To tell you the truth when I arrived in Abidjan... I did not know what to expect in terms of religion. I honestly thought that it would be difficult to find a church in Abidjan as I had assumed that the population was mostly Muslim (in actuality (facts from my boss): most people are catholic in the south part of cote d'Ivoire... about 50% while the north consists of muslims, buddhists, etc). But out of all the luck in the world I end up staying with a family that is catholic and they go to church every Sunday at 7 am. That is such a huge sign for me... a sign that the Lord is with me.
I am proud to say that I am a person of faith (even before I came to Abidjan), but my faith in the Lord has been 100X strengthened during my internship. When I feel scared (especially in my first few days) or even during my daily adventures I feel as though the Lord is always with me. I have come to realize that faith is a huge part of who I am and the actions that I take.
This past Sunday I got to finally go to church with my host family and it was such a wonderful ceremony. It amazes me that even being on the other side of the world, catholic ceremonies are exactly the same. Yes the ceremony is in french and yes the structure is not completely similar but the atmosphere of the community and the purpose of church is still there. It was just so beautiful and I cannot wait to go again in the next week. I hope this did not sound ignorant... but I am completely in awe of how much my faith has played a role in everything I do in Abidjan.
The following is a huge example of why I have reconfirmed the guidance of the Lord:
This past Sunday (May 24), we went to the market in Adajame to pick up fabric for an African dress that my Canadian friend wants to get done. Markets are extremely busy and "blanches or chinois" are most likely to get pick pocketed. Out of all my luck... it happened to me! I was walking in a busy crowd not paying attention to my bag when 3 guys supposedly tried to take my bag (that is what our "mama" said). But for some reason our "Mama" knew what was going on, turned around, grabbed the guy who had my wallet and rain coat and basically went all "what the heck are you doing" in french to him. Because of that...nothing from my bag got stolen. I am still a bit traumatized but we laughed about it yesterday saying that I had such good luck and that the lord is truly with me (it was by coincidence...or not that we just went to church that morning). And thus my faith has been reconfirmed!
I am just so grateful for all the fortunes that have happened so far during this internship and yes everything is not hunky dory but I can confidentally say that everything will be ok because I know I am here for a reason, I am here because the Lord wants me to be here. Amazing... just amazing.
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