Watch Gaelic Coimhead Gàidhlig

[Cathy Mary] Chunnaic mi gun robh mo bheatha falamh mur a biodh Crìost agam. Faodaidh a h-uile càil anns an t-saoghal a bhith agad ach mur h-eil Chrìosd nad bheatha chan eil càil agad.

[Cathy Mary] Dh'fhalbh mi a Zimbabwe nuair a bha mi, cha robh mi ach twenty one, ann an 1977 dh'fhalbh mi a Zimbabwe 's bha mi ann an sin trì bliadhna ach 's ann a' tidseadh a bha mi. Bha mi, a’ teagaisg English Language and Literature. Tha cuimhne agam ag ràdh ri tè a bha ag obair còmhla rium "chan eil mi a' tuigs' carson a tha mise ann an seo ann" bhon a tha mi rudeigin aotrom. Chan eil mi domhainn 's chan eil tuigse uabhasach math agam uaireannan agus thuirt i rium "uill 's mathaid gur e stop-gap a th' annad". "'S mathaid gur e stop-gap a th' annad agus gheibh sinn cuideigin nas fheàrr nuair a dh'fhalbhas tu"!

[Cathy Mary] Chòrd e rium uabhasach math ach dìreach gun robh cogadh mòr a' dol air adhart ann. 'S bha na daoine cho bochd 's bha tòrr tinneis ann cuideachd. Ach dùthaich cho brèagha. Chunnaic mi eòin agus beathaichean, chan fhaca tu an leithid. Bha e dìreach àlainn ach aig an aon àm bha an cogadh a' dol air adhart agus 's iomadh cunnart a bh' ann agus 's iomadh teaghlach a chaidh a mharbhadh gu lèir.

[Cathy Mary] Bha sinne a-muigh air an dùthaich agus bha sgoil againn, sgoil àlainn agus a' chlann cho math, agus eaglais. Bha a' chlann againne cho cliobhar anns an sgoil, agus bha iad mar clann sam bith eile nuair a bha iad a-mach às a' chlas, eil fhios agad, bhiodh iad a' ruith timcheall 's bha iad làn spòrs 's a h-uile càil a tha sin ach nuair a bha iad a' suidh anns a' chlas bha iad ag obair. Bha fhios aca gum feumadh iad results math fhaighinn ma bha iad a' dol a dh'fhaighinn obair a bha pàighte ceart airson cha b’ ann airson iad fhèin a chumail ach na teaghlaichean aca gu lèir. Bhon a bha cogadh ann bhaelectric fence timcheall an division againne agus bha guards againn aig a' gheata le gunnaichean. Bha teaghlaichean latha ann 's bha sinn a' toirt aodach dhaibh. Eil fhios agad, bha feadhainn ann 's cha robh càil aca anns an t-saoghal. Uaireannan cha robh biadh aca, eil fhios agad mur an tàinig an t-uisge aig an àm cheart, chan fhàsadh càil 's dh'fheumadh sinne biadh a thoirt dhaibh. Eil fhios agad, ann am measg cogadh tha daoine a' coimhead airson cuideachadh air choreigin agus sìth agus sonas air choreigin agus tha e tòrr nas fhasa a bhith a' bruidhinn ri daoine mu dheidhinn cùisean a bhuineas dhan anam aca bhon a tha iad ag iarraidh cuideachadh.

[Cathy Mary] Chan eil mise a' creidsinn gu bheil creideamh mar crutch no rudeigin mar sin a tha a' dèanamh ar beatha nas fhasa idir agus tha cuimhne agam a bhith a' leughadh anns a' Bheurla rud " The Lord doesn't give you an umbrella. He teaches you to walk in the rain ". Agus tha mise a' smaoineachadh gu bheil sin ceart. Chan eil mi a' smaoineachadh gu bheil creideamh a' toirt air falbh ar faireachdainn idir agus uaireannan chan eil mi ag ràdh nach eil ar creideamh a' dèanamh cùisean nas doirbhe dhuinn, nas duilghe nuair a tha sinn a' feuchainn ri tuigs' carson a tha rudan a' tachairt, gu h-àraidh dha clann bheag. Ach tha mise rèidh leis an sin. Tha mi airson ionnsachadh a bhith a' coiseachd anns an tuil.

