What a Load of Crap

I got your attention didn't I? But really, look at this...

Gross, huh? Well a pile of compost can do a whole lot of good. I wouldn't call myself an agriculture expert, a gardener, or even someone who knows a little bit about turning garbage into nutrients for the ground, but I know there is great potential for this pile. This is a pile in the middle of a field that is owned by the Ambatovy mining company. It is on loan, under the care of a Malagasy man (Ramirar), and it is the home of change. I don't know exactly how this partnership started but somehow our Hotel Engineer, was involved and we are now putting our food waste to good use.

The fruit peels, unwanted food, spoiled food, food that gets scraped off people's plates at the end of a meal gets put into white buckets. The buckets get brought to this field everyday (except Sunday because Ramirar goes to church). There are only a few people that volunteer to load up the buckets, drive to the field, help Ramirar dump them, bring the buckets back, and wash them out, so they can be used again. Carol is one of these people. It is better if she has a buddy to ride along with her, so I asked if she needed anyone this past week. I went with her on Tuesday and Thursday, bright and early. We loaded up the buckets, drove to the field, picked up Ramirar at his house (which is on the edge of the field), drove to the pile, Carol unscrewed the lids, Ramirar dumped the buckets, I put the lids back on, and Carol loaded them back up.

Then we drove back through the field to the road, to drop Ramirar back at his house. Wait! The cutest part is the little boy who has apparently warmed up to Carol in the past few months. He smiles this huge and sincere smile that you can't help but love. His sister brings him to school on the back of her bike. We asked Ramirar if he knew their names and he said the boy is Redi and the girl is Zeta. Really, I cannot stress enough just how cute this kid was.

So thank you Carol, for letting me ride along, for being willing to get dirty, and for showing your love to all the people you meet along the way!

I hope everyone is having a great weekend. If you have any prayer requests, or questions please do not hesitate to ask.