Feels Like Home (Honduras 2014, Part 5)

Let's take a minute to be real again, shall we?  With each post I write about this trip, my heart breaks a little more.  I am longing for my kids.  Longing to be in the center of God's will, where I know exactly what He wants of me.  It's taken me a little longer to write this post than the others, because visiting Melania's home was probably my favorite part of the entire trip.  It's a memory I am holding onto, knowing that my words cannot accurately describe what a beautiful afternoon it was.

When you do an individual visit with your sponsor child, the organization will typically arrange a visit to their sponsorship center, a visit to their home, and then a fun activity for you to take them to.  In our case, this was a small water park.  As previously mentioned, Bella and I shared a fun day together with our kids.  We, along with the children's' families and project staff, headed to Melania's house first.  Our driver drove us part of the way, but her house was so far back in the woods that we had to get out and walk the rest of the way.  Melania quite literally lives "over the river and through the woods"....and up some hills, through some gates, and over some rock piles...

Bella and Estefani

Dayana crossing the stream

Up a hill

These pictures do not begin to do it justice.  The view was breathtaking.  And then, we made it... 

We put on our matching shirts :)



After all of the culture shock and out-of-place feelings that being in a developing country had brought me that week, being there with that family, with the beautiful scenery around us, felt like home.  The hills in her back yard were just larger versions of the ones in my own yard back home.  There was love and joy all around us.  Melania had the biggest smile I had ever seen as she showed me around.

Proof that God is good: Melania has a banana tree!
Click here to read about how bananas play a part in our story.

There is an enormous valley that dips off after those trees, where Melania's older brothers pick coffee beans

Between Melania's 20+ family members, and everyone we had brought with us, we had quite the crowd forming.  We all wandered around the property and talked while the family was preparing a meal in honor of our visit.  It was great to have this time with Melania in her own environment, and fellowship with everyone there.  It was like a big family reunion...



Bella and Estefani

Dayana's mother and sister

Estefani and I (photo bombed by our translator, Joel)

Some of Melania's brothers and nephews

At one point, Melania went off into the woods, and returned with some purple flowers for me.  Purple flowers are another personal reminder of God's promises in my life, which made the gift all the more beautiful.



Melania then took my hand and led me off to see her bedroom.  Honestly, there are so many times when the enemy gets to me and makes me question whether my sponsorship is really making a difference.  Walking into Melania's room, all of those questions were forever answered.  In the same way that this blog is filled with memoirs of God's work in our story, her room was equally as adorned with these things...

Her walls were covered in things I have sent to her, such as pictures and Valentine cards...

See that artwork to the right of her head?  Yeah, that's a picture she drew of me!



She also had a folder on her dresser, which held every letter I had ever sent her.  She took them out and began reciting some of the things I had written.  "You said this is your favorite song."  "This is the last letter you sent."  "This one came with a picture of you and Bella."  Folks, your kids cherish your letters!  They hang on your every word.  What a great opportunity to speak words of life!  Seeing Melania's room showed me what an impact sponsorship had made on her life.  From the pictures and letters, right down to the little tin container I brought last year that once held candy, and was too precious to her to throw away, even though it was now empty.

When we went back outside, Melania grabbed my hand and pulled me away from the rest of the group.  She did this quite a few times during our time together.  Last year, she had had me all to herself.  This year, my time was split between so many people.  And although she knew I was ultimately there for her, there were times when I would be talking to another team member, or playing with some children at the center, and Melania would sweetly grab my hand and pull me into another room to have me to herself.  Even though we could communicate very little, we would just sit together and hold hands.  We were content just being together. 

Thankfully, this time, our translator followed behind us.



We talked about God.  She told me that she had been learning to share her testimony.  She also told me she had read the book I gave her last year, which was a devotional that had love letters from God.  She told me she had memorized many of the verses, and then quoted several to me.  We talked until her mother came out and announced that lunch was ready.  They had killed their own chicken, and even walked several miles into town to purchase Pepsi (a very special treat), all on the occasion of our visit!  As we sat down and prayed over the food, Melania's mother spoke, "We know this is a humble meal, but it is from the heart."  And yes, it was one of the most beautiful meals I have ever eaten; there with my second family.



Just a few of the 30+ of us

At this point, I thought my heart was full.  Little did I know, it was only beginning.

