Thanks to St. Albans Vineyard youth group who purchased a school uniform for 5 yr old Joshua. His mother is especially thankful for the blessing. I am attaching some photos of Joshua for you. He has one school uniform which he wears every day.
His mum, Ednecki works here at Joshua. She finishes work here around 4:30pm every day and then cuts grass by hand with a panga" (machete) till around 6:30pm. She then walks home which takes her an hour. She has to collect water and start a fire to cook dinner and every night she has to wash Joshua's uniform.
He walks with her to school every morning for an hour and a quarter. He is only 5 and his school finishes at midday. Because she doesn't have any childcare for him he has to wait at school until 4:30pm when his father finishes work and and goes to pick him up and brings him to the Engedi base here. He then waits while his parents cut grass and then heads home with them to his house. They cut the grass for their cow. Because their have been no rains in their village it is totally barren - red dirt - no grass.... and this is the only grass the cow gets.
One morning when we were praying we asked Ednecki if there was anything she needed prayer for and she asked
for another school uniform so that she didn't need to wash it every single night. I asked how much it would cost she replied $13. By the time he gets to our house every afternoon he is pretty dirty and dusty and I am sure sweaty because the temperatures have climbed to around 30 degrees at the moment.
He is a little boy who is so active and has an overwhelming excitement about everything that he doesnt have.... cars, bikes, soccer balls, running water, electricity. He spends all his time turning on taps and lights and running next to cars, trying to get inside them, kicking any footballs that he sees ..... no matter whose or where he finds them...
Anyway, I am attaching some photos of Joshua for you to see what he looks like. He doesnt speak any English at all and often communicates in Masaai style by nods and raising his eyebrows.
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