I have been sponsoring a child with World Vision Ireland for almost 15 years now and this week I have had the honour and privilege of visiting the child and his community in Kwamtoro, Central Tanzania. Kwamtoro is remote, very remote.

We travelled from Dar Es Salaam to the central city of Dodoma about 6 hours drive. The next day we left Dodoma for a 3 hour drive on dirt roads into the bush for Kwamtoro. What struck me forcibly all along the road was that there were lots of buildings of schools and clinics with the World Vision logo painted on them. Clearly World Vision is steeped in working closely with many local communities here and the infrastructure is evident to see. I was to find out that this infrastructure has changed the lives of many people. As the community in Kwamtoro told us very simply when we arrived, World Vision have brought us ‘from hunger to prosperity’.

On day 3 having spent the night at the ADP office in Kwamtoro, we prepared to visit the village where my sponsored child lives. We went back on the dirt roads towards Dodoma a little bit and then turned off. The road narrowed and narrowed into what can only be described as a bush path and our 4x4 slowly negotiated through trees to make progress. I thought to myself how can anyone live so remotely and how did World Vision find these villages to support. I later found out that in fact World Vision is the only organisation that serves these communities as they are so remote.

When we eventually arrived at the village on Dinea (a cluster of houses in the bush) I couldn’t have prepared myself for what lay ahead. During the previous hour as we travelled to the village I was apprehensive about what would unfold and how the child would be meeting a stranger that had a distant relationship with him, his family and his community.  I was bowled over by the reception. The whole village seemed to have come out to welcome us. The women of the village sang and danced as we got out of the 4x4. We joined in to reciprocate the welcome and joy at being there. It was amazing and wholesome. Together we celebrated the support we shared for one another. And I say this meaningfully that we Westerners are also receivers from these remote communities. The monetary support I have given to this community could not add up to the value of the opportunity I received in being humbled to share space with this wonderful group of people. To witness how they etch out a living in these conditions, to share a meal with them as they offered up some prize food to us, to sing and dance with them and experience the joy of their being in spite of their difficult surroundings. All of this is the great gift we receive from these communities. As I say, I was humbled and privileged and I thank God for this great gift of life.

My sponsored child, Victorik, has lived through some difficult times and I am sure that on this day he felt loved and cared for and it will stay with him as it will for me. I thank everyone in World Vision for making it happen and I commend their work. As they hand over this project to a local community based organisation to continue the work developed alongside World Vision, I am sure that the future is bright for all. As the community said, it started with the provision of basic food and then developed to a strategic plan that has provided education and health capacity, to finance support and agricultural knowledge to overcome drought and ensure a sustainable and healthy future. A lot has been achieved over the last 15 years and there is still more to be done. I am proud that I have had a small opportunity to share in this growth and I encourage many others to do the same.                   

Padraig Swan.

http://www.worldvision.ie/

17th June 2010.
 

'm in the middle of the bush (literally) now for 2 days staying in a village house out in the middle of nowhere. It's a village in Tanzania called Kwamtoro where a little boy lives that I have been sponsoring for the last 10 years through World Vision. I will meet him tomorrow. I've just been updated on his status and it's a sad story. His parents have separated and his mother has abandoned him and now he lives with his grandmother. I don't know if there any other brothers or sisters but I'm sure I will find all that out. I will go to his grandmother’s house to meet them both. It will be an honour. I have brought a few small gifts for him and his family and now I have been told that I cannot donate any cash (which is what I'd like to) as it creates jealousy and competition among other families and other children. I am hoping to be able to buy some soap and sugar and a live chicken for them. This is allowed and I'm sure if I can get a chicken somewhere it will be such a great gift. Life's simple things can make such a difference. It really puts all we have and do at home into context. I feel very privileged to be able to witness these realities and have a small opportunity to make some difference. The world is so small and as a single family of brothers and sisters it's a blessing to learn from and support one another.

