by Louis from Indonesia

Winter is coming and now it is the cold’s turn. This is my first time experiencing cold weather for a long term of time. In North Sumatera where I lived the weather is normally 18-32 degrees Celsius. There is no winter in Indonesia, only dry season and rainy season. In this moment, North Sumatera is having a rainy season. I am not used to living in a very cold place. I have experienced -5 degrees Celsius in a short term when I hiked Semeru’s Mount in Java, Indonesia. It was horrible, I don’t really like cold but I am so excited to see the snow.

Because the winter is near now, Jana had an Idea to make a thermal pillow with all volunteers. A thermal pillow is a pillow that filled with grain, which can absorb heat and cold easily. It is a good idea to warm the body in winter.

Jana came with Emma (her children). Emma’s presence in Volunteershouse brought a lot of joy and fun. She likes to play and laugh. We all like to play with her. She is so a very smart kid. In Volunteershouse we rarely have children, but we all like to play with them. So that day we were very happy.

Jana brought all the things that needed such as fabrics, grains, sew machines and the other sewing equipment. We started with choosing the fabric we liked. Then we cut the fabric as big as we want into two pieces. Then proceed by sewing on each edge. I had the difficulties to use the sewing machine at first. It was always stuck because I was way too fast. But as time went by it was getting easier to handle. I made two thermal pillows; the big one and the small one for the back up. The thermal pillow is really useful for me personally, especially when I have stomachache. It is very ideal for a cold weather with a cup of chocolate and some cookies.

Adelia, Georges and Abdoulaye also made their own thermal pillow. Surprisingly, Georges could do it very good and fast. Georges also repaired his pants (3 pants) after he finished with his thermal pillow. It was so much fun and the atmosphere in Volunteershouse were warmer with Emma’s and Jana’s presence.