A Filipino teacher and his wife fit nine years of their lives in Sudan into two bags

Two bags and a shopping bag. It was all Lawrence Espinosa and his wife Annette brought with them when they fled Sudan.

Lawrence and Annette Espinosa left Khartoum with two bags and a grocery bag filled with important documents. They left nine years of their lives in Khartoum and rode a bus to the Egyptian border with the sad reality that they may never see the place they called their second home again. Credit: Lawrence Espinosa

Key Points

• Lawrence Espinosa works as a drama teacher at an international school in Khartoum.
• The ongoing conflict has forced them to leave the city they called their 'second home'.
• They travelled for 24 hours to the Egyptian border

Nine years and two bags

The couple have spent the last nine years of their lives in Khartoum, Sudan.

Lawrence works in an international school teaching drama; with his wife and son, they have built a life in a foreign land that they considered their second home. Last year, his son moved overseas to begin his university studies.

Every morning, he was woken up to the sound of gunfire and helicopters ‘The 4am morning prayers was my wake-up call, which was traded by the sound of llery fire. The house itself was shaking from the bombings.’ They lived ten minutes away from the airport where the war was taking place.

We didn’t want to leave

‘At first, we thought it would only last a week, the school asked us to leave our place of residence and be with the other teachers. We tried to stay for as long as we could.’ When his employers at the international school directed them to move in with the rest of the staff; they had no choice.

 

‘We wanted to stay, but the school explained that it was easier to evacuate everyone if we were all in one place’ They had no choice. They packed two bags contained their most important possessions with a shopping bag which contained their documents.

Sudan was a second home for the family, ‘but the instinct for survival also kicks in. We were forced to leave everything behind, the circumstances will force you to choose between your cherished material possessions or the important things in life.’

Eventually, the call came. They were evacuated. They rode a bus along with the other teachers and their families to the border; leaving nine years of their lives behind.

 

Journey to the border

 It took them 24 hours to reach the Egyptian border, but the 24 hours seemed like 24 years.

‘The bus ride was very somber, there were moments where we’d find things to laugh about but once we reached a checkpoint, everything changed.’ Lawrence and his wife Anette sat at the front of the bus, when the armed soldiers came, everyone was asked to produce their documents. ‘They weren’t seasoned soldiers, many of them are young men.’

 

Filipino humour kicks in

‘When we reached the border, our papers weren’t processed yet. The person in charge wanted us to go back. I felt deflated' shares Lawrence. ‘A local Sudanese guy helped us and pleaded with him to allow us to stay. We were lucky;’

Lawrence and Annette Espinosa in Abu Simbal, Egypt while waiting for their repatriation flight back to the Philippines. Credit: Lawrence Espinosa

After several days, the man who wanted them to return to Sudan became a friend. ‘Mohammed is his name, we were having coffee, sharing stories over sandwiches. We were trading life stories, and each morning he’d joke you still here? And I’d reply with a smile, yes, I think you’d like us to stay longer.'

Lawrence understood that things weren’t going to get easier, they had to be patient. They are caught in a war; organising their papers and the processing of visas would take time.

 

Social media posts

‘I started sharing my journey on social media, it allowed me to calm down and process things.’ All throughout the uncertainties, he tried to remain calm.

 IF

During times of uncertainty, despair, and panic, Lawrence kept calm and recited Rudyard Kipling’s ‘If’. There is this one paragraph that he repeatedly recites ‘If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it upon you.’

‘Keep calm, make sure you are sane, and help your kababayans when you can’ shares Espinosa.

As of this writing, Lawrence and Annette Espinosa have arrived home, on Philippine soil and have expressed their deep gratitude to all the Philippine Embassy staff in Egypt who have tirelessly worked to ensure they arrive home safely.

While the conflict in Sudan has reached its 27^th day.

His journal entry upon arriving ends with the sad reality that they may never see Khartoum again.