Sydney's Thoughts:
When I first heard
about Plastic City I literally thought it was a city made of plastic homes and
buildings. Now that I have seen it for myself I know that it is not that at
all, it is so much more. When we first came into plastic city I could
immediately see the poverty that we were about to enter into. Shacks are
people’s homes and wooden planks are used as pathways so you are not walking in
the mud. Weeds and plants cover the ground, so without the path it is very hard
to walk. Most people, especially the kids, walk around without shoes on their
feet. But this doesn’t even compare to where we were about to enter into the
jetty. When we walked into the jetty I
was in complete shock!
Angie had told us
that the jetty is the “poorest” part of Plastic City, but I obviously had no
idea what poor really meant. As you walk through the jetty you walk on an above
ground rock wall. This path is in a straight line and takes you right to the
Atlantic Ocean. The wall is maybe two feet wide which makes it difficult to
walk on and it is nearly impossible to pass people. On each side of the path is
standing water filled with mud and trash. Because there is so much standing
water and trash covers the ground, it smells like raw sewage. Mangroves
surround the jetty so you feel like you are in the middle of the
jungle. People live in shacks that are raised up so that when the water comes
through it doesn’t completely destroy their homes. These shacks are basically
scraps of wood, metal, or anything useable. Walking through the jetty was
unlike anything I have seen or experienced. This way of living was completely
shocking to me. I have been on mission trips before and I thought I knew what
helplessness looked like. However, after
this experience in the Jetty, I realize what hurting really means and what it
truly looks like. This experience opened my eyes to true poverty. My heart
hurts for these people and their situation. All I want to do is help in any way
I can. [Written by Sydney]
Amber's Thoughts:
Plastic City was
unlike anything I have ever experienced or seen in my life. I didn’t really
know what to expect walking into Plastic City other than the pictures I have
seen. But I can now say that today’s experience has shown me that pictures come
nowhere close to what in looks like first hand. Walking through the city I felt
like I was in a different world. It was very hard for me to wrap my head around
how I live where I live, and how these people live where they live
·
I have a
bathroom; they have an outhouse.
·
I have a
water bed; they have a blanket on the floor.
·
I have a kitchen with a refrigerator and they
don’t even have electricity.
·
When I’m in the United States and hot, I go
inside the house to get cool, in Plastic City they go outside to get cool.
·
When I want to go out into town I jump in my
truck, when they want to go somewhere they use their feet.
I can honestly say it
shocked me to realize how much I depend on electricity in my daily life and
what I take for granted every day. Walking on the jetty wall and seeing the
poorer houses of the area - it was all I could do not to cry. It really struck
home to see that people just like me and you could live like that.
Once again the Lord has just showed me how blessed I really
am to live where I live and how much he has truly blessed me with everything
that I have. While we were in Plastic City yesterday I also realized that
children who had a father or male figure in the home were living better than
children without that male figure. In Plastic City when the child has a father
{or male figure) they have income. When
a man is in the picture they have a better place to live. When I understood how
the lack of a male figure impacts life in Plastic City it really it home,
because I am blessed with a wonderful father.
I have a father who loves and supports me. Finally, Plastic City also made me think that
if my family lived there then we would be a minority simply because my father
is in the picture. Fathers or male
figures have a major role in a child’s life.
Knowing this and seeing it in real life now makes me want to pray. My prayer for Plastic City is that, men from
the church here in Vreedenhoop will step into PAL and give these young children
the role model they need in their life.