In a previous post we noted that community members seemed to be losing interest in the water filter project we had started and may be asking themselves Does God care about water filters? We asked you to pray for God to show is love to the community and bring them together as we attempted to finish the water filters.
Well, as Christy wrote that blog post (and sent it out as an e-mail) we know that many of you were praying. Here is what God did.
I was feeling very tired that Saturday morning as I went down to see if I could spread the sand out to dry, so it could be sifted later in the afternoon. Christy had encouraged me to ask for help, so when I reached the house where we would spread the sand, I was looking around, not too hopefully. However, I saw three young children sitting in front of the neighboring house... and I knew one of them, Geoffry, who has been visiting us for a couple of years now. I asked him to help, and he not-excitedly agreed.
As we started spreading the sand, a number of children began to show up and help, even a tiny boy who look like he had just learned to walk! As we spread the sand in the sun to dry, the children began to ask about what it was for and get more and more excited, including Geoffry.
So I taught them the four ways that the sand filter kill the bacteria and other pathogens (which we called "worms", but they are microscopic of course). They repeated all four ways to me 1) In the top three inches of fine sand, there is what we call the "biolayer" bacteria that live there and eat the incoming bacteria, 2) as the bacteria go deep down through the fine sand some of them get trapped, 3) there is no air in the bottom of the barrel, so the bacteria can't breathe, 4) the bacteria have nothing to eat in the lower parts of the barrel. I was glad they remembered them all (I would love to quiz them again and see how many they remember now, two weeks later!)
When I explained that after the sand was dry we would sift it, they apparently were listening, because some of the sand was nearly dry, and as soon as it was dry they asked me if they could sift it. That wasn't my plan. I intended just to spread the sand and go home until 1:00 pm when the seven adults were to arrive to finish the project. However, they seemed so excited, I thought "why not?". So I showed them how to sift the sand. They sifted two small bags worth of sand over the next hour or so! I eventually had to leave them, because I needed to go home for lunch, so I could be ready to work at 1:00.
* * *
Around 1pm, I was back at the house where we were working. Daddy Watkin was with me, and the children were all around helping too. We continued working for a couple of hours, before two of the women arrived--the two women who had been most faithful in coming of the seven. (The other five adults we were training never showed up this day!) We washed all the sifted sand and small stones, and even broke some bigger stones with a hammer to make the small stones we needed. It was a lot of work, but with the eager children, we had a lot of help! Praise God!
An hour before it would get dark (around 6 to 6:30 pm year-round in Jos), we decided to just try to assemble the filter. I wasn't sure we would have enough of the fine sand to fill it, but we tried to fill it anyway.
We poured in the stones and rough sand near the bottom so the fine sand wouldn't clog the pipe.
Then, while it was still light enough to move, we carried the water filter in the kitchen. Now was the moment of truth. Would we have enough fine sand? We began to fill it . . .
We had enough fine sand to fill it with just a little left over. Thank God who sent the children to help and let us finish this project while Christy's dad was still around.
We poured water into it. The water looked a little dirty coming out, but soon looked less and less dirty. We knew we couldn't drink the water for fifteen days anyway, so it had time to start flowing "with light" as we say in Hausa, that is clear.
Thank God our first water filter is finished! Yesterday after our Sunday prayer meeting, we gathered to pray for the filter and drink its water. (I unfortunately had to leave just as they were bringing the water, so I can't tell you what it tastes like. Maybe I will get to try it tonight!)
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