Monday April 28

We were given the OK to travel to Barek Aub one more time today… and what a remarkable day it was.

As soon as we left the guest house compound it was apparent this was not a “normal” day in Kabul.  There were Afghan and US military military and police stationed on every street corner, armed to the teeth.  We got stopped at a couple check points and it was a little intimidating, but we were never hassled and it just made the trip a little more interesting.  (We learned later that they stop us at checkpoints to be sure we weren’t being kidnapped!)

Upon arrival at the camp we went first to the new well, which Flatirons played a big role in getting done.  Work has just begun on the new pump house and we arrived just in time to see water being pumped into the temporary holding pond for the first time! We then went up to the reservoir which is being constructed on a hill above the camp in order to provide reserves and good water pressure for the entire village.  There are a couple other very small wells in the village, but they’re dry much of the year so this new well will provide a stable and ample water supply year round.

We then went down into the camp to deliver school supplies for the older children.  There were no classes being held so we were able to explore a couple of the tents they are using for classrooms until the permanent school building is built later this year.  The temperature outside was about 75 degrees, but inside the tents it had to be over 100.  I can only imagine on a really hot day that it would be unbearable inside.  But the kids keep coming back  -- their hunger for an education is so intense.

On our way out of the camp we stopped by the well again and snagged a couple water bottles full of the well water to take back to the States.  The previous team took back a rose bush from Kabul and some dirt from Barek Aub to mix into the foundation of our new church and we plan to use the water to mix with the Afghan dirt and nourish the rose with water from Barek Aub.

The drive back along the New Bagram Road was typically exciting, but made even more so when a convoy of US security vehicles, escorting Bigwig, came down the highway on the “wrong” side forcing us onto the right shoulder while they went by us at high speed. Everyone on the road cleared a wide path as soon as they saw them coming – a US military convoy gets a lot of respect around here – especially after the events of yesterday.

After we returned to the guest house we had hoped to take a short excursion to Chaila, but funerals were being held for some of the members of Parliament who were killed during the assassination attempt yesterday and all of the roads were blocked.  (The news you’re hearing from CNN and Reuters isn’t quite the whole story.)  It was a small inconvenience for us, but a painful reminder of life in Afghanistan.

We were joined at dinner by General Sadat, whom we’d met a couple days ago, and four American members of the coalition-led International Security Assistance Force, all working in various branches of Military Intelligence.  It was a nice break for them to be able to spend an evening with some civilians and we enjoyed sharing stories of our adventures here.

Tuesday April 29

This morning we have some sorting of medical and school supplies to do for future distributions and then we head to the airport for the long trip back to Denver.  None of us are ready to leave yet and wish we could stay longer.  I think everyone in our group is already thinking about their NEXT trip… I know Patty and I are.

This will be my last message till we’re back home so I’ll leave you with one last photo for now… a little boy and his sister we met in Barek Aub who was happy just to have a piece of Naan to eat today.  It doesn’t take much to make them happy… a little goes a long, long way in Barek Aub.

Thank you again for your prayers support.  We’ll be in touch again soon!

--Bob & Patty