by David Melton
Everybody is watching Egypt. Just a year ago some of us from Boston Baptist College took a study trip to Egypt, so the Egyptian drama feels close to home. But not only students learn when we do our study trips to “discover globally.” I learn as well. Egypt taught me a lot about my job in Boston.
We first learned the essential of “us.” We were not a bunch of individuals on the same itinerary … it had to be “us.” Ask Tim Godwin. Just to get to our flight from Germany to Egypt we had to run the gauntlet of trains in Bavaria during an alpine blizzard! We had to get everybody in our group to make every train connection! Tim was the key — since he was our biggest man. He got in the doorway of each train, and wouldn’t let the door close until our last “runner” got inside! We even had a contingency plan where Tim would fake a heart attack in the doorway of the train if that’s what it took until we all made it on board.
Leading this college is about leading “us.” I recognize that not everybody is involved in the work we do in Boston, but for those who are, they are “us.” And I am determined to be a leader here that serves “us” — our students and pastors and churches. When I get a little weary, well, I see Tim running with a huge suitcase and then blocking the train door in the snow.
We did all make it to Cairo and I learned even more there. Every day was a study in the fine art of complication! How long can a minibus travel through the desert and still call it a 9-hour drive? Where else does a refueling stop get you so stuck in sand that it take a half hour to dig out? But in all of that, I saw “heart” from our students. Kristin gave her flip-flops to a shoeless boy who helped push us out of the sand. Ken shared from his cache of snacks on the 9-hour drive that became 12 plus. Ryan kept entertaining, trying to protect us from getting too grumpy, though I’m sure he was tired too. I have to remember that nobody cares what I do for Boston if they do not believe that my heart is in the right place. Egypt wasn’t about me being comfortable; it was an opportunity to serve. I remember a defining moment at a McDonald’s in Luxor. I had to make a leadership call, to do what was best for us, even when our Egyptian guide tried his best to stop me. Egypt reminded me to be a servant leader.
And Egypt reminded me to laugh and enjoy the journey. Nicole got sick and puked at the door of an ancient tomb! We didn’t laugh at that moment, but later, it really WAS funny. Nasty bathrooms? You just had to laugh. Watching a weary study-tripper grab a quick wide-mouthed nap on a bumpy bus — that’s funny, even when it was my big ol’ mouth. Yep, Egypt was a good tutor for this college leader. Thanks, Cairo. Get well soon.