The sun has set
Clouds overtake the night sky
A bit of color lingers in the west
Stars come out one by one
The dirt road is bumpy and unpredictable
Pot holes were filled with rain water
Mud as slick as Crisco causes me to slip
Surprisingly I haven't fallen flat on my face
Slowly I take one step at a time
One foot in front of the other
Darkness has swallowed me
The occasional motorbike provides a beam of light
Passer-By-ers say hello and good evening
School kids ask, "How are you?" As they giggle
Red African mud cakes my feet
I should've worn my chacos
Rookie mistake as Skipper would say
My flip flops splash mud on my calves
Mud bath sounds inviting… If I was a pig
Praise The Lord we arrived safely
We made it to the high school almost mud free
At a I wooden desk I sat
Names, drawings, shapes and lines were etched in
Aubrie by my side
A large black board is mounted on the wall
God is good all the time is what it read
An average of 100 students fill the room
Some stop and stare
Other smile and turn away shyly
Short curly hair is so beautiful and necessary in this heat
Soft brown skin and piercing brown eyes
Smart people they are
Gorgeous people they are
Followers they are too
The choir starts to sing
I love the melody and tunes
Though I do not know the words
It brings joy to my soul
Wearing green and purple gowns
Dancing and swaying for The Lord
Music fills the air
Voices sing loud and proud
Applause and Amens roar in the room
Boom! Fizzle! Shazam!
Darkness filled the room
The power went out
All throughout the school and town… Black
Electricity comes and goes
Cell phone lights turn on to erase the dark
They called my name
I stood at the front of the class
My Bible in my hands
Mary and Martha were my subjects
Luke was my book
Being with the Lord was my topic
Thanks and blessings were blown my way
More songs filled the room and escaped out the windows for the village to hear
Smiles, hand shakes hugs and farewells took place
Linked arm in arm Aurbie and I walked home together
With Tommy and Eugene close behind
We shared life
Sharing the love of Jesus Christ with men, women, children, teens and everyone in between
Welcome to Rwanda!
Hugs from the Future,
Kaleena
P.S. check out a blog written by our squad leader, Tommy. It's an outsiders perspective on our typical morning and some of his heart!