Reunited (Honduras 2014, Part 4)

Almost all of my teammates had met their sponsored children.  I arrived back to the sponsorship center that morning with high hopes that my Melania would be there waiting.  As children arrived, I became so anxious to see her.  No amount of time I spend with Melania will ever seem like enough when I have to leave a few days later, so I hoped and prayed she would be there soon.

I was playing with some other children near the doorway when I saw, out of the corner of my eye, a few people walk into the center.  This had happened so many times that morning that I honestly didn't even turn around to look this time.  That is, until I heard my friend Bella exclaim, "Megan!", and I turned around to see Melania coming through the door!  Then, this happened...



This was it.  This was the moment we had both been praying for for all this time.  I was reunited with my sister, my heart.  I was stunned by how grown up she was compared to last year.  She was just so beautiful. 

We sat and talked laughed at the fact that we had no way to understand each other, because there were no translators nearby.  We literally sat like this with our arms around each other, smiling and saying nothing, for a good twenty minutes.  Finally, I flagged down one of my teammates who was fluent in Spanish to help me so Melania and I could say a proper hello.

We talked about how much we had missed each other and how excited we were to be together again.  We talked about our families.  I informed her that Bella and Estefani would be coming along on our fun visit day (our team members were split into groups of two for the fun days; so the rest of the team went elsewhere for theirs), and that we would also be bringing Dayana.  Thankfully, she was excited about this plan.  She gave me some precious gifts, including some beautiful handmade jewelry, a jewelry box filled with candy, and some of her amazing artwork.  The one that touched my heart the most, was this drawing.  In the individual hearts, she wrote my name, her name, and the names of my siblings- Aden and Amy.  

From the first day we met, I have told Melania that we are sisters in Christ.  And from the first day we met, she has reminded me that I am now a part of her family.  When I saw this drawing, I knew that was exactly what she was trying to say.  I pointed to her, and then to myself, and said, "hermanas" (sisters).  "Si, hermanas!" she agreed.

I also gave her one of the gifts I had brought for her (and saved the rest for later on).  If you happen to remember, last year, I was so impressed when she told me that her favorite verse was Isaiah 1:17, about doing good and helping the fatherless. That verse had led me to go to Honduras to see her in the first place. Meanwhile, she was out there doing that for everyone else.  I have since written to her about what a selfless action it is to live out that verse.  So, on this visit, I decided that Melania's special gift would be a custom shirt that had Isaiah 1:17 on it in Spanish.  I also had one made for myself so we could match.  She was so happy when she saw them.

This was when I told her that later on, we would be having a quinceanera (15th birthday party, which is often a bigger deal than a wedding for girls in Honduras, and is the reason I came to visit her when I did) for her, and that I had brought her a gown and had the sponsorship center staff plan everything.  She had already been notified of this, but still her smile was huge when we talked about it.

I spent the morning teaching Melania to make paper beads, a hobby I'd recently taken up.  This can be used both for a means of income and for fun.  She was amazing at this and quickly became more skilled at it than me.  Many others at the center joined in too.

We made earrings for each other...



And for all the little girls who were huddled around watching...



After this, we had way too much fun playing with a jump rope...



And I watched her play soccer with some of her friends....

It was such a great morning, and our time together was only beginning.  Next, we were off to visit her house!

Surprises (Honduras 2014, Part 3)

Prior to leaving for Honduras, I fervently prayed over any unexpected opportunities that God would provide during the trip.  I've come to learn that He always does more than I expect, so I've started to pray over those things before I even know what they are.  I got one of those surprises a few days before even leaving on the trip, when I received an email from a friend who sponsors a child in the same area as my sponsored girls, but was not coming with us this time.  There had been a mix-up with the child visit list, and her little girl, Dayana, mistakenly thought her sponsor was coming to visit.   Dayana and her whole family were so excited, and would surely be disappointed when they realized it was a mistake.  So, at the last minute, I agreed to add Dayana to one of my visit days with my girls and visit her on behalf of her sponsor.  Of course it wouldn't be the same as having her sponsor there, but I hoped to at least let her know she wasn't forgotten.  As soon as I agreed to include Dayana on my visit and started to pack a few extra gifts for her, it hit me that she was an answer to my prayer.  She was the surprise I wasn't expecting!  

Fast forward to Honduras...

