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| Grace on the barge to the main part of French Island |
French Island is only the next island over and the native people there are culturally and historically interconnected with Clove Islanders. All of our neighbors seem to have at least one relative on French Island. French Island is the greener grass. It is the place where you can get good medical care, where you can find a good paying job, where you can get a good education and countless other good things….or so they say.
“My friend Sonia is going to French Island,” our good friend tells us, “She’s in Old Town right now.” “Old Town” is where the little boats leave in the middle of the night to try to reach French Island’s shores illegally. Unfortunately every year many people drown on this dangerous journey. “She’ll have to stay crouched down for hours and hours so no other boats can see that the boat is full of people.” She had to pay 8 month’s wages for a spot on the boat.
The following week we ask about Sonia. “She is back on Clove Island. The boat was stopped by police as soon as they arrived and everyone was sent back. She’s trying again. She has to pay again.”
The few weeks later, we ask again. “She’s back again. She was on French Island for a week but then she was caught by immigration police and sent back. This time she’s going the ‘guaranteed’ way.” We soon learn that the guaranteed way costs a full-year of wages and consists of her dressing like a man and joining a boat of French Island fisherman.
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| Grace having fun on French Island |
A few more weeks pass. “Sonia is back again. She was caught and sent back again. She’s got a job here now so she can save up to try again.”
All that wasted money and energy to escape to the greener grass. This past week I went over to French Island for the first time. And in many ways it was very nice-- constant electricity, better roads, better hospitals (I got the MRI I needed), REAL supermarkets! But then there was the other side, people are afraid to go out at night because of crime and theft (not usually problems on Clove Island). Clove Islanders are treated like second class citizens and looked down upon. The ones there illegally live in constant fear of being found out and deported, and usually can’t find work. Those there legally are often hassled by police. Schools are overcrowded by immigrants and much of the island is segregated.
In their hopelessness and poverty, many Clove Islanders look to the “greener grass” of someplace else to be their hope and salvation. We earnestly pray that they would look to the true source of hope and salvation, who is already right here among them.
PRAYERS ANSWERED
Megan got her MRI without too much trouble! Her and Grace had a great time with our friends on French Island. All our teammates had good breaks.
PRAYERS REQUESTED
Pray for our friends working on French Island and the unique challenges they face-- especially as they make decisions about what to do in the coming year. Pray for Megan’s back- we’re still waiting to hear what the MRI revealed and what she should do next. Continue to pray for the brothers that are working toward reconciliation and greater trust. Pray that the electricity situation would be resolved-- all the local shops have stopped selling meat because it was all going bad in their freezers. We’ve heard rumors that a solution is in the works for this coming week! Pray for our teammates jumping back into language learning-- pray for good motivation for all!
