We read an article a few months back about a 5 year old girl named Cheru that was walking 4 and 1/4 miles roundtrip to bring a teapot of water home for her Mama. Just one teapot of silt-filled, brownish water, from a literal hole in the sand near an old river bed. And one trip wasn't always enough, so she would return on those short legs, with her dented kettle in hand, to get just a little bit more. Her entire life is consumed with the quest for water; a quest to survive, stay healthy, and contribute to her family.
Cheru is 5. I couldn't get this story out of my mind. Is there ANYTHING that consumes my day that literally rests on the survival of my kids? Do I EVER walk 4.27 miles unless it's intentional exercise or a fun adventure? Could I bear to send my own little 5 year old on a 3 and a half hour trip with her brothers in sweltering heat, to a barely-filled hole in the sand, where she will be stung by crazy wild bees, trip and fall with no one to help her up, cry as she races to keep pace with her long-legged siblings, and worry as no child should worry about whether this is enough to keep her family safe for just one more day.
I don't have to send Bryce on that journey, but that Mama HAS to send Cheru. When we read this article, it hurt each of us to imagine; so much so that we almost let it sift through into the recesses of our minds. But it never hit the bottom, never felt completely resolved or completely forgotten. We are okay with allowing our hearts to be broken for the brokenness in our wider world. So here we are.
Please help us as we put our strongest resource, aside from prayer, into this Water Project. Help us raise funds that will build a well in Africa, and give clean, safe, reliable water to a community that will, in turn, get to hold on to childhood a bit longer for their babies.
Donated $325.00 on 12/01/17