Wordless Wednesday take 1

Working on a new WED feature....

I have to confess this is not a new idea fresh from my own head, I first saw it on a friends blog
Hopf In Niger , I love the concept of a day dedicated to photos, life as it is right now etc.  I have since found a few other sites that do similar things. The concept is quite simple, we all know the saying a photo is worth 1000 words, post a photo or photos on Wednesday, and let them speak for themselves. 

I am going to give it a try.  I know that means I have to be on the ball, to get photo's ready to roll each week, I am hoping it will motivate me in a few ways.  First to pick up my camera again, Second to actually download them and deal with them and finally to share and blog regularly.  Let's see how it goes.  First photo(s) to be added today....... I hope you enjoy !

Trash & Blessings

I love it when all the pieces fit together, especially in unexptected ways. Turning trash to treasure, and blessing many people in the process.  

Inventory is never a fun part of any job, this year as we faced a warehouse downsize, inventory certainly was going to be a bigger challenge than ever.  We counted and sorted and the trash pile grew.  There were lots of useful things that had been sitting on the shelves not selling, in some cases for years, we needed the shelf space, so they were getting the heave ho.  So sad, these were perfectly good products that had huge potential to help someone.   I asked my boss what his plans were and he said he would like to donate them somewhere but did not know where to even start.  WAHOO... I jumped in and told him that I would ask my connections in Niamey, Niger, West Africa if they thought the items could be of use.  Doc Ace assured me that he thougth the items could be put to good use.

That was all I needed to hear, we were off and running. I packed up the "trash" and took it home.  Thankfully my husbands office has this HUGE empty basement area that we are able to store things if we need to.  So off to his office went the 5 very large boxes of "trash" to be stored untill I could figure out how to get it to Africa.  Worst case senerio it would take a couple of years and return with team members heading back after some time home in Canada in 2013.  I was o.k. with that - but kept my ears open and let a few people know that I had things to send to Niamey.  The prayers went up and I waited...


God had a much faster plan.  Just before Easter, my momma called to say that they had a speaker at their church from Niamey, and that she was going back in a week.  YIPPEE!   I sent of a quick email, asking her if she had room in her suitcase..and if so would she mind taking a few items with her.  Not only did she have room, she was only travelling with one suitcase so I could send a whole FULL suit case with her.  God certainly was putting the pieces of the puzzle together.  So I packed up 48 lbs (limit is 50 - but you never quite know how close scales are. so better to be safe than sorry, or paying the over weight charge.) of wrist supports, knee braces, cervical collars, walking boots and a few other odds and ends.  Said a prayer that they would get into the hands of those who can use them and off they went.

Yesterday I received an email from Deborah an occupational therapist that works at Galmi Hosptial, several hours outside of Niamey. The Suitcase had arrived at the hosptial yesterday, simply marked Gamli, with no "attention to" or proper address, they had no idea what it was, where it came from or who it was for.  Peices of the puzzle, coming together yet again. A doctor at the hospital opened it, took one look and said, this is for Deborah.  She was over the moon excited - and stated that she had been praying last week about their need for wrist supports.  The suitcase had just what she needed, God had answered her prayer BEFORE she prayed it.  I had picked the trash, packed the suitcase and sent it on it's way BEFORE she even uttered the prayer of need.  How utterly cool is that?   God is in the business of BIG PICTURES,  He sees them and put the peices of the puzzle together in perfect order.

I sit in awe, I am blessed beyond measure to be part of the big picture.  I wonder how the pieces will fit together for the next suitcase, there are still several boxes good "trash" to go.   Secretly I hope and pray I will be able to carry it and deliver it, to see in person the final destination.  A girl can dream.  In the meantime I am happy to put it all together at this end so that our trash will be someones treasure.  Blessing all who are part of the BIG PICTURE.

Lets fight.....

Today is International Malaria Awareness Day. 

Malaria is deadly, Malaria is preventable.

Read more about malaria awareness day and what can be done here.

Education is key.

The best Christmas gift I received this year was from my family, mosquito Nets for 2 families in Niger, West Africa.  To these 2 families this is the gift of life, and peace of mind.  Knowing that they are protected from the mosquito's at night, the mosquito's that carry the deadly disease, the disease that worries mothers & kills children.  A simple mosquito net used correctly will save lives.  Let's fight for these lives.  If you would like to know more about purchasing mosquito nets for families in Niger, please take a min to look at page 3 of the Alliance Gift Catalog and page 22 for the donation form.  $25 can save a life... or 2 or 3 depending on how many are sleeping under it. 


  

Simply sad....

So many things in my life are good.  It is not perfect, but it IS good.

Simple things truly make me happy;

Family & friends.
Watching a one year old discover bubbles.
The first signs of cherry blossoms showing their pink ruffles.
Hearing my favorite song on the radio.
A good book, or a good cup of Cinnamon coffee.
A random meeting with an old friend in the mall.
Laughter, the kind that ends with tears rolling down my cheeks . . . . . . . Truly simple things!

Too bad life is not always simple.

Sometimes things happen that strip that simplicity.

Things that on every level are complex. 

Today at the beginning of my relatively simple happy life,  I read this...
Up In Flames

A blog entry written by my friend Chantelle, director of the Niger Vocational Girls at Risk School, this is where I was in September of 2011, working with the girls, learning from these girls, falling in love with these girls.  I left a chunk of my heart there with these girls.  Today as I read, my heart was broken, deep down in a I am helpless, what can I do sort of way. 

