He says a surprising thing happened as the children fought over the blue crayons to draw the big wave. "As they went about their task of creating these haunting pictures, they laughed and they giggled, and they competed with each other to see who could come up with the masterpiece. Of course, we all stood there with tears streaming down our cheeks, watching what only my wife (the mom) knew would happen. The children of Sri Lanka were facing their deepest fears."
In spite of the fact that the people had lost so much so recently, the Tesh family continually encountered smiling faces. "The resilience of the people here taught me more and affected me more than I have ever thought possible," says Gib.
Toward the end of their time in Sri Lanka, Selleca was similarly affected. "What could possibly be enough to rebuild the devastation we saw today? Lost lives, lost dreams, lost hope. But still smiles. Survival. And then the children in the refugee camp. Hungry for fun...for laughter...hungry to forget the waves...the missing parents...missing siblings...missing friends."
Tesh explains that the people have hope in the relief workers, "that they can work with them to build new homes and somehow reclaim their lives." He also knows that a return to normal living will take years and is concerned that the media coverage "will move on to the next thing."
To help remind Americans of the constant need in Sri Lanka, Tesh and his family brought back all the pictures colored by the children in the refugee camp. In the three weeks since their return, they have compiled a book entitled, "Shades of Blue" which includes the artwork and pictures from their visit.
The book can be purchased on his website www.tesh.com and all proceeds will go directly back into Ampara to help rebuild lives.
Operation Blessing International, headquartered in Virginia Beach, Va., is a non-profit organization that provides relief and development assistance to economically disadvantaged people and victims of disaster across the globe, providing food, clothing, and medical supplies to those in need. To find out more about Operation Blessing, visit their web site at www.ob.org.
