I recently did an interview with DolceDolce.com on how to live more artfully. Click here to read the whole interview.
http://www.dolcedolce.com/index.html
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August 28, 2008
August 27, 2008
Flower People
Here are some fun girls made entirely with flowers by an artist Elsa Mora. Also, visit her site to see more creative work.
http://elsita.typepad.com/elsita/2008/08/index.html
August 25, 2008
August 22, 2008
Where do old telephones go?
Take a look at these fun pictures and take note of their feet especially. They are made entirely of old phone parts.
August 19, 2008
Our Journey
Another wonderful update. I have attached a newsletter and recent photos I received from our friend Maureen to keep us updated on her trip to Africa.
Maureen and Phila's old Gogo (grandmother)
Maureen and Phila
children receiving their new uniforms
Maureen banging the starter so the truck will start
Mildred doing CPR on her truck to get it to start
Receiving new school uniforms
Our Journey Newsletter - August 2008
It’s been three week since I left the states but it certainly feels like much longer, a lot is happening in such a short time.
I met with Mildred and our two local After School Program teachers; they presented me with their progress report and the Wish List I had requested:
Wish list for ASP - After School Program: (written by teachers)
Soup Kitchen after school – children are hungry - give children a piece of bread and soup – Teachers agreed to prepare the food.
Plant a garden with the children at school and use the crops for their soups. In the process they can learn to plant gardens at their home for their hungry families.
Paint their school room – the room has very sooty walls – teachers agreed to paint if I would supply the paint.
A door for the school room that will close and have a lock so their supplies won’t get stolen …
This list is quite humbling to say the least. They did not ask, but because of the holes in the roof, a new thatch (grass) roof will be added soon.
I am so thankful I did get to visit my precious Phila - as you can see in the picture he remains healthy. Every year I pray when I return he will still be alive. He has experienced so much heat ache and pain in his short life but always has a smile when he sees his Mama Mauween... Phila’s village is so remote and so far away, it is a challenge every year to get to him. Hopefully I will have the opportunity to visit him again before I leave South Africa in December. On this visits I bring his family food and clothing. They literally have nothing.
I spent a lot of time this week working with Mildred (local Zulu woman) her organizations name is Ithembalethu (Zulu word for “Our Hope”) it is a Home Based Care Project. Every morning before we head out to do home visits in the community, Mildred opens the hood of her truck; the diesel fuel has to be hand pumped into the engine…almost like giving the truck CPR. :>)
Then after the first stop the truck again won’t start, I get out and open the hood and bang the starter with a pipe and off we go again.
Praise God! Thanks to Our Journey supporters that earmarked their donations for the purchase of this vehicle, Our Journey will be purchasing a new truck for this organization. They have only one truck and this is our only means of transportation for home visits. Thankfully, this will also help out with implementing Our Journey projects and Mildred taking me shopping for groceries and supplies for our on going projects, blankets, uniforms etc.
Today we took a very sick young woman to the community clinic. We had to carry her down a steep rocky slope to the truck, she was so weak and frail; too sick to be able to walk on her own. She had been tested for AIDS awhile back but never went back for the results, some people here are in such denial and wait too long before they seek care.
Tonight I met with the local tribal Chief at his home, he does not speak any English but Mildred interpreted for me, he told me next week the tribunal counsel will meet and discuss how we will mange the distribution of the blankets in his community. In total, we will be giving out at least 1200 blankets this year …. We are trying to reach many different areas. God is good!!!!
Went to Durban (city) today on public transport…. What an experience. I was told it would only be safe to take public transportation to Durban if I took my two local teachers from our ASP with me to purchase the school uniforms and school supplies. We must be home before dark. Not sure if words can do this experience justice. It was a bit chilly when we left this morning. You start by waiting on the main road in my community, a very hilly narrow winding tar road. Many taxis are on the road early in the morning, the taxis (combi) carry as many passengers as they can fit. We had over 20 people in our taxi. You stand on the side of the road and make a hand signal motion to every taxi that passes you this tells the driver where you are wanting to go…wavy hand motion means going to Durban…waves mean ocean … the Indian Ocean is in Durban…. Makes sense to me!
It did not take long before we were picked up and I did not remain cold very long…there were so many passengers that there was much body heat.
Every school has a different color school uniform, it felt like I was seeing a rainbow of children every couple of miles because the uniform colors kept changing. It was a sight to behold; hundreds of children walking to school, many walking down hills on steep rocky narrow foot paths to the main road, live stock and children all over the road. My heart was beating a mile a minute… the taxi drivers were beeping their horns every second because they were barely missing hitting the children and live stock on every turn they took around the hills. Music from the radio was blaring so loud that the taxi was vibrating. Can’t believe I arrived in the city safe and sound. There was so much going on; people were every where shopping, every kind of meat possible (even some unrecognizable) was cooking on open fires on the corners of every street. You would see store front Doctors offices advertising surgery right beside them. I was warned it would not be a good idea to wear jewelry or take my camera, so I did not take any pictures. I thought I had experienced it all but oh NO,,,, the ride back home…same amount of people in the taxi but now we were all carrying at least three big bags each. I will live this memory in my mind for many years to come. I never once saw another white person the whole day. I will have to make at least two more trips like this to Durban to complete the purchasing of school uniforms. (Uniforms are only available in Durban) life is so much harder for these people …. Even though I thought the cost of the taxi ride was very reasonable … to people that have next to nothing, for them it is quite a challenge.
