I spent 10 days in mid-August on a Christian Peacemaker Team delegation. I have been thinking/hoping that my thoughts would sort out and make sense and then I could write about it. But that doesn’t seem to be happening, so I’m going to write about it and see if it works in reverse.
There were 11 of us who met and stayed in Kenora, Ontario. Kenora is in northwest Ontario about 2 hours from Winnipeg, Manitoba. During this week we were to listen, learn and be with the First Nations people in that area. We spent lots of time discussing effects of colonialism and our cultural norms that we take for granted and often impose on others unconsciously. We also met with many elders who shared their wisdom and teachings with us.
The first speaker we had was Larry Morrissette. Before his teaching we asked if we could take notes while he spoke. He paused before he answered, “Yes, as that is the way you are used to doing things. In our culture, an oral culture, it is the way to listen. At the end you will remember what you need to remember. The ideas, the themes, maybe not all the details, but the bigger picture.” I decided that I was here to try new things and learn in different ways so I didn’t take notes. (I did jot notes later and am quite grateful for those who did take notes as we shared after.) It is a different kind of listening I felt, more deliberate in a way.
Larry came to talk to us about the history of the First Nations and the dismantling of the culture by the colonization of the land. It is stated in the Indian Act that the laws were designed to eradicate the First Nations people.
“Our object is to continue until there is not a single Indian in Canada that has not been absorbed into the body politic, and there is no Indian question, and no Indian department.” ---1920, Duncan Campbell Scott, Deputy Superintendent General of Indian Affairs.
The First Nation was a fully functional culture centered on women and children. Some of the many different aspects of life were food-hunting and gathering to feed themselves, health-medicine men who could use the natural world to heal, rules and laws, spiritual beliefs. The colonizers came in and systematically disrupted each part of their world. They put restrictions on the hunting and gathering that caused them to be unable to feed themselves. They became dependant on the foreign government for food that was not always forthcoming. The colonizers put in place the chief and counsel governing body of the clans that were patriarchal instead of the matriarchal system that was in place. The diseases that the colonizers brought could not be treated by the medicine men and so they became dependent on the doctors and nurses of the colonizers who may or may not treat them. (this chart is one that gives more information on this.)
The views and policies of the government changed over the centuries. In the 1700s there were Protection Policies in which settlers were to leave the indigenous people alone. But then they decided they wanted the land and resources and in the 1800s the Civilization Policies came about in which it was illegal to be Native peoples. The 1900s brought the Assimilation Policies with residential schools and forced adoptions. Now there are the Sickness policies and that the indigenous people need to be healed.
Larry says, “I am not sick, I’ve been colonized.” It has taken time but they are reclaiming their culture. It is a slow process that will take generations to realize just as it took generations to break. The resilience that we saw in the people gives hope when many would rather chalk it up as a mistake—a colossal mistake—but they would like to say sorry and be done with it. But we can’t do that. We have a lot of work to do. We have a lot of learning to do. We have a lot of listening to do.
I will have more about this trip up on this blog soon. But if you’d like to read more, here’s the link to Allan Reeve-Smith’s blog about our time in Kenora and Grassy Narrows.
Wednesday, September 23, 2015
Sunday, August 16, 2015
AYM
This summer I went on the high school mission trip with Black Mountain Presbyterian Church. A week of mission in Asheville -- only 15 minutes from home --and a world away.
Joining with 4 other churches (40 participants total) from the Presbytery of Western NC, we worked through the organization Asheville Youth Mission. Our group divided into 3 work teams that went out each day to volunteer with one or two different mission agencies who work to address the needs of the vulnerable and marginalized. Many of the organizations I'd never heard of.
Asheville Youth Mission's theme for the summer is Breaking Boundaries. We worked that week on seeing all people as God's children, full of humanity and promise. My work group spent time sorting out rotten tomatoes at Manna Food Bank, working with summer school students at Vance Elementary School, painting the prayer chapel and sorting the clothing closet at Haywood Street Community, cleaning at A Hope/Homeward Bound, and painting, gardening and tie-dying at the Veteran's Restoration Quarters.
I loved watching the youth as they served with these organizations. Whether interacting directly with the marginalized people or doing behind the scenes work, they put their all into it.
