Andrew's Mexican mission gives aid and music

Giving free music lessons to youngsters in a Mexican church and helping with other community development projects was how Norwich teenager Andrew Green spent the last four months.

Andrew, who attends Norwich Vineyard church, headed to the “lost city” of Lomas de San Isidro, part of Mexico City, the largest urban conurbation in the world. He went with Christian development charity Tearfund, to teach English and music and help in schools in the squatter settlement where 1200 families live in very poor conditions.

 

“The roads are dirt tracks, with dust that hangs in the air and makes breathing difficult at times,” said Andrew. “There’s no sanitised water system, meaning that they have to buy bottled water, which is heavily subsidised by the government but still takes up a large percentage of their wages. The majority of the houses are made of corrugated iron bolted together. Because of its appearance and the fact that it’s on a hill, the people living in the valley below call it ‘Cartolandia’ – Cardboardville.

 

“We taught English, art and music in a local church where there with musical instruments like a classical guitar, a keyboard, and a rudimentary drum kit. I play the guitar and piano, and my colleague plays the drums, so we gave free music lessons to the children in the area.

 

“We also helped in the Amextra nursery, which exists so that the numerous single parents in the area are able to work.

 

“It was a really fantastic experience for me. Speaking very little Spanish to start with, was extremely challenging. It was also really quite emotional seeing the extreme conditions. When it dawns on you that people actually have to live there and spend all their time there, it’s quite difficult to deal with.

 

“I’ve seen how people can be happy, despite the fact that they’re living on the breadline; in many cases below. I’m entirely sure now that there’s no correlation between money and happiness, or, at least, if there is one, it’s inverse.

 

“Being exposed like that also brings you a lot closer to God. It means that you don’t rely on your own strength, because it’s so insufficient.”

 

Pictured above is Andrew with a fellow volunteer in Mexico.