Day 5.

I guess in a trip like this there are always going to be a few defining moments. Well it felt like we had one today. Jean who is the 55 year old grandmother whom we're staying with in the village took us to see one of the 50 families she and two other volunteers support as aids volunteer worker. When we got to their home we met a mother, her mother in law and her 5 children. The mother was lying on the floor of the hut motionless. She's getting the ARV drugs which should counteract her HIV but due to malnutrition they're not working. Her husband died of aids a week ago. When that happened his relatives came and took most of their posessions including their food. The eldest son was 20 and wanted to finish school but thought he was going to have to give up. None of the family had eaten that day and none of the neighbours had any spare food to give them. We just sat there in the hut for about 10 minutes not feeling able to say anything. We gave the family what little money and food we had but knew that would only buy one or two meals for them. We just felt hopeless. But then as Catrina and I (we were in the village together with Ben) reflected we felt the positive was at least we were there to see the what was happening rather than just being in Bracknell doing normal life.

Bill Hybels talks about feeding your holy discontent and letting that motivate you - for me that moment in the hut will stay with me forever, and hopefully motivate me to be at least a small part of the solution. We must do something. The plan is that the team will talk a bit about their experience next Sunday am and pm, along with an interview with Clive challis in the evening I'll be really sad to miss - can we film it Colin? Then Sunday 9th am I'll talk about what our proposed response to all we have seen. Simon.