Interviews

In June, I travelled for a month with a film crew making videos about Hands' work in Mozambique and Zimbabwe. It was a hectic month, full of late night conversations with the crew's producer and cameramen about why the hell I would volunteer and, in fact, pay to do what I'm doing. There's really no answer to that question, hence the undending, circular nature of the discussion!

On the last day, as they were considering what final content they'd need to complete the 3 films they were making, they asked if they could interview me about my job. It was over breakfast, and I was still chewing my 3rd hardboiled egg of the meal (It's an addiction.). I said, why not. They asked me to put on a clean shirt and we did the interview under a tree outside.

That was the first time I'd ever actually said it: I'm here because I get to be part of a group of people from around the world trying to learn what it means to live by faith by actually doing it. It just sort of popped out. And it seemed like it was about as close to an answer to our circular conversation as we were going to get.

That month we'd been travelling also with my colleague, Carlos, who quit working at a book factory years ago to start a community-based care program with Hands in Mozambique. The film crew had heard how people walk miles to knock on Carlos' door, often in the middle of the night, because they know he'll find someway to help them. And they watched him firsthand jump into people's lives to help, however imperfectly, with just compassion and love. He himself has 2 natural children and 2 adopted ones.

In light of what they'd seen in Carlos' life, the film crew seemed to understand what I was trying to say.

The last of those films aired this week in Canada. I haven't seen them yet, but someone wrote to me this week to say they didn't include my interview. It's for the best; I'm sure I had egg white stuck in my teeth.

Comments

[Laura]

Carlos worked at a book factory!?! Well now I've heard everything.