All the villagers came out and wanted to host us by pulling out a bed for us to sit on. The kids came out really excited and happy to check us out. They were all covered in dust and wanted to shake my hand. A woman handed me her son’s medical report saying he has maggots and fleas and also scalp disease. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to stand so close to all of that but there was people everywhere all in good spirits surrounding us. I thought about how small my heart was to not want to stand next to someone who has maggots and fleas. But I couldn’t help the fear that ran through me and the wish to be a bigger person than I was at the moment. I had a lot more respect for humanitarians. And I was certainly grateful of the bridge so I didn’t have to fall into the city open sewage creek.
While trying to be aware of the little foolish internal fears that arose while being in this new environment, I noticed the sunshine smiles each child was emitting. It’s contagious. I think that was the only thing I caught that afternoon; joy, pure simple joy. I pulled out my camera and everyone rushed to have their pictures taken. They radiated even more joy. My goodness if that was even more possible. Getting their photos taken made them very happy. It was the most attention anyone has paid to them in a long time. I am glad my camera was a happy inspirater.
Then I saw a few girls run to a small bucket of water that was brown and gray with things inside and used it to wash themselves up to freshen up. Was it the only access to water they had?
