This is a story about a well dressed bear named George, who joined U-squad for the last seven months of their race. This is also not about George at all, but you will see what I mean soon enough.
Like all good stories of well dressed bears should start, this tale starts in Japan. Team “Same, Same but Different” was staying at a church outside of Osaka visiting universities, getting to know some of the students and inviting them to join us for an event that we were helping with at the church. On the last day at the university one of my teammates Kari Anna was offered a well dressed bear for just downloading this new app on her phone. It wasn’t long after that, the well dressed bear found his way to loving arms of one of my other teammates Stephanie, who gave him his name. From then on he has been known to all as ‘George’. George kept Stephanie warm in Japan, was her traveling buddy all of the way to Albania and into Bulgaria.
Bulgaria, this is where the well dressed bear decided to be my friend where he helped keep me warm on the cold nights. Then we traveled to Romania where he listened to me talk about everything that was going on, was my buddy at team times, was the ‘shoulder’ that I cried on and my movie watching buddy. At the end of Romania George and I were placed on a new team, and went on to Ukraine as a part of team ‘Fresh Anointing’. Here he joined in the late night dance parties, laughed as we returned from floorball practice with stories, and sat with me as I rushed to get countless photos edited.
From Ukraine he traveled with us to Poland, saw the devastation of Auschwitz and Krakow, then hopped on a plane to Swaziland and South Africa. He was a good friend and traveling buddy but when we came to find ourselves in Lesotho for our final month of the race I got the feeling that George would not be making the last leg of the trip with me to the USA. This beautiful land with majestic mountains, captivating sunrises, music that makes you want to join in an dance, sunsets that take the warmth of the day with them as the sun dips below the mountain, and people that take your hearts the instant you meet them.
This land was as far as George cared to travel. The forth day we were in Lesotho I met this beautiful girl named Karabo who doesn’t look to be more than four years old, took my heart hook line and sinker. She spent the first part of the day playing ball with me then seemed to run out of energy. Her eyes show that she is struggling with some sort of illness which very will might have been why she ran out of steam before the day was half over, but that isn’t what stand out about this beautiful girl. She laughs at the smallest things, will stand in-front of a camera and just giggle endlessly, always seems to know something that you don’t, loves to through the ball around and curled up in my arms as if she belonged there although I had only met her a few hours before. As I said goodbye on our first day of meeting each other I knew she was going to be George’s next friend.
One of the last days that I was able to spend in Malealea my teammate Amanda, our friend and translator Mpho walked to Karabo’s village with me to deliver George. As we drew near to her house, Mpho heard her yell to her mother; “Mom white people!” and started waving to us like we were the most important people in the valley. Before Amanda could make it all of the way up the hill, Karabo jumped into Amanda’s arms giving here the biggest hug her little arms would allow her. As Mpho translated to Karabo that I was giving her the well dressed bear in my arms, Karabo didn’t seem to know whether to stand there in shock or reach out and actually take him from me. Once he was in her arms she couldn’t stop smiling and hugging him. George was home.
So as you can see this isn’t the story of a well dressed well traveled bear, this is the story of how God used a simple well dressed bear to bless three of his daughters on three different continents and in nine countries in a short seven month. If God can use a simple well dressed bear in such a big way just imagine what He has planned for your life!
Be the arm that holds, the ears that hear, the eyes that see, the feet that go the hands that bless, and the mouth that speaks the truth and love of our Father.
