well, i can't believe we've been in afrika for more than a week... and HERE. for exactly a week. sometimes it seems like we have been here for months. i think we have all adjusted [as much as one can].
when we got off the plane, and exited the airport... our hearts were immediately broken. each and every one of my senses were taking in things they had never experienced before.
all of us girls couldn't help but cry when we got to the orphanage and held the children. This place is full of poverty. more so than anything i was expecting.[or could have imagined] i wanted to get right back on the plane. close my eyes, and pretend it didn't exists. .. i said, i didn't know what to expect before i left, and i tried to clear my mind of pictures.. . but the truth is all of us had some sort of standard in our minds of what it "would be like" ... . but this is far worse [in regards to poverty. filth. smells. and such]. when we drive down the road "houses" made of mud and bamboo are jammed next to one another. and those are the nice houses. many are made of bamboo and rocks, or trash. tin roofs held down with cinder blocks. there are some houses made of cinder blocks and cement but a lot of times they aren't as nice or clean as the man made huts.
we stay in a cement house.[the girls house] there are 17 girls total. and 20 something boys. i think i enjoy being with the boys more because they have more fun climbing trees, and monkey swinging. silliness. they girls are a bit more dramatic and stationary. they like braiding hair and giggling inside. [plus it smells so yucky inside i would rather stay outside.]
the smells here include a variety: sewage, b.o., mold, and burnt charcoal or trees.
i'm mostly used to them by now, but on occasion [with the right amount of wind] its a bit much.
. .
my thoughts are so scattered right now.. . i want to tell you everything, but then i would write for days.
the first 24hours were.. . difficult and unreal. i couldn't sleep at all that first night. my whole body felt like crawling under a table and not coming out until my flight home. [or to south africa]. i just couldn't believe that people are ((actually)) living like this, ALL around the world, and hearing about it is oh so EXTREMELY different than being here. and living amongst it. it was overwhelming for all of us. we woke up in a daze hardly able to speak."are we really here?" .. .but this is .life. for so many people.
seeing little girls about 6 or seven, carrying and taking care of their baby sisters. pregnant bellied 12 year olds. there are hardly any old people, the life expectancy is somewhere in the early 40s. ..
no running water.
some people have electricity, some people don't. [the girls house does]!
but the thing that gets me the most, is how much joy these children have. they may not have [things] compared to .ANY. American, yet, they don't want anything else. they don't need anything else. my mom asked me what she could send... but the truth is.. . nothing. they are content here with what they have.
it changes the whole "American dream" a hell of a lot.
i used to think that children in places like this needed to be adopted.. . but i don't know if that's a good idea anymore. yes, these kids needs mothers... . but living in the orphanage, with Lee--- she takes such good care of them. and they are together as one family, living with their own people on their own land... right where God placed them. I love that. she changes their lives, gives them hope. and love. they are all so happy here. it honestly is a "house of blessing"
its crazy how Good the Lord is here, in this place. Such protection. and peace He brings. there is no fear... but nearly every night you can hear the "witchdoctors" banging drums.. . chanting. screaming. . but we are safe. it's such a dark place here spiritually... this whole continent i think.. . yet, in the midst of all that, the Lord brings about blessings & light.
i used to think that children in places like this needed to be adopted.. . but i don't know if that's a good idea anymore. yes, these kids needs mothers... . but living in the orphanage, with Lee--- she takes such good care of them. and they are together as one family, living with their own people on their own land... right where God placed them. I love that. she changes their lives, gives them hope. and love. they are all so happy here. it honestly is a "house of blessing"
its crazy how Good the Lord is here, in this place. Such protection. and peace He brings. there is no fear... but nearly every night you can hear the "witchdoctors" banging drums.. . chanting. screaming. . but we are safe. it's such a dark place here spiritually... this whole continent i think.. . yet, in the midst of all that, the Lord brings about blessings & light.
"i will lead you by ways you have not known,
along unfamiliar paths i will guide .you.
i will turn darkness into light before you;
and make the rough places smooth."
[isaiah42]
i'm learning so much. sorry this was such a scattered email.. i'm at an intern cafe, and only have a bit of time. plus the keyboard is .all. messed up... i keep having to retype. etc..
love and miss you all.
keep praying.
"my God here i am,
make me according to thy heart".,
sy
1 comment:
beauty sarah yates. this is beautiful.
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