A Dream, Hard Place, Local Visionary, Middle East, SE Asia
“So, how do you change hard places?” asked my new friend. “Oh, we don’t necessarily change them,” I responded, “Our aim is more profound.” “What do you mean? Then, why are you in hard places?” Her curiosity was piqued. I answered, “We believe that lights can shine...
A Dream, Hard Place, Local Visionary, SE Asia, Youth
I woke early, rolled over, glanced at my phone. Coup d’état! My eyes popped wide open. Dignitaries arrested. Internet cut. Airport closed. Banks shuttered. Roads blocked. It was this country’s last straw. After a generation of armed sectarian clashes. And...
Accompany, Hard Place, Middle East, Recognize
“…Eight…nine…ten.” I whispered, counting bullet holes inside her living room. We sat by the window in a tiny, dark apartment overlooking the alley demarcating two warring factions. My first field visits as a Dreams InDeed board member were a lot to absorb. Our...
Accompany, Hard Place, Middle East
Red Alert! My blurry eyes popped wide open: a Crisis Group red alert hit my screen. The threat level of our regional neighbor spiked to Critical. That’s the top level for imminent military confrontation. So my mind snapped into action. The threat level of our next...
A Dream, Hard Place, Middle East
His tears flowed. This refugee just couldn’t help it. You would have wept, too. He’d been a successful businessman. Then his home and business were bombed. He and his family are now displaced, skimping to survive in their own country. But that’s not why he burst into...
A Dream, Hard Place, Middle East
His mother died when he was ten. Her funeral marked darkness closing in on him. Without his mother’s support, he concluded school was a dead-end. After four years wasted in classrooms, he was still illiterate. He snagged a day-labor job turning unfired bricks to dry...