[Cathy Mary] So thàinig mi dhachaigh ann an 1980. Chaidh mi a-steach airson nursaigeadh agus bha mi a' nursaigeadh airson fichead bliadhna. Thàinig mi sìos a Lunnainn ann an nineteen eighty nine. An obair mu dheireadh a bh' agam cha b' e nursaigeadh a bh' ann idir. 'S e a bh' ann a' ruith phrògraman de phrojects ann anslàinte, education, community safety, economic development, agus community empowerment.

[Cathy Mary] Bha mi a' fuireach air an Aylesbury Estate, a tha dìreach ri taobh an àit’ far a bheil mi a' fuireach a-nis, agus bha mi ag obair am measg nan teaghlaichean 's nan daoine air an estate agus rinn sin eadar-dhealachadh mòr dhòmhsa. Gus an tàinig mi a dh'fhuireach air an estate cha robh mise a' tuigs' cò ris a tha beatha dhaoine coltach ann an council estate mòr ann an Lunnainn bhon ron seo bha mi ann an Kennington 's bha mi rudeigin spaideil. Bha a h-uile duine ag obair 's an uair sin thàinig mi am measg dhaoine agus eil fhios agad bha iad air benefits agus cha robh mise air sin fhaicinn mar a tha e anns a' bhaile mhòr 's bha prayer circle agam nuair a bha mi ag obair agus nuair a bha sinn ag iarraidh airgead airson rudeigin as ùr bhithinn ag ràdh ri daoine "tha mi a' dol a dh'activataigeadh am prayer circle" agus eil fhios agad tha sin rudeigin èibhinn dha daoine aig nach eil creideamh 's bhiodh iad a' cumail deagh shùil air dè bha a' dol air adhart agus bheannaich An Tighearna mi anns an obair agus na daoine a bha ag obair còmhla rium 's bhiodh sinn a' faighinn an airgid! Bhiodh sinn a' buannachadh airgead airson pròiseact ùr air choreigin a bha a' dol a chuideachadh nan teaghlaichean againn.

[Cathy Mary] Feumaidh mi aideachadh gun do bheannaich An Tighearna chan e dìreach mise ach an sgioba againn gu lèir anns an obair bhon nuair a thòisich sinn cha robh ach 17% dha na GCSE students againn a' faighinn còig grades matha anns na GCSEs aca agus tha e a-nis an àird cha mhòr gu 65. Agus thug sinn bliadhnachan. Bha sinne ag obair airson deich bliadhna air a' phrògram a bha seo. Thug sin bliadhnachan ga dhèanamh agus chuir sinn airgead dha na sgoiltean agus rinn sinn rudan eile. Homework projects agus breakfast clubs. Bha tòrr den chloinn againn cha robh iad a' faighinn bracaist bhon far a bheil daoine nach eil ag obair glè thric chan eil na pàrantan ag èirigh anns a' mhadainn. Bhon a thàinig a' chlann air adhart cho math, tha a' chlann againne a' dol dhan cholaiste, dha na universities. Tha iad a' toirt a-mach a h-uile seòrsa degrees agus tha iad a' faighinn obair.

[Cathy Mary] Tha mise a' creidsinn gu bheil Dia air mo stiùireadh anns a h-uile càil. Glè thric chan eil mise ag aithneachadh sin agus uaireannan chan eil mi a' smaoineachadh mu dheidhinn, eil fhios agad. Uaireannan 's e a th' annainn ach paidhir làmhan, searbhantan, stop-gap. Chan eil e gu diofar ged nach biodh sinne a' faicinn làmh an Tighearna anns a h-uile càil, ged a tha mi an dòchas gu bheil.

