Rest Day

Kieran - Yesterday me and my dad went to Mr. Joshua's house and got to play chest and checkers.  We went to a village and on the way we saw a lot of kids.  They really wanted to meet me but they were afraid of me.  At the village there were these three kids that were so scared of me.  The oldest girl shook my hand but the boy hid his face in his shirt.  He would peek out and if I looked at him he would hide in his shirt again.  The boy led us to a farm.  There were a long long field of crops planted all by hand.  There was a lady that lived on the farm, she asked me if I could ask all my friends and family to donate farming supplies.  I felt very bad for them because they work so hard.  It made me think that compared to Canada they have very tough lives.  It was very wet everywhere because it had just finished raining.  We went through a path that led through the whole village, all the paths where full of rain.  Then we had to leave and head home.  We pick up Mr. Joshua's girls from school in Mr. Joshua's really big truck!  I got to ride on the very back of the truck all the way home.  At home I climbed coconut tree and all most  made it to the top.  I am trying to grab a coconut!  

Tania - Well I was at the compound all day yesterday.  I was suppose to take medical supplies to a hospital yesterday, but TIA (this is Africa).  Instead I spent the day with our cook O'Neal. 

 We went for a walk up to the Ebola treatment compound.  The tents from the makeshift hospital are still here,  most are falling into disrepair.  The compound is very large with many large tents and a safety fence surrounding it.  To know that this compound was the hot spot of Ebola treatment only a short 15 months ago is pretty surreal.  The medical teams have come and gone, the cases of Ebola a dwindling, yet this area will remain as a reminder of that time.  It is like everything in Liberia.  There is change and progress but the reminders of hard times and the fragility of life are all around.

Don- Well I have been here 17 days now and I have been blessed with so many great experiences. Living with Joshua and his family was truly a great experience. I got be a part of a Liberian family and experience the daily struggles that make living difficult here in Liberia. I was inspired to work with Joshua and his boys building the brick mold. Two of the older guys there fought on the opposite side of Joshua and he said that they used to shoot at each other. Now they live to and work together for the common goal of ending violence in Liberia and rebuilding the country. Language was a barrier but God really helped us to all understand each other through kind gestures and translating our respective Englishes for each other.

Yesterday Kieran and I got to hangout with Joshua and share some cool experiences of farming life in rural Liberia. It was crazy to see how many crops that they planted, all by hand. The whole community comes together and works the fields and everyone benefits from the crops. I was very happy to be able to share this with Kieran and be able to show him how life may not be easy here but when people come together for a common goal they can accomplish great things.