The trip is drawing to a close. We have 5 hours left on our 19 hour flight from Addis to Washington D.C. Two of our team members are already home. There is so much left to say and so many stories we haven't told, but hopefully you have seen a little of what we have seen and felt a little of what we have felt. Besides learning about Ethiopia and the people there, we have learned a lot about teamwork and a lot about ourselves.
Our last story is Ella's story. Ella is 9. She has two cousins that are adopted from Ethiopia. She came on this trip with her mom, her aunt, and one of her cousins, Will. She graciously agreed to share her experience with you.
Ella, why did you want to come on this trip? To help kids and to play with them.
Did you do that? Yes (nods her head).
What was a sad thing you saw? That lots of people there didn't have homes and they didn't have any food.
What was the happiest thing you saw? That when we went to the orphanages the kids weren't scared of us. They were happy to see us.
Did you ever feel scared? Once I was outside playing with Lucia (Lucia was an 8 year old who came on this trip with her mother), and we were going to go inside to help paint. When we tried to go through the glass door the guard for the day care grabbed us and pushed us down the stairs. He said we couldn't go through the glass door, so we tried to go in the wooden door. He was standing there, but when he wasn't looking we went in and ran up the stairs to our moms. (Most of the buildings in Addis have gates and often guards. This day we were helping paint a day care facility.)
What was something fun you did? Playing with the children. It was fun playing on the playground at the transition home. We pushed the kids on the swings. I also really loved holding babies.
What did you eat? Mostly French fries and sometimes spaghetti.
Tell me about the Ethiopian amusement park you went to. The one thing I did there was to meet Josef, and his favorite thing to do was ride the carousel.
Who is Josef? He is my sponsored child (through Compassion).
Was Ethiopia hot or cold? It was cold in the morning and night. In the noontime, it got really hot.
What will you remember about your trip? Probably the people I met there, like Bethlehem (a child), Wubechet and Destaw (our guide and our driver) and Lonka. Lonka was a baby girl that Will named "Balloon." He wanted to take her home.
What did you learn by going on this trip? I learned that I should appreciate what I have and not complain.
Are you glad you went? Yes!
What did you miss most about your home in the United States? I mostly missed my grandmas.
Would you like to go back to Ethiopia? Yes. And when I go there next time, I would like to go outside of Addis.
The American children on this trip did so well! What an awesome experience for them! It really was an ideal way to involve children on a mission trip since we spent so much time with children and playing. They enjoyed playing together at the guest house too. They had sleepovers in each other's rooms, and they even put on a gymnastics/acrobatics show for us at the end of the week. They were all very patient and agreeable. They were great at just jumping in and playing with children they didn't know and who spoke a different language. They are even handling this long journey home remarkably well.
So, how will our lives change as a result of this experience? All of us have left a piece of ourselves in a land in Africa. We have new friends, we have new people to pray for and help support, we have a bigger picture of the world. Ella is right - we will better appreciate what we have and hopefully we will complain less. Maybe we will see the people around us at home through new eyes and love them better.
Thank you for joining us on this adventure! May your hearts and lives change a little by what you have read.
"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life." I Timothy 6:17-19
May we all live the life that is truly life.
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