...to the ends of the Earth

So, the internet (obviously!) has not worked well for us!
But, that is (literally!) the least of our concerns.
Our luggage truck had been over turned in a rainstorm...so, though our luggage DID finally arrive, it had been sitting in the rain...everything in my suitcase was soaked as if it had just come out of the washer. Including my shoes. And my pop tarts. And my Bible.
The shower is cold and trickles. The bed is hard and the pillow flat. There are spiders in the toilets. Big ones.
It is very cold and has rained--HARD--every single day.
I miss Diet Coke. My laptop and my iPod. I miss coffee and flushing toilets and deodorant-wearing people. I miss warmth. And comfort.
But let me tell you...I am not complaining about any of these things. No way.
We are at the ends of the earth.
We have seen things that I am AMAZED exist in this world. I swear we have come back in time. We have washed street children. And fed them. And then had to put them back on the street. I have cried so deeply that it hurts. The sweet faces of the street children looking up AT ME as I was crying...wondering why I was so sad.
I have taken 2000 plus photos...and they will never be able to tell the stories.
We did a clinic in Pokot yesterday. We walked about a mile through a corn field in the pouring rain--mud up to our ankles-- and there were hundreds of people waiting for us. They patiently waited for hours--in the rain--to see the doctor and the dentist and the eye doctor. And then, I was in charge of giving out the reading glasses. Determining what they needed and helping them to adjust them. When they put them on (ok, think of when YOU put on glasses and could SEE for the first time!) they would say, "PRAISE THE LORD!" They would hug me and thank us for coming. I had tears in my eyes a hundred times.
These are people who own one item of clothing. And they wear them constantly. And they don't shower. And they don't have a washer. Oh...and no where to sleep. And nothing to eat.
Yeah...
So, I am wearing my clothes that have dried out. I am learning to enjoy a semi-warm shower and a cup of instant "Africafe" each morning. I am grateful for the bed and the pillow...
And for my beautiful daughter. Who has a heart as big as Africa.
I am over-whelmed...can you tell?
I am in another world.
And it's ok.
No, it's incredible.
Sad. Tragic. Disgusting.
But these people keep smiling.
They don't know what kind of house I live in. The bed I have. The HOT water and shower massager. They don't even know that warmth and comfort exist...
And yet, they smile. They want to hold your hand. They are happy to have visitors.
And they love Jesus and are grateful.
They are helping me...
I am grateful.
Cold and dirty...
But oh so grateful.