Mechanics (Wed., 1 March)

When we began stirring around the compound this morning, we learned a sad fact.

Last night, after our driver (Manyagugu/a.k.a. Father Darius) dropped us off at the Lui guest compound, he then drove on to take another of the clergy home. On that drive, the truck bit the dust. Apparently, the truck is now dead by the side of the road, probably with a broken drive shaft. It will stay there until someone can buy, find, or fabricate new parts.

That’s so illustrative of the basic lack of self-sufficiency. In Lui, you can’t just run down to the nearest parts store. There are no mechanics! There are no parts stores! If a new part is required, they are going to have to wait until somebody can send a new part from Kenya or elsewhere.

One thing I heard in Lui was various young men expressing the desire to become mechanics – and of their desire to go to school to learn mechanics. I wonder: How can we help the people of Lui develop more self-sufficiency? How can we help them develop systems so that they won’t have a vehicle “dead in the water” merely because of a broken axle or drive shaft? How can we help their people get education? and how can we make it easier for them to get the parts they need?