Hello my friend
We had a great time with the work team. A great group of seven people. In the group were two ladies and they were loud and boisterous and kept the group on their toes and laughing. The building went up quickly and we have now begun moving into the classrooms. The men started using theirs last week, the women will move in in a couple of weeks. The third room will be set up as our chapel.
Perry designed pews, chairs and a pulpit for this room and our carpenter S did an excellent job of building them. Perry had some beautiful katema leftover (it is a relative of mahogany, but harder).
He also went ahead and started on the foundation of the next building, which will be the library building. There was enough cement left over to pour the foundation and make the blocks. The hope is that little by little A can lay them and do the backfilling. Then we just need a significant gift and another work team. We are not worried about this. We have learned that when it is time, God provides the funds.
Speaking of money, that brings to mind something that happened while the work team was here. Perry had been having trouble balancing the books for the last month but figured he had just forgotten to list items in the register. Life has been really busy, and we have had to buy a lot of materials.
Well when the team was here, we asked them, as usual, to give us their passports and money to keep in our safe. We have quite a safe here and it is quite large, what with handling and keeping money for the Bible school, district, church, and dispensary. When they bring the money, he makes a list of all they give him. They often have US dollars which we exchange for them if they need Leones to buy anything. Usually it is 5- and 10-dollar bills, but one of them gave him a 50.
While the team was here Perry had to get money to pay workers. We hire a crew to mix concrete, haul materials, and be part of the work. He noticed that the $50 bill was gone and so had to make a thorough check of the finance in the safe. When he finished, he discovered that we were missing about $3000. When we saw this, we realized that the problem with the books was not forgetting items but that someone among those who had access to our house was stealing from us.
We reported this to our church leaders, and they began a quiet investigation into our workers, cook, laundry lady, and house cleaner and the two high school boys that help around the house. All of these people have been part of our life since we came to Sierra Leone almost six years ago. But only five of them actually can enter our house when we are not there.
In the process of investigating they became suspicious of one of the high school boys. They had heard that he was buying expensive items and giving them as gifts to family and friends. They finally confronted him and had him arrested. Remember, here you are guilty until proven innocent. That night he confessed that he had stolen the money and also included a couple of other boys who acted as his lookouts.
The Paramount Chief was not happy at all. In fact, he was quite angry that they would treat us in this manner. He has ordered them to return all of the money in two weeks. It was a really hectic time for us, with lots of trips back and forth to the chief in Kalangba, and lots of stress. (The legal system here is nothing like the States and can be very frustrating. Once the money was returned, the boys were freed. That is the way it goes.
People clearly are watching to see what we do next. We are also aware that whatever we do, we need to consult the church leaders before acting. Here confession has a very defined process.
Well, as I was writing this letter, the high school boy came to the door. He had waited until it was dark, and our night watchman had gone to speak with the other one on the other side of the compound. So, no one knew he had come. He then begged to be allowed to return.
It was a difficult moment. We knew that his action was not correct. He was doing this in secret. He had not spoken with any of the church leaders and we knew that without their involvement we could not continue talking with him. Perry offered to send for one of the key leaders to be a witness. We did want to forgive and work on his restoration.
He refused and when he heard the watchman returning, he left going in the opposite direction to avoid being seen.
It is now a couple of days later and I am still trying to finish this letter. Not unusual. We have a constant flow of visitors. In fact, the next morning while Perry went to talk to the leaders about what happened, I was called away to transport a belly woman (pregnant lady) to the hospital.
When I finally got back, Perry shared with me what the leaders had to say. They were very pleased that we had not done anything without them. For them, the sin did not just affect us but the church as well. The people were watching all of us to see if we would handle the process correctly within the culture. And as I said, the chief was pretty upset and took the theft personally. A secret private confession without his knowledge and consent would have offended him as well.
There are so many layers to this and if one is not careful and conscious of the culture involved, then a lot more damage will be done. Damage that will be worse than the loss of the money.
Sadly, the young man never returned. His original confession was given to get out of jail. We understand this based on what we have heard from people that end up in a government prison. We did not get all the money back. And so, it looks like he was trying to avoid dealing with his culture and leaders with the hope that we would let it slide. Maybe we could have if no one else had known and been involved.
His confession needed to be given to a lot more people than just us. We had told him we were willing but we knew he needed to do it publicly so others would see and know if his words were true.
I could say so much more. My heart breaks for him and we have heard that he has left the village. Not a surprise considering what he did and how others were shamed by his actions.
We are heartbroken. He was like a son, a part of the family, and now he is an outcast in his own village.
We are praying for him to understand what has happened and do what he needs to do. Please join us in praying for M.
Nancy
How do you decide who you will let in your house? What will you do to protect them from temptation? If something does happen do you know how to respond and deal with what that person has done?