October Newsletter

This project started just over a year ago. On this anniversary, the things that have changed stand out. 

Travel: In the past year, I've traveled over 50,000 mile many of those by plane. So airports have become familiar haunts. You know that excited, familiar, and comforting feeling that you get when going "home for the holidays" I get that feeling going to the airport.

Language: A year ago, I couldn't speak French. Now, while my ability to express myself and understand others is limited, I regularly have broken, fumbling, humorous, and enjoyable conversations. When I meet someone, the first words that come to mind are, "Bonjour! Comment ca va?" 

Questions: When I first arrived in Africa last year, I was asking a lot of questions. Questions like: How do I do this? Is it possible? What is it going to look like? How do I capture these complex stories and present them in videos? Over the past year, many of those questions have been answered. My questions today are slightly different: How can I keep doing this? What are new ways to tell these stories? How do I manage the workload and get all these projects done? How do I keep from missing stories as I focus on production?

Production: Before this year, I had only made three videos on missions work, one being my senior project at University. Now there are over 20 films that have been completed as part of this project and new videos are coming out about every two weeks. These videos have been viewed online over 3000 times and those numbers continue to grow. If you haven't seen all of them you can check them out here: 

www.vimeo.com/CADVideo . As you keep sharing these videos, I hope that we may reach 10,000 views by the end of the year. 

To list all of the things that have changed would make this letter far too long. I have grown and learned and developed and been changed by the people, places, and things that I have met along the way. All this change makes those things which have not changed stand out in relief. 

One year in and I still love these stories. I see Gods work in changing people, in changing whole communities, in changing hearts and I get inspired. I go, "Wow I want to tell that story. I want others to hear this story that they can be challenged to change too." My passion, my drive, my desire is still the same today, perhaps even great than when I first began. 

Another thing that stands out, unchanged from the beginning of this project, is you. You have been part of this from the beginning. Your support continues to encourage and sustain me. When I read the comments you leave on the videos and see you sharing the videos with your friends and family, I smile knowing that because of your involvement this project is succeeding. I am excited for this next year. Excited to see what happens with this project and to see what happens as we continue to work together. Thank you for being part of this past year and continuing on with me into this next year. Thank you so very much. 

Your Fellow Servant,

Drew