B R I A N PT 1

Returning to Dili and then Bahareduk was a different experience the second time round. In 2015 I was consumed by what confronted me and struggled somewhat to come to terms with the divide between the haves and the have-nots. These feelings came home with me and it took a while to adjust. I felt driven to work almost everyday while in the village wanting to help and make a difference.

For the September trip I was joined by a mate Bob Gott who was intrigued to see what I had been bashing his ear over for the last 9 months (similar to what Jim Rumery did to me over several months… and it worked!) Jenny had insisted that I take some time on this trip to appreciate what was on offer in Timor.  So glad I took the advice to grab moments of time ‘to smell the roses’.  It was also important to me that Bob enjoyed the full range of experiences. Saturday morning was ‘blokes morning’, off to the hardware store.  Our priority was three rolls of 50mm heavy-duty black pipe and countless fittings, valves, taps etc.  It was a challenge to get the message across to the sales people but great fun and a good outcome. Sunday morning Bob and I dropped the girls at a local Church and made our way to the base of the Jesus Statue.  By the time we made our way to the top the contents of my water bottle, which I had consumed going up, was now soaking my  t-shirt on the outside. Going from a temperature of 15 degrees in Adelaide to 35 degrees and humid was a struggle.  However, the views are reward for the effort.

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Returning to the village was great.  There is always a sense of curiosity when a car drives into the village along with great anticipation for me. It wasn’t long before a few familiar faces emerged.  Firstly the beaming smile of the Chief and then the elderly gentlemen and his son-in-law who I had spent much time working with last year.  It was a very warm and genuine welcome. I was surprised to see how the base had changed. The working kitchen/common area was brilliant in providing a point for meals and a place to spend time at night to talk or play cards.  All made possible by the introduction of lighting through the solar panel.  The veggie/fruit garden is thriving. The rate of growth in the conditions is staggering.

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At first glance work on the houses was slower than I expected. However, as I moved around the village, this proved to be misleading.  A considerable number of foundations are down and many houses at various stages of construction or completed.  Some are partly occupied while waiting for more block work to complete.  Three trucks arrived with cement and steel a few days after our arrival. These materials, together with our presence and hands-on block making, sparked a renewed level of activity. It was Wednesday, market day in Cribas.  After breakfast Bob, Marcos (our YWAM helper), the Chief and I headed to the markets for a look.  It was interesting just to wander around and see the activity and understand how important this is to the locals.  I was also interested to observe how the Chief was viewed in another village.  The locals certainly knew who he was and one woman greeted him by kissing his hand.  Markets done, we drove on to another village (the name sounded like sunlight) where we were to pick up an order of house doors made by the local Joiner.  On returning to the village we passed through Cribas and stopped to pick up a couple of people on the long walk back to the village.  The two quickly turned in to 20 relieved people.

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Late one afternoon Bob and I were returning to the base when we were called over by a group of young men.  It was obvious they were enjoying themselves. As we approached the doorway, chuckling amongst themselves they handed us a glass containing local moonshine.  Cautiously I took a sip. The best way to describe the taste would be to liken it to drawing too long on a cipher hose and ending up with a mouth of petrol.  One sip was enough! I am really interested to understand more about how village life works.  The Chief’s tenure is aligned to the country’s elections.  The people vote in the general elections, this signals time to re-elect or pick new Chief.  I did suggest we do up some billboards “Vote 1 for Thomas” and I could head up his re-election campaign but apparently it is not done that way… yet.

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Two other occasions I found interesting from a village life prospective.  One night at the conclusion of our meal the Chief, with four other men, arrive to talk to Jenny and Ellie from the YWAM team.  They wanted to explain why one of the houses was not yet occupied and apologise.  There were some family issues which included the extended family and this had created a dispute. They were being resolved in the way that village life dictates. It was fascinating but humbling to be involved in this open and sincere discussion that had affected these families. After the Sunday service a village meeting was held in front of the base building, shaded by a large eucalyptus tree.  I was excited to observe how this would transpire. To me it was interesting to see where and how people sat. Chief and elders sat at the front with Jenny and the YWAM team.  Men of various ages sat on the ground in front, along with women and children.  It was called to discuss a number of points including an education on water usage and address by Anabel to reset the values around the building project. The discussions were translated back to us.  I found the entire dialogue fascinating.  At the conclusion Jenny offered me the opportunity to address the gathering on behalf of our group which was a great honour.

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There were many other experiences with the village people and the children that I will take away from this trip.  I have written a separate article on upgrades carried out to the water supply which will be included in next week’s newsletter. Being a small group we had the opportunity to spend time together and observe closely the great work each other did around and with the village.  YWAM again excelled in all they did for us. This was a very special trip shared with a great team!