I was still rocking & rolling my “mom” shoes. I thought it worked well at our first stop so I just continued on with the ideals of loving, hugging and tickling these kiddos like any mama would.
We came to AHope for the older kids with a similar load of Toys R Us accessories. We put on a puppet show, some magnificent spontaneous miming took place, and we spoke about Jesus. I loved how the hands raised HIGH in the air when we asked "who knew Jesus"!
While enjoying the show I let me eyes soak in the striking scenery ~ children’s smiles, shy little glances from a far, dirty little feet, timid body language with nervous excitement and soulful giggles!
After we shared all the “tricks” we came prepared with the children graciously had a gift for all of us. Another one of those miraculous moments when time stands still in the presence of God. The gift they shared with us was sent down from heaven’s jukebox through their beautifully big souls straight to our ears and hearts. I’ll give ya a taste for yourself because no lengthy description I can muster will do justice to this melody that makes my heart dance a rhythmic African beat.
The time came for us all to drift back to our childhood and jump in sync with these bubbly children and enjoy just being a kid, that was our greatest privilege on this afternoon. I could hear the laughter and children’s chatter above all else and as a "mom" I smiled so deeply inside my heart I could feel God's hand stretching it bigger so my smile could just keep growing! As I dug through the goodies I found my perfect job. I absent mindedly fell into an unengaged zone embracing this job = as a painting machine! It was the perfect fit for me and I sat on this little chair with a massive swarm of hands greeting my eyes. I look back now and wish I would have taken the time to meet each pair of golden brown eyes that belonged to the beautiful hands and arms that were my canvas that day, but I was so intent on painting EVERY child (I didn't want to miss ONE eager pair of hands) that I rushed through without savoring the priceless moment I was being gifted and I missed the opportunity to cherish each child individually. I loved that the shy and timid girls were now coming to life and I was painting bracelets and rings onto their arms & fingers so they could feel like the princesses they truly deserved to be!
The most memorable moment I will forever cherish from my experience at AHope that afternoon was when I was encircled by a gang of little girls awaiting so patiently their turn for some 'artistic' jewelry. They sniggered and giggled like little girls do conversing in a language that I couldn’t comprehend but their voices floated around me like musical notes! These girls were typical pre-teens, it took a solid 20 minutes for them to become “comfortable” enough to start coming out of their shells. There was a moment in the midst of their girly giggling that I became present of my situation on a supernatural level and I knew I better savor these seconds. Soon I found myself secretly giggling along side these girls when they started to explore this intriguing mess I call my “missionary hair”. I think it was the fact that I had gel in my hair and it was “crusty” (for lack of a better word) that caught their innocent interest. Their tiny little fingers took turns caressing my hair and discovering a new texture unknown to them. For the first time since I hacked my hair to pieces I was ever so grateful to have this hideous hair-do. What a gift I had been given from simply making a bad styling decision. God can make EVERYTHING good! Even bad hair-do's! :) I will never forget those moments and I giggle just like a 9yr old girl when I remember every precious second.
By far the star of the show was one absolutely phenomenal artist ~ a girl who lived at the orphanage and had many adoring "motherly" qualities. It was sad yet beautiful to see her mothering the other children. I wished each one of them had a mother, they all deserve that and so much more.
The line up for a sitting with the professional pictured above was miles long!
Some of our team's collective beautiful masterpieces!
The afternoon seemed to be over in a snap of a finger, all I stared at was HANDS the majority of the time so I was deeply saddened when it was time for us to go. We helped the children clean up the chairs and they were so anxious to invite us into their home and give us a tour of their rooms. That was when it hit me ~ this was an orphanage and yet it was NOT an orphanage. That word is so cold and institutional and we Americans throw it around without having any relatable context to really knowing life inside an "orphanage". I was not standing inside an orphanage, I was welcomed inside their home. They were proud and the presence of that amazing Ethiopian hospitality was yet again overwhelming me. They literally had nothing and the conditions of this place made me ache inside. These children are so precious and I feel they deserved to be living in a castle knowing there moments here in our midst will be cut short way too soon. Every one of them deserved a brand new bed with Spiderman pillows and Barbie sheets ~ yet here they were showing off their depleted mattresses with rags for blankets as IF THEY WERE Spiderman & Barbie accessories. This was home ~ the reality of their resilience, their joy and their pride humbled me to the point of shame. God opened my eyes to a wonderful lesson that he had been preparing to teach me for a long time and one I needed to learn ~ your home is where His heart is and no matter the condition of the "house" you live inside, no matter how great or how small, how new or how old... your "home" is always perfect when God's love built it. There's no doubt in my mind that the carpentry of Jesus Christ built each and every heavenly home we call by the name "orphanage". I switched from pity to pride at this realization and I was very honored to have been welcomed inside one of God's homes that day.
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