Court: what great joy to be in court and hear the judge say "granted". With that word, another child belongs in a family with a dad and mom. The work getting to that word and the continuing process until the family boards the plane, is tedious-emotional-hard work. But, the reward? priceless and joyful. I am honored to be a part of this side of the process.....meeting the parents, walking with them through the days of steps, sigantures, forms, appointments, disappointments and joy. I am thankful.
Airport: what great joy to be in the airport waiting for a parent to meet their child, some for the first time! With that word, "waiting", I had time to observe others waiting and those arriving. Most of those waiting had signs with names for people arriving. So, I watched the arrivers: those whose expressions showed exhaustion, wonderment, anticipation, and some even fearful. I watched teams with matching t-shirts with many bags, ready to "conquer the world." I saw grandmas greet their families: in a word, that made me sad. But, I knew I was in the airport because God had brought me to receive a parent coming to see their child. I am thankful.
Illness: what great joy to be here in Africa and be well most of the time. The word "illness" struck me last Friday. I began with slight nausea and then uncontrollable shakes. If I had been at home in Jinja, I would have gone to the International Clinic. But, I was at the US Embassy in another town, with a parent , her child and her mother-in-law. Can you see the word "embarrasing" coming now? As a guard escorted me out of the building, the parent was quickly seen and recived the document we had come for. We then proceeded to an ER, malaria test negative, infection positive. Two IVs and one injection later, we were on our way back to Jinja. After a few days rest, I will be good as new. I am thankful.
Prayer: what great joy to know some of you have been praying for us. Living here is not "a piece of cake", instead the word is ......well, there several that come to mind, but I am NOT complaining, just describing.....trying, hard, difficult, stretching, ...yet the words that come to mind that make those words just little words, are......rewarding, family, children, progress, people, prayer(LOTS of that word). I am thankful.
Continue: what great joy to know that God will continue to use us as we follow His leading. We have been here for 3 months! We are seeing families united and bricks being laid. Restoration is a beautiful sight when seen with our eyes. Pleae "continue" to pray for us, support us financially, and write to us. Emails from you mean so much to our whole family. Let us know how you pray, let us know how your family is doing, and continue to read our blog and newsletter. We are thankful
