Tanzania Water Well Update, Day 6, February 18, 2009

Habari from Ed, John, Grant, and myself. Today we traveled to two villages to find places to drill water wells. The first village we went to was Mazizi. (Whenever I talk about going to a village, what I never mention is the condition of the roads. In short, the roads to all villages are nothing more than a poor 4-wheel drive trail. Assume that all roads are really bad.). Mazizi has been a challenging village for us to find a sustainable source of good water. The first well we drilled there was great... until the well collapsed. The second well yielded water that is a little too salty. We found a spot today that we think will yield good water. Pray that it be so.

We were reminded of the physical reason we are doing this when an elderly woman showed up at the local watering hole. A bucket of putrid chocolate colored water was filled and Pastor Leonard Mwimbe helped her to hoist it onto her head. We then walked with her 0.9 miles, up hill, back to Mazizi. A 5-gallon bucket of water weighs 40-pounds... Leonard estimated her age at 70. Think about it.

We next went to Maseyu where Pastor Mwimbe's wife Catherine served us a full lunch of rice, chicken, and gravy. After lunch we hiked around looking for a good spot for a well. The spot we settled on is in a low spot in a farm field near the hole that they currently use for a water supply. It doesn't look any better than the one at Mazizi.

We are praying that the two well locations chosen today will alleviate some of the suffering of the people here.

Tomorrow Ed and John will leave us for 2-days to go to an animal park. Please pray travel mercies for their journey and that communing with the animals will only heighten their appreciation for the creativity of our Creator. The rest of the contingent is going to make a very long journey to a very remote village called Dete where we will decide on one or several preliminary locations for a well. Please pray that God will see us safely there and back, and that He will grant us wisdom and vision to pick a good spot for a well. Bwana Asifiwe (Praise God)!
Mark Dalton