Here’s the tale of my 35 hour delta trip which was magical, frustrating, amazing, sad, awesome, and overwhelming. It began when G.L. ordered 140 filter units for their model village and Thin Nwe Soe the Thirst Aid education coordinator accompanied the filters. When she saw the group of villages G.L. was working in she decided it was the perfect place to pilot the new WASHED (Water Sanitation Hygiene Education) project. As we have been partnering with G.L. since the beginning we thought it was a grand idea little did I know that Kyaw the G.L. lead and Thin Nwe Soe would figure out a way to get us permission to visit the project. I was the volunteer delegate as Curt had a full schedule of meetings that needed attending.
We set out early Monday morning in two vehicles. I shared a car with Chirstoph from the Foundation for the People of Burma and Linn of G.L. Thin Nwe Soe, and the “Thirst-Angels”, Nyein Nyein and Hsar Moo Paw rode in the other vehicle. The 3 ½ hour drive went extremely quickly. We rode by freshly planted rice fields and then paddy that was destroyed by Nargis and was now fallow. We went by some of the most devastated areas where the death toll was extreme. The stark landscape is now covered in tall grasses that can grow in the salinated water but are devoid of huts, water buffalo, and farmers tilling fields, planting paddy or any signs of human life. We saw the freshly rebuilt homes with shiny zinc roofs and the donated tents that had been set up as a market place showing an array of donated goods for sale.
We arrived at the jetty inside a muddy monastery as comrades and loaded our supplies, backpacks and selves into the two tiny boats with their long tail motors for the second part of our journey. The villages we were going to are not accessible by car. There are no roads only foot paths and canals.
G.L. chose these four villages to rebuild because the people were willing to do the work, they had trees for rebuilding and there was a chance to get people back on their feet. Jowarwa was our first stop and the true model of what G.L. is trying to accomplish. It’s a beautiful spot on the turn of the river with lots of trees and nice paddy. The town was famous for its coconuts before the storm knocked down most of the trees. G.L. has helped them restart the school, rebuild homes, gardens, walkways and the jetty. They’re also working on a scheme to plant the paddy. From Jowarwa we boated to Kyaut Ye’ then onto Kyaung Su and Ngar Eain. Each narrow village had its own flavor and its own set of needs.
G.L.’s first step was to help organize a committee in each of the villages which included teachers, monks, the headman, business people, farmers and fisherman to help them assess what was needed, what the villagers could do for themselves, what had to come from the outside and what G.L. could realistically contribute. Kyaut Ye’ is relatively well off. G.L. has their headquarters there. The villagers of Kyaut Ye’ adopted the Thirst-Aid team. The village committee found a lovely family to take us in. I think they must have looked hard to find someone with enough floor space for the four of us to sleep on plus mats, mosquito nets, towels and sheets. The family fawned on us bringing us snacks and tea and hand fans for our comfort. They even had an indoor facility for urinating so I wouldn’t have to go out in the night. Another family who had an indoor shower insisted that I couldn’t possible bathe in the open like the Myanmar people and brought me home for a private cold bucket shower, and yet another family provided all of our meals. It was an amazing community effort to make us welcome. Once we were settled in and all of the introductions made Thin Nwe Soe and the “Thirst-Angels” went off to interview prospective volunteers and hand out Thirst-Aid t-shirts while Christoph and I got the delta tour.
Just down the river from Kyaut Ye’ is Ngar Eain. It, like its wealthier neighbor, is bordered by the river on one side and paddy on the other. Both villages stretch for about 3 kilometers, with a single row of houses and grass huts lining each side of the mossy stone walkway that separates the north side of town from the south. And just across the river from Kyaut Ye’ and up river from Jowarwa is Kyaung Su the poorest of the villages. Here we met families who proudly showed us their international aid packages. The pots and pans were so beautiful they were still in their boxes as they were the nicest thing people had ever owned and they wanted to save them for a special occasion. We walked by the small swampy pools that will make great mosquito breeding grounds and toured the old school that was destroyed by Nargis and the temporary new tent school. We learned zinc roof was donated to the school but they were told that they were not allowed to use nails to install it or they’d be fined. Consequently it’s still in storage. We boated for hours around the small inlets and walked in countless villages and heard many stories of bravery, loss and kindness but hardly any requests for help. We returned exhausted to Kyaut Ye’ for showers, dinner and bed.
