We head back to Abuja on the 24th of August. We will be staying in Abuja the last couple days before my flight home on the 27th. On Saturday night, I joined Deji, the pastor of the UMCA church, on an outreach program, ministering to the prostitutes in one of the poorest areas in Abuja, the Mpape community.
The group split up into two, I went with Deji, we spoke with a girl named Comfort, who has only been in the brothel for a year, but works to support her two kids 8 and 5 that she hasnt seen for a year. She feels she has no other choice, and also thinks she can leave and get herself out of this mess when she wants to. Yet so many women here, contract AIDS, or are murdered, abused by men... under constant threat of the police as well. It is not a way to live, it is a way to die. Deji church ministers to the prostitutes and tries to get these women out of this living arrangement and going to church.
Sunday, Deji calls me up at the church to speak about my experience with Global Relief - I talk for 7 minutes approximately. My last bit of work, and advocacy. It feels strange to think 6 weeks has gone by. I am glad I have the pictures to prove that I was here, because it seems like it whized by, and never happened at all... My flight will be early morning... and we will have to drive in the dark to get me there. I am thankful there were no complications on the way, no delays, no road blocks, no troubles with customs, no problems with the flight... 20 hours later... I arrive in Canada, with my mom waiting to hug me.
Outreach team in Abuja
Brothel in Mpape Community...
.
No comments:
Post a Comment