Headlights in the dark

Headlights in the dark? Why?

So here is a story from the other day. As you know we ride the bus often. But usually we pick each other up in Sikasso because it can be a huge pain to travel the 1.5 hrs from Sikasso to Kadiolo by bus.They don't go direct, and often this short leg can be 3-4 hrs.

So the other day Amy (one of the girls who works with One Story in a nearby village.) was coming down from Bamako. Our car needed a new battery, so we weren't able to go pick her up in Sikasso.She took the bus Bamako-Sikasso without much trouble at all.

But had to wait in Sikasso a while, then they left for Kadiolo. She found out that the bus wasn't coming to Kadiolo. Even though her ticket said TO KADIOLO right on it. So they wanted to leave her and the rest of the passengers in Zegua. (Zegua is about 6 miles from Kadiolo.)

So she got her backpack, and arranged with a couple of other Kadiolo passengers to take a taxi bus over to Kadiolo. "When are you leaving?" She asked. "Right away" they reply. 2 hrs later,not leaving yet, 3 hrs later, not leaving yet.

She calls me, what to do. It is night time by now. So I asked Pastor Youssouf if a moto-taxi might be safe.He said "why not??" So we told her to negotiate with a moto-taxi. (A moto taxi is a motorbike you can pay to take you somewhere.)So she called back, and said, ok, we're leaving now... It was about 10 pm. Very dark, etc.

I was uncomfortable with her travelling alone with a moto taxi guy in the dark. So I got on my motor bike, and went down the dark road to meet them. I got about half way, and I saw a motorbike coming in the distance. Not them. Then another, and Yes it was her with her driver. But his motorbikes' light was almost out. Very dim. So I rode alongside until we got back into town so he could actually see the road. I was glad that she was ok, and we paid the moto-taxi guy generously for travelling so well with her. (We paid him double what he asked....)

So the story ends well, Amy went to bed in her own house and was able to get a good nights rest, we had her over for lunch the next day and got her full report on Mali travel. :-)Fun....
The above pic is what it looked like on my motorbike that night....

Here is a pic from Christmas of Lisa and I.

We're wearing the Christmas fabric that one of the other missins had made this year.


Thanks for stopping by, Tom & Lisa