Yes, that’s a word we had to use a lot today. More about that in just a minute....
I know Chris and Jenny got you up to speed as of yesterday, so I’ll just give you a snapshot of today. Oh, wait, just one thing about yesterday. We did high/low at breakfast and I shared with the team that my high from yesterday was meeting a little girl named Christina. We saw her at one of the orphanages and when I asked if I could take her picture she smiled pretty for me. You can see the picture I’ve attached. For those of you that know my boys, she really looks like them…ironic?? Anyway, her name starts with a “C” and all my boys are “C” names…..OK Eddie refocus before you lose it again!
About today…it’s been a great day of incredible interaction with a lot of really great kids!! We started at the orphanage that had mostly special needs kids ages 5-17. Some were more severe than others, but for the most part they were very interactive and participating in everything. Chris, Chandler, and I started by playing kickball with about 20 kids. It took them a little while to get the hang of how to play but they really enjoyed it once they got it. That where we said “Davay, Davay” a lot. It means “Hurry, Come on, come on.” We were telling them to run from base to base. We also used Ma la dee etz (good job) a lot. They loved the encouragement.
The girls were busy doing crafts and playing with the parachute with some of the little ones. They were loving all of the attention they were getting.
After a while I decided to take some to a separate area and throw around a Frisbee. Surprisingly, they were pretty good at throwing it. But, it didn’t keep their attention very long. Because….I brought out the camera….as I started taking pictures and they all wanted to see them in my display. Then one of them asked me if they could wear my sunglasses…well, that was the start of a big, big deal!! They started wearing them and posing for pictures. The girls would take a picture and then go pose on the grass or behind a tree flipping up their hair and acting like movie stars…it was hilarious. As long as I kept snapping photos they kept posing…seriously it had to be for about 40 minutes or so!
Well after the photo shoot, we moved inside the orphanage and went from room to room handing out shoes to all the kids. We very soon realized that we didn’t have enough. There was no way we were going to get away with not giving all of them shoes. After all, most of them got them, but not all?? So, we left and went to the “Bizare” (outdoor mall type thing) to buy some more shoes to take back and give all the kids. All I can say is Aiman is awesome. She talked a guy down to get 30 pairs of shoes for like $7 a pair. So, we took the shoes back to the orphanage and just watched as the kids began to smile from ear to ear. It was a great thing to see!!
Well, after the first orphanage experience of the day we were all ready to go to the second orphanage. This one wasn’t special needs….the ages were still 5-17. I would have to say that this was my highlight of the day. As we pulled up, there were a bunch of kids playing basketball…so, you know me, I asked if I could play and we started shooting around. Next thing you know, they are asking us to play a three on three game…them three versus Chandler, Chris and me. It’s never a good sign when they want to play together….trust me. Needless to say….they kicked our butts! And they were in sandles!! With a couple of big divets in the concrete!! We later found out that they play on a Kazak team. Wish we would have known that earlier….
There was one young man, probably 17 or so, very mature and spoke pretty good English. He was just learning. He seemed to have a great spirit about him. He was telling me good shot and playing very fair even when some of the others were intense. He really had my attention. His name was Errma. Anyway, after a couple of long basketball games we decided to go to the soccer field and teach them ultimate Frisbee. At first, the boys didn’t want to follow us and play, but then Errma encouraged them to come and they listened. We taught them how to play and they caught on really quick. We had a blast and I think they did too! When we left Errma asked for my email address and he gave me his….he was very eager to stay in touch…I hope he does! We gave him the Frisbee and told him to continue to play the new game they learned here today…he was very excited!! The last thing he said, as he turned to Aiman and asked how to say it in English, was “we had a good time today.” Wheeeew….I felt God’s smile on us at that moment!
Today, we weren’t able to teach a lesson or open the Bible (it’s just the way these orphanages work for now) but, we were able to be the hands and feet of Jesus in some very tangible ways. It’s like the Saint Francis of Assisi quote we often hear, “Preach the gospel all the time, and when necessary use words.” Well, today our words were very few…probably because we only knew a few…but hopefully they felt the love of Jesus!! I know I did!!