AYM places an emphasis on meeting people, acknowledging them as people and learning their names. Because making a connection with others is the best way to break down boundaries/barriers/preconceived notions. In my work team, I saw that best at the Veteran's Restoration Quarters. We ate lunch with veterans, finding topics of conversation that showed our similarities (went to Owen High School, ran cross-country at school), or that spoke of where the vet had served and what they like to do. Our afternoon activity was tie-dying t-shirts in the courtyard and I had a hard time picturing this working...veterans and tie-dye?! But it did! A youth would pair with a veteran as they picked colors and tried different designs (we don't knashevilleow how they turned out as they have to sit for a couple hours before the dye sets). Everyone was busy and at times we had veterans waiting for their turn. It was a beautiful afternoon.
The next day, a veteran saw us at the Asheville bus station and came over to thank us for coming. He was very excited to get back to see how his shirt came out.
Our evening devotions and debriefs were led by the AYM interns and were very hands on. We talked about physical, social, and spiritual boundaries--recognizing them (rivers, fences, location),ways to break and cross them (reach out, be aware, talk with someone new), and reasons to keep some boundaries (safety). Through discussions, art, acting, and activities we shared ideas and where we saw God in each other and in our work.
I'm so greatful for this ministry and for being able to participate!
Joining with 4 other churches (40 participants total) from the Presbytery of Western NC, we worked through the organization Asheville Youth Mission. Our group divided into 3 work teams that went out each day to volunteer with one or two different mission agencies who work to address the needs of the vulnerable and marginalized. Many of the organizations I'd never heard of.
Asheville Youth Mission's theme for the summer is Breaking Boundaries. We worked that week on seeing all people as God's children, full of humanity and promise. My work group spent time sorting out rotten tomatoes at Manna Food Bank, working with summer school students at Vance Elementary School, painting the prayer chapel and sorting the clothing closet at Haywood Street Community, cleaning at A Hope/Homeward Bound, and painting, gardening and tie-dying at the Veteran's Restoration Quarters.
I loved watching the youth as they served with these organizations. Whether interacting directly with the marginalized people or doing behind the scenes work, they put their all into it.
AYM places an emphasis on meeting people, acknowledging them as people and learning their names. Because making a connection with others is the best way to break down boundaries/barriers/preconceived notions. In my work team, I saw that best at the Veteran's Restoration Quarters. We ate lunch with veterans, finding topics of conversation that showed our similarities (went to Owen High School, ran cross-country at school), or that spoke of where the vet had served and what they like to do. Our afternoon activity was tie-dying t-shirts in the courtyard and I had a hard time picturing this working...veterans and tie-dye?! But it did! A youth would pair with a veteran as they picked colors and tried different designs (we don't knashevilleow how they turned out as they have to sit for a couple hours before the dye sets). Everyone was busy and at times we had veterans waiting for their turn. It was a beautiful afternoon.
The next day, a veteran saw us at the Asheville bus station and came over to thank us for coming. He was very excited to get back to see how his shirt came out.
Our evening devotions and debriefs were led by the AYM interns and were very hands on. We talked about physical, social, and spiritual boundaries--recognizing them (rivers, fences, location),ways to break and cross them (reach out, be aware, talk with someone new), and reasons to keep some boundaries (safety). Through discussions, art, acting, and activities we shared ideas and where we saw God in each other and in our work.
I'm so greatful for this ministry and for being able to participate!
Friday, July 24, 2015
Fasting?!?!
At the vigil against the death penalty many people fast for the four days we are there. Many people don't. It is optional as is the severity of the fast. If you don't fast, don't eat around those who are fasting. If you are castigate it is up to you what that looks like. Some do a water only fast. Others are a liquid only. Some do the daylight fast, etc.
I had never fasted before last year's vigil. And I really wasn't sure I could do it. But, with my sister by my side, I decided to try it and see how long I would make it. I started on the all water but got too shaky and drank some juice for the sugar and that worked. This year I did the same thing. A glass of juice ob the morning and water the rest of the day.
On the Abolition Action Committee website (www.abolition.org) there is a page that talks about the fasting aspect. And I read it before I went. I found it very helpful. Here are two of the points I got from it:
Why? There are many reasons people have for fasting: spiritual, religious, health, and political. A common reason while taking part in a political action is that by forgoing food and not stopping to eat every few hours, we adjust our schedules to focus all our energy and time on our issue of concern. And it is a tough adjustment. I lost track of time since the day wasn't broken into before and after lunch and dinner. I didn't know how to greet people (and was often wrong) in saying good morning or have a good afternoon/evening.
