Gladys Chacha , my dearest friend! She has worked with us since 1988, her son used to slash grass after school and now works for the U.N. Peacekeepers.
We always tease her about being a queen, she looks me sqare in the eye and says "I am."
Gladys speaks five languages well, and is a gifted interpreter, it's not just the words, you have to interpret the heart.
Gladys can do that. Although she no longer comes to work in the house, she has taken on the guardianship of two orphan girls. We rescued them from an abusive situation, and Gladys offered to take them.
She now lives at home and cares for "our" girls. The change in the girls is amazing. They were in despair, downcast, and hopeless. They had never known love.
Now, they are happy, cheerful, helpful, and hopeful! Gladys showered them with love and prayer.
I just wanted to put this little tribute to Gladys on paper, or cyberspace, to acknowledge that if I came to Africa for no other reason than for Gladys to take me into her heart and make me her friend, then it was a good thing to come.
She loves Bob and treats him like a king. She is a totally awesome lady, I am so glad to be her friend.
I am going to post more stories of the "people in our neighbourhood' just to give you a little taste of the good, funny, and sad folks out here!
Have a good day, and may a good friend grace your life too!
Paulette and Bob
Ah, Grandma Gladys! So gentle and sweet. I hope and pray for the day that we can wrap our arms around her again. :-) Such a sweet tribute MomM!
ReplyDeleteAnyone who goes to Africa in the same capacity as you and Bob often have the same affections for the people they meet. The people express such strong gratitude for the small things in their lives. It makes me think every time about how we in the first world have too much and therefore often take even big things for granted. A good lesson here.
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