home bittersweet home07.25.09

hey everyone … I am back home safe and sound … happy to be home but sad because I miss the amazing tanzanian people.  I have only begun to start looking through my images (as I was pretty much unplugged from technology while I was there) but one of my good friends David Burke just posted an image I had to share of a beautiful girl that I will always remember.  The girl’s name is Happy (and if you met her, you would know why) and she just exuded joy … here is a tidbit from a journal I wrote after meeting this precious child … “One girl we met at the orphanage, who was rightfully nicknamed Happy, was probably the most joyful, loving child I have ever met.  She had beautiful brown eyes and a smile that could brighten anyone’s day.  She was born with HIV 15 years ago and through this struggle she is currently only the developmental equivalent of a 7 year old.  While most kids are learning to drive and rebelling from their parents, happy is simply fighting to survive.  I cannot even begin to comprehend the hardships she have faced in her short life but I do believe that if I had been dealt the same hand in life I would find it incredibly hard to express even a quarter of the joy that Happy exuded.  I will forever be touched by this beautiful child who was dealt a difficult hand in life yet had nothing to give but happiness, joy, and love.” On a positive note though … when Happy arrived at the orphanage, she was in very bad shape … but thanks to clean water via the Bio Sand Filter from Thirst Relief and a healthier diet, she is now THRIVING!  We learned that a large majority of HIV positive people that die in Africa, do so from a water borne illness, because their weakened immune systems cannot fight off the bacteria.  So please keep happy in your prayers that she will continue to strong and healthy! I also wanted to share a little video of one of the songs the children at the orphanage prepared for us … this is the orphanage where happy lived (and you can see her at the end of the video with her big, proud smile : ) ) along with about 15 other beautiful children … all of whom are living happier and healthier lives thanks to the clean drinking water Thirst Relief has provided them!

Orphanage in Tanzania from ben harrison on Vimeo.

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