Eddie
I know Chris and Jenny got you up to speed as of yesterday, so I’ll just give you a snapshot of today. Oh, wait, just one thing about yesterday. We did high/low at breakfast and I shared with the team that my high from yesterday was meeting a little girl named Christina. We saw her at one of the orphanages and when I asked if I could take her picture she smiled pretty for me. You can see the picture I’ve attached. For those of you that know my boys, she really looks like them…ironic?? Anyway, her name starts with a “C” and all my boys are “C” names…..OK Eddie refocus before you lose it again!
About today…it’s been a great day of incredible interaction with a lot of really great kids!! We started at the orphanage that had mostly special needs kids ages 5-17. Some were more severe than others, but for the most part they were very interactive and participating in everything. Chris, Chandler, and I started by playing kickball with about 20 kids. It took them a little while to get the hang of how to play but they really enjoyed it once they got it. That where we said “Davay, Davay” a lot. It means “Hurry, Come on, come on.” We were telling them to run from base to base. We also used Ma la dee etz (good job) a lot. They loved the encouragement.
The girls were busy doing crafts and playing with the parachute with some of the little ones. They were loving all of the attention they were getting.
After a while I decided to take some to a separate area and throw around a Frisbee. Surprisingly, they were pretty good at throwing it. But, it didn’t keep their attention very long. Because….I brought out the camera….as I started taking pictures and they all wanted to see them in my display. Then one of them asked me if they could wear my sunglasses…well, that was the start of a big, big deal!! They started wearing them and posing for pictures. The girls would take a picture and then go pose on the grass or behind a tree flipping up their hair and acting like movie stars…it was hilarious. As long as I kept snapping photos they kept posing…seriously it had to be for about 40 minutes or so!
Well after the photo shoot, we moved inside the orphanage and went from room to room handing out shoes to all the kids. We very soon realized that we didn’t have enough. There was no way we were going to get away with not giving all of them shoes. After all, most of them got them, but not all?? So, we left and went to the “Bizare” (outdoor mall type thing) to buy some more shoes to take back and give all the kids. All I can say is Aiman is awesome. She talked a guy down to get 30 pairs of shoes for like $7 a pair. So, we took the shoes back to the orphanage and just watched as the kids began to smile from ear to ear. It was a great thing to see!!
Well, after the first orphanage experience of the day we were all ready to go to the second orphanage. This one wasn’t special needs….the ages were still 5-17. I would have to say that this was my highlight of the day. As we pulled up, there were a bunch of kids playing basketball…so, you know me, I asked if I could play and we started shooting around. Next thing you know, they are asking us to play a three on three game…them three versus Chandler, Chris and me. It’s never a good sign when they want to play together….trust me. Needless to say….they kicked our butts! And they were in sandles!! With a couple of big divets in the concrete!! We later found out that they play on a Kazak team. Wish we would have known that earlier….
There was one young man, probably 17 or so, very mature and spoke pretty good English. He was just learning. He seemed to have a great spirit about him. He was telling me good shot and playing very fair even when some of the others were intense. He really had my attention. His name was Errma. Anyway, after a couple of long basketball games we decided to go to the soccer field and teach them ultimate Frisbee. At first, the boys didn’t want to follow us and play, but then Errma encouraged them to come and they listened. We taught them how to play and they caught on really quick. We had a blast and I think they did too! When we left Errma asked for my email address and he gave me his….he was very eager to stay in touch…I hope he does! We gave him the Frisbee and told him to continue to play the new game they learned here today…he was very excited!! The last thing he said, as he turned to Aiman and asked how to say it in English, was “we had a good time today.” Wheeeew….I felt God’s smile on us at that moment!
Today, we weren’t able to teach a lesson or open the Bible (it’s just the way these orphanages work for now) but, we were able to be the hands and feet of Jesus in some very tangible ways. It’s like the Saint Francis of Assisi quote we often hear, “Preach the gospel all the time, and when necessary use words.” Well, today our words were very few…probably because we only knew a few…but hopefully they felt the love of Jesus!! I know I did!!
Eddie
1 comment:
I am praying for all of you! We miss you so much Eddie(Daddy).
Post a Comment