reporting live from Salone
Happy Birthday Jossy. Happy Belated Birthday Kess, Bharti, Suze, and Sophy. All last week, we had been absolutely busy as the Sierra Leone Convention was held from the 11th to the 14th. On Monday the 8th, David and I were moved to Mommy Dupigny's house. She lives not 5 minutes away from the church. She lives with her husband Ayo, and some hired help. Both Mommy Dupigny and Daddy Ayo (In Salone, anyone who is significantly older than you should be respectfully addressed as Mommy and Daddy, or Pa and Ma) had lived in London for ages, and have come back home to Salone to make their home here. Mommy Reela (her first name) moved to London when she was very young to pursue her education and career. She was a nurse, and is now retired and on pension. Daddy Ayo has 3 more years to go until retirement because the retirement age for men is slightly higher. They are a wonderful family, and because of their British exposure, they cook fine foods. David and I have been eating well prepared meals for the time being. We will be transfered back to the church soon enough.The Convention was a sight indeed. People travelled hours to arrive at church, and everyone was accomodated and fed. There were guests from as far as Kailahun (a town 291 miles from Freetown). There was a boat load of people from Shenge, as travel by boat is the best way to arrive at Freetown. The boat drops them off at Tombo, which is an hour and a half away from Freetown (by car). David and I went again to Tombo to pick up an oversized basket of fish, and a pickup truck load of cassava leaves to feed the just over 1000 crowd. We rented out some space in two of the local schools, and spread plastic mats on the floor for the people who arrived from Bo, Shenge, Kenema, and Moyamba. The folks from Guinea, Ghana, Kenya, Togo, DRC, and Nigeria were taken in as guests at various homes (as David and I were).
I have never seen a group of people worship as these folks who attended convention. The worship service sounded like a 1000 member choir, everyone singing at the top of their lungs. The local songs have a very ethnic rhythm, and sounds marvelous when an entire congregation joins in. The testimonies were all very encourging. I especially enjoyed the one from a certain Bro. Sonny and Sis. Gladys from Nigeria. The testimony went on over an hour, but it was rather captivating.
Two nights ago, I was eaten alive by mosquitoes. David and I woke up at 2AM and began chasing down the mosquitoes in the room. We killed most of them except for about three which kept escaping us. They had a feast. We now spray the room an hour before we head to bed. If we ever crack the door open to go out to use the toilet, we let in a dozen or so mosquitoes. We then have to chase them down. It's just been pure humor at night when I begin playing the harmonica at 2 AM and David wakes up with a funny look on his face. He claims he has a lot to say in his testimony when he returns to New York next week. I might be able to add some pictures when he returns back.
I met two little girls Feebe and Febina, and their mother on Wednesday. They are from Shenge. Her husband and father (the mother's) were killed during the war. She has absolutely nothing to survive. She wants to move to Freetown to find work as she doesn't have enough money to keep her kids in school. It's about Le5000 just for a child to be interviewed for admittance, and Le35000 a year for tuition. There are also expenses for uniform, transportation, meals, etc. That's a little over $15 per child. I will help her as much as I can, but if anyone is interested in helping, there are MANY folks who are in the same situation and MUCH worse. I understand that in the provinces, living conditions are incredibly poor. When little Feebe saw David and I, she was attached to us and didn't want to let go of David. She held on. This was the first time we'd met. I took a picture of her and David together. She told her mom that she had made friends with two white people and one of them "took a snap" of her.
Rice, the staple food, costs Le65000 per bag. This is far too much for many to afford. Another way to help might be to send bags of rice, or canned vegetables. Also, clean, neat, and modest clothing will relieve many of the burdens of spending for clothing. Education really is the key to get many out of poverty. I learned that these people have a desire to learn. I met many who asked me to help them learn more about computers. So many of them love to listen to BBC, and read whatever they can find. Education is not very expensive when the cost is converted to U.S. dollars.
I purchased a copy (turns out to be pirated) of the documentary "Cry Freetown" by a journalist named Sorious Samura. It contains live footage of the war, and CNN interviews regarding the documentary. Sorious had won several awards for the documentary as he was the sole journalist to cover the war while all other journalists fled the country. He is a Sierra Leonean, and he stayed behind to tape the war. He succeeded in making the rebels think that he was on their side. He witnessed many of the murders, the cutting of limbs, brutality, and rapes. He could not do anything but watch, and hope that the documentary would open the eyes of the West. I thought of the song "Ghetto Gospel" by Tupac. It's is a rather alarming and gruesome documentary. I am sure you can get the real version (as opposed to the pirated, blurry version) in the UK or U.S.
