Well here we are just another ordinary week in Mozambique – an Earthquake of 7.5 on the Richter scale and beautiful sunny skies with a temperature of about 75 to 80 degrees with low humidity. Just what the doctor ordered ;-) I say all of that a bit tongue in cheek but you may have heard we had an earthquake and we did. It was actually in Manica Province where I live, but I was in Beira creating the prototypes for our anatomical dolls with a friend of mine. It was an interesting earthquake, It evidently was felt all the way to Durban, South Africa and to Harare, Zimbabwe which is about 6 hours away by car. Durban is at least 15 hours away by car.

It was a very smooth rolling sensation – this earthquake – (at least where I was) like being in a hammock on a ship rocking back and forth. I woke up (as it was in the middle of the night) and said, “wow – we’re having an earthquake.” It wasn’t my first as I had been in Olympia, Washington for some of the aftershocks when I was working for State Farm but it wasn’t the violent shaking thing like happens in the States.

So, God’s blessings and grace were great as the buildings did not collapse and people were not killed. I have heard there were two deaths and 5 people injured which is simply amazing for such a large scale earthquake in a country built of mud and sticks but again, I think the rolling motion is what saved us. Many roofs have bricks and stones on them to keep them in place and even those weren’t displaced, yet the earthquake was felt for at least 800 miles away but that gentle rolling motion kept everything in place and lives were not lost.

Meanwhile we have earthquake scale news here at our TIOS projects – we have finally created the prototypes for our dolls. I am trying to enclose a photo of some of our examples. We are still fine tuning little things like ears, fingers and ankles but t he basic dolls are finished and we are playing with different ideas of embroidering faces, painting faces, yarn for hair, sheep wool for hair – those kinds of things (but the patterns are done). In considering materials, etc. we are looking at feasibility, cost, accessibility to orphans in more rural areas, theft potential, etc. Also, we have been working for weeks with a team of local artists to make the first prototypes of our Survival Safety training manuals and the artwork is nearly finished and we are just doing the translations.

We have been negotiating with a company to lease their sewing school. The building had been closed 6 years ago and sitting empty with all the equipment ins ide since September 17, 1999. When we walked in – the thread was still on the machines, pencils still on the desks, notes still on the black boards from teaching cloth-making in 1999. It was quite amazing and a bit spooky. They cleaned the building all out for us, but I am still estimating about $3,000 worth of work on the electric and plumbing to bring it to where it needs to be for us to have it full of students. The good news is all the windows and bars are in tact and we can run for a few months without electricity as we are doing hand and treadle-machine sewing in the beginning.

I have tried to attach the picture of the prototype dolls – the two on the left were created by the orphans in Macate. The two on the right were our early attempt at the anatomical dolls and the two in the center are the final model with some minor tweeking to be done yet. There is also a small baby for the woman’s capalana (skirt she uses to tie the baby to her back) and a larger baby for education purposes.

We intend to make the cloth for our posters in the end for our Survival Skills kits which the orphans will learn to create and that we will sell to NGO’s to use for training children in rural areas. In this way, we can reach the largest audience and largest number of vulnerable children possible.

Meanwhile, we have gained a fabulous volunteer from California who is very knowledgeable and interested in taking on creating the herbal soaps and candles that will be naturally repellent of Mosquitos and antibacterial in nature. The new school comes with an attached field for us to grow the herbs we need so we have been well blessed. Susie is doing a great job for us and I am thrilled to have her on board. Thank you Susie!

We also have been receiving a tremendous amount of help from Farzana, who has been sorting out my documents and work permits and has been a tremendous blessing also. Through her capable hands we have finally received our NUIT – which is the equivalent of a tax i.d. number and has been a big struggle to get. Thank you Farzana.

Fatima has been finishing up our CNCS documents from the funding we received for our program in Macate. She has been such an efficient and knowledgeable help to us and I t hank God for crossing our paths at the Institute of Languages. Thank you Fátima.

Moises has come to us as an interpreter/translater and artist and he has been working with a team of artists on our manual which is nearly finished – Thank you Moises.

So now we are more intra-faith than ever here at AOSCI/TIOS – as we have Muslim’s and Catholics and Baptists and Unity’s and Pentecostal and Jehova’s Witness and Buddhist’s – who have we forgotten? It makes for very interesting afternoon and luncheon discussions as we continue in our service to bring survival skills training to the orphans and all of Mozambique ;-)

In fact, we are getting a number of offers from volunteers who want to come work with us but we need to secure some solid funding for this program. I am not a very experienced proposal writer, but I know God will provide what we need to pull this all together. Next weeke nd we are having an open house with the ngo’s here in Chimoio to do some networking with Peace Corp, Pepfar and Danida and to introduce the dolls and the manuals to see the interest level, the concerns, the evaluation of the effectiveness and sale-ability of the dolls so that should lead us to some green pastures as well.

My goal is to secure funding for the program and make contacts for my upcoming travel to the U.S. during May/June when I will be doing taxes and banking and fundraising and speaking and visiting – God’s blessings and grace are Great!!!

Life is good and Mozambique continues to abound with amazing beauty and I am honored to do this work with such lovely people though I am gaining many, many lessons in the politics of aid work. Oh, that reminds me I wrote a new poem about aid work in Africa and that is where I will close this e-mail.

The New Face of Africa

We’ve all heard it
A thousand times;
“Starving Children in Africa”
Stand in food lines

So we sent them our money
We sent them our food
Never realizing
It was more harm than good

We didn’t realize
We were creating a mess
By meaning to be helpful
We’d brought more distress

Distress of a people
Now dependent on aid
Who wouldn’t work or produce
When they could simply get paid

“Just say you’re hungry”
“Just say you’re poor”
You know the MUZUNGUS
Will bring aid to your door

There’s no reason to work
Or even go to school
You can get money for free
It’s some kind of new rule

So the children grow up
With no school and no skills
& suddenly they wonder
How to pay their own bills

Their own art and culture
They didn’t bother to learn
For selling trinkets and begging
Brought much greater return

The adults they’d grown into
Were now corrupt and lazy
“Hand an African Cash?”
“What?! Are you crazy?”

The worlds’ cry has changed
“Arica’s corrupt” There’s no hope
We simply can’t fix it
It will always be broke

So now YOU want to help
To see a huge change take place
But to make a real difference
Aid work must wear a new face

It’s not going to be easy
Far more difficult than just giving
Now you have to take time
To teach them how to earn a living

To give them the skills
And education they need
How to manage their own money
And for Heaven’s sake – How to read

Help them remember the value
Of their unique culture and art
For these are the things
That set African’s apart

For they are the most unique people
With great gifts for us all
And they need our assistance
To live proud and stand tall

Don’t just give them cash
Give them skills to create their own future

AOSCI/TIOS . . . . International Training for the Survival of Orphans

Amy Gillespie © 2006