excited to have their grandparents around as well. Pray for their safe travel as they leave the USA today and arrive here tomorrow.

old vs. new

I don't know if you remember a post entitled, "gidan bege". It was of a ministry that we come alongside of to help widows in this area who are learning the trade of tailoring, sewing, etc...

Well, they have recently had an open house showing off their new location. It is such an improvement. I have posted on the last two pictures their "old" place. It was dark, small and rundown. Their new place is bright with lots of natural sunlight, lots of space, their store is in a bigger, open room. Overall, it is really just beautiful. I wanted to show you some pictures of their new location and please know that these women are so aware of their blessed situation.

I have already bought a few items from their new shop and I love that they now have a little dressing room and waiting area. I hope you can come and visit and go to these ladies for a new nigerian outfit, it is worth the time to get there. I don't know if you see the shelf with different fabrics on it, but I just wanted to show you some of the styles that you can choose. I tell you they are not ones to have plain material. I think they might view that as boring. Which is funny to me, but again, just a cultural preference I guess.

The picture of the building is of their new kitchen/dining room location. It is just 20 steps below their workshop. It is very normal to have a separate building for the kitchen. I have noticed that in not only the village, but also their natural houses in town. It is sometimes in a separate location. I think because they use cookers and/or fires a lot, they keep it away from the living quarters. Interesting, huh?

Well, here are your nigeria pictures for the day. Absorb them so you can more realistically picture our lives in Jos. Tomorrow I am going to show you more pictures of our new apartment that John has been building. My parents come in just a couple of days to live here so it needs to be done very soon. Almost there, they just a kitchen and bathroom still and all will be complete. I think those two rooms are overrated anyway.

african jungle

Okay, so here is the thing.....

You will see that I have put more pictures of these plants than I have on any other post. Here is the reason: I AM SO EXCITED TO HAVE A LITTLE AFRICAN JUNGLE ON MY PROPERTY!!!! (I stole that name from a friend, thanks Sara).

We went yesterday to our versions of greenhouses here in Nigeria. The first and last picture are of the "place" and the lady, Mary, who helped us figure out what needed sun, what needed water, shade, how to trim, etc... She was super helpful.

Anyway, we have done some renovations to our compound and we are coming close to an end and there was something missing.

Truth be told, our compound is extremely small and we have for the most part covered up all dirt areas and so now we have a little compound covered with concrete. Sooooo, in an effort to green it up a bit, we bought a bunch of plants to jungle it up a bit. I LOVE IT!!! Anyway, I wish you all could come and visit and see it for yourself. Especially before they all die. I am not necessarily known for my green thumb. BUT, I think I am turning over a leaf and these will survive.

These pictures are just of different angles of our home, the new little apartment in the back, our front porch, our little garden we are making slowly, etc...
I hope by looking at these pictures you can picture our home a bit more. So even though these are not necessarily ministry pictures or even of life outside my home and definitely not of a real african jungle (just my little home version).... these are my favorite ones to share in this particular moment.....

Have a great Sunday!

little women

Last night the school started their performances of the musical, "Little Women". John decided early on that he wasn't too interested in sitting for four hours to watch it so us girls made the decision to make it a little women night.

I love my girls and am so thankful for Sarah and Samantha. They are getting to an age where our discussions can be real and deep. The night was enjoyable for us as so was John's and Gus's night to whatever little men do when no girls are around.

This is the three of us right before we entered the production on our school grounds. Gosh, all three of us are looking older (bummer for me huh??) Because the production was 4 hours long there was an intermission where zata, jollof rice and beef kabobs were served. All of it was delicious (with a little spice kick to it) as I am realizing that my kids don't know "true" american food (bummer for them huh??). Oh well, it is our life and theirs as well. I think my favorite part of the evening was the realization of sisters and how sisters can help you overcome anything in life that comes your way. So, I am thankful that Sami and Sarah have each other as I am also thankful for all my sisters, Kelley, Jodi, Cheryl, Beth, Jeni and Julie. And that does not even include spiritual sisters which I am just as grateful for them. They are all gifts to me.

holy spirit living

Yesterday was the last bible study meeting for the Living Beyond Yourself study. I have to admit, it was by far, the most personal bible study I have ever done. Not exactly sure why but I loved it, and the timing was perfect. One of the ladies who came was a neighbor and she made this cake for our last time together. Isn't it pretty?

This is a picture of the majority of us who attended. Emilee is taking the photo and one of our ladies had a baby and one of our ladies moved back to the Netherlands. But, these women stuck through it with me and I was blessed by it for sure.
Just an FYI, the fruit of the Spirit that I learned the most from was about gentleness. Who would have thought huh? It was super powerful for me and I think my big take home is Freedom in the Spirit and Freedom in Christ. Amen and Amen.