Thursday, November 1, 2012

Greetings From Zambia

"When 70% of the earth is covered with water, why does 85% of the world's population lack clean, safe water?"

I've been in Zambia all week with a team of guys working to hand drill a water well in a remote village and orphanage. The object of the exercise is to bring the tools, drill a well and train a group of local workers to replicate the process over and over after we leave.

We're on our fourth day of drilling, have reached water and will complete the project tomorrow.

It has been an amazing week.

It is amazing to see the progress that has been made since my last visit in 2009.

It is amazing to ride in a boat and stumble upon a herd of elephants crossing the river.

It is amazing to see people living in grass huts with no plumbing or air conditioning, but they do have a satellite dish, TV, and a smart phone.

It is amazing to write a blog post from a lodge 20 miles from a city that is 100 miles from any sign of civilization.

It is amazing to see such big smiles from kids when you give them candy.

It is amazing to give a few people an entirely new vocation in less than a week. The group we are training was hand picked because they have spent time in jail and need a better way to feed their families.

It is amazing to be here with a really wonderful guy I really like.

It will be amazing to continue on with him to Kenya this weekend.

I am amazed, impressed and thankful.