TAILINGS

 

Tailings

When you go out into Christian volunteer work and your young children (aged 2 and 4 when we left) had no choice in the matter but had to grow up on two native reserves, you wonder if you should have made them suffer in this way.  Then your daughter goes to Bible College, becomes a missionary to Africa in charge of an orphanage of sixty children. I think of the scene in which repairs were being made to the orphanage and my daughter held her own with the African workers who wanted to be paid before they had finished the work.  They threatened my daughter, a young white female-against their rules, with reporting her to her boss.  Her famous response: “I don’t care if you report me to the Pope; you are not getting paid until you finish the job!”  This is no reflection on African workers in general. Then my son, currently vice president of construction in a developing construction company, agreed to be dunked in water at a “Dunk the Boss” event just because the proceeds would go to the Siloam mission, one which feeds the homeless and street people in the city, at which my husband and I served in Winnipeg, Manitoba.  Then you know what great kids you have, and that your values have been passed on.  I honour my kids today.

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