We were dropped at a beach in Kourou, and gathered in a gazebo and prayed – we had no place to lay our heads that night, no idea where to go or what to eat. Operating on a budget of $5 a person per day for food and $5 a day per person for lodging was easy enough to pull off in certain countries, not so much in French Guiana.
A few of us broke off to go to the McDonald’s that was a mile and a half away so we could access wifi and begin researching different options for lodging. Our plans had already been overturned many times since reaching the country and we were grasping for any ounce of control we could muster.
While we were there, a young French woman approached us to watch her notebooks while she ordered. I felt a tug to speak to her, so I waited at her table until she returned and struck up a conversation, asking her about what she was doing there and if she knew any cheap places to stay.
This was our first woman of peace ! Even in the midst of her personal struggles and the insane amount of papers she had to grade, this woman dropped it all and began running around, calling friends and acquaintances alike to try to help 13 random Americans who had stumbled into her life.
We walked back to the gazebo and shared with the teams all we’d found out. I was alive, on fire – French Guiana was a gift to me from the Lord. I was able to communicate freely and was having a blast speaking a language I had thought I would have forgotten because of lack of use. Heidi, our newfound friend, went back to her apartment and continued searching for us, though she’d originally left to finish her work as a teacher.
An hour and a half later, she drove back to meet us, greeted us with a five liter jug of water and hugs and gave us the news that she’d come up empty. A lot of almost-miracles and she was starting to get discouraged after frantically searching most of the day.
One phone call later, I was in her car and we were headed to a religious establishment she’d been pointed to ; a friend of a friend of a friend or something ridiculous and similar. We show up to talk to the church and instead we see a bunch of parents, picking up their boy scouts from a weekend trip.
She helped me to explain our mission and our predicament. Only by the grace of God, two women offered to take in our two teams for the night. My team was welcomed by Celine, a beautiful mother of three – Clement, Cillian and MELISSA.
Jaw drop number two. Oh, also Celine was wearing purple. Jaw drop three. Kourou is home to a space station, exactly like the shape we had gotten in prayer. Jaw drop four.
We made it to the house after saying our goodbyes to the other team and to Heidi and were greeted with hospitality, knowing we only had a night there before looking for our next lodging. We spent the evening sharing fresh fruit, laughing with their family and sat contentedly with our feet in the pool in their back yard.
The next day was hard and we were still coming up short for next steps. I was feeling ill and as the afternoon progressed, we knew we needed to call Celine again. She very graciously extended an invitation to stay another night with the family. As we got on our packs to walk to the beach and wait for her to get off work, she pulled up to our location and told us to get in. I cried a little bit. Perfect timing, literally. Jaw drop five.
Because it was earlier in the evening, we went to the grocery store together to prepare for dinner that night. Celine mentioned that her youngest son, Clement, had offered us up to his English teacher to come the next day to his class. We all laughed and joyfully accepted, even knowing it meant another night in Kourou. I said to Celine “jamais deux sans trois” and she hugged us, eager to spend more time with the team.
Another awesome couple of days followed and we connected with the school and spent the morning with a great group of 11 year olds, practicing English and having fun, resting in something that only the Lord could have orchestrated.
When it came time to leave after having celebrated Fred’s birthday as part of the family, we were offered free rides to Cayenne, the capital city of French Guiana. It was our next stop before making our way to Brazil. There were tears all around, plenty of bisous and an open invitation to stay with the Court family whenever we happened to be in French Guiana again.
#staytuned #parttwoofthree #ATL #unsungheroes #WRexpedition #pioneers #frenchguiana #jamaisdeuxsanstrois #cleanlinessKillian #praise #jawdrop #shebrews #storytime #heisonlygood
