Young People of Budesti

As the mayor introduced me, there was absolute silence. I gazed out into the hall at these hundreds of young people; all of them, virtually all of them, were clean cut, presentable, smiling, and obviously keenly interested in participating. I had nothing tangible to bring them. But the power of hope was an unbelievably powerful driving force.

They spoke with me, sharing what they hoped for for their futures. As I listened though, I noticed that not one of the ideas mentioned to me was an individual hope, moreso, it was a hope or dream for the entire village.

These young people asked for training and education: The girls wanted to learn hairdressing skills, sewing skills, art, and medical skills. The boys wanted to learn electronics, computers, nursing care, social services, to drive cars, install telegraph equipment, use heavy equipment, drive buses, etc. Many of these requests can easily be fulfilled by people from the west with their discarded and used equipment.