Difficulty: dwelling on the fact that you aren't eating or are hungry. To deny yourself food or the thoughts about it is somehow to make it stronger so that is all you think about. So it is suggested to think about for a bit and then to consciously refocus your thoughts on why you are there and doing what you're doing. In my day to day when I get hungry I start to get cranky if I know that food is not on the way. And I would find that to be true at first during the fast, until I turned my thoughts to why I was there. It kept my spirits up knowing that I was in solidarity with ao many others against the death penalty. It also continued for weeks after...when I got hungry I remembered those on death row and sent up a prayer.
It is amazing how wired we are to food. I woke up ready for breakfast and would be a little hummed when I remembered I wasn't eating. I would be holding up a banner and think that as soon as I got relieved by someone I could go grab a snack. Or during our evening teachings I would think that as soon as it was over we could go get dinner. Oh, wait. Not happening yet...
I had never fasted before last year's vigil. And I really wasn't sure I could do it. But, with my sister by my side, I decided to try it and see how long I would make it. I started on the all water but got too shaky and drank some juice for the sugar and that worked. This year I did the same thing. A glass of juice ob the morning and water the rest of the day.
On the Abolition Action Committee website (www.abolition.org) there is a page that talks about the fasting aspect. And I read it before I went. I found it very helpful. Here are two of the points I got from it:
Why? There are many reasons people have for fasting: spiritual, religious, health, and political. A common reason while taking part in a political action is that by forgoing food and not stopping to eat every few hours, we adjust our schedules to focus all our energy and time on our issue of concern. And it is a tough adjustment. I lost track of time since the day wasn't broken into before and after lunch and dinner. I didn't know how to greet people (and was often wrong) in saying good morning or have a good afternoon/evening.
Difficulty: dwelling on the fact that you aren't eating or are hungry. To deny yourself food or the thoughts about it is somehow to make it stronger so that is all you think about. So it is suggested to think about for a bit and then to consciously refocus your thoughts on why you are there and doing what you're doing. In my day to day when I get hungry I start to get cranky if I know that food is not on the way. And I would find that to be true at first during the fast, until I turned my thoughts to why I was there. It kept my spirits up knowing that I was in solidarity with ao many others against the death penalty. It also continued for weeks after...when I got hungry I remembered those on death row and sent up a prayer.
It is amazing how wired we are to food. I woke up ready for breakfast and would be a little hummed when I remembered I wasn't eating. I would be holding up a banner and think that as soon as I got relieved by someone I could go grab a snack. Or during our evening teachings I would think that as soon as it was over we could go get dinner. Oh, wait. Not happening yet...
Saturday, July 18, 2015
Starvin' for Justice
I spent the beginning of the month at our nation's capital at the 22nd Annual Fast and Vigil Against the Death Penalty. It was my second time to join this group on front of the Supreme Court with banners, petitions, and speakers with the intention of educating the public.
Some history on the dates:
On June 29, 1972, the Supreme Court decided in Furman v Georgia that the death penalty was applied in an "arbitrary and capricious manner" and put a moratorium on it. All States had to rewrite their death penalty laws.
On July 2, 1976, in Gregg v Georgia, the Supreme Court allowed executions to resume in the US. (Not much had changed though)
So every year (for the past 22) people have been gathering from all over the world and the US. Last year we had a couple from Australia and this year a young man from New Zealand. People come for all sorts of reasons. Each evening we have speakers as well: swath row survivors, murder victim family members, family members of the executed, a jury member from a capital case, lawyers, priests. They tell the stories of why they are here and how they got here. Many of them started on the other side of the issue.
On the sidewalks we pass out a pamphlet entitled "Why End the Death Penalty?" Some take it easily, others decline to take it Brut say they agree, some chant "Texas Texas doing it right" as they walk by. Here are some of the facts inside:
Since 1972, 154 wrongly convicted persons have been released. They were all deemed to have had FAIR trials. In Herrera v Collins the Supreme Court ruled that it is constitutional to execute the innocent if they had a fair trial!
It cost 2 to 6 times as much to execute than to incarcerate for life. The cost is weighted in the initial trial and sentencing, not in the appeals process.
The outcome is racist. When the victim is white, the perpetrator is 4 to 11 times more likely to receive the death penalty.
States without the death penalty consistantly have lower murder rates (as do countries that have abolished the death penalty) . In fact, studies show the murder rate increases slightly after a highly publicized execution.
Some history on the dates:
On June 29, 1972, the Supreme Court decided in Furman v Georgia that the death penalty was applied in an "arbitrary and capricious manner" and put a moratorium on it. All States had to rewrite their death penalty laws.
