Why half day Friday? It is not because the volunteers want to leave early or because Deen wants to give us a break. It is because the residents in the township tend to start partying a little early on Friday and it starts to become unsafe. Even though the day was cut short, it was still a good productive day.
Playtime!
An everyday activity with most of the children. Love her smile in this picture!
The volunteers and I spent time plastering the wall we worked on yesterday. In what is becoming a recurring theme, I also spent a lot of time with the children. We played in the playground and I ran around like a big kid, playing games and making them laugh.
While we were at the site, a woman in her early 30’s had a heart attack/stroke in her home next to the building site. (I later found out that she was the mother of one of the children at the site) Deen, being the amazing man he is, jumped into action and rushed her to the hospital. By the time he got her to the hospital she was unconscious and remains in critical condition. Unfortunately crazy things like this are more common than uncommon here.
After the day of work, all the building volunteers went to Deen’s house for dinner. His wife made an amazing meal and we laughed and had a great time. His talented sons (Vash and Nash) provided the entertainment by singing, playing piano and the drums. Also providing entertainment were 9 puppies. Deen rescued a female dog from the building site and brought it home. The dog met his Siberian Husky and one thing led to another…yadad yada yada… 9 puppies!
After being stuffed with food, we all sat around listening to Deen tell stories about former volunteers. The love and joy in his face when talking about other volunteers can light up even the darkest streets. He has been a mentor to the younger volunteers throughout the last 3 years, and even though it has been a week, he has taught me a lot and I feel like I have known him my whole life.
Puppies!
With my favorite puppy!
30deeds 