What a difference a day makes

Yesterday, I was unable to feed this lady, after the food distribution went badly wrong and we had to stop for ours and everybody else's safety. Despite waiting patiently and not getting any food, and despite the language barrier, she assured me it was ok and hugged me when she could see I was shaken by the event.

Today we were able to give her new shoes. We were able to give a lot of people shoes. And socks. And food that made a change to the rice they have to eat morning, noon and night. Fresh fruit. We gave children sweets and colouring pads and pencils. We gave men disposable razors so that they could try to maintain a little pride in their appearance and regain some dignity. We gave women hairbrushes and make up. A man who was given a toothbrush and toothpaste by my friend was delighted - he apparently hadn't been able to brush his teeth for 22 days. The men asked for playing cards, some were purchased and delivered as promised within the hour. We visited familiar faces and new arrivals to the camp, we chatted and laughed and joked and smiled and enjoyed being able to be a small part of their day.

For every single one of you who donated funds toward this, thank you. Every penny donated has made a real difference to people's lives. It's provided food and water to the hungry and thirsty, and provided a little bit of something extra to brighten up a very long and arduous journey. You gave people going through trauma that we can't even imagine, a reason to smile.