Commitment

Commitment, a promise.

When I mentioned that it was time to visit the OA village again, Nel said "Hooray!" with such eagerness and anticipation. Jo however, was my reluctant gal.
 "Can I stay with AhMa please?" she begged. After some negotiation, she finally agreed to come along (not that she had a choice anyway! haha..)

It was during the journey then, that we discussed the meaning of commitment. Commitment is sticking to what we've decided to do and doing it to our best without giving up (unless we discover in the process that it is harmful or dangerous.)

We talked about how sometimes commitment means keeping our word even if the journey may be difficult. It sometimes means getting used to/being in a situation/environment  which we're not used to. It is not going or quitting when we feel like it, but keeping our word and doing as we've promised. With Jo knowing that we'd promised the villagers to return, she said "Ok mum...I'll keep going." I'm glad she understood the word and went with a happy heart. :)

So we spent our weekend in the village. The toilets were not in proper working condition and weather was a little hot, but my girls did well. :) Nel was a great helper who volunteered to load stuff onto the truck before the trip began, she (and Jo) helped with  preparation of our communal dinner with the villagers,  Nel made friends by sharing sweets with the children there. I'm proud of her.

Jo...well Jo..... Jo was the keeper of all puppies there. Making sure their mama fed them, making sure the runt of the litter had proper shade to rest in before the rain and so on. 

At the end of the trip I asked my girls some questions. I asked "What did you learn?" "What roles would you like to take up?" "How would you help them if you could?"

Nel answered "I enjoyed sharing my sweets with them. I really enjoyed the puppies. I'd like to help the villagers by sharing things with them. If I could, I'd like to teach them not to simply sell their land and to treasure their land and trees. I'd like to teach the children not to simply trust strangers. I really enjoyed the trip mum."

Jo answered "I loved the trip, coz I love the puppies so much! Mum, is the runt safe? Who will look after him mum? Mum, I'd like to teach the villagers the same things che-che (sister) is going to teach them."  
(to which Nel replied..copy cat! :D  )

Making friends by sharing a kitten :)

Jo very protective of the run, while Nel coos her puppy to sleep

Nel was really good, walking the whole village sharing raisins and candies with em. Here Jo's decided to join in too.

Finally I leave you this picture. It was totally adorable seeing that puppy eyeing the cat as if asking "Mind if I take a sip?" And he did stick his nose right in for a drink. Cute eh. :) We should be like this too don't you think? :)

Finally, last but certainly not least, I'd like to say thank you to a few special people, Marianne, ML and Germaine for your kind contribution towards the OA people in the form of medicine, food and gifts. Thank you dear friends.