I spoke to several people about the war. There is one brother in church who had to bury several hundred bodies. The rebels dumped many of the bodies under the bridge that later came to be known as the Peace Bridge. The rebels did not make it past the Peace Bridge because of the Nigerian (ECOMOG) forces who were sent in to defend the country. One early morning, some of the rebels came into the town situated under the Peace Bridge and asked some of the locals who the local pastor was and they all pointed to Bro. Atiba who is not exactly a pastor but a member of the church. The locals all designated him pastor because he used to talk to them about God. Well the rebels knocked on his door and asked him if he was the pastor and he denied the claim. The rebels scolded him and took him up to their headquarters, fed him, told him not to give them a hard time, and asked him to get some of the young men in the village, and go bury the dead. He went around that morning, recruited many of the young men in the village, and gave them the shovels the rebels gave him, and went around digging 3 feet holes to bury the dead. He said a small prayer and moved on to the next body. He narrates that the rebels used to grab people who resisted them, ask them if they wanted "short sleeves" or "long sleeves". If they said short sleeves, they would chop off their arms at the elbow. If they said long sleeves, their arms would be severed at the wrists. If they came across a pregnant woman, they would argue amongst themselves whether the unborn child would be male or female. Then to prove who was right, they would cut open the stomach. Many of the people who were affected by the war find it hard to speak about it, but some are glad to share their experiences with someone as most of their loved ones have been killed.
David finished reading my copy of "Through the Gates of Splendor", and has now taken up "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn". I was reading the book and he got bored and picked it up and has not put it down for hours. He reads me funny excerpts when I ask him what on earth is he cracking up about.
D reported from Sri Lanka about her pet spider Peter and his sad demise. Well I have my own here in Mommy Dupigny's house. I haven't named him, but at night, when the lights are turned off, he comes out on the floor to scrounge around. When I walk in at night with a flashlight and see him there on the floor, I quickly drive him up the wall under the sink. He knows it's where he should be when I shine a light on him. If he doesn't move, he knows what's coming to him. Perhaps this newly aquired disciplining skill will come in handy when I begin teaching at the school here. So long for now!
posted by bthomas24 @ 11:50 PM
9 Comments:
LOL, what are you gonna do, shine a light on the kids to drive them to their seat??
-Kitty
If I were to send some money to help out some of the children for school fees, etc - to whom and how would I send it?
Hi Ben...thanks for the belated birthday wishes!! I am sure a certain somebody who shall remain anonymous reminded you to wish me;-)...As I have never been to Africa, your blogs have been a great way for me to see the continent...looking fwd to hearing about your teaching experiences there as well..so keep 'em coming buddy:-)...
Kesi
http://mayenfeld.blogspot.com
Kesi...Is that the amount of faith you have in my friendship? No one reminded me. I have a reminder on my mobile, and on every calender I maintain. I head about the cheesecake though. I am envious!
Anon...I am thinking about that. I will let you know as soon as I figure out a good way.
Kitty..."Shine your light on me..." Great song!
hiiiiiiii ben!
its your lil cousin joanne :)well..technically, im bigger...but age wise..you're bigger right?..yea.. s
so hahahaha glad to hear that you're doing good..(yea my good is you being killed my mosiquites, doing manuel labor, and being faint by the serious BO haha).. yea ben you should be "diesil" now lolll.
anyway my dad was yelling at me before for not getting ur email but now i can see how ur doing ;) ..jeez i cant believe ur gonna be over there for a whole yr! thats crazi dude. you seem to be learning a lot... well..
we're all praying for you :)..take care
later
I hope to God that you have showered already =P church isn't the same without you, and I never thought I'd say this, but I actually miss you =/ It's a good thing that you're having fun tho =). Be good and be clean (as much as you can smelly butt) =D
-Jincy
HAHA. Thanks Joanne. Do say hello to your parents for me. Uncle James called me the other day. It was nice hearing from him. I'll work on getting diesel.
Jincy. Give me a break!! It's Africa!! Let me live a little!! HAHA.
Hey Ben,
God Bless you man. You make me envious, and I hope to continue to follow your journey. Ease back on mentioning the 'leadership issue'. Pray for God to give you grace. There is a lesson to be learned in every single thing God is putting you through there. I am real proud of you man.
Mark your name on the wall somewhere there .. Maybe I'll be able to see it if God tarry's and allows me to go.
- BEN THOMAS (NJ)
HAHA. Thanks Ben. There is a tree in front of the brothers quarters and I carved a "B" on it. I hope to complete it by adding ".T." You can sign under it when you get here.
Thank you for the encouragement. I am learning. It's a bit tough for me as I am a bit hard headed and "proud", but continue to keep me in your prayers.
And yes, I realize I have to ease up. I am trying but sometimes it gets me REALLY frustrated and I feel I have to write it down as a way of getting it off my chest.
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