I made it!

I made it to Mozambique on Wednesday. The last few days have been hot but amazing!

We went without power from 6am on Sunday till about 11am on Monday. So I haven't had a chance to upload my pictures yet, or to really put my thought together.

I think we are going to be online tomorrow, so I will try to put something together to post then. My brain feels so scrambled I'm not sure what to write right now.

A few things Christmas was amazing. The older boys cooked for 37 of us in an outdoor "kitchen." We ate fried Chicken, fried potatoes, salad (cabbage and onions) and of course rice! The gifts consisted of toy trucks, dolls for the girls, backpacks, forks, and other small toys. Their excitement was amazing! We also had a dance party in my room. The boys rapped for me in Portuguese and some of them danced to Michael Jackson (before I knew I wasn't suposed to play secular music... oops...).

The boys all want to learn English, some of them speak a few words of it. But my helper Pedro who speaks no English introduced himself to me as Peter. My helper has definately come in handy, mainly after I set off a bug bomb and went back to my room to fine a dozen or so cochroches! I didn't even ask him to pick them up, but while I was opening my windows one fell and I yelled and he came running. He and a few boys picked them up with their bare hands! And they were still moving! Oh and it cracked me up bc they just threw them out the door. They must think I'm crazy.

My sleeping habits are really messed up. I fall asleep and then wake up around 2 or 3 am and fall back to sleep around 5 or 6. Last night was better, but without any power I had no distractions, until I heard the boys are 5am (they wake up at 4am!).

I haven't really gotten sick yet, I did throw up the first morning I was hear. I took my Malaria pill on a empty stomach (which I did at home), but I think combined with the heat it wasn't a good combination. I've been really carefule not to eat things that I think will make me sick or to drink the tap water. I did forget and eat Jello, so it was a huge answer to prayer that I didn't get sick. I'm not looking forward to that at all!

Ok well I will try to get my thoughts a little more organized for the next time I post.

Love Amanda

Juma Juma

Juma is one of the boys who lives in the home. We think he is about 7, but he looks more like a 3 year old due to malnutrition and HIV/AIDS. Juma came to The Dream Project this last summer. You might remember that I used his picture in the last newsletter.

Well Juma has been sick for the last few days and he was taken to see a doctor. When I spoke with Julia she was telling me that they were drawing blood from Juma (a boy who is believed to have HIV/AIDS) and the nurse didn’t even use gloves. One of the nationals who works with The Dream Project was holding Juma while they drew blood and the worker and the nurse got blood on their hands and they all just carried on. Not even stopping to wash the blood off. 

Two things stood out to me after Juila shared. The first being the gloves (or lack of), I couldn’t believe that something as simple and cheap as disposable gloves are a luxury. Julia told me that sometimes in the clinics they will try to sanitize the gloves by washing them in hot water.

The second thing being the lack of awareness about HIV/AIDS. On one hand I’m glad that the worker from TDP didn’t freak out about the blood and make Juma feel dirty, but I also fear for that worker. Wondering did he was his hands with hot water and soap, did he have any open cuts on his hands? 

This is such a little story, but for me it has really been eye opening. Please pray for Juma, that his body would heal, but also find comfort that homes ours exist bringing hope and love to those who need it. 

The Dream Project's Official Blog!

Welcome to The Dream Project’s blog!

Stay tuned for updates about the ministry, the children, prayer requests and much more.  

I will start off my introducing myself. My name is Amanda Nichols. I first heard about The Dream Project in January 2010 through my father who was at a church function where Julie shared. I immediately fell in love with The Dream Project and its mission, and began applying to work in Mozambique. In May, Julia called to ask me if I would be willing to work in the US and help in the office with the daily tasks and some of the behind the scene details. Even though my heart was set on Mozambique I felt the Lord telling me to go where I was needed. Throughout the summer I drove back and forth from Chicago to Detroit and in September I moved to Michigan to work full time with The Dream Project.

I continue to work out of the office, doing my best to grow TDP in all aspects. I’m also very happy to say that in a few weeks I will be traveling to Mozambique to meet the children! I’m so excited and would appreciate your prayers as I prepare to go.

Well that’s enough about me. I hope you will continue to read and learn more about The Dream Project!

God Bless

Amanda