Today we were allowed to join a mobile medical clinic during a visit to the Kochi Abad IDP area.
 
Kochi Abad is just beyond the southwest edge of Kabul, high in the foothills flanking the city.  The area is home to about 480 families (roughly 3500 people) all from the same clan who, although traditionally nomadic, lived in this area for many generations.  Our team was allowed the privilege of sitting with two of the village’s elders to share tea, hear the history of their clan, and learn about the ongoing needs of the village.
 
Their chief elder told of how they were forced to flee Afghanistan during the Soviet occupation, leaving behind their sheep, goat, and camel herds, and lived in refugee camps in Pakistan until they returned to this area six years ago.  Tragically their homes had been destroyed, their herds pillaged or killed, and their hope of returning to lead “normal” Afghan lives was gone.
 
If this scenario sounds familiar, it is essentially the same as that faced in Barek Aub, Istalif, and thousands of other villages around the country -- Afghan refugees returning home only to find there is no "home" to return to.
 
Since returning, the people of Kochi Abad were able to drill a well that supplies some drinking water, but nowhere near enough to meet their needs.  They received funding from the UNHCR to build 50 homes and a modest school building, but are in desperate need of medical care, firewood, and food.
 
Our organization has been providing a mobile medical clinic twice a week for the women and children with the hope of securing funding to build a permanent medical clinic there.  Today the women of our team assisted with taking blood pressures, interviewing, and dispensing medications to the women.  While talking to the women they heard countless stories of the brutal realities of life in the Afghan countryside.
 
Our gals also hiked a half-mile to the home of a 10 year-old with severe leg injuries to check on his progress.  In yet another display of incredible Afghan hospitality, the mother of the boy insisted on giving her “best” loaf of naan to our team… most likely today’s dinner for her family.  (Because of cultural sensitivities we did not take any photographs of any of the activities surrounding the mobile medical clinic.)
 
We left Kochi Abad with heavy hearts after witnessing the depth of their struggle for survival, but at the same time we were inspired by their determination and drive.  Our hope is that we’re seeing only the beginning of development there.
 
After lunch at the guest house we headed up to Prayer Hill, a local cemetery atop a large hill in the middle of the city and often visited by teams from Flatirons because of its spectacular 360-degree view of Kabul.  From the top of Prayer Hill you get a real sense of Kabul’s enormity and you’re never quite able to escape the fact that you’re in the midst of thousands of gravesites.  Basically it’s a great place to pray over the city and the Afghan people.
 
After returning to the guest house and enjoying a cup of our host’s famous authentic Pakistani chai, we headed to the home of our friends who have lived in Kabul since 1997.  We were treated to some homemade mud oven baked pizza, sang songs, and fellowshipped together before retiring to the guest house for the night.
 
It was an incredible day full of emotional highs and lows… and one I’m sure we’ll remember for the rest of our lives.
 
--Bob
 
Those things really ARE everywhere!!
 
“The first time you share tea, you are a stranger. The second time you take tea, you are
an honored guest. The third time you share a cup of tea, you become family.”
 
Have doctors will travel... the mobile medical clinic that comes to Kochi Abad twice a week.
 
Prayer Hill... a fantastic 360-degree view of Kabul and the perfect place to pray for the city.