After picking Estefani up at her school, we headed to Dayana's house.  Dayana attends the same school as Estefani, but was at home getting ready for our visit.  We walked a short distance to her home, where she was waiting at the door to greet me with a hug and a joy-filled "Hola!".

We were also greeted by her precious family.

Dayana with her mother

...and baby sister, Marilyn

If I had to describe Dayana in one word, it would be joy.  Yes she is poor by our standards in the US, but she is cherished by her family.  Her home is simple, but it is well kept.  Many children in this community roam around unsupervised day and night, often showing up at the sponsorship center having no idea where their parents are.  Meanwhile, when Dayana attends the sponsorship center, she is escorted by her mother and usually half a dozen other distant family members, while her father is out working hard to provide for them.  Her family attends church together.  Her parents are constantly teaching her.  When you enter their home, there is no doubt about how loved their children are; the walls are covered in pictures of the girls, each one with a carefully homemade frame around it.  When I began taking pictures of the photos on the wall to show to Dayana's sponsor, her mother ran and got her baby book, wanting to show me more. 

  

This one says, "my beautiful girl"



Despite being cared for by her family, Dayana craves every ounce of love she receives from her sponsor.  She is constantly thinking of her.  When we were at the project later in the day and all the other children were scribbling on paper and sticking stickers, Dayana had carefully drawn a boarder around her paper and began to write a neatly-structured letter in perfect cursive to her sponsor. 

The real surprise, though, comes a little later in the when Dayana's mother pointed to me, and then to Dayana's baby sister, Marilyn, and said, "Maybe you can be her sponsor some day."  When I prayed over the unexpected opportunities for this trip?  Unknowingly, I was praying for this...

Marilyn 

And this...

Sweet smiles and crazy dance moves

And this...

Bonding with my borrowed child :)

After a few more home visits with other team members' children, we headed back to the sponsorship center.  The majority of our team had been united with their sponsored children and were off playing with them.  Bella and I sat and did artwork with Estefani and Dayana.  Everything was being set up for our upcoming fun day with our kids.  But where was my Melania?


 

Meeting Estefani (Honduras 2014, Part 2)

Up to this point, this blog has always been stories of my journey with God and with my sponsored kids.  And Estefani does play a big part in my story, but even moreso in my best friend Bella's.

If you haven't read my post from when we sponsored Estefani back in January: My best friend since pre-school, Bella, signed up to come on this trip with me, though she didn't yet sponsor a child of her own.  On New Year's Day, we were discussing how we both wanted to do something crazy for God to start the new year off right.  On that same day, I fell in love, through a Facebook post, with a 7-year-old girl named Estefani.

Estefani was in need of a sponsor; and she attended the same sponsorship center, in the same community, as my Melania who we were going to visit.  It took Bella and I all of five minutes to decide to co-sponsor Estefani together.  We decided that only Bella would be known as her sponsor and write to her.  That way, she and Melania could each have individual attention from one of us.  Through scripture, we instantly received what we believe was God confirming this plan.

Over the next few months as we prepared for the trip, though, there were so many road blocks in Bella's way.  It sometimes seemed she wouldn't be able to come on the trip after all.  Of course the enemy was at work, getting into our minds and making us wonder why God had told us to do this work if it wasn't going to happen.

Then, against all odds, it did happen.  Before we knew it, Bella and I were at the airport, leaving for Honduras.



Just a little excited 

At that point, we realized what we should have trusted all along- God's promises are true and He will come through in unexpected ways.  Finally, 4 months of planning, two flights, two hotels, a 5 hour car ride, and a trip to an orphanage later, we arrived at our girls' sponsorship center in the mountains of western Honduras!  After seeing so many pictures and hearing so many stories from this place, it was surreal to actually be there.

After saying hello to the project directors and staff, the team was taken on a walk around the community.  We didn't actually expect to meet our kids just yet.  We thought that would take place later in the day.  As we walked (and walked...and walked...nothing in Honduras is as close as they tell you it is), we came to the elementary school.

"This is the school where Yolani, Jessarela, and Estefani attend", the project director announced, naming off the elementary aged children who were sponsored by members of our team.  The project director walked through the gates, into the school.  We all followed behind her.  And then, it happened. 

It happened so fast, I had to have another team member relay the story to me later: The director walked in and asked a teacher who was standing near the gate to help us find the children we were there to see.  Before she could even begin to do so, Estefani happened to be coming around the corner, right to where our group was entering.  I simply heard, "here's Estefani!" and pressed play on my video camera before she had run across the yard and into Bella's arms.




