Kodumela Day Three ~ Hard To Say Goodbye
The last day at Kodumela was very special for some of the group; the child sponsors met the families they help. These home visits were slotted in and around the rest of the group activities which included a demonstration of the grinding machine and a tour of the garden at the World Vision compound, more helping out in schools, a visit to family with a severely disabled child before a fond farewell from the project staff and helpers.
The grinding
machine was provided by St. Mary's church in
Cholsey. People living within Kodumela are able to grind
smaller amounts than if they take them to the next nearest facility
outside the project area making it both cheaper and
easier to manage. The gardeners in the
group enjoyed learning about methods and techniques used in
Kodumela.
Kodumela field workers accompany sponsors on their visits to translate where necessary and to ease the initial awkwardness.
It's not
just the child you sponsor involved in the visit - it's the whole
family! Everyone is curious and wants to join in the
conversations, fun and pictures. The
children share gifts among themselves and the families
share their meagre homes with the visitors. Refreshment is often
offered and sometimes the families give the sponsor gifts to
take home. The sponsor in this picture was given a clay pot and a rush mat as well as
a traditional lunch.
All too soon it was time to say goodbye.
The group did their best to stay in tune for long enough to sing We'll Meet Again, (Vera Lynn needn't worry about
the competition), and the Kodumela staff sang Happy
Birthday to Sue. The second
verse caught us all by surprise;
sang to the same tune the words are "How
old are you now, how old are you now?" Kodumela and the people
there will stay in our hearts for a very long time. They are people the like of
whom most of us are never fortunate enough to meet.