Vitamins for the Heart
W. Schmidt: Christmas can mean diverse things to various individuals, depending on where they live, what their religious belief is and what stage of their life they might be in. Children, young people, adults, Christians, atheists, members of other religions, everyone may experience Christmas in their own way. In rich countries, many can afford elaborate Christmas trees and decorations, do lots of baking and cooking, shopping, wrapping, gifts and festivities. For those without a home, it might be a sad time, when they feel left out of all those celebrations. In the poor countries, like in Congo, there is not much of a Christmas in this way. A few might use a little plastic tree with simple decorations from the years before and prepare a special meal, but without baking and gifts. The poor might enjoy some meat exceptionally at this cheerful occasion. In my own life, I have several…
by W. Schmidt: When I visited the school in Mabala, near Nioki in the DR Congo, the oldest students had just finished taking their exams that day. Unfortunately, they have to pay for their schooling and the exams. One of the girls had recently been expelled from the school as she had gotten pregnant and by law cannot stay in school under this condition. I asked our manager Jean, what the oldest students will do after their final exams. He replied: “Nothing!” It’s a heartbreaking situation! There are very few jobs available in the area; about three quarters of the people are jobless. The people also need help in doing agriculture the right way. Ing. Jean, an experienced agronomist said that the leaves of the manioc plants (main staple in Congo) in the fields there are sick. The locals need training and Jean also wants to introduce better seeds without…
by W. Schmidt: Starting something new is always a challenge, but also rewarding and it pays in many ways. To start a new project in Congo, especially in the interior of the country, involves a lot of ground work. Our school project in Mushapo suffered a major setback when the province Kasai where it is situated got engulfed in an uprising which until now was typical only for the East of the country where the majority of the natural resources are located. When the fighting in Kasai started to unfold, slowly spread and finally reached our far away village, it brought our project to a standstill. My wife and I were hit hard by these news, gripped with discouragement and despair. But then angels of courage comforted us and gave us new strength, hope and vision. Instead of looking down, we now lift our eyes at what a blessing our…