Tale of Two Villages – Part 4

For the second time, Mo Jiang was a wonderful change. I first noticed that the drive up the mountain was quick and smooth - roads had been filled in and flattened since our last visit. The villagers had been hard at work.

 

Our moods lightened immediately. Jokes flowed again, and the way we were received let us be ourselves. It seemed every villager we spoke to trusted that we had their best interests in mind, so discussions never became arguments. At some point on our trip, my guys made me their leader, and the villagers treated me as such. The nights we stayed, Village Leader Zhou gave me his bed and I felt honored.

Since our last visit, every family ordered a water filter, and we hired a driver to deliver them. Our factory guys trained everyone how to setup and use them during the village meeting. It helps to use humor and participation from the audience.

After a hearty breakfast, we set out to see the water source, an estimated 6km+ away. The hike would be the most grueling in all my life, hands down. We were pleasantly surprised to find that while we were gone, the villagers went ahead and cleared vegetation for the pipeline. It must have been no easy task, over this terrain. Actually, walking it was no easy task either, since there was no path. Going along faces of very steep hills of loose dirt required use of both hands and careful footing. Despite my having the best shoes of the group, I probably fell most. We crossed some dangerous spots where falling would have lead to serious injury. I thanked God for having long arms, and for the roots we were able to cling to. It took serious work to keep moving, and we shed clothes along the way. On the way back, I had a couple guys measure ground distance, and another took elevation and GPS readings. The hike took 8 hours in total, and we found that the distance from village to water source was only 3.2km: half of what they had originally guessed. It only felt like 6km+ because the moving was so slow and tiresome. The evaluation was successful. I identified a promising young villager about my age who came with us, and together we planned for how we would protect their spring.

All four limbs were required on this trek...

Loose dirt and steep drops require impromptu footholds

Zhou (village leader) and Zenwen (my friend, and a funny guy)

Back at the village, I plotted the data on my laptop and identified spots where break-pressure tanks would be needed along the gravity flow water system. Zhou appreciated the careful work. I was able to use this trip as a teaching activity for a couple of my guys, since they would be taking over for me after I left China. This sad thought loomed over me the entire time. I did not want to my team and the village. And I did not want to leave my project in somebody else's hands. I think Zhou felt the same way, but he understood I had to go during Spring Festival (Chinese New Year). My plan was to get everything designed and all materials bought before the holiday. That way, they could begin digging trenches for the pipes immediately following a good rest. Trench digging is very hard work, but it is also when enthusiasm peaks for a project. We want to make the most of this enthusiasm - if work commenced before the break, it would be unpleasant for the villagers to pick it up later and stay motivated.

I was happy to discover a few things on this return trip. In hundreds of years of history, this village had terrible mud roads, no reliable water systems, and only one latrine. Yet here was a leader, who in his very first year of his three year term, was trying to tackle all three problems. He had the roads done, and with our help, would complete a water system. Our way of working requires that each family pays some of their hard earned money for the project. The amount is not important – what is important is that they pay, so they feel it is theirs, and will maintain and repair it when we are long gone. Without our prompting, and very much to our surprise, Zhou had already collected 500RMB from each village household for the project. Usually villages like his only put forward 200RMB, and we usually have to remind them. Building latrines were next on his agenda, and though he had no funds for the project, he trusted something would turn up. I saw that a strong leader with faith can accomplish a lot.

As we left, the villagers were preparing to celebrate the Chinese New Year, where every family would kill a pig to feast on; this would be the only time during the year where pigs killed would not be taken to market. We noticed that the pig sties were cleaned daily, and their residents were huge and healthy! I learned that a clean environment helped them grow better. In Yuan Jiang, they were filthy and small, standing in their own excrement while eating.

To be concluded…