No longer cold!

Peng Rei and her brother PengZhen live in the countryside in YongShun in Hunan Province in China.  They live there together with their grandma and their mum. They belong to an ethic minority group in China called the TuJia people. They have their own traditions and culture which are a bit different from most Chinese people. Because they belong to an ethnic minority group, their parents got permission to have more than one child.

Rei (the girl) is in third grade and Zhen (the boy) is in fourth grade. Reis` favourite food is cabbage and rice, but Zhens’ favourite is definitely meat. Zhen likes Mathematics, but his sister Rei likes all the subjects at school. 

They both are happy to have a sibling, because they can play together when they have finished their homework. They both enjoy school. However, life has not always been so easy.

When Rei was newborn, their father went to the city to seasonal work. It is very common in China for farmers go to the big cities to find work for 8-11 months a year leaving their kids with grandparents (or their mother) on the farm to take care of any animals and farming. This way, the parents are able to earn enough money for the family to live on. However, since their father went to the city nine years ago, they have not heard from him. They suspect that there may have been an accident and they presume him to have died, but they are not sure. Their mother, Peng ShuiYing (36), has therefore been taking care of the children and her mother-in-law, Chen YinNan (80). It has not been easy to make ends meet. Certain periods of the year, they have not had enough food for their family and YongShun is very cold, also inside, so the winters are tough if you clothes are not warm enough. 

Last year, their mum, Peng ShuiYing, started a course in Brocading which is a part of the International Biogas Project in China. The type of brocading art she is doing is unique for their ethnic group, the TuJia people. So, when Rei and Zhen are at school and she does not need to work on the fields, their mum is now making very pretty carpets. She is able to sell these easily, and they thus have some additional income. They are not rich, but life has become a lot better than it used to be says their mum Peng ShuiYing.

“Now, I have got a new winter coat and don’t need to be cold any longer! » says Rei with a big smile on her face and shyly but proudly shows me her new pink coat. “Now, we have got pencils and notebooks and can do our homework better” says Zhen. What is the best think about mum being able to do Brocade? I ask. “The best thing is that we can eat meat!” says Zhen and smiles so that his eyes light up. In the countryside in China, many families are so poor that they cannot afford eating meat except for perhaps once a year at Chinese New Year (this is a celebration that in some ways is similar to Christmas celebrations in Europe). This was also the case for this family.  «Since mum started doing brocade, we eat meat almost 10 times a month! » says Zhen and gives me another big smile. 

Maybe you're wondering what to give as a Christmas gift to someone who already has much of what they need? Supporting a family through this project can give an entire family a better future. Find out how you can support this project here.

Art For a Better Life.

"Hi Uncle!" calls Peng ShuSan (3) as he climbs on to the loom with a cute smile on his face. The three-year old has a lot of energy and is in a good mood. It is the first time he has met a foreigner, and he says that he is excited to meet a "real foreigner".

We have been invited into the home of Mi ErMei (38) and are received with warm smiles even though it is cold in the apartment. She belongs to the Tujia ethnic group, and has recently completed a brocading course for women. This training course is part of the International Biogas Project that NMS runs in YONGSHUN, located in Hunan Province in China. The course taught her how to make traditional Tujua brocade pictures and rugs. This course gives life to an old tradition and simultaneously provides much needed income for Mi ErMei and the other women who are taking part in this course.

Mi ErMei’s husband died earlier this year. Although she is smiling, her face is marked by sorrow. The time is approaching nine o'clock at night and it is dark outside. However, her daughter, Peng Shuyi (12) is still at school where she has evening lessons. Evening lessons entails that she needs to eat at the school cafeteria, which means an additional expense. Mi ErMei knows exactly how much dinner at the cafeteria costs and although the cafeteria is very cheap, it has an impact on her tight budget. A few months ago, she did not know how she would cope financially after her husband's death. How would she be able to pay for her daughter’s schooling? The vegetables from their farm alone are not sufficient to even give the kids enough food. With the loom and her newfound skills, she is upbeat about the future. Now she can do brocade when it suits her and the rugs she makes provides a very welcome additional income.

