I knew immediately there could be some challenges ahead when, an hour into our flight on airline 1 from Brussels to Bujumbura, the pilot asked if there were any doctors on board. Within another hour, the pilot informed us there would be an emergency medical landing so a crew member could get immediate medical intervention. Thank you for understanding and your patience, he said. We landed in France and sat on the plane for 4 hours. Why did it take so long? I still have no idea. But he did thank us for being patient. When we were back in the air, the pilot then informed us we were no longer going to Bujumbura. Can you imagine? I’m sorry, what? You’re just no longer flying to where I paid the airline to fly me to? Oh. Okay. But it’s okay, because he said, “Thank you for your understanding and patience.”

We landed in Entebbe, Uganda, at 1 a.m., where the airline put the roughly 100 other sleepy passengers and us in a hotel. By the time we checked in, got our bags, and got a key to the room, well, I was asleep around 4 am. Then I was up at 7 am to receive information from the front desk regarding the flight. Thank you for your patience the hotel staff said, and they looked at a sheet of paper and told me to be ready with my family to leave for the airport at 9am. Remember, all of this occurs in a country with broken English, and their native tongue is not yours, so when you have further questions, the chances of you getting a clear answer are slim. There were 2 flights they put everyone on. One was leaving at 10 something, and the other was leaving at 3pm. We did not know this, though. We were leaving at 9am, which seemed totally fine because our email from Airline 1 told us we were departing at 3pm on Airline 2.

We left at 9am and put all our bags next to the bus, where they were loading them onto the bus. We were sleepy to say the least, we should have paid more attention, but hey, any couple dragging 3 kids around the world on a few hours of sleep is bound to make mistakes. So, it turns out they loaded all the bags except for ours. We got to the airport with all the others and watched all the others grab their bags as we stood there. I went inside with the younger two boys after completing our health screening, and Josh and Josiah went back to the hotel to grab our bags, then came in, where they completed their 3rd health screening in 9 hours.

We then all made it through security together and waited in line behind all the other people who were at our hotel on our previous flight on airline 1. I didn’t realize I wasn’t in the correct line for what my email said. I was actually in airline 3’s line. When we got to the counter, I showed the attendant the only information I had: an email from airline 1 stating which flight I was to be on. She glanced at it and said I was in the wrong line and I needed to go to airline 2. This is super fun to wait in lines as a family of 5 in the heat, with 10 bags, everyone with a backpack, and 1 rolling carry-on.

We then waited in the line the lady told us to for airline 2, and when we got to the counter, the man working typed, then looked at me with a quizzical look, then typed some more, then called his boss over. Well, that’s not good, I thought. Josh and I shared a semi-worried look, and the boss said, “It seems you don’t have tickets. If you could just be patient, we’ll figure this out.”

At this point, I’m a little nervous Josh is going to punch someone if they thank him for his patience one more time.

After about 45 minutes, he said, “We think you must be on airline 3, please go there.” The good news is they were right next to each other, and there was no longer a line, because everyone else apparently had tickets. I wearily walk over to airline 3, where I am greeted by a disgruntled employee who informs me it doesn’t matter if I have a ticket or not, the plane is boarding, and I missed it.

I missed it? I missed the flight, I didn’t know I was, because I wasn’t told, and in fact, you are the one who told me to go to the other airline.

I called over the boss from airline 2 (because he was nice), and I said, “Could you please help me?” After exchanging words in Lugandan with disgruntled lady from airline 3, he said, “Come here, we’ll call airline 1 because it is their fault.”

We waited for 2 hours, only to hear that airline 1 could do nothing. We then watched as the people on the 3pm flight arrived and got in line, checked their bags, and proceeded to their gate for takeoff to the country we were supposed to be in yesterday. When the boss came over, he said, “The attendant on the phone won’t talk to you, and she said there’s nothing they can do.” We talked to him about purchasing tickets for the 3pm flight, and he said there are only 3 seats left. Not to mention, we obviously don’t want to pay for this.