On July 2, 1976, in Gregg v Georgia, the Supreme Court allowed executions to resume in the US. (Not much had changed though)
So every year (for the past 22) people have been gathering from all over the world and the US. Last year we had a couple from Australia and this year a young man from New Zealand. People come for all sorts of reasons. Each evening we have speakers as well: swath row survivors, murder victim family members, family members of the executed, a jury member from a capital case, lawyers, priests. They tell the stories of why they are here and how they got here. Many of them started on the other side of the issue.
On the sidewalks we pass out a pamphlet entitled "Why End the Death Penalty?" Some take it easily, others decline to take it Brut say they agree, some chant "Texas Texas doing it right" as they walk by. Here are some of the facts inside:
Since 1972, 154 wrongly convicted persons have been released. They were all deemed to have had FAIR trials. In Herrera v Collins the Supreme Court ruled that it is constitutional to execute the innocent if they had a fair trial!
It cost 2 to 6 times as much to execute than to incarcerate for life. The cost is weighted in the initial trial and sentencing, not in the appeals process.
The outcome is racist. When the victim is white, the perpetrator is 4 to 11 times more likely to receive the death penalty.
States without the death penalty consistantly have lower murder rates (as do countries that have abolished the death penalty) . In fact, studies show the murder rate increases slightly after a highly publicized execution.
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
2015
Dear friends,
As most of you know, I’ve been home from Haiti for over a year and a half discerning what will be my next step/adventure/mission in life. I’ve done odd jobs here in Black Mountain and gone on shorter mission trips: to the Open Door Community in Atlanta to visit my sister and join them in their work with the homeless and against the death penalty, to Malawi with Marion Medical Mission to install wells in villages, to the Los Angeles Catholic Worker House to see their ministry with the homeless on Skidrow, and to a conference on social and ecological justice and how they intertwine.
I now have two upcoming trips! In August, I will join a two week delegation to Kenora, Ontario with Christian Peacemaker Teams. CPT is an organization that offers a nonviolent alternative to war and conflict. It provides support to people committed to nonviolence. Delegation members provide encouragement for communities experiencing violence, challenge violations of human rights and promote active nonviolence to settle disputes. Specifically for this delegation, we will see 1) how corporate clear cut logging of Asubpeeschoseewagong traditional territory has destroyed hunting, trapping, food and medicine gathering activities, 2) how Indian Residential Schools have deeply and negatively impacted families and communities in the area, and 3) how mercury contamination discovered over 40 years ago continues to poison residents. We will meet with indigenous and non-indigenous community leaders and residents to explore these issues, with a goal to plan a public witness/nonviolent action to confront these problems.
This delegation trip is the first step in what could be a 3 year long-term volunteer posting with CPT. When I return I plan to apply to the 4 week training program!
My second trip is back to Africa for 3 weeks, again with Marion Medical Mission helping to install more wells. I know from my last experience with them that the long, dusty days are tough but the smiles, dancing, and celebrations wipe all the feelings of exhaustion away when the well gives up clean water for these villagers. Last year, I helped install 73 wells (providing clean water to approximately 10950 people). I look forward to doing it again!
And so, once again, I am asking for your support. Prayers are most important and needed as I can’t do any of this on my own. Financial support is also helpful and appreciated. Here are my estimated expenses:
$ 725 cost for CPT delegation
$ 725 transportation to Kenora, Canada
$2500 transportation to Africa
$ 400 food and housing
$ 250 vaccines, medication, visa
$4600 total
Checks can be made out to Jessi Stitt and sent to:
Jessi Stitt
203 Tomahawk Ave.
Black Mountain, NC 28711
Or online donations can be made to CPT just be sure to put my name on the memo line!
I will update my blog and give presentations when I return from both trips. Any questions or comments are welcome! 828-674-9113 or jessi.stitt@gmail.com
Thanks for your consideration, prayers and support!
Peace, jessi
As most of you know, I’ve been home from Haiti for over a year and a half discerning what will be my next step/adventure/mission in life. I’ve done odd jobs here in Black Mountain and gone on shorter mission trips: to the Open Door Community in Atlanta to visit my sister and join them in their work with the homeless and against the death penalty, to Malawi with Marion Medical Mission to install wells in villages, to the Los Angeles Catholic Worker House to see their ministry with the homeless on Skidrow, and to a conference on social and ecological justice and how they intertwine.
