Last Saturday I visited the Yeo family as I have made a habit of. The oldest brother asked if we could get together for him to practice English. He is in the middle of studying Biology at a University in Abidjan, but cam back to Bouake after the University shut down to help his family. By the way, just because you can speak English does not mean you can teach it: I was asked one day what the difference is between each other and one another. His English seemed much better when it came out in short segments, but we were able to stumble through a Franglais conversation. The advantage of just trying to talk English is I did not have to "teach" and you get to just be friends. We talked about what we studied; the tendency to acquire loans in the US versus the tendency here to do what you can and wait until you have more money to continue; his aspirations to teach Biology as a compromise to actually wanting to be a doctor; and other stuff I can not recall. I asked how much it was for a year at the university and I discovered it was only 15, 000 CFA ($30) for nationals. Immediately my mind goes to the 13,000 CFA in my wallet. I have been getting to know Daniel, Benjamin, Jacques, Adrea, and David for what seems like a long time. I would be more than glad to help their family financially, but I do not think I could do it unless they asked. The random kids on the street harass me for money for my bike regularly, but I felt unable to help my friends enough. There are reasons to want to give, cautions to not, and details that do not write themselves into blogs well.
The conversation continued and we got on the subject of God's place in science, particularly what he is taught in Biology class. I thought we were practicing English not having a philosophical discussion. We talked some of the difference between a species adapting to its environment and humans evolving from a simple organism. Even if I wanted to create an argument against evolution, neither is my french good enough nor human arguments enough to convince me. We agreed that it was by faith that we believe in creation, and I was able to tell him that I have the same questions. At least in the United States you can find those who have faced the same questions and opposing arguments to evolution, but I have to wonder how dichotomy science and God seem to many university students.