WorldWide Drilling Resource®

by Larry Duffield, submitted by Tim Rasmussen The second village we visited was the cleanest, most well-kept little village I’ve ever seen down here. It was nestled at the base of a moun- tain. Of course they communicate in the Q’eqchi’ language; one of the fellows who went with us could speak it enough to make them happy. There, we simply pulled their submersible pump in preparation for a hand pump, as soon as they pour a cement slab and install a four-foot piece of casing around the wellhead. They discovered it was too expensive to pay for power, and with the hand pump they will always have water even when the grid goes down. The Agua 4 Vita hand pump village put on a scrumptious lunch for us, and not to eat it would be a grave insult to them, so I departed from my fat-free diet to oblige their sensitivity. Man, was it good! Steamed rice, scrambled eggs with chopped tomatoes and onions. Then a blob of bean paste to spread on a fresh tortilla browned on a large clay disc over an open fire on the ground, inside the cook shack. Since I was a couple minutes late, I was told they were going to offer me fresh-roasted jungle rat, but I missed my opportunity - God is good. The eggs were scrambled in a skillet over a similar open fire, so it was a campfire meal without having to carry a pack up a trail. Of course, there was an occasional chicken walking between our feet looking for scraps falling from our laps, hunting for a meal before they became one themselves. A couple weeks ago, we had a banging good thunderstorm in the night, which I was happy for. I got up, went outside, and watched the lightning playing to the north of us. It was awesome to see all the electricity just going to waste, but hey, if there was a way to capture and use it, there would be political fighting over it and there is already too much of that going on. Hoping to visit one more village before returning to the snow [I hope], and it is to replace the top of a hand pump that has the old NYLATRON ® bushing installed and replace them with stainless steel bushings. I helped drill that well four years ago and met a little girl who I was told, at the time of her birth her father left, never to return. I was also told her mother was out in the jungle trying to find something for them to eat. When I went to check the well the other day, I was told the mother was out in the jungle trying to find firewood. Luckily, her brother hauled it back for her on his motorbike. So, I hope to meet her this time and help her out with a little cash. There are so many sad stories down here, just as there are at home, I guess. The bumpy roads to the poor villages are rough enough to put calluses on your guts from all the rearranging they do as you drive, but they provide a way to bring joy to those much less fortunate than us rich Americans by bringing a clean glass of water just 40 feet or more from their feet. I pray God will grant me life enough to continue serving these people. Since it's Valentine’s Day, I better not forget to include what my Valentine does down here. She serves a very vital role of preparing our two meals a day and my fat-free stuff. She also cleans the other three apartments next to us, which house the guest drilling crews who stay vary- ing lengths of time. That's not all. She washes clothes for the others as they have need, as well as help prepare the two weekend meals we eat at the direc- tor’s apartment a short walk from ours. If you know of a doctor or dentist who could spare a couple weeks down here, we'd love to put them to work helping the people. We now have a husband and wife team as Bible workers full time. Larry and Lucy Duffield If you would like to help, contact Gary Bartholomew at 509-466-5075 or 509-939-1941 Tim Tim Rasmussen may be contacted via e-mail to michele@ worldwidedrillingresource.com 7 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® MAY 2020 WTR