May team experiences Bo market, and Abu’s big day

Saturday was a day more devoted to learning about Bo, and meeting the residential children, than about working. Despite that, the IT guys did get the third and fourth speakers in the Great Hall working today. Most of us spent a few hours this morning being guided by Fudia through the Bo market where several folks purchased cloth to be made into traditional shirts, skirts, and pants. We also got to see the ingredients for our day’s meals materialize as Fudia bought the fixings for them at various stops on our wanderings.

Our afternoon included an opportunity to participate in CRC’s outdoor game time. It was a uniquely special day to be present. It was the first day that Abu, a young boy who has been at Mercy Hospital since suffering severe burns in December, was able to come outside in his wheelchair. We wore our team t-shirts (design courtesy of Bill B.), gave Abu one, and made him our honorary Team Captain.

Sadly, our guys who joined the soccer match looked mostly like fixed poles in the soccer pitch as the young boys, many playing in bare feet or flip flops, ran circles around us. After about 30 minutes the “poles” called half time, crawled off the pitch for water, and failed to reappear for the second half. Bill B did offer a volleyball clinic after the soccer match, found a couple of naturals among both the boys and girls, and is encouraged about the prospects for the Sierra Leonean Olympic team for about 2025 to 2030.

During our devotions tonight we talked about the importance of “perspective”, and how what we are experiencing here in Bo can’t help but bring focus on how much we have to be thankful for, and yet how often we let small stuff that matters little, interfere with our keeping our focus on the “big stuff” God has for us to do.
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(Filed by Bill Hafker)