We were then told to just go back to the hotel and wait for someone to contact us. Because we were in the departure section of the airport, there was no exit to the hotel. Josh began going through the entrance since there was no other way. The security guard began yelling at him and threatened a police escort, which at this time I turned to her with tears welling up in my eyes and my voice shaky and said, “We just want to go to the hotel because we were denied tickets.” A police officer came up and kindly said he would escort us out to get to the hotel. He told me not to cry, and in my mind I thought, “Dude, I have barely slept in 2 1/2 days, and my family is stuck in this country that we’re not even supposed to be in. If you were in my shoes, even you would be crying.”

After getting to the hotel room, we talked to our travel agent, who helped us navigate a few things. But ultimately, it was all on airline 1, and there was nothing that could be done online. Which meant Josh got to go back to the airport, complete his 4th health screening, and try to get us tickets out of Uganda. After 2 1/2 hours, the attendant from airline 1 said he got 3 of us tickets, but the internet went down, so he would have to get the other 2 tickets once that was back up. Really? Josh waited a while, but ultimately had slept a few hours, and it was now 10:45 pm, and all he wanted was a bed. The attendant assured him he would receive an email and everything would be purchased through airline 1. So, we slept.

I woke up at 11:45pm to a crying boy nervous about only 3 of us traveling and 2 of us “left behind”. We prayed and talked, and I decided to assure him by looking at my email. To my no surprise at all, there was no email from airline 1. There was an email from our travel agent keeping us abreast that there were still no tickets purchased. I walked to the lobby at midnight to call the airport and talk to airline 1. No answer. I tried again. No answer. I asked the kind lady at the front desk if she could try for me on their local phone. She did and said, the power must be out at the airport; there’s no connection. Of course it is, I thought.

So, it’s midnight, our travel agent is about to go home from work in the States, and I’m sitting in the hotel lobby wondering what in the world I’m supposed to do. I couldn’t bear the thought of waking Josh up and saying we still have no tickets. I slumped into the couch and called my dad. He answered immediately, and I could barely say hello because of the tears now flowing. He called our travel agent and purchased us 5 tickets to Bujumbura departing first thing in the morning. We are now working with our travel agent for the reimbursement.

I tossed and turned and kept checking my phone to see when the official email ticket would come. Hoping our travel agent could actually get them and wondering, what else could go wrong? Maybe the email won’t work, and we won’t get tickets. We did get tickets, and everyone woke up at 7am to get back on the bus to get back to the airport to go through yet another health screening, and praise the Lord, we got through with only a few minor bumps. We departed Uganda and landed in Burundi, where we had the smoothest time through the security and visa process. The airline did manage to lose 2 of our bags in that 1-hour flight, but we got them a few days later.

The 5 of us walked out of the Bujumbura airport sweating, pushing baggage carts, and carrying backpacks. We were greeted by smiles and open arms. In that instant, for all 5 of us, none of the past 3 1/2 days mattered at all, every stress we endured melted away as our friends and family wrapped their arms around us. We were finally right where we were supposed to be.

For those who were nervous about our re-entry back to America (that includes myself) because we had “been in Uganda”, customs was longer than it ever has been for us, but they were kind and understanding. After questions and clarifications, we were admitted back into the U.S.A. I cannot describe the feeling I had when we landed on U.S. soil, and we taxied to the gate, and I saw the rows of American flags flying at the airport. I know this country has a lot of issues. I know there are problems in every country, and ours is not exempt. But until you travel internationally and spend a good amount of time in countries whose citizens do not know freedom, you cannot begin to understand the depth of liberty and freedom we have here. If you live in America, you are blessed. I don’t care what your political party is, I don’t care what your opinion of our current or even past presidents is. YOU ARE BLESSED. There are things you will never have to face in life and cannot even comprehend that so many others face daily. You have access to so much. You have so much. Don’t waste it, and I’m begging you to please be thankful for it.

The boys didn’t care when we went to Africa this summer, but their one request was that we be back to celebrate 250 years of our great country. It is a beautiful, God-given country we are privileged to live in. Many have served, fought, and died to preserve this nation, and this little family of 5 will celebrate this Independence Day with deep joy and gratitude! Happy 4th of July!!!!