Tikhtak

Check out our Manila DVD extract on Youtube

In the Autumn 2008 the CMS Youth and Children's team set off with Tim Dendy (Freelance film maker) to make a DVD about the lives of a group of street children in Manila. We worked with a CMS mission partners in a street children's outreach project called jigsaw and worked with children who regularly attend this program. The experience was an incredibly rich one as we hung out with these young people over a period of 10 days. Their lives, struggles and responsibilities left our team feeling  humbled and inadequate to offer any real help or solutions. This is why the work of Jigsaw is so important as well as the aim of our World to Rights project to raise money for similar children's projects around the world. The DVD is due for official release in April but as a little foretaste you can see a preview on youtube.

Day 7

This morning we attended the worship time with all the jigsaw staff. It was special to see the fuel that fires their work with the children who come from the streets and the sqautter dwellings. The first song was sung in Tegalo, but it was a great one to mix everyone up as we swung arms with someone, then pointed to the ground, stamped our feet and turned around. We then had to find a new partner. By the end of the song we had danced and laughed with everyone in the room. There was also a time given for staff to ask us any questions and we were positioned in hot seats at the front of the room.

After this we interviewed two of the staff members and asked them specifically about their faith and  their work. Jo Ge pointed to Jesus putting the disciples straight when they tried to stop the children from coming close. "Let the children come unto me"  She shared how working at Jigsaw had shown that no matter how smelly, dirty or broken the children are it was her and Jigsaws job to allow the children to come to Jesus through them.

This afternoon all the boys came over to our guest house to use the swimming pool and play basketball. While this went on we re-interviewed a few of them. We all had a great afternoon and it was nice to just to relax and then play basketball together. They of course were much better than us although my height is always a not so secret weapon. 

From tomorrow we will start the GV's (general views) around the city. This will involve filming anything that relates to the interviews we have chosen for the dvd. It really does feel like we are running down the back straight now with just 3 days to go. Check out both CMS flickr and Dave's flickr for all the recent pics.

Latest Videos from Free For All, Sierra leone trip

I am systematically making clips of the highlights of our Free For All trip to Sierra Leone. You can see them by clicking directly on the pictures in the side bar and they will play in their own little window. Check out the most recent ones of Anita being lost and found in Freetown and our road trip to Moyamaba. I will also be sharing about the experience at the connect service at Holy Trinity, Clapham on Sunday evening.

Tikhtak on Youtube

I have put a bar up in the right hand column linking to Tikhtak's youtube channel. To check out the latest video from Sierra leone of our helicopter ride from Lungi to Freetown just click on the first one on the strip. I am impressed that it does not divert you away from the page but opens up it's own little box. I will be putting up other snippets from the Free For All Sierra Leone trip in the following weeks.