Let's start with the truth. Water does not flow up a hill. So why would Jack and Jill go up the hill to fetch a pale of water? You know it does not rhyme if they went down the hill.
Any Congolese girls would probably shake their heads or roll their eyes at such silliness. They know that they have to go down the hill to fetch water. They have carried too many full buckets and jugs up the hill.
The way home is up the hill. Also, they know that five gallons of water weighs over 40 pounds, too.
Congolese women dress differently when going to church. It is not the same as a party occasion. But it may be slightly more than an everyday dress.
Tomorrow is the first Sunday of this new year. It is not an ordinary Sunday. Therefore, I expect the dress maybe slightly different.
Everywhere, we hope for better year.
Educating Congolese girls will have a profound effect on poverty and development. Girls and women are a marginalized class in Congo. They are the last to go to school and first to leave during a family crisis.
Girls make up half of the population. They impact their whole generation. These are the next generation of mothers. They will nurture their children during the early years of development. They will teach them to read and write, and solve problems.
But with education, they can be more. They can be the teachers, doctors, lawyers, and government leaders. They can be role models, too.
Education builds a new era. Education is a "life changer".
In Congo, a country where running water is non-existence for 99 percent of the population. The village water source is a common meeting place. Everyone goes there at least once or twice a day. A village water source is like the corporate water cooler.
But mostly girls and women congregate at the water source. They catch up the local happening and talk around the village. However, they probably were not discussing that homework problem or question.
If they did not have to spend hours everyday fetching water, Congolese girls would have more time for school. A drilled water well brings the water source closer to the village. Now, that's a "life changer".
Do you care if it rains? Are you concerned when it does not rain frequently? Do you know how many inches of water it rained? Are you concerned about where the water goes?
If you lived in rural Congo, rainwater would mean a lots to you. Rainwater can be captured in underground cisterns. Large cisterns hold thousands of gallons of fresh water. Water can be used for cooking, washing, and drinking.
The Bulape Hospital's water system includes about five large underground cisterns. Water runs off the metal roofs into the cisterns through a rain gutter.
The underground cistern are covered and padlocked. They are not covered and padlocked for safety reasons. They are covered and locked to prevent women and girls from taking water without authority. They would call it stealing!
Asmall single engine plane can land at the Bulape Village Airstrip. I forgot the airport identifier used by the Mission Aviation Fellowship's pilot. After flying over the airstrip twice for a visual inspection, the pilot landed on the slightly smooth patch of ground.
There are only the bare ground at this rural village airstrip. There are no maintenance hangers or other facilities. There are no fences to keep the villagers or their animals off the landing strip. There are no TSA screeners or security personnel. There is no flight arrival or departure gate, or baggage claim area.
After flying over the jungles of central Congo, you are glad to be back on the ground. You are glad to be greeted by almost every man and most of the children who are not attending school. You are not late or early, you are just thankful to be there.
If you are from a developed country like the United States, you may recognize this water faucet. But if you are a rural Congolese, you probably would not recognize this as a source of water.
In the coming years, I want to make the water faucet the new face of water.
Do you know where water comes from? Some of you may answer, it comes from the store in plastic bottles. Now, some of you may answer, it comes from your city or town. Even others of you may answer, it comes from the water faucet. If you lived in rural Congo, you would know it comes from that creek or spring located miles away from the village.
Most of our water ultimately comes from under the ground. Probably, very few of you or none of the Congolese would realize that water comes from under the ground. But the process to get water from the ground requires machinery and know-how. In Congo, those are two items in very short supply. That's the reason why most Congolese get their water from a creek or spring.
Over the next several years, I plan to introduce the water well drilling process in Congo. I will have to import the machinery and know-how.
Christmas is a big holiday for children in the US and most of the developed countries. In Congo, Christmas is a big day for children, too.
Children's expectations were simple and basic. Children expected the best and most festive meal of the year.
Also, Congolese girls expected a new dress. It was probably home-made for most rural poor families. Congolese boys expected a new pant and shirt.