I now have two upcoming trips! In August, I will join a two week delegation to Kenora, Ontario with Christian Peacemaker Teams. CPT is an organization that offers a nonviolent alternative to war and conflict. It provides support to people committed to nonviolence. Delegation members provide encouragement for communities experiencing violence, challenge violations of human rights and promote active nonviolence to settle disputes. Specifically for this delegation, we will see 1) how corporate clear cut logging of Asubpeeschoseewagong traditional territory has destroyed hunting, trapping, food and medicine gathering activities, 2) how Indian Residential Schools have deeply and negatively impacted families and communities in the area, and 3) how mercury contamination discovered over 40 years ago continues to poison residents. We will meet with indigenous and non-indigenous community leaders and residents to explore these issues, with a goal to plan a public witness/nonviolent action to confront these problems.
This delegation trip is the first step in what could be a 3 year long-term volunteer posting with CPT. When I return I plan to apply to the 4 week training program!
My second trip is back to Africa for 3 weeks, again with Marion Medical Mission helping to install more wells. I know from my last experience with them that the long, dusty days are tough but the smiles, dancing, and celebrations wipe all the feelings of exhaustion away when the well gives up clean water for these villagers. Last year, I helped install 73 wells (providing clean water to approximately 10950 people). I look forward to doing it again!
And so, once again, I am asking for your support. Prayers are most important and needed as I can’t do any of this on my own. Financial support is also helpful and appreciated. Here are my estimated expenses:
$ 725 cost for CPT delegation
$ 725 transportation to Kenora, Canada
$2500 transportation to Africa
$ 400 food and housing
$ 250 vaccines, medication, visa
$4600 total
Checks can be made out to Jessi Stitt and sent to:
Jessi Stitt
203 Tomahawk Ave.
Black Mountain, NC 28711
Or online donations can be made to CPT just be sure to put my name on the memo line!
I will update my blog and give presentations when I return from both trips. Any questions or comments are welcome! 828-674-9113 or jessi.stitt@gmail.com
Thanks for your consideration, prayers and support!
Peace, jessi
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Open Door Community
I spent the last two weeks at the Open Door Community in Atlanta, Georgia. The Open Door is an intentional, covenental Christian community that focuses on providing hospitality to those who are homeless, abolishing the death penalty, and other social justice issues. In the house are people off the streets, resident volunteers, local volunteers, men released from prison, and partners who are here for the long haul. Two days a week they host a soup kitchen, welcoming 120 people into their house for a warm meal each day, about 10 women (on Tuesday) and 60 men (on Wednesday) get showers with a clean set of clothes, new (ish) shoes, and whatever other needs they can fill with what has been donated or brought to them.
So I have helped serve in the soup kitchen and helped with the women picking out clothes before their showers. I've cooked dinner for the community and cleaned up after meals and when the days are done. On Tuesday, January 27, at 755pm, Georgia murdered Warren Hill, a man on death row who was mentally disabled. It is illegal in the US to execute the mentally disabled, but his appeal to the Supreme Court was denied. We stood in front of the state capital vigiling in the hopes of a stay of execution or clemency. With words from Open Door leaders and other clergy members, we asked for justice and we read the names of the 50+ people who have been executed in GA since 1976.
On Wednesday we went to the Carter Center to hear Brian Stevenson speak. He is a lawyer who works with people on death row in Alabama as well as children who have been tried as adults and are in prison. He wrote the book Just Mercy and I highly recommend reading it and if you have the chance to hear him speak, do so.
The next week we attended a vigil for Kevin Davis who was shot by a police officer in his house after he had called 911 for help. The officer is back on the streets without an inquery into the matter. The vigil was to ask for the GBI (Georgia Bureau of Investigations) to look into it. Many stayed all night in front of the Dekalb County Courthouse.
It has been a full and beautiful, heartbreaking and eye opening week. Geaorgia has just put an execution date on its only female prisoner on death row, Kelly Gissendaner, for February 25th. Prayers please.
So I have helped serve in the soup kitchen and helped with the women picking out clothes before their showers. I've cooked dinner for the community and cleaned up after meals and when the days are done. On Tuesday, January 27, at 755pm, Georgia murdered Warren Hill, a man on death row who was mentally disabled. It is illegal in the US to execute the mentally disabled, but his appeal to the Supreme Court was denied. We stood in front of the state capital vigiling in the hopes of a stay of execution or clemency. With words from Open Door leaders and other clergy members, we asked for justice and we read the names of the 50+ people who have been executed in GA since 1976.
