Meeting Joey was very unexpected.
Well, unexpected for me, but God had it planned all along.
Joey is an 11 year old girl, who is full of life and a deep love for
America. She lives here in Romania, but dreams about going
to America one day. I met Joey my second week in Romania. She was dropped off
at the house where I stay, for an English lesson. I was the only one
around at the time, and was therefore asked if I would teach her
English. I was not expecting to teach English and I was a little
apprehensive about that request, because I had never taught English
before. I really didn’t even know how to go about doing it. I agreed
to help out though, and when I realized Joey already spoke English, I
was put a little more at ease. You know the quote, “the teacher
will appear when the student is ready?” Well, I found that to be
true. I became a teacher that day because I had a student who was
eager to learn.
The majority of our first English
lesson was mostly a conversation, but we wrote down some words in
English and then Joey would teach me how to say them in Romanian. And
pretty soon it became routine to see Joey weekly, if not twice a
week. Sometimes she would bring her English homework and we would
work on it together. When we completed the work, we would discuss
important things like the Jonas Brothers, Camp Rock, and Demi
Lovato (um, I really had no idea who this was until we YouTubed
her-signs I’m getting old).
I found myself really looking forward
to the times when I would see Joey. I enjoyed her enthusiasm and was
encouraged by it. The Lord really used her in my life. He showed me
what extreme passion looks like. I think somewhere along the road of
life we give up our extreme passion because we see it as
unattainable, naive even. One of the first things Joey told me was
that her life-long dream was to meet someone from America and I told
her that since she had, now her dream should be to come to America.
God used Joey in my life to set an example. Have dreams in your
life-BIG ones! Don’t be afraid. Believe in them, and when they come
true, set your sights on another dream. Joey also reminded me to
simply enjoy life. She truly was a blessing from in disguise.
Before leaving Romania, I was even
invited over to Joey’s house to meet her parents. We ate pizza
together that her mom had made and sat around their kitchen table,
laughing and talking together. It was wonderful being in their home,
sitting in their kitchen, just chatting (the coffee and apple
turnover might have added to the experience as well…). At one point
in the evening I caught myself just smiling. I thanked God for that
little girl, who He allowed me to get to know for one month. I
thanked God for her generosity and kindness and prayed that He would
bless her family.
When we finally parted ways, Joey told
me how much she was going to miss me. She told me how I was her best
friend from America and she would never forget me, as tears streamed
down her face. She asked why I wasn’t crying and I told her that
sometimes tears are on the inside, in our hearts, and not always on
the outside. I told her I would never forget her though, and that I
would always pray for her when she came to mind.
I really don’t think I could forget the
little girl who brought me a rose from her garden one day. The little
girl, who just wanted to sit & talk and learn. The one God sent
me, just at the right time, even if at first, I couldn’t see why.