Up in flames... very litterally,  a few days ago, the local market, the market I shopped in, bought fabric in & walked through, was burned to the ground. Chantelle's blog entry shows before and after photos, it tore at the core of my beeing.   Before I even finished reading I had tears streaming down my face, and I felt totally & utterly helpless.  WHY?  Do these people not struggle enough?  HOW will they even begin to rebuild?  It seems so unfair   So many people who had so little to start with now have nothing..... litterally NOTHING but ashes and chared messes where livelyhood once stood.

Fire is devastating in any uncontained form, but like this it is unfathomable.  Homes & jobs can be lost, all that a family has can be wiped out in the blink of an eye.  We truly have no comprehension of such loss here in North America where we have fire regulations, insurance,  built in sprinkler systems, not to mention resources to rebuild.  In Niger, where the economic situation is bleek at best, a land where water is scarce, famine has a stronghold & where refugees are streaming in from surrounding countries  by the 1000's, adding to the stress on resources, a fire like this has unmeasureable consequences. 

My heart is there with these people, as they try to look ahead to what comes next. Praying they find the strength, resources and courage to move forward.  Wondering if there is anything that can be done from here.  It is complicated...  sending $$ may be easy for us, but is it best for those there in Niamey?  Culturally is it best for them?  Is that what need?  Or do we go, with hammer in hand to help build?  Work beside them as they reclaim their livelyhoods?  No matter what happens,  one thing for sure, it is going to be a long, long journey. 





 

Something worth thinking about.

In light of my last post, this photo really pulled at my heart strings.

I have looked at this photo for a very long time this is what strikes me.

The first being, I can not even begin to imagine this life.  My life in North America is so very different.  I realize that my observations come from a very naive and inexperienced place. A place that however naive is compassionate to the plight of this group of people. I believe that such photos raise awareness, and when we are more aware, we are better able to adjust our way  thinking and be people of action and advocacy.
 
It looks hotter than hot.

This well is HUGE.  ( Has anyone ever fallen in????)

I guesstimate that there are close to 200 people in the photo ( I tried to count, but my eyes are not that good)

There appears to be at least 2 or 3  pots / containers per person.

I look and I wonder how many people come to this well each day?

How big are their families?

I wonder how far they have to walk?

I find it interesting that both men and women gather at the well.

I wonder how long this well has been active and how long before it runs dry.

Just a few of the things that popped into my head...

What do you see? What strikes you? 

I hope in the very least it makes you thankful for the running water in your home.


On a side note I would love to give credit to the person who took the photo, but could not find the original source.  I will continue to look, and when I do will happily  post proper credits.

World H2O day.....

Awareness is key. 

Thinking about a world - or area of the world - with out water is difficult for many.  Especially those of us who live and grew up on the "wet" coast.  In a city where the annual rainfall is1117.2 mm per year finding water is not a problem.  It's simple, we turn a tap and voila safe, affordable, clean water for anything we need.  24 hours a day, 7 days a week, it is available.  On the rare occasion the water main is turned off for maintenance, we think we suffer.  We get notice of when that suffering is  o happen and are given an approximate time line.   We "prepare for the disaster"by filling pots & containers, refrigerating, and if it is going to be a really long time we fill our bathtubs  "Just in case".  We think we suffer. HA, we do not know the meaning of the word.  In my small home alone there are 8 sources where water comes into my home or yard.  Water is available in a wide variety of locations.  From my home I can drive for less than 1/2 an hour in several directions and end up at the ocean or at a fresh water lake, where I can swim, and enjoy many recreational activities.  Water is certainly NOT scarce. We are most fortunate, we should not take this life giving resource for granted.

"Water" source ... notice the garbage and the goats

However, that is not the reality for 100' of 1000's of people who live in climates where they see under 20mm rainfall per year.  If that rain comes in "HOT" season, the water often evaporates BEFORE it even hits the ground.  Then imagine not having a tap, imagine having to walk for  2 kms or more to fetch water only to have to CARRY it back home, on your back, on your head, in buckets by hand.  Only to have to repeat this task again the next day and the next and the next, every day of your life when you require water.  This is how you obtain the water you will use for EVERYTHING, drinking, cooking, gardening, feeding animals, bathing - E*V*E*R*Y*T*H*I*N*G.  In many cases the water source is small, stagnant, polluted, shared with animals, used for bathing and laundry,as well as 100's of people who also walk several kilometers there and back daily just for water. Scenarios like this are ones we in North America can not even begin to fathom. Yet this is REALITY for millions in this world.  Water, the most basic of human need clean drinking water is not something they ever take for granted by these people.

"drinking" water in a market stall in Niamey

Women gather at the well for water

As with most things, unless you have experienced this first hand you can not fathom the issue.  Awareness and education are KEY.  That is why we need world water day.

Here is a little history of World Water Day. 

If you are looking to be able to help,  here is  a link to the Alliance Compassion Catalog  see page 4 on wells and helping get them built.  Page 22 is the form to fill out in order to give. 

This is my friend Adam, a village leader, drawing water from one of the wells built as an Alliance Compassion project. The well is just a few 100 meters from the center of his village.  It provides fresh, clean, safe water for his village of about 1000 people.  Saving them 1000's hours of "water walking" annually.  Adam has also said that the health of his village has improved since the well was constructed.  That is an invaluable gift.  It is the gift of life, of health and most of all the gift of HOPE for the people in Teppe.  It is Water.....it is life!