In honour of Donna Farrell

Part of what stirred my interest in this in the beginning is that it reminded me of Donna Farrell and the work she did for many including me.

I was six when she came to the Burkina center to spend time with the center children.
She gave us projects to do, and sometimes helped us with ours.
I wanted to put on a play? She helped out with logistics. We did a street market? She took pictures.

She assigned us scrapbooks to make. She introduced us to classroom life, though not afraid to teach outside the classroom either. She got us writing stories and poems. Once after reading us an alphabet book, she gave us an assignment to do while we were all scattered in various locations: write and illustrate our own alphabet books.

From A is for Africa. Burkina Faso is in Africa. to Zebra. There are no zebras in Burkina Faso. we wrote. For some, I think we stretched our minds to think of things. Q was Niva Queen, a malaria medicine. The draft copy claimed it tasted yummy. When we were finished, the books were sent to the printshop. The first run tended to be "dedicated to my family," handwritten in by individual co-authors. Many were sent out to supporters, while Miss Farrell sent others to children in America.

She visited individual families as well, and later, when we came back to the states, would sometimes come by on furlough to show pictures and tell me how my friends were doing.

In 2001, she got sick with malaria, and God took her home.
I don't think any of us will forget her though.

Preparing

It is by the grace of God I have a ticket. I think it wasn't until the fifth try that things finally all worked out.

Slowly other things have come together. Still other things are drawing to a close. Today I trained a replacement to work with Deborah at one of my housecleaning jobs. Today is also my last Daisy Girl Scout meeting. I will miss the girls a lot. I know that they are in good hands though. Not least because God has healed the husband of the head leader, enabling her to be free to teach again. Praise God for his health! She has been a dear friend of mine, as well as my own Girl Scout leader when I was younger.

It is hard to believe that I am leaving in a week -- unless I get pneumonia or hypothermia, suggestions from my younger sister on what she hopes will happen so I can stay here. :)