Chaidh am prògram seo, Alleluia, a chraoladh an toiseach ann an 2010.

[Cathy Mary] I saw that my life was empty if I didn't have Christ. You can have everything in the world but if you don't have Christ in your life you don't have anything.

[Cathy Mary] I went to Zimbabwe when I was, I was only twenty one, in 1977 I went to Zimbabwe and I was there three years but I was teaching. I was, English Language and Literature. I remember saying to a woman that was with me "I don't understand why I am here at all" because I am somewhat scatter-brained. I'm not deep and I don't understand terribly well sometimes and she said to me "well perhaps you are a stop-gap". "Perhaps you are a stop-gap and we will get someone better when you leave"!

[Cathy Mary] I thoroughly enjoyed it but just that there was a huge war taking place. And the people were so poor and there was lots of illness too. But a beautiful country. I saw birds and animals, you've not seen the likes. It was just beautiful but at the same time the war was taking place and there were many dangers and many entire families were killed.

[Cathy Mary] We were in the countryside and we had a school, a beautiful school and great children, and a church. Our children were so clever, and they were like any other children when they were out of the class, you know, they ran around and they were full of fun and all of that but when they sat in the class they worked. They knew that they needed to get good results if they were going to get a properly paid job in order not to sustain themselves but their entire family. Because of the war there was an electric fence around our division and we had guards at the gate with guns. There were families on this day and we gave them clothes. You know, there were some people and they had absolutely nothing. Sometimes they didn't have food, you know unless the rain came at the right time, nothing would grow and we had to give them food. You know, in the throes of war people look for some kind of assistance and peace and some kind of contentment and it is much easier to talk to people about matters relating to their soul because they want assistance.

[Cathy Mary] I don't believe that faith is like a crutch or something like that that makes our life easier at all and I remember reading a thing in English "The Lord doesn't give you an umbrella. He teaches you to walk in the rain". And I think that that is correct. I don't think that faith takes away our feelings at all and sometimes I'm not saying that our faith doesn't make things harder for us, more difficult when we try to understand why things happen, especially to small children. But I am content with that. I want to learn to walk in the rain.

[Cathy Mary] So I came home in 1980. I studied nursing and I nursed for 20 years. I came down to London in 1989. My final job wasn't nursing at all. It was running programmes of projects in health, education, community safety, economic development, and community empowerment.

[Cathy Mary] I was living on the Aylesbury Estate, that is the one beside where I live now, and I worked amongst the families and the people on the estate and that made a big difference for me. Until I came to live on the estate I didn't understand what people's life was like in a big council estate in London since before this I was in Kennington and I was somewhat posh. Everyone worked and I came amongst people and you know they were on benefits and I hadn't seen how it is in the city and I had a prayer circle when I worked and when we wanted money for something new I would say to people "I am going to activate the prayer circle" and you know that is somewhat funny for people that don't have faith and they would keep a close eye on what was happening and the Lord blessed me in the job and the people who worked with me and we would get the money! We would win money for some kind of new project that was going to help our families.

[Cathy Mary] I must admit that the Lord blessed not just me but our entire team in the work because when we started only 17% of our GCSE students received five good grades in their GCSEs and it is now up to nearly 65. And that took years. We worked for ten years on this programme. That took years to do and we invested money in the schools and we did other things. Homework projects and breakfast clubs. Lots of our children they didn't get breakfast because where people don't work very often the parents don't get up in the morning. Since the children came on so well, our children go to college, to the universities. They achieve every sort of degree and they get work.

[Cathy Mary] I believe that God has guided me in everything. Very often I don't recognise that and sometimes I don't think about it, you know. Sometimes we are a pair of hands, servants, a stop-gap. It doesn't matter that we can't see the Lord's hand in everything, although I hope that we do.

This programme, Alleluia, was first broadcast in 2010.