Padraig

So, while the world cup brings the eyes of the world on South Africa and the achievements associated- much of it very beneficial and positive - there are also real concerns on the ground of the darker side of the world cup and what will happen to the stadium when the final whistle is blown. Will there be many white elephants left? Time will tell, but for now, South Africa is celebrating and rightly so.

Moving forward to continue with my journey Ithen travelled to Zambia to prepare for the upcoming international volunteer project of the Arthur Cox trainees in July. If South Africa was amazing and eye opening, I couldn't have imagined what the 5 days in Mwandi, Western Province Zambia would bring. Right from the start last Tuesday morning I travelled to remote bush villages to witness how the local communities struggle in awful conditions to make a living where neither health, education nor basic needs can be taken for granted. There is no running water, no electricity, no support when you get sick, long walks through forests and sandy trails to school or the daily trek to a water bore to get water or to get firewood for heating and cooking. The Sli Eile Arthur Cox project is pitched right into these realities. I had the honour to sit with many community groups of women, community leaders, health and water board officials and the local chief to assess together what the critical needs of the communities are and how together we could respond to them. It is never about the Masungu (White Man) arriving into these communities and giving a hand out and walking away. We had some wonderful discussions identifying how the local communities become central to managing their own destiny in partnership with our support. This has been the real learning for me. I am humbled at how they can live the way they do and for sure the renovation of their health clinic, the supply of solar panels that has given them electricity for the first time, the drilling of a water bore and erecting a water storage tank that will provide running water to the clinic for many medial situations like when a woman delivers a new baby, the supply of 100 new school desks to a local school, the support of an agricultural project that ensures food production becomes a priority - all these things that the Sli Eile Arthur Cox project support will make a huge difference to the life in these villages. We can be proud to be associated with this work and we learn a huge amount about ourselves and how we live in the process. The work of last week could not have happened without the ongoing support on the ground of the local Catholic priest, Fr Klemens. He opened many doors and I am very sure that God is at work in all the things I am honoured to be part of here.

From here, I travel to Tanzania later today to visit a school and community in Dodoma run by the Jesuits as a potential new project for Sli Eile. I will also visit a child that I have been sponsoring for 10 years through World Vision - a really special moment for me that I am very excited about. Then it's on to Uganda to explore more opportunities. Moe about these later.

For now, blessings to you all and remember one another as we journey.

Padraig

To support Padraig in this fantastic achievement follow the link below
http://www.mycharity.ie/event/padraig__swans_event/

At this time of year I think of all those who are doing exams, especially those doing the leaving cert. It can be a stressful time. There is so much hard work gone into the preparation and the long waiting is over - you just want to get stuck in and you hope that it will go according to plan.
 
This is how it was for me last weekend when I entered the final stages of readiness for the greatest challenge of my running campaign to date - The Comrades Ultra Marathon, otherwise known as The Ultimate Human Race. It was 56 miles of sheer effort and mental strength over bodily exhaustion that demanded a carefully executed race plan to ensure that I was well hydrated, avoided even the slightest injury and had enough leg power and ability just to make it to the finish. Over 25% of the field of 15,000 entrants do not make it. Of those that do, 50% finish in the last hour, between 11 and 12 hours. The field gets cut off after 12 hours, so imagine running for 12 hours and 1 minute to be told "sorry - you're outside the allowed 12 hour limit. Try again next year". Many faced this torture. Another mental challenge to just get inside 12 hours. So, knowing that I made it and managed to get home in 10 hours 33 mins makes the acheivement all the more sweet. You can see why I am delighted to have conquered this challenge.