Much love,
Maureen Ahern
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Cash, stock and real estate may be donated to help support Our Journey's projects in South Africa. Donations may also be included in wills. Since Our Journey is a non-profit 501 (c) (3) public charity licensed in the State of Georgia all contributions can be tax deductible. Receipts will be provided for tax purposes. Please send your donations or questions concerning contributions to:
Our Journey, Inc.
Fred G. Mills, CPA, LLC
15617 US Hwy 17
Townsend, GA 31331 USA
August 12, 2008
Fun Interview
I was recently in Atlanta for the Gift Show and did an interview in the Deprtment 56 showroom with the folks from Happy Auer. Here is a link to the interview and the tour of the showroom.
August 04, 2008
coffeytalk
I really like this site and thought my friends would too.
August 01, 2008
Our Journey
Our friend Maureen is back in Africa and she is already at work with the children who love her and need her so much.
For those of you who helped us "cover the world with love" quilt program, Maureen is the woman who is delivering the more than 100 handmade quilts to the children.
She writes a journal, sends letters and pictures that I share here on my blog.
Below is her latest post.
Maureen inspires me and reminds me that with love, kindness and determination, there is no limit to the power a woman has. Because she tried to make difference she has made a difference in the lives and hearts of many people.
My first days back in South Africa
“The Valley”
It’s July 25, 2008, after flying a total of 21 hours this past weekend, I arrived safe and sound, although quite tired. I was met at the airport in Durban by two old friends, being that my arrival time was at night they were not able to take me into the Valley for safety reasons.
July 26
My heart is so full I am not sure how to begin this journal. I met a South African woman on the plane ride from Johannesburg to Durban; she asked why I was coming to South Africa. After sharing my story with her, she offered me her children’s used clothing, she asked where I would be staying in the city that night and lo and behold she showed up at 8 AM the next morning at my friend’s house with tons of children’s clothing. That same day we took it to the valley and distributed the clothing, as you can see, there were many happy faces … every child found something for themselves and never once complained about sharing what we had with everyone.
July 27
Today, I returned to my second home in the Valley. I will be staying by myself again. Mildred welcomed me home with a big hug, while taking my hand and beaming with pride, she took me to my house and showed me my bedroom, told me she had painted the floor on her hands and knees and my bed was made up with clean fresh sheets. For those of you that don’t remember Mildred, she is the local Zulu woman I worked hand and hand with last year on a daily basis, she is about 70 years old and has more energy than I could ever dream of having. She announced that the next day we would visit a project that had been started in my absence.
July 28
First stop, a Community Library that could match any small town one in the States, a retired librarian, a volunteer and good friend from my orphanage days had come back here for five months to start a library in the community…. Today, I witnessed seeing it finished and the children using it; something we would all take for granted at home was beyond these children’s imagination. This library is located in an empty community building about 6 miles down the road. The building was donated in 2005 by a South African business, but Mildred’s non-profit had never had the money to finish the inside of it. It still has no electricity and the rest of the building is bare bones. Thankfully the building is fenced in with razor like barb wire on the top; so hopefully, it will not be vandalized or burglarized.
Hopefully, in the near future Our Journey will make plans to enable Mildred’s NGO to finish off another room and start another community project.
In the afternoon I arrived back home in time to see Our Journey’s after school program in progress… you talk about warm fuzzies…oh my goodness…I had butterflies in my stomach and tears in my eyes. All the children were out in the yard playing with soccer balls and hula hoops. They all came running towards me with open arms, everyone waiting for an individual hug. In my absence the school program had been moved out of my house, it is now in the “old” rondavel (round building in picture) on the same property. There is no electricity and the grass thatch roof is in need of immediate repairs, the children will definitely be rained on if the holes are not repaired. The rainy season starts in September; I will try to have the repairs done ASAP. The two local Zulu teachers have done a remarkable job. The teachers and Mildred will meet with me this Thursday; they have prepared a report of what they have accomplished since I left last November. I am so proud of them! In the meantime I requested they make a list of the schools immediate needs and also prepare a Wish List. Before they dismissed the class the children recited a poem in English for me and sang many songs. Life does not get much better than this…. Your support has accomplished this…THANK YOU!!!
I wish it was all good news but sad to say it is not, two children that Our Journey took under their wings last year are not doing so well, will give you an update when I know more. On the way home today we stopped by the local community clinic to pick up some medicine for someone and was told by a worker there that AIDS is on the rise; they tested 15 pregnant girls (15 -25 years old) last week and 14 of them tested HIV positive. Please keep these people in your prayers. This is not only devastating news, but also means the Gogos (grandmothers) will have even more responsibility.
Much love,
Maureen
Ps, I am trying to work out something to get to town next week; if I am successful we will start purchasing blankets and uniforms and get them distributed. This will be quite a challenge, so please remember me in your prayers.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Cash, stock and real estate may be donated to help support Our Journey's projects in South Africa. Donations may also be included in wills. Since Our Journey is a non-profit 501 (c) (3) public charity licensed in the State of Georgia all contributions can be tax deductible. Receipts will be provided for tax purposes. Please send your donations or questions concerning contributions to:
Our Journey, Inc.
Fred G. Mills, CPA, LLC
15617 US Hwy 17
Townsend, GA 31331 USA
