Mom in Training - Explore Archived World Race Alumni Blogs

Let me tell you a story. First some background.
When we got to Ethiopia and began to discuss as a squad what each of our teams’ ministries would look like, we had 3 afternoon options for ministry. We call them tracks. There’s a house mom track, kids track and a reforestation and brick making track.

House mom track is teaching the house moms English and really building relationships with them. Essentially a house mom is a woman who takes care of a certain amount of kids in the house she lives in on the base. Because these kids don’t actually have parents, I’m so glad they are provided with house moms! When I got here I had no idea what a “house mom” was so I thought I would explain that in case y’all didn’t know either. 🙂

Kids track is essentially what is sounds like, we do things with the kids everyday. We teach them, and we play games with them. Of course coming here we were told by the head of HOPEthiopia, Ralph, to put 50% of our energy into the kids here, and that is what we have done!

Reforestation and brick making. Do I need to really tell you what that is? It’s pretty self explanatory. There’s this place 30-45 minutes away from the base we live on where they plant trees and water them and everything and it is super cool! With brick making, there’s this machine in the front of the base to make bricks. You mix up dirt and cement with water inside a mixer, then you dump it out on the ground and mix it manually with shovels, then you scoop that dirt, cement and water into the brick press machine. From there the machine does what it does. (There’s more to it and it’s super amazing but my teammate has a vlog up on YouTube. Look up Chelsea Adamson and the vlog is called How Bricks are Born.) But boom, bricks.

We as a squad were given the opportunity to choose which track we would like to do here in Ethiopia for 3 months. We were told to pray about it for a day and then airdrop, yes airdrop, a note with our first, second and third pick. (Being in the middle of Africa with no WiFi, airdropping from our iPhones is how we role. Not only in Africa. Ask any World Racer, it’s true!)

Coming from teaching everyday in Guatemala, I naturally wanted to try something new, so I airdropped my first pick as reforestation and brick making because that would be new! I also wanted to use my hands and do some manual labor for once, ya know? My second pick was kids track. I really wanted to do reforestation and brick making but I also had a feeling that would fill up fast since it was new for us all and I’m sure we all wanted something new.

I also, God forgive me, felt like kids track was what God wanted me to do, however, being so stoked to have an opportunity for something new, ignored the fact that God wanted kids track for me. Knowing God, I knew I would probably not get into the track that I wanted.

Not even a full day later, my squad leader, Connor, asks for a list of people to come see him after lunch. As soon as he began reading the list I knew what it was about even though he didn’t say what it was about. I knew he would call my name. When the few of us called came to him, he told us how there are a lot of people on reforestation and brick making and not nearly as many on kids track. Those of us he called up apparently all had kids track as our second pick so he asked if we would be willing to switch. We had all agreed that would be okay.

Ironically, my team being made up of 5 girls, 4 of us wanted reforestation and brick making and all 4 of us were asked to switch to kids track. We all discussed afterwards how we knew that would happen.

Every time something like this happens, I laugh because I think about God just saying, “I’ll show you who’s in control here!” It’s quite funny to me.

The first half of the time in Ethiopia the kids track had this plan to rotate who teaches on what day and what we teach and everything and it was working fine in, I believe, all of our opinions. However, one of the staff on the base decided to have us change it up because he was concerned with the different grade levels and knowledge. He worried that if all the kids were taught together then some would feel too smart or not smart enough for what was being taught. So we ended up throwing out our original plan and split ourselves up into small groups to go to the same children’s house every afternoon to teach the kids in that house.

There are 6 houses so we split our group of 13 racers on the kids track among those houses. We got to choose which house and who our partners would be, which was nice but it was like a first come, first serve kind of thing. I was low key hoping to be able to get the house with the youngest kids in it because they are adorable and I had already felt like I made a connection with one of them.

I ended up being the last one to sign up and I got the house with the youngest kids! On top of that, I would be with my teammate Chelsea. We were so excited to start.

This house we signed up for only had 2 kids in it, but after our first day we understood why.

Fedessa who is 3 years old, has so much energy and everyday throws a fit towards the end of our time with him because he wants to go home. (We usually play with them outside or in the training center)

Robbira is about 4 years old and had a head injury as a baby, which has affected him to this day. He’s not able to do much on his own. However, he’s come a long way from even just 6 months ago. Walking, grabbing things, sitting, in some situations talking too.

So I spend every afternoon with Fedessa and Robbira. Typically Chelsea stays with Fedessa and I stay with Robirra. (By stay I mean just mostly watching them) Fedessa runs all over the place like the crazy, full of energy kid he is, and Robirra watches intently and does his best to follow Fedessa’s lead. Within my last 2 weeks in Ethiopia Ralph, the head of HOPEthiopia, brought new equipment for Robirra to strengthen his muscles. He has a new table with wheels that holds him upright so that he can stand and use the table. He also has this amazing walker type thing for Robirra. It has wheels and it keeps him standing upright and allows him to practice walking without the help of anyone or anything but the walker.

Robirra is getting stronger everyday, but he’s also strengthening me as well. By the end of my time with him, I gain more and more muscles. Chelsea and I are physically and emotionally tired almost every evening after playing with them. My arms typically hurt from carrying Robirra. Both him and Fedessa however, when we carry them, don’t hold onto us at all. So it takes quite a bit of strength to carry them for a while and they love to be carried.

About a week goes by with our new schedule for kids track and it’s presented to the squad by our squad leaders that if we would like to, we can switch tracks. I had been wanting this the whole time because I really wanted to make bricks and do some manual labor with my hands, getting dirty and all the things. I was also told when I was asked to switch to kids track that there would be an opportunity to switch in the future. I had forgotten that and since we had just changed our kids track schedule, I was fine with what I was doing. I was torn though because I did really want to switch so I could make some bricks. In the time I had left to decide whether or not I would stay or go, God had told me he was training me to become a mom. Training me to be the mom that I had dreamed of being as a kid. The mom He had promised me that I would be some day in the future.

I can’t say it was easy to watch the window that I wanted to climb through shut, but it was possible to do with God. Especially with Him telling me He’s using kids track to prepare me for my future, it made it a bit easier. Also windows aren’t made for climbing through. Windows are made to look through, and God put it there for me to see it and see it only.

I’ve never felt more like a mom than I have with Robirra and Fedessa. I’m learning how to be the “bad guy” in situations if they take something too far. It’s not an easy job I’m learning. I did already know this but had never experienced it before now. It’s hard and exhausting but I’m glad God is teaching me this. It also provides more and more respect for my own mom and any mom in the world. Kids can be a pain in the butt, as I’m sure I was as a kid. There’s so much love in my heart for these kids but especially Robirra. That love is there for Robirra as well and I know that because he hugs me and gives me kisses on my cheek and says he loves me with his own sign language way. Many tears have been shed for this kid and the fact that I can’t stay with him forever.

I’m thankful for this experience/training and so very thankful for my mom. If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t be where I am today. I can’t wait to have as much influence on my own daughter in the future as my mom did and still has on me.

–As a side note, my team tells me pretty often that I look like a mom. Usually because of what I’m wearing and how I’m wearing it, but I receive that as more confirmation! I’ve received a prophetic word from God through one of the Guatemala base staff members that my dream of kids in the future is still going to happen and that even though I’ve doubted whether or not it will happen, God will fulfill His promise.

Going back to the whole brick making window that was opened but not for climbing through. God opened an actual door for my team and I to make bricks and we walked through it. In my morning ministry time with my team, working on the garden was finished for us so we had the privilege to learn how to make bricks and actually do it. We switch out days with another team that helped us garden for a while so every other day we make bricks in the mornings. Thanks God!