Moses home making a little progress

Progress on Moses Tarr' home, He was able to put a metal roof on his house. Considering the amount of rain is 118 inches a year and being on the coast Buchanan has rain during the dry season that you would not experience inland.
Moses has informed me further improvement have been made.

Rain also wreaks havac on the roads. Moses is traveling into the bush where I used to live to work on the mission. Imagine trying to travel on these roads.

I can remember traveling when the roads were like this. A 40 mile trip may take hours to complete. By the time you got your designation you would need to change your clothes and get a shower. Back in the 70's, when I was there, people would asked me, if I was from the Peace Corps. That wasn't a compliment because the peace core workers we're often unkempt and dirty. The kids were often dropped off in locations with very little support. They had to make due.
There was a book then I read, Red Dust on Green Leaves which describes what the iron ore roads did to the green vegetation.

You are not alone with depression

You are not alone if you battle depression. Over 300 million people worldwide suffer from depression. Depression can affect anybody rich or pour. Whether you live in Europe, North America, Africa or the South Pole you can suffer from depression. Liberia has been through Civil War and political wars that lasted a long time.
War can bring on a special problem called posttraumatic stress, PST. We will explore this topic later; but it has a connection to depression.
Depression wants to tell you that only you have a problem. But the truth is many people have depression and you're not alone. People sharing together there're stories can be very helpful in overcoming depression. You can learn from each other.
Job, David, Elijah, Jeremiah all suffered depression in the Bible. Great people in history suffered from depression like Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill.
Famous people from every country have suffered depression. You may know well known people in Liberia who have suffered depression.
Depression is a major health problem that can be very dangerous. We have to take it serious because many people kill themselves. Let me be clear, depression can be overcome and you can feel good again about yourself.
After two years with insomnia I suffered from depression and Anxiety. With therapy, medicine and strong family support I am overcome depression, anxiety and posttraumatic stress. I also sleep very well every night now. I began to feel better rather quickly by practicing some of the things I've learned in therapy. We will talk about these things. I saw an improvement weeks before the medicine was supposed to have an effect.
I knew that God was with me and wanted to help me overcome depression. He brought good people into my life that new how to treat depression. I was his child and he loved me.
Have hope, keep walking

I think my effort is falling short

Am I doing enough? 

My heart is sadden with a death of a beautiful smart girl I didn’t know. Evon Tarr age 26 died a day or so. She is the daughter of Daniel Tarr on of my students in Liberia. Evon graduated from highschool which tells you how much Daniel and Evon valued education for women. Her loss will be felt by many. 

I knew she was critical but I was so helpless on this side of the Atlantic. Daniel and his family were unable to get her the medical care she needed. Liberia has a very difficult time getting care to the working Liberian whose income may be somewhere around $100.00-200.00. 

I was not able to help. 

I wish I could write better and be able to have a bigger audience. I know there are things that can be done. I am driven to improve my health. I also need to improve my communication with those in Liberia. Can I help the poor in a personal and effective way? As long as I have life I have got to try. Keep walking

Macedonian call, personal contacts to Liberia

Alfred Joe today

I was very surprised when one of the students contacted me and I was very glad to hear the majority of the students at the school survived. Some of the parents including my main interpreter we're killed in the conflicts. They were civilians not warriors. 

The students were my oldest kids in the school and they went with me everywhere. They were my guides in the jungle, they help protect my daughter who was for the time for the jungle was all around us. Every day I played soccer with the boys at to school and I learned play in my bare feet. In the rainy season this was fun. In the school they were my smartest students. I owe them a lot more then I can never repay. They were just kids but they taught me a lot about living in the jungle. The parents of the students at school did much to help me have a good opportunity to help others.

Alfred Joe was the oldest of the boys. He was tall for a Liberian and was very fast. His English was very good and he was the one fellow I could depend when I was in the jungle. When we walk together he would often stop and identify a sound of an animal, warn me of a dangerous snake nearby, let me know if there're people around. His skills in the jungle came in very handy then and later in the Liberian Civil War.

One day, soldiers came into his village and began shooting. They killed about 30 people in his village including Alfred Joe's dad. (Alfred Joe’s dad work for me as a groundskeeper back in 1977.) Alfred Joe and is mentally challenged brother ran into the jungle to escape the gunfire. His brother wasn't able to keep up and took another direction and he was killed. Alfred Joe's speed and knowledge of the jungle saved his life.

Daniel and Moses Tarr like Alfred Joe were excellent students and a big help around the mission. I will tell some of their stories later. It was Moses who contacted me on Facebook and in we have been in communication since. Moses has some very practical ideas of how I can help now. One of the things I am working on right now is improving communication with the men. Alfred Joe lives in the jungle and maybe out of reach of the Internet. Daniel lives in Monrovia poverty prevents them from having a phone. Both of these situations I hope to improve. A personal level I would like to help the three who struggle with poverty. I can't change the world, but I can help a few people. They in turn have language skills which can be a tremendous asset.

Having a personal connection has brought me back to a long time I'll go commitment that I have made. Keep walking

“Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?”