…so the other day this “bana” went to Redlight by himself…

in the midst of Redlight







since our truck was still in the shop from the incident on the way home from Grand Bassa, i walked to the highway and caught a car into Redlight.
I wish I could physically show you Redlight. Someone here described it to me as a more chaotic Manhattan. Haha. Traffic never stops, but there isn’t really a paved road. It is mostly mud and trash and people EVERYWHERE (John swears the density it more than Hong Kong) trying to sell anything and everything…from chickens to fresh produce…soap to rubber bands…used clothes to pirated DVDs, and stands to charge cell (most people don’t have access to electricity) phones or buy scratch cards...it is the underground economy of Africa and there is hardly any architecture in the town; there is absolutely no sense of permanence.















The trip into Redlight was completely fine, and honestly i was really enjoying being on my own.
Getting home, however, was not as easy. i tried to wave down a taxi for 30 minutes in the rain and got no bites except one guy who tried to charge me 12 times the normal price because i’m white (let’s just say i wished the man a good afternoon and said i would wait for the next car)…
i was struggling trying to find a ride.
Haha before i go any further i need to mention that one of the kids had put a green, yellow, and red sweatband on me before I left.
A man came up from behind me and asked if i liked reggae. i laughed and said of course. i asked if he liked Bob Marley…he turned around and he was wearing a Marley t-shirt...go figure…
He told me he’d seen my failed attempts at catching a taxi and that he could give me a ride if i needed one. He drove groups of people across country in a big 18-wheeler (businesses like this, buses, or helicopters are the only way to get around the country) for a living and was going my way on the highway…So like usual, i made a new friend...


We waited around Redlight for the rest of the passengers to show up. Hanging out with my new friend (Ismael) and his crew put me in no way in a sense of discomfort (even though Jerome kept calling me – freaking out and trying to get me to reassure him that he “wouldn’t have to call Steve and tell him his son died alone in Redlight”). i’d even say i felt more and more affluent with the people and culture that i’ve become so fond of. We talked, told jokes, and they even helped me when an ex-rebel hassled me for money… haha he was drunk and threatened to “eat my eyeball”...
We jumped in the truck and drove a little bit to get the fuel needed to make the trek to Lofa county and back. (15 hours there….15 hours back… and Ismael said he wasn’t planning on sleeping at all)

syphoning gas into the drums

loading the truck

i helped him and his crew load up the 16 50-gallon oil drums into the back of the truck, and the bond between me and my new friends grew. They told me they really appreciated that i didn’t mind getting dirty and working with them…haha i told them I appreciated them not letting the ex-rebel eat my eyeball. We all laughed and a man who had been watching us at the gas station walked up and started talking with us. He gave me the best complement i think i’ve ever received…he told me i was a real African. He said my skin may not show it, but my heart did… i cannot express the joy that that man gave me when he said that - And Jerome, John and Clarissa will tell you I’m still smiling...


So we were ready to go – i hopped in the front with Ismael and his crew, and they helped me to get home when i otherwise would have probably still been trying to find a taxi…. When they dropped me off at my stop on the highway they all got out and gave me a hug, we all exchanged numbers, i thanked them again and wished them a safe journey.

hahaha…whoever said you can’t trust a stanger? None of the other volunteers here say they have yet to figure out my strange affinity for Africa, and honestly, i don’t have a good answer for them except i just feel more fulfilled with every day i spend Her people, Her culture, Her life. God just keeps filling me up:)...


The other day was an awesome experience…definitely one i will never forget…"Thank God"





Life, Love, and Peace,



uncle matthew










a video clip of when we jumped into the truck to go get the fuel