However, apart from the trials of just finishing this race, it was a huge privilege to be part of this human family that came to the start line at 05.30am last Sunday morning. And sharing the love of those that came out on the road side. We were showered with unbelieveable support from the thousands that lined the roads as we ran past. Right from the start there were women and children from the settlements on the outskirts of Pietermaritzburg, waving flags, shouting support, singing, dancing and getting into the spirit of what the race embodies - all for one and one for all. This was demonstrated so many times as you recieved words of encouragement from fellow runners and supporters as you struggled up a hill or just felt the pain. I wore an Irish flag on the front and back of my top and all along the way, other runnners and those on the roadside repeated time and time again, "Ireland - welcome to South Africa and enjoy your stay here". Others sang Ireland's call and spoke of how disappointing it was that we were not part of the world cup. They just love the Irish and it made me so proud. At one point along the race we passed a school for children with learning and physical disabilities. Many sat in wheelchairs along the road and stretched out their hands of love and friendship. You couldn't help but stop and greet as many of them as possible and acknowledge their joy at just clapping their hands. It was real motivation to keep going regardless of whatever pain I felt. I was running because I can run. These and many others would love to be able to run, but yet they smile from their own space with happiness and joy. This put life and limb into context. I've always felt that it's a privilage to be able to put one foot in front of the other and I hope to do this as long as I can.
 
South Africa now is gripped with World Cup fever and there are many stories of injustice at what FIFA have done here to the local economy. Local businesses around the stadia have been shut down for 7 weeks as only official world cup material can be sold near the grounds. Locals are banned from attending the training camps that are located right in their neighbourhoods, some in poorer parts of cities. There are vasts amount of money spent on infrastructure that many wonder will become white elephants when the final whistle blows. But there are also stories of how it has brought communities together and the hope is that this spirit will continue. So far on this trip, I have had the privilege of sharing space with white South Africans that live privileged lives and also with locals that have been re-located from District 6 in Cape Town to the Cape Flats in the poorer suburbs. The 2 worlds are in contrast with one another and it's a gift to experience them first hand. I can't help but thinking that many of the football supporters will never get this chance.
 
It is an exciting time for South Africa and indeed for the whole African Continent. It has been a pleasure to be part of this build up with them.

Blessings,

Padraig

To support Padraig in this fantastic achievement follow the link below
http://www.mycharity.ie/event/padraig__swans_event/

Greetings for the first blog entry of this mammoth trip that is full of promises of joy, pain, discovery and new seeds of friendship and growth.

I am in CDG airport in Paris awaiting a flight to Johannesburg in about an hour. It's one of those new A380 planes, the double decker ones. My first time, so that in itself will be exciting.

At this point I am full of expectation for this trip and yet I hold some nervousness about the task immediately ahead of me on Sunday next May 30th. As you may know I am running a marathon challenge for 2010, setting myself the task of completing 6 marathons. 2 of them are Ultras, i.e. they are longer than the normal marathon of 26.2miles. So far I have completed one of these in Connemara in April, an Ultra distance of 39.3miles. I managed to get around in 6 hours 29 mins. Then in May I completed a standard marathon in Belfast in a personal best time of 3 hours 24 minutes. The race on Sunday next is a distance of 56 miles, commencing at 05.30am and running from Pietermaritzburg to Durban in South Africa. It's a sheer battle of mental strength and spirit over the physical pain that the body will endure. The pre race information states - "approach this with caution. You will hurt and hurt bad. Just wait until Monday morning and attempt to go to the loo and you'll know". I'll let you know if this is a scare tactic or it's real.

Ok, so you get the picture. All I can do is ask that wherever you are from 05.30am to approx 17.00 on Sunday, that you say a wee prayer for me that I am strong enough to make the finish line. There is a cut off point of 12 hours and if you finish in 12 hours 3 minutes it doesn't count. If that's not enough pressure already. Thanks in advance for your prayer.

The weeks after the race will be spent visiting friends in South Africa (and having some 'me time') and then visiting a Sli Eile project in Mwandi, Zambia to do preparation work for a group of 22 Arthur Cox trainee solicitors that will travel out in July. They will erect a water tower for a remote health clinic and renovate a local school in the bush. Then it's on to Tanzania and Uganda to check out some new possibilities or opportunities for future Sli Eile work. While in Tanzania I have the honour and privilege of visiting a child that I have been sponsoring through World Vision Ireland for the last 10 years. This is something that I am really looking forward to and is one of my highlight expectations of the whole journey.

So, I'll update you as I go over the next few weeks and if I can upload some photos I will do that too.

We can remember one another as we go.

Blessings for now,

Padraig.