Approval

This evening we had dinner with the Marie, the founder of Ana El-Masry (I just discovered that the anglicized spelling of that is different than I originally thought... oops), at her family's house in the "country" [read: desert]. Actually, "house" doesn't really describe the situation - palace or estate is somewhat better. This place was incredible. Not only was the house itself gorgeous, but the land was so green you would never have known that outside its walls there was only sand. The dinner was delicious - all cooked by a chef who we saw working as we talked - and the atmosphere was amazingly soothing away from the craziness of the city. Plus her dogs were adorable, although I was less than thrilled when the mastiff slobbered all over my knee. More important than the setting, however, was the discussion. I learned more about Ana El-Masry's origins and got to talk about my idea for the library/game room.

When Marie started working with street kids, her project was merely to go out at night and bring them clothing and food. This developed into organizing sporting events for those she saw most regularly, and finally renting an apartment where they lived with the staff. Now she is a member of a government board that deals with the issue of street kids and is constantly reforming the program and starting new initiatives to help them. It was exciting to hear about the planning and brainstorming behind the center, which I have never picked up on from being there and working directly with the kids. Even more exciting was her reaction to our project (she loved it and suggested ways to help us get started immediately) and that fact that she mentioned the impact we've already had on the place. I know I say this frequently, but it often feels like I'm not making any lasting changes at the center. However, Marie told us that after some reports that we wrote, where many of us mentioned that the children were bored, she organized a way to send some of the children out to take art and music classes. While I knew that some of the older girls and the center had started leaving the center for an art program once a week, I had no idea that our comments were the spark for this development. By the end of the night, I had the distinct impression that Marie was the kind of person who made things happen, and to hear her approval and enthusiasm for my idea made me even more excited to begin work. Inshaallah, tomorrow we will choose a room for the library in the center, and begin making decisions on what furniture we want, so the center can get estimates on cost.