The last ten days of the trip I went with the Cartersville crew to see the kids from last year. To say it made my whole day to get to pick little Henry up and have him in my arms is an understatement. Those kids are my family. It just felt like being home. One of the older girls named Victoria ran and hugged me and said, "I knew you would come back!" And once I pulled away and looked into her sweet eyes, I realized just how beautiful that statement was. A 13 year-old girl knew she was important enough for someone to remember. An abandoned child didn't feel abandoned for that moment. Food, shelter, and clothing aside, this little girl knew that she was worth something. That people love her enough to come back. What a beautiful thing.
Throughout the week we held a vision clinic for surrounding villagers to come and have their eyes checked to see if they needed glasses. Throughout the week we got to see grandparents able to see their grandchildren for the first time, teachers receive reading glasses to better assist their students, and children excited to sport their new sunglasses around Liberia.
For a few days out of the trip we made lunch and held Vacation Bible School for the kids. Seeing 125 kids eating spaghetti with their little hands was one of the most incredible moments of the trip for me. I know that sounds silly, but as I walked into the school and saw so many little faces smiling with tomato sauce absolutely everywhere, my heart was filled. To see our babies full and laughing hysterically trying to pick up noodles with their hands was one of the most satisfying feelings of my life. I guess that's what it feels like to be a parent. When your kids are happy, you're happy.
Throughout our trip, I had some special moments with a sweet little girl that is close to my heart. Becky is about 2 1/2 years old (we think--you never really know exact ages when working with orphans), and she is what a lot of people call a "failure to thrive" child. Until this past year, she had an extremely hard time gaining weight. She continuously gets malaria and has had to have several blood transfusions throughout the past year. Because of her medical conditions, she is developmentally behind as well. On my first trip to Liberia, I remember holding Becky's tiny body in my arms. She couldn't have weighed more than twelve or thirteen pounds, and she was at least one and half years old. She couldn't sit up on her own and she made almost no interaction with anyone. This year when I saw Becky for the first time, she looked like a new child. Granted, she has a long way to go and is still a sick, sick little girl, but it is incredible how much God can do in a year. Every day after lunch I would feed Becky two bananas. She loved bananas! I don't know if she gets to eat them a lot because it takes a lot of time to feed a baby two bananas (and it's hard to have that kind of time when you're caring for 125 children), but I just couldn't help but think to myself, "If someone were here to feed Becky two bananas every day, or just any healthy food in general, what would her health look like?" Would she be a "failure to thrive child," or would she be totally fine? Please, please be praying with me for this little girl. As I write this my heart hurts because I want to be with her every day. I want to be able to feed her bananas. I want to be able to change her diaper. I want to be there to take her to the doctor when she's sick. But I know that even though I'm not there, God is, and He loves her more than I do. So please, pray that Becky grows, thrives, and knows that she is loved every single day.
Becky in 2011
Becky in 2012
There are so many children just like Becky. There are so many children around the world that are sick and all they need to thrive is a loving environment. All they need is a family that cares enough to take them to the doctor. All they need is a family to have faith that they can overcome. All they need is a family that is willing to slow down and walk with them. I know a little girl named Josie that was so sick with AIDS in an orphanage in Uganda three years ago that she couldn't even open her eyes. I held Josie in her family's home in Nashville, Tennessee three years later and she was as healthy as any of the other kids in her Kindergarten class. She was able to read, ride her bike, and beg to go to Chuck-E-Cheese. But more than anything, she knew she had a Mommy and Daddy that loved her and would never leave her. There are so many stories just like this one, and there are so many waiting to take place. If you want to know more about how you can change the life of a child like Becky or Josie, you can visit www.allgodschildren.org (international adoption) or www.adoptuskids.org (in-country adoptions).
More than anything this summer, I have learned that God loves His children more than anything we can imagine. He will provide, no matter what it takes. Orphan Aid Liberia was started four years ago. In four years, God has provided food, clothes, shelter, and most importantly, love, to 125 children that had absolutely nothing four years ago. He didn't care that Liberia was 5,000 miles away from Cartersville, Georgia. He knew that 125 of His babies needed to be taken care of, and He found the means to make it happen.
If you would like to know more about Orphan Aid Liberia, check out the website: www.orphanaidliberia.com. If you click on the "IMPACT" tab you can learn more about sponsoring a child and what $10 a month can provide for one of our little ones. If you're interested in learning more about Orphan Aid Liberia, email me at haleyb@uga.edu and I will send you to the right people! We (and the kids) are always excited to have new members of the Orphan Aid family!
"But in my mind's eye I can see a place
Where Your glory fills every empty space
All the cancer is gone
Every mouth is fed
And there's no one left in the orphans' bed."
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