Colombia.
Oh Colombia, I don’t even know how to start to describe Colombia. Colombia was a challenging month that was full of growth, and moments that I will never forget.
Some moments that I never want to forget:
Untying a hammock. One of the first things that we did at the foundation was organize things that could be donated. One of the things that was in this pile of clothes, toys, books, etc. was a half done hammock made out of t-shirt yarn. This hammock, although quite nicely done, was not going to be completed anytime soon and it was mostly in the way, so the director of the kids ministry there asked me if I could undo this half done hammock that was filled with knots, so I did. Untying this hammock taught me so much, that even though sometimes things may not seem to be small things to you, but they can mean so much to others. It also taught me to find joy in doing the simple things to bless others.
The Power of Soccer. Soccer was one of the ways that I got to connect most with people in Colombia. I got to grow closer with my squad mates through the sport of soccer, as well as getting to grow closer and make relationships with kids, boys and anyone that we played soccer with. Soccer was used as a way to start off relationships and once you had that instant connection, you could talk with them about other things and start off real friendships.
The Boys at the Foundation. There are 3 boys that live in the foundation: Mateo (16), Heyder (15) and Jose (13). They live there because they showed extra interest when they were in the kids program and now they help with the program. Jesus is constantly showing himself through these boys. These boys carry such joy in their hearts and their love for others is so pure. They are not afraid to dance like no one’s watching them and jump for joy when they are excited. They became almost like my little brothers, and I really do miss them. These boys taught me to have more of a child like faith in Christ and to keep yearning and wanting more in my relationship with Jesus.
Isabella. Isabella is such a wonderful girl. Her heart is so full of love. Once she has your heart, there is no going back. I met Isabella towards the end of our stay in Colombia, but in the short time I got the pleasure of knowing her, I found that she has the most giving heart. She made me drawings and notes, and on the last day, she even gave me flowers that she picked for me. These kids have so little, but yet are willing to give so much. They don’t only give you physical things, but they give you something that is so much more valuable than that; they give you their full heart. Even though they know that you are leaving and won’t be there for long, they play with you and love you like you’re never leaving, which is so incredible.
S’mores. One of the last few nights up in Manantiales, we got to have S’mores with some of the kids around a fire pit, and after we danced with them and just had a blast being in each others companies. It was all of their first time doing s’mores and they were all really excited. Many of them don’t get treats like that so seeing them having so much fun by the bonfire and dancing around with us was so amazing.
Concert. The last night in Manantiales, we arranged a concert for all of the community and the communities around Manantiales. We had been planning this concert and preparing ourselves for this concert all month and were expecting around 300 people to be there. The day of the actual concert it was pouring down rain almost the whole entire day, meaning that not a lot of people were able to transport themselves to the concert. The concert started and not many people were able to come. At first we were kind of sad because not a lot of people came, but tried to trust that God had a plan through all of it. It ended up being one of the most amazing nights in Manatiales. God’s presence was so apparent, you could feel him there, as everybody in that room started dancing from pure joy and was having the time of their life praising the one and only God that is so so good to us. This was authentic worship, this is what worship should always look like; people praising the one that created us with their whole heart. Being able to dance and jump around with Mateo, Heyder, and Jose was so amazing, seeing all three of them have such an amazing time, and seeing their faces light up as they were dancing with us was so so awesome.
These are just some of my favorite memories and people that I never want to forget about Colombia. Colombia was a very special month and I can’t wait to see what God has in store for us on the rest of this race.
