Now that I have seen, I am responsible

With Zambia only a week away and the trip fresh on my mind, Brooke Fraser's song fills my head and heart tonight. Something about these trips grips you- grabs a hold of your heart and won't let go. I know full well that I will leave part of me in Zambia next week. 

But the best part of this trip is that I know I get to come back and visit these kids again this summer. Not once have I been able to travel BACK to the places I've left my heart and you're always left wondering how they are - how those 3, now 6 year olds are. Are they learning their letters? Learning how to write and spell their names? It hurts not knowing how they have grown up - they are frozen at 3 years old and forever precious.


But these kids in Zambia will be different. I'm ready to build a relationship. I've already started memorizing all 80 of their names, making their faces familiar in my mind. And next week, as I meet them, I'll get to say "this summer, when I come back..." 

I'll also find one sweet child to sponsor next week. Jake and I are really excited about adding one of these sweet orphans to our family. I'm not sure if it will be a boy or girl, but either way, we can't wait! And at the office, we have been setting up new, exciting tools through Facebook to stay connected to the kids while in the States, so Jake and I will be able to really build a relationship with them through photos, video, and updates. Here is one of the 10 houses I will be visiting next week:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/My-Fathers-House-C4/176879455741018

As I go, I want to remember what really matters. Once I have seen, I am responsible. These children and their stories I will carry with me wherever I go. Please follow me as I'm there... I'll be updating this blog as much as possible from the ground there.

Brooke Fraser - Albertine

Jake and I stayed up late last night watching videos from our Every Orphan's Hope Youtube channels. We loved them so much that Jake tweeted about this one (watch the boy on the left - we cracked up!)

 and I cried at the end of this one. We can't wait to meet these kids in Zambia and are already getting attached!!!

Zambia!

The date is set! February 2nd I will be leaving our home in Dallas and flying across the world to Zambia, Africa for 12 days! This new country already has touched my heart, as it is home to the 80 orphans whose names and faces I have learned in the last 3 weeks. I can't wait to meet them face to face. To sit in the dirt with them, to laugh and play, to let them braid my crazy, weird, straight American hair. What a joy it will be to put real live faces with the names I have already come to care about. I have read their stories- now I want to live their lives with them.

 

The best part is that I get to keep coming back and visiting twice a year. In my other travels, I knew I was saying goodbye for a long time, if not forever. Here in Zambia, I can't wait to build lasting relationships... heck, I see some of my best friends here in the States only twice a year!

I'll also be praying and looking for a few children that God really lays on my heart, as I have family members that would like to sponsor a little girl. And Jake and I want to sponsor a child as well. I'm afraid I'll come back to the States asking Jake to sponsor 25 children, but that's what makes me so excited about this "job"... I get to serve these orphans all year long, 8-5, 5 days a week! Could it get any better??

In the weeks ahead I hope to share some of what we'll be doing in Zambia. We have SO much to do in preparation. And once I'm there, I'll also use this blog to update my friends and family about our travels. I can't wait! Thanks for following along!

Check out everyorphan.org to learn more.

Book recommendation

Looking for a GREAT book recommendation?

Just Monday my boss came in and laid a book on my desk. "Have you heard about Katie?" he asked.

And let's just say, all week all I've wanted to do is learn more about Katie and her amazing story in Uganda. Jake and I fight for the book every night to read and I even stayed up past my bedtime devouring it last night after Jake fell asleep.. ha!

Katie also has a blog outlining her adventures since 2007.  As of today she is a mother to 13 Ugandan orphans and her story is amazing. Check it out if you are ready to be challenged and to follow along as one 22 year old American girl shares the adventure she is living. It won't leave you untouched.

These last 10 days have been nothing short of wonderful. What a joy it is to hear stories, to look at pictures and to learn names. Names of children that I get to meet face to face in only a month! I really want to pinch myself sometimes. This "job" continues to bring such joy and it's only just begun!

This week our dear friends Mike and Cindy are in Haiti! As you may know, Haiti hits close to home for me because I was there 4 months after the earthquake in 2010. I can still see mass graves and destroyed buildings in my head. Yet I also remember the heart of those at Mission of Hope and the positive changes they were bringing to the people of Haiti. Mike and Cindy are blessed to go serve at the same Mission of Hope I visited 19 months ago. Check out my experience here. 

I so wish they could update us on their trip but I'll just have to wait patiently until they get home this weekend. As the week has progressed, I think of them often and say prayers for their trip, safety and the experience of a lifetime they are having. These trips define your life. I hope it leaves them changed... that their hearts won't ever be the same and it's just the beginning of their giving... giving of themselves to those in need.