On Wednesday we went to the Carter Center to hear Brian Stevenson speak. He is a lawyer who works with people on death row in Alabama as well as children who have been tried as adults and are in prison. He wrote the book Just Mercy and I highly recommend reading it and if you have the chance to hear him speak, do so.
The next week we attended a vigil for Kevin Davis who was shot by a police officer in his house after he had called 911 for help. The officer is back on the streets without an inquery into the matter. The vigil was to ask for the GBI (Georgia Bureau of Investigations) to look into it. Many stayed all night in front of the Dekalb County Courthouse.
It has been a full and beautiful, heartbreaking and eye opening week. Geaorgia has just put an execution date on its only female prisoner on death row, Kelly Gissendaner, for February 25th. Prayers please.
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
joys and frustrations
So my actual time with MMM is up (and I'm visiting friends in South Africa) but I still have some more to share about that part of my trip so here goes...
I'm pretty sure that I mentioned that we get a lot of glory for not much work on our parts and that if everything goes as it should the installation takes about 20 minutes. But how often do things go as they should? And there are, of course, many things that can and do go wrong.
Sometimes it is human error...driving down the wrong road to get to the far off village, being late meeting the installation supervisor, misunderstanding of where to meet the supervisor, etc. Sometimes it is a parts problem. There isn't a great quality control here so though we technically had the right parts sometimes they wouldn't fit together. The metal T handles might be too rough and just that much too big to fit into the plastic piece of the pump. The plastic pipes sometimes weren't pre-threaded but then we had a tool for that.
Sometimes it was not our fault. And those were the hard ones. When there wasn't enough water in the well and it needed to be dug deeper. When we would arrive at the village only to find the well not finished or not finished properly. One well we got to had been finished skew. Which meant the pipes and pump weren't straight up and down which made it very hard to use and a set up for disaster and needing repairs. The concrete wasn't very strong either. We installed anyway but had to tell them that the maintence man would come that week to fix it. That was the second time we'd been out there.
Once we got there and our installer dropped the pipe down the well. The well was that much too deep when he was supposed to measure. So then we had to fish it out which they did using 2 pairs of shoe strings. Whenever things went awry, it was very easy to get frustrated with how much time it was taking...every hangup took the time it would take to get to another village to set up a another well. So that would be one less well installed that day and possibly another trip out to the same area on another day (more bumpy driving).
But then you could look at the other side. It was more time spent with this village. We (us women usually) would dance and sing. I would make faces and play with the children. Jan would hold babies and talk to agogos (grandparents). We would share the joy that clean water was bringing in less illness and less time spent fetching water. And I would realize that though it would be great to get to the next village, this is important too. And that we will get to the next village, just on another day, because that is why we are here.
I'm pretty sure that I mentioned that we get a lot of glory for not much work on our parts and that if everything goes as it should the installation takes about 20 minutes. But how often do things go as they should? And there are, of course, many things that can and do go wrong.
Sometimes it is human error...driving down the wrong road to get to the far off village, being late meeting the installation supervisor, misunderstanding of where to meet the supervisor, etc. Sometimes it is a parts problem. There isn't a great quality control here so though we technically had the right parts sometimes they wouldn't fit together. The metal T handles might be too rough and just that much too big to fit into the plastic piece of the pump. The plastic pipes sometimes weren't pre-threaded but then we had a tool for that.
Sometimes it was not our fault. And those were the hard ones. When there wasn't enough water in the well and it needed to be dug deeper. When we would arrive at the village only to find the well not finished or not finished properly. One well we got to had been finished skew. Which meant the pipes and pump weren't straight up and down which made it very hard to use and a set up for disaster and needing repairs. The concrete wasn't very strong either. We installed anyway but had to tell them that the maintence man would come that week to fix it. That was the second time we'd been out there.
Once we got there and our installer dropped the pipe down the well. The well was that much too deep when he was supposed to measure. So then we had to fish it out which they did using 2 pairs of shoe strings. Whenever things went awry, it was very easy to get frustrated with how much time it was taking...every hangup took the time it would take to get to another village to set up a another well. So that would be one less well installed that day and possibly another trip out to the same area on another day (more bumpy driving).
But then you could look at the other side. It was more time spent with this village. We (us women usually) would dance and sing. I would make faces and play with the children. Jan would hold babies and talk to agogos (grandparents). We would share the joy that clean water was bringing in less illness and less time spent fetching water. And I would realize that though it would be great to get to the next village, this is important too. And that we will get to the next village, just on another day, because that is why we are here.
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