TCI’s work: Giving hope for the journey of life

By Eda Cabaluna-Michaud

 It was a fine afternoon. We were visiting a small village where one of our new friends, Caroline lives. As we entered the village, a group of children came running to greet us. We greeted them “Agandi!” (local term for ‘good day’).  Some of them were carrying empty jerry cans and pointed to where they collected their drinking water. We followed them for a distance and saw their main water source – murky, cloudy water emerging from a small drainage pipe underneath the road. We asked what they used the water for. “Drinking, cooking, washing and bathing, everything,” their mother answered.

It’s easy to conclude that they are in a sorry state, yet, we do know that there is something they can do about their situation. Just boiling the water and washing hands before eating would eliminate so many of the water-borne parasites. In addition, utilizing the vacant plots of land around their homes for food crops and vegetables is a simple strategy to implement as part of lives to help break the cycle of poverty and poor health. This is one example of how TCI works with communities. We begin with where people are and help them look at their situation with eyes and minds of discovery. Through our training and workshops, we facilitate a paradigm shift in their thinking: We help to open their eyes to see that what they thought was a hopeless state, is not. When they think that help from outsiders is the only solution leading to happiness, we lead them to discover that they can do so much more for themselves.  So many villagers think that they have very few resources but we show them that they are surrounded by under-utilized land and when they think there’s no way to escape their poverty, we share with them that there is so much they can do in their situation. And more so if they work together as a community! They only need to know how!

Our work is very new, yet, we have already received very encouraging responses from four villages that have committed to start FAITH gardens (FAITH stands for Food Always In The Home) around them and encourage their neighbors to do the same.

Please join us as we journey in giving hope to those who have less in life, starting with the people of Jerusalem’s four villages.