The Day Before Departure

November 5

Image 1 - Stephanie searching for souvenirs

Image 2 - Richard & Stephanie at the Lighthouse Restaurant


We were pleasantly surprised today when a lady, who used to work for us, showed up and joined us for breakfast. I hadn’t seen her in almost 15 years and she sat down next to me at the breakfast table and pretended not to notice me. After a moment of confusion I recognised her. I knew she was playing a joke on me so I cleared my throat a couple of times, while looking at her, until she broke into a huge smile. We exchanged hugs and then proceeded to reminisce about our memories.

She remembered how I would always go running outside whenever I heard a helicopter flying overhead (it happened all the time). I told her how I remembered how she was always terrified of our pet mongoose.

She described how she had escaped to Malawi to get away from the war and returned to find that her father had been beheaded by rebels and her mother beaten until she was crippled. It is still a struggle for her not to feel sick when she thinks of her father’s brutal killing. Unfortunately thousands of others in this country have similar stories as her.

Around mid-day we did some souvenir shopping and then headed across from our hotel to swim in the ocean. The girls are getting very frustrated with always being seen as a dollar sign. We are forever being approached by people begging for money or wanting to help us in exchange for money.

A little later we were joined by an American friend of ours that we had known from back before 1995. It was great to visit with someone from the same culture as us.

The day ended with a Wiebe family dinner at the Sierra Lighthouse Restaurant. It was a great way to end our last full day in Sierra Leone. Tomorrow evening we depart on our return trip to London.

R.W.