Sheets of rain trap me in the market!
The streets became rivers!
The weather has cooled off due to some SERIOUS rain! It rained so hard at times that the roads became rivers; actual rivers. Sheets and sheets of rain fell today preventing me from leaving the market square for over an hour. I waited under a shelter with many others caught in the storm. To get home, I had to cross roads with almost knee deep water. The roads were rivers of trash and debris. I went to the market looking for peanuts, but they were nowhere to be found. No one knew what I was asking for. Later, I learned that I needed to ask for “ground nuts”. I will return tomorrow and ask for “ground nuts” and will have a nutritious snack to carry. Our fruits, vegetables and bread go bad so quickly without a fridge. I’m just going to have to buy less more often.
Kayla learning to do laundry at the orphanage!
Today is Wednesday, Feb 17th. I was woken up late last night by the sound of Kayla crying. Her heart is hurting. Now that my tears have stopped, I am hearing hers. She has been a great comfort to me through my ordeal, now I need to help her. My advice to her is to fill that hole in her heart with the joy and love she is experiencing with the children of the orphanage. Fill it with love for your new friends and the joy you have being with them. Fill it with courage and peace as you see the poverty around us and as we help one person at a time have a better life. Time will heal your heart my daughter; just give it a little more time. I am so sorry for your pain. I love you so much.
Agnes getting her clothes ready for school.
Agnes took me to the market today to show me where to buy “ground nuts”. I am also going to buy beans so that her grandmother will cook them for all of us for dinner occasionally (remember, I don’t have a stove, so if I want beans, I have to go to a restaurant). A bowl of beans with fresh tomatoes and onions on top is my favorite dish. It is usually served with sweet potatoes, posha (ground corn meal formed in lumps then boiled. In Italy it is called polenta), or rice. It is considered “poor man’s food” and they eat it at the orphanage every day. When I sit down at a restaurant, I am told about all the options like goat stew, beef stew, fried chicken, etc. The waiter is usually surprised that I ask specifically for a bowl of beans because that is not what the typical foreigner wants to eat!
While at the market, I got Agnes the school supplies she needed to go back to school today. I want to send a special thank you to Paula Bailey for sponsoring Agnes for all three terms of 2010 for a total of $450. This is room, board, and school for a whole year. Paula, you have changed this girl’s life forever and she is so grateful!
Bananas at the market
In my next blog I am going to feature three other girls who have come to my help from the orphanage.
Our days continue to be full of work at the orphanage, time on the internet, time with friends, and time together as mother and daughter relaxing at home or over dinner. All is well.
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