Mi ErMei throws a ball on the cement floor of the apartment, and Peng ShuSan runs to catch it. The small apartment is sparsely decorated and there are two cheap broken suitcases and some broken toys next to the chair I'm sitting on. As I look around, I think to myself that they would get more space if they threw away these things. Then it strikes me that in Europe we often think that the poor have nothing. This is partly true - they often have very little. However, poor people in this community are also too poor to be able to throw away things that are broken or that they do not need at the moment. Being able to buy something later is a privilege of the rich. But that is obviously not what Mi ErMei is concerned about today. Right now she is very grateful because she has the loom that she has received from NMS. It helps her to be able to buy meat for her children almost every week.

Do you have something to be thankful for? Perhaps the amount of freedom you have? Or are you thankful for your safety or health? Do you want to contribute to give more freedom and security to poor women who, like Mi ErMei, who want to earn a living in a dignified way without having to worry unnecessarily about tomorrow?

This brocading course for women is part of the International Biogas project that provides biogas to poor farmers in China and Madagascar. Women have more disposable time once they have a biogas digester on their farm because they no longer need to collect wood etc. For this reason, this project started several courses in China and Madagascar which gives women an opportunity to use their newfound leisure time in a way that can improve their life and family income. This course is a brocading course for women and Mi ErMei is one of the participants. Do you want to support the International Biogas project and help to change the lives of women like Mi ErMei?

Give a donation to this project here. 

A New Start!

               Zhang Qian (张 骞- 40) is delighted to learn the traditional art of brocading and has big dreams.

               She belongs to the Tujia people, and is now attending a brocading course for women who are part of the International Biogas Project that NMS operates in YONGSHUN, located in Hunan Province in China. The course teaches her how to do traditional Tujua brocade.

               The unemployed, single mother looks at this course as a unique opportunity to start a new life for herself and her son, Tian Youping (14). The opportunity to learn a skill that can help her to earn a living is obviously important in a corner of China where it is difficult to find work. Getting enough money for rent, food and school fees for her son has not been easy, especially when she used to work as a cleaner or a nanny. For Zhang Qian, however, this course is much more than just an opportunity to earn a living; she has a big dream.

               She became a Christian a few years ago, when she was in the city of Wenzhou as a migrant worker at one of the city's many factories. One of the other workers at the factory told her about Jesus and it changed her life completely. "Jesus gives life hope, meaning and joy" she says, smiling broadly. "As a Christian, I have peace and feel much better no matter how my (external) situation is”. She also says that she experiences the church's care for her.

               Zhang Qian thinks that she is possibly the only Christian participant in this brocade course, but nonetheless has big plans. Once she had learned the art of brocade, she wants to start teaching it to other women in the small Church. "Together we can maybe make a small factory and make some money to help the poor in our village" says Zhang Quan with a big smile and a lot enthusiasm.

               This brocading course for women is part of the International Exchange of Biogas that provides biogas to poor farmers in China and Madagascar. The women have more time once they have biogas on the farm because they no longer have to collect wood or other fuels. Due to increase in free time, this project also started several courses in China and Madagascar that give women the opportunity to use their new-found leisure time in a way that can improve their life and family income. This brocading course is one of the courses available to women and Zhang Qian is one of the participants. Do you want to support the International Exchange Program for Biogas?

               Maybe you're wondering what to give as a Christmas gift to someone who already has much of what they need? For 100 Pounds Sterling, you can give a whole biogas tank to a farmer in Zhang Quan’s home county, YongShun. This Christmas gift could combat poverty and improve women's health all in one! A gift that keeps women in Yongshun for so many years is a unique gift! An Ipad, mobile phone or computer rarely lasts more than 4-5 years but a tank of biogas can last generations and provide an entire family a better future. Find out how you can support this project here.