Ayayi

Last week we met a neighbor from around the corner named Ayayi. He is from Togo which is a little country near the west coast of Africa. His story is so sad, like so many other refugees from other African countries. From what he has told us, most of his family was killed and he was sent to America by an organization so he can have a chance at a better life. His country is fighting for a democracy and the party in power does not want a democracy, so they are fighting to keep it away while others are fighting for it. He said the "bad men" would take 1,000 people a night from he refugee camps and dump them in the ocean. I can only imagine that is the tip of the iceberg as far as the bad things that are happening there. He is legally blind, he was tortured by being forced to stare at the sun for several hours a day. He needs friends and people to network with so badly. He told us that he gets $605 from social security every month and his rent (the half he pays) is $480. He volunteers 12 hours a week at the DI and they pay 1/2 of his rent. On Saturday we had a birthday BBQ at my house for McKenzie on Saturday filled with delicious food and drinks. We made margaritas with the "magic bullet" and grilled up some steaks and brats. I was working in the kitchen so I didn't get to eat much, but I still had a great time! After some people arrived I came outside and Ayayi was standing in our front yard so I invited him back and he had a great time! The next morning we went to "the sev" (7-11) and when we came back he was just sitting on our porch. He told us he had been sitting in our backyard drinking beer all morning LOL. He wants to hang out all the time, so we are working on a balance of being his friends, but he needs to understand that we want privacy at times as well. He was cracking me up by saying that the neighbors were going to tell us that "the black man was in our backyard." He is a really nice guy and I'm happy that he met us. Trevor will be able to help him find part time work, he knows soooooo maaaaannnyyyy people.