Estefani's sweet smile instantly took my breath away.  The way she fearlessly clung to Bella and walked with her confirmed we were where we were meant to be.  It occurred to me that I was seeing God's promises fulfilled right before my eyes.

As they found a nearby bench and a translator, Bella told Estefani that she had a present for her.  She had gotten Estefani and herself matching princess necklaces.  Estefani's came in a little jewelry box shaped like a crown, which had a saying on the inside about being a cherished princess.  As the necklace was put around her neck and those word of life were read to her, a light appeared in her eyes, and in her smile.

As they held hands and walked towards the door, Estefani's classmates peered out from the classroom. 

Beaming, Estefani pointed to her necklace, and then to Bella, as if to tell her friends, "She's here for me.  She chose me."  Little did we know, the sweet memories were only beginning.

Let's Be Real (Honduras 2014, Part 1)

This is the start of my Honduras 2014 blogs.  I am so blessed to have had the opportunity to visit my sponsored teen Melania, for the second time and spend a week in her community.  Before beginning this series, if you would first like to hear the stories from last year's journey, and how I came to sponsor Melania in the first place, they can be found here, here, here, and here.  I am excited to share this next chapter with you.  I pray for God to use these stories in your life the way He has in mine.

I'll admit, this trip was different.  On one hand, I can honestly say I've never felt more in the center of God's will as I did in Honduras.  I saw His hand in every step I took.  His purpose could not have been clearer.  Part of me wants to brush over these blogs with poetic words and tell only those stories.  You know, the ones where I am reunited with Melania, God steps in, something profound happens, and I spend the rest of the week holding children while reading bible storybooks and singing Vacation Bible School songs.  Trust me, I'll get to that.  On this trip, though, I experienced something else- realness.  If you remember last year, Melania was brought out of her community, five hours away into the city, to meet me.  We spent the day together at a beach resort, and I returned that night to my beautiful Hilton hotel; almost unaware that I was even in a developing country.  This time around, I chose to step into her world.  I longed to invest into her community and multiply the ministry God had given me through her.  As I did, our perfect, cookie-cutter, miraculous story changed.  Let me clarify, it got better.  But it also got realer.  Messier.  We walked dirt roads, sweaty and sun burnt, leaving no room for glamorous photo opportunities.  In addition to the deep, Godly side of Melania that I knew from last year, I also saw her be a teenage girl.  I saw her interact with her friends.  I watched them play soccer together.  I visited her home.  We talked about boys.  She even showed me the selfies she had taken on her cell phone.  Our story was no longer just a story.  The memoir of God's work in our lives that has been admired by hundreds of people through this blog suddenly became a real relationship between two real people.  Two sisters.

On this trip, I experienced poverty.  I saw lack of basic needs.  Lack of opportunity.  God did amazing things in this mountain village of Honduras.  Part of me, the biggest part of me, is ready to pick up and move there sooner than later.  In coming posts, we'll talk about all of that.  Yet, I felt I would be selling you short if I didn't tell you the whole story.  I'm learning that love is not just a touching story.  Love is real.  Love is a mess.  And, no matter what the enemy has to say about the matter, if you endure, love is worth it.

Are you read to go on this love journey with me?

Two Days

Tomorrow morning, my plane will touch down in San Pedro Sula, Honduras.  This will be followed by a long drive into the mountains, to my Melania's community, where I will finally be reunited with her the following day.  Two days.  That's all that's left until we are together again, after almost a year of praying.  I am traveling with a team of eight other sponsors (including Bella), all who sponsor children in Melania's community.  We will spend the week in the community teaching the gospel to over 200 children at the sponsorship center, taking our own sponsored children out for a fun day of swimming and lunch at a restaurant, visiting their homes, and celebrating Melania's quinceanera (15th birthday).  Not to mention all of the unplanned opportunities we have been praying over before we even see them.  God has already thrown some into the mix, which I will write about in coming days.   I am constantly reminding myself of one of the best pieces of advice regarding ministry that I've ever been given: Go empty.  No specific expectations.  Let God fill your week with whatever He has.  I know it will be abundantly more than I can ask or think.

Whether you followed my first journey to Honduras, or whether you're brand new, I am excited to share this next chapter with you!