Goodbye

Last Day

Fiwagoh 

June 26, 2014

I knew that leaving would be hard, but I never expected this. Two weeks went by way too fast and I can't believe today is the day that I make my journey home. 

I have built everlasting friendships here and I pray that God will give me the opportunity to come back here. This orphanage is not like any other and it now holds a very special place in my heart. 

On Sunday we went to the market to buy souvenirs. We had to barter the prices and I was absolutely terrible at it, so Pastor Benson did all of the bartering for me. It was quite an experience. 

Monday night, we went out to dinner as a team to this restaurant with another unbelievable view. I took pictures, but they still don't do the scenery justice. 

After dinner, Pastor Benson shared his testimony and told us how Fiwagoh all started. When he and Florence got married, Pastor said he wanted to take in ONE orphan. 10 years later, they have made a home for 220 orphans. It was amazing to hear the story and see how God provided for them in every circumstance. Even when they thought everything was over, God was faithful and made a way for them to survive. 

On Monday I worked some more with the dentists. 11-year-old Maxwell was one of our patients. He had to get a tooth removed and was very scared. Tears streamed down his face and he squeezed my hand tightly only to come to the realization that the anesthesia made it not hurt at all! He was such a trooper and has also found a very special place in my heart.

That night, another orphanage, Haven of Hope, came to Fiwagoh to get their teeth cleaned and have supper with us. Most of the HOH kids are under 6 years old. I saw one boy standing alone so I picked him up and he gave me the biggest hug. He did not speak English so I had someone translate for us. This little boy, Chris, thought I was his sponsor, which I am not. I went along with it though because I don't speak Swahili and I couldn't break his heart. He was attached to me all night and gave me a hundred kisses before he left. 

We looked up at the sky and there were more stars than I have ever seen before. It was so beautiful and amazing and I don't think I'll ever see something like it again.

Tuesday and Wednesday was just spent loving on children. We went out to the field and I had girls play with my hair while another kid sat in my lap and we all watched the older kids play futball. We had a team member who was not a Christian, so we had all been praying for her these past two weeks. Emily and I decided to stop what we were doing and just pray for her salvation. A lot of times when we pray, we don't really believe that God will do what we're asking. In Africa, they pray with complete confidence and faith that He will do what they are asking of Him. We prayed to have that faith as well.

 We said Amen and anther team member slammed open our door and said, "Guess who just became a Christian?" Chills. Amazement. We asked for that faith, and God showed it to us. He answered our prayers and we now have a new sister in Christ! I cried, or course. I did a lot of crying yesterday because we are leaving today.

When we go, all 220 orphans will line up and we will hug every single one of them. 

They say home is where the heart is. I guess I have two homes now.