Ethiopia. The country I was most excited about on my route but also a place I never thought I would really consider home. Now Ethiopia is a place that I can not wait to share with all the people I love. I only have 3 weeks left in this country and I know that this will most likely be the hardest goodbyes I will have to make. But also what a privilege to have my heartbreak, knowing that I opened up and allowed these kids, women, and men have to have my whole heart, loving without boundaries just like sweet Turner taught me when I first came to Ethiopia. Turner is one of the sweet house moms here who told me on the very first day that she loves me deeply and the words Turner spoke to me took home to a deep place in my heart. Like Turner, I wanted to be a woman who loves without boundaries. I know now that I have loved without boundaries or walls because my heart breaks having to say goodbye to all these amazing people I’ve got to share life with over these past 3 months. Although it may have been easier to put up walls so that my heart wouldn’t break again due to another hard goodbye on the race, I am so glad that I did not take the easy path but instead decided to love without boundaries. What a privilege it is to get my heartbroken for all of these beautiful people who did not only impact me for 3 months but for the rest of my life.
As I said in my first blog about Ethiopia I get the privilege of working with the little ones in the afternoon and then working with the women here on the compound in the afternoon. Sweet Rob, the child who was born basically lifeless, can now sit completely straight up all by himself and has made such incredible progress with pulling himself up and crawling around. His smile is the brightest part of my day, every time he conquers another challenge he gives out a quick shout of joy and never ceases to smile. Sweet Luke also faces everything like a champion! He never lets the fact that he doesn’t have legs like everyone else stop him from running around or playing soccer. One of the sweetest moments with the little ones is how much they love to sit around me while I read them countless stories from the Jesus Storybook Bible, these kids love Jesus and just want to know more and more about their special friend.
In the training center, the women are learning more and more English and slowly are beginning to be able to communicate with us! The house moms are endlessly feeding us the local dish of Injera and never cease to hold many coffee ceremonies with us!! Again very special moments I will miss. My favorite moment of women’s ministry so far is when we threw all the women here on the compound a spa day! The day consisted of us convincing them that the Korean face masks are fun, painting nails, sitting around a table drinking coffee, eating popcorn, the teaching of promises from the Genesis story of Sarah and Abraham, and then my favorite moment: a foot washing. We all wanted to do this very special act of washing the women’s feet so that we could humble ourselves and so that we could show our love, just like Jesus would do, by serving them in this way.
All of this is basically just to sum up how amazing things are going here at HOPEthiopia and how relationships built around Jesus are forming more and more each day. I can confidently say that I will be back to visit Ethiopia. It feels like my second home. Although I leave in 3 weeks I will still not have WiFi to post any more blogs, so here’s the last one from my second home here in Ethiopia. See you so very soon Ethiopia, you have such a big place in my heart.