After a silent night’s sleep I woke at 5 am to the sound of roosters crowing, the alms gong and boat engines starting. I had a long morning to look forward to as Thirst-Aid training wasn’t scheduled to begin until 9. Thin Nwe Soe and the “Thirst-Angels” also woke early. Thin New Soe had to hop a boat to the market to replace her broken sandals and Nyein Nyein and Hsar Moo Paw wanted to practice using the educational flip chart. I watched their earnest efforts as they enlisted the children of our hosts to be their students. The “Thirst-Angels” were nervous as this was the first training they were participating in and by 8 they decided they should go to the monastery and start setting up. I tagged along so I could watch the whole process.
By 8:30 the first students were arriving by boat. And at 8:45 Thin Nwe Soe returned from her emergency shoe buying run and began scurrying about directing everyone. By 9:15 all 38 students had arrived with their Thirst-Aid t-shirts.
The class began with what Thin Nwe Soe calls doing the icebreaking. First she assigned everyone a number 1-4 and asked all the 1’s to sit at a table and the 2’s, 3’s and 4’s to sit together and then had everyone tie twine around their wrists while also weaving it through their neighbors with the object being that the first couples who figured out how to get undone won. It was cause for much laughter. The ice had been successfully broken and Nyein Nyein could begin her presentation. Both Nyein Nyein and Hsar Moo Paw did well. They kept their students engaged and neither suffered too many corrections from Thin Nwe Soe. They were so good even the monks stayed and listened to their lessons. Many of the villagers sat out in the hall and took notes and the students that were later chosen to back teach what they had learned did a surprisingly good job. I had to leave before they taught the actual hands on filter cleaning segment, played hand washing games and did the community dialogue exercises but I could tell that they were on a roll and the trainees would become good community trainers.
During the 20 minute return boat ride to the muddy monastery we suffered under a full tropical sun and also from a drenching deluge. And on the drive back to Yangon we stopped and talked to survivors and heard their sad stories. We again were surprised by the resilience of the victims when a family told how they lost their 8 year old and 9 other members of their family but were happy that they had all died together because now they won’t be lonely in the afterlife as they still have each other. The car was often quiet as we sat lost in our own reflections and other times we talked about what was still needed and what we could or maybe should do next and from time to time we also talked about our wins, about what we’d accomplished.
Thanks,
Because of you
A member of each of the 563 households from the four villages will be invited to receive an education on the prevention of waterborne illness and correct hygiene practices. All participating households will be given a water filter which will make it so they’re able to produce safe water, they’ll also be given instruction on building a latrine and the tools to do it and will be given a family starter kit (toilet bowl brush, soap, basin, tooth brushes and tooth paste) so they’ll have the tools to encourage their family to improve their hygiene behavior. We’ll also put filters and latrines in the schools and monasteries.
And another update from our almost regularly scheduled program:
- Working with two engineers from Evergreen Enterprises of Myanmar who have invented a machine to take heat from one kiln and blow it into another so while filters are being fired the factories can also dry clay and filters.
- We’re expanding the capacity of the Twante facility by adding another press and two more kilns.
- We’re expanding the capacity of the CDA factory by adding another kiln, drying racks and testing the new machine.
- We’re working with the owner of an independent filter facility to make sure they understand the process and adhere to quality guidelines.
- We’re helping set up an independent quality control monitor.
- Working with Evergreen Enterprises to design the new press for Twante.
- Working with the international NGOs to figure out the future demand so the facilities can meet it.
- Talking to possible partners in the north for a future factory that can fill non-Nargis needs.
- Working on making sure there are enough receptacles and taps to meet the filter demand.
- Distributing 100 rainwater catchments designed by MHAA – one of our Myanmar partners.
And we’ll be assessing the WASHED intervention and begin planning the next and keep going until the money runs out or the need is satisfied.
More information can be found at our web site www.Thirst-Aid.org
You can also contact Bree Ervin, our Communications Director at thirstaid2(at)gmail.com
