First Day of Work

The Sun starts setting earlier here and it's pretty dark about 6:30pm. I loved falling asleep to the sound of rain by 9:30p last night. The dark was punctuated by roosters long before the sun rose at 4:30a this morning. Another reminder that Atlanta is more than just many, many physical miles away.

I rolled out of bed at 5, sent well wishes to Shaywang, my roommate and headed to the roof top for yoga and Tai Chi. I'll send picture soon of my view. Poverty and poor soil management have not completely damaged mother nature's gifts here! Wanting to get some cardio, I started walking up and down the 6 flights of ramps that wander throughout the house. On my third pass, Jacob, the cook extraordinaire asked my why I didn't just go for a run. He laughed at my, "Because I wasn't sure it was safe and wasn't sure who to ask," and laughed again was he said, "don't get lost," and walked away. Um. No worries there. Hard to get lost in a one road town on the side of a mountain.

After eating our own breakfast, we headed down to feed the kids. Porridge made from ground oats, mixed with vitamins and powdered milk is served for both breakfast and dinner. Many of the children can feed themselves, we spend most of our time feeding those who can't. Their challenges range from physical to mental to emotional - and a mix of the three.

I think what surprised me most was the amount of laughter that fills the house. There is so much love here, between and among the staff and the kids, it's infectious. Thank goodness because we worked non-stop until 7pm, ate dinner, and then hung out with a group of guests from the States until way too late...