Painting, feeding and basketball

 The day started very early for the special team of veggie choppers. They gathered at 6.00 am to do some prep for the feeding programs. The commitment to the cause is amazing. The little kitchen here feeds 15,000 people every week. It's an incredible effort and those that benefit are the poorest of the poor. I'd like to say that I was among the chopping crew, but alas, I was having my morning coffee as I cursed terribly at the computer.

We headed out for a morning feeding to a small community not too far from where we are staying. It was very poor and packed to the brim with kids running in all directions. They were so pleased to have food and Lara and the team had worked really hard to prepare some bags to hand out to the Mums. The bags had all sorts of goodies in them including clothes and crafty stuff. They loved getting them. Rusty brought a little devotion for the 15-20 Mums that had gathered. He did a great job, but was competing with about 20 roosters that all seemed to crow in some kind of synchronised fashion. Scott from California brought a word of encouragement and Lara said a few words as well.

Despite the community being extremely poor, everyone seemed to be doing something. Tiny little kids even had jobs and seemed to be getting on with life. There is no respite for the people living there. You'd hate to be an introvert as there's no place to relax, recline and have a bit of "me time." It's just people and noise and heat as far as the eye can see. The community itself was located up a maze of tiny back alleys, none of which would look out of place in a Bond movie. It was a challenge to get the vans in and out, the gaps were so small that we had to fold in the mirrors to make the cars fit.

In amongst all the poverty there were massive smiles everywhere we looked. Little kids were laughing, people were friendly and they seemed genuinely pleased to have us there. There were so many kids that everyone got a change to mingle and have some fun. Stickers were the order of the day and the kids loved then.

 While some of us were at the feeding program, Corinna and Rob had another session at the birthing clinic. This is obviously something that I'm staying well away from. I don't think there was any messy stuff. No births to report, but lots of check-ups for the many Mums that come through the little clinic.

In amongst all the activity there was also quite a bit of R & R. The kids (who think they are huge) spent lots of time mucking around in the pool. The pool is a massive highlight and is a great place to retreat to in the middle of the day.

Every afternoon at around 3.00 pm the Kid's home throws open its doors and there are always plenty of takers that want to play with the kids. There were lots of cuddles and games and fun things to do and everyone that goes up there has a very special time. A number of our team (not me) even undertook a painting operation.

                                                                           

The brilliant thing about where we are is that everyone can find something that they enjoy. Whether it's chopping or painting or doing demolition, there is always activity to be had. A faithful team of painters spent time at the Kid's home again today (Tuesday) and Starry spent time busting walls at the new High School site. There are lots of old stone walls that Pete has applied his expert demolition skills to.

I was considering running a CPR education session during the afternoon. While I'd be entirely capable of such an activity (having done my level 3 St John's first aid certificate in the early 1990's) I decided to let Dr Rob run the session instead. It turned out to be an excellent move. Since he's a full-time emergency physician, he had a slightly better grasp on a couple of the more technical aspects of resuscitation. Let's be frank - He was awesome. They are hungry and thirsty for knowledge here and we are very blessed to have the likes of Robbie and Corinna here sharing their expertise.

Today was also Elijah's second birthday. We were fortunate to be here when he was born. Pete and Liza showed such an interest in him and his Mum, Abigail and the Parker family have been very significant in their lives. There was cake and balloons and general frivolity. Go team. 

 Following a relaxing arvo and a smashing tea we headed to the local Court for a Basketball challenge. Arnold (a total legend of a bloke) organised a team of Filipinos to come and compete with us for a round robin basketball championship play-off. Fair to say that it was a humbling experience. The Filipinos are incredible basketballers. Most of them make me look tall, but their moves and their vertical leap is ridiculous. It was terrific fun and despite our team recruiting a bit of International talent, we didn't come out on top. But, our all-stars team did very well. Afterwards, Arnold (who is only 20) gave his testimony about how his life has changed since he met Jesus. It was a ripper story. Grace M also shared her journey. It too was amazing. They are both examples of how God is using these young people in fantastic ways exactly where they are.

On Wednesday, we are heading out to Trash Mountain which is one of the poorest slums in the Philippines. It's going to be a big day with an early start. The girls have put together a stack of bags to hand out to people in the community. These are more of the bags that Mum made before we came. They have been filled to the brim with so many amazing things that the very generous people of Blackburn have donated. We are so grateful to everyone for their interest, investment and generosity to all that we are doing. All the donations make a significant impact. and are a huge blessing. A whole lot of baby clothes were also sorted and delivered at the birthing clinic.