We are all called so differently.. some of us to other countries, to the workplace, to our own homes and neighbors... yet we are all called to give. And with that giving comes joy. The joy I can't wait to see on Mike and Cindy's faces once they are back on American soil and we can take them to dinner to hear all about their trip. Nothing compares to sharing these stories with your loved ones and friends. Nothing compares to the joy of giving.

Big news!

Well folks, I have some exciting news to announce and news that will probably change the future of this blog a little bit. As of this week, I have started what I like to call  a "dream job". I've been volunteering with an organization called Every Orphan's Hope for several weeks and in mid November they asked me to join them full time, starting in December. I seriously had tears in my eyes when the invitation was given and couldn't have been happier to accept. After all, I'm doing what I love and I get to come to work every day knowing that my efforts are making a difference half way around the world. And you know what is the craziest blessing of all?? I'm REQUIRED and PAID to travel to Zambia twice a year as part of my job description! Could it get any better than that? What an answer to prayer this job has become!

So what do I do on a daily basis? Well I'm in the process of working that out but I'll be in charge of donor and sponsor relations. I get to give sponsors updates on their children, communicate with the homes in Zambia to receive those updates, and ultimately make sure that our sponsors have the relationship they desire with the children that they have come to love. I get to be on the front lines and see these relationships develop and I can't wait! I also have been given the freedom to do a little business development, which is another thing I'm very passionate about.

This blog will stay true to its history... I'm here to bring to light, what others are doing around the world and in our country too. Yet, now I will also have a front seat to wonderful stores from Zambia and will love to share those with you too. Hold on to your seats.... this girl is pumped about this new opportunity and won't let it leave me unchanged!

If you want to learn more about Every Orphan's Hope, check out this video:

http://vimeo.com/30296319

Uganda- Part 2

One of my favorite things we got to do in Uganda was teach PE. We taught all ages but these pictures are of the precious 3rd through 6th graders at recess. 

Danika (my 18 yr old cousin) and I taught them how to play frisbee.... or at least we tried! Can you imagine how crazy it was? The frisbee flew every which way and we spent most of our time running it down, instead of playing catch. But here's one little guy in action:

 And here I am leaning over, trying to catch my breath and trying to cool down... the littlest activity in that humidity makes you pour sweat! 

Here Becka and I are ready to go explore Uganda. It was a trip of a lifetime and one we were very blessed to take... thanks Grandma for giving us such an opportunity!

Always amazes me what they can carry!

Roasted bananas that were bought for us from the side of the road. Of course we ate them and it felt good to conquer my American fear-filled mind (what kind of bacteria is on this?? Didn't I just see a 100 flies on this?? Where was this cooked? Can my stomach handle this??) And truth be told, we all survived! Eating local food is just one of those things you've gotta do while traveling!

Baboon on the side of the road

And here's where it gets real:

These were abandoned buildings that refugees used when they fled from the LRA and the unrest up in Northern Uganda. I found this article/quote written back in 2006 by Michelle Brown from Rufugees International:

"Despite improvements in the past year, and the cessation of hostilities between the Ugandan government and the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) signed on 26 August, the humanitarian response in Northern Uganda continues to fail. The crisis remains one of the most severe in the world. Over 1.7 million people are displaced from their homes, without access to basic services such as water, sanitation and health care." 

As we drove by these buildings, I could only think about how LITTLE time had passed since people were living here. How only a few short years ago, families were fleeing and taking shelter wherever they could find a safe place. It truly just made me pray for those families and the situations that they still face today after overcoming such a horrific experience. It's impossible to not be moved by the history and to not want to do something about it... to help prevent it, make others aware, support those who have gone through it...anything. And that's what makes these trips so important to me. 

When we got back to the orphanage, these babies were waiting for us. Some had lost parents due to AIDs, others to accidents and war. After seeing the refugee buildings and hearing the brutal stories people still face in Uganda, our purpose was clear. We were there to help in any small way we were needed.

This is the 3 year old class. We were NOT supposed to be distracting the kids and taking pics so I hid the camera for a few precious shots (awful, I know!). These were the best behaved 3 year olds I have EVER been around. Discipline is serious here and there's no wonder.. these kids were better behaved and more respectful than most 10 year olds in America.

And here's a video to leave you with of them singing. While there's no picture, I knew I'd always love looking back and listening to their voices. "Trust and Obey" will never be the same to me.