A letter from Adrienne

"Preface: the following series of paragraphs are not directly correlated and I apologize in advance for the choppy, disconnected nature of this letter. They are three distinct events/thoughts but their importance cannot be emphasized enough. The common thread is the impact that these things have had.

Jorge is three years old and often lives in a state of oblivion. He always has a toy truck in his hand and giggles at everything. When being addressed or questioned, he simply repeats the last word in the sentence and assumes that is what you want him to say. He cannot focus on a task for more than a few seconds. I have often wondered what his home life is like simply because of the way in which he behaves and the marks he wears on his face. Jorge and his older sister (Mallory, 4 years old) were kicked out of their home. As I sat and watched him cry out for his mom, completely confused as to why he had been left behind while all the other children left, something clicked inside my head. I have not felt this way since the Colombianita kids left. For the first time in two months, this feeling came back. I was reminded, in a rather unfortunate manner, that Jorge is a completely innocent and beautiful child of God. I was beginning to sincerely love again. This may appear to be delayed because perhaps I should have been loving him this way since the first day he arrived to the Other Way. However, it takes time, for me, to really love. I can feel compassion, sympathy, or even pity for a person but that is entirely different than really loving someone. This is just the beginning. I must persevere and allow myself to love more and better. My insides are not where they need to be yet, but they have been given hope again. It is unfortunate that it took an event such as this to wake me up.

...

Something utterly amazing took place last week. One of the Colombianita families showed up at the doorstep of the Other Way. The eldest son of this family was Maicol (whom I have mentioned in a previous letter). He was one of my kids. I was in the park across the street with my new kids and I heard someone calling my name. I turned around and walking across the street to greet me was Maicol. I cannot imagine what I must have looked like in that moment. I have been mourning the loss of those kids for two months and suddenly one of them was walking towards me. I blinked a few times to make sure it was really him and then I walked, skipped, maybe even ran to him. I bent down and gave him a giant hug, not wanting to let him go. Maicol's back! He and his younger brother and sister are now back at the Other Way. This too has renewed my hope. I continue to pray that more of the Colombianita families will just show up one day at our doorstep.

...

A recent thought causing me to more deeply question and reflect is the concept of normalcy. Anything becomes normal [common, routine, typical, standard, etc.] when enough time passes. I believe this to be a natural human coping mechanism. Eventually we become acclimated to our environment, no matter how unsettling or foreign. I find myself in this position. Life has become normal but the danger lies if I start to think that homelessness, prostitution, violence, and drugs are normal. It may be common to where I live but this is not and should not be normal. Often when assimilating to a country and culture, one becomes desensitized and eventually apathetic to the struggles at hand. If this happens, the fight against injustice and suffering is already lost. However, I am learning that I must be intentional about not feeling apathy towards a marginalized demographic: the group of which Jesus spent most of His time. The call of Christ is clear: serve the least of these, love your neighbor. One cannot fulfill this call with an apathetic state of mind. Allow God to renew your soul every day.

...

I sit here now, writing you all with a refreshed spirit. This may not sound terribly insightful but for two months, beginning with the destruction of Colombianita, I felt as though a part of me died. With that, I lost my motivation and a part of myself that I feared would never return. For me to experience genuine compassion and desire again is truly encouraging. I was blinded but am reminded about God's faithfulness. Thank you, a thousand times, thank you for your prayers and constant support. Please continue to pray for the Colombianita families but also especially for Jorge and his family. ¡Gracias!


With love,
Adrienne"

News from Aurich

From Sharon:

"We will have our last day of camp in Aurich tomorrow. This has been a very different camp; this has been a greater mission field than Africa because so many of the kids do not know the Lord. But we started out with 17 and now have more than 25 so word did spread and the leaders are already talking about doing it next year...surprising. Please pass the request around to have people praying for us. We have loved on these kids but also shared the gospel in our small groups and the spirit has even improved but we need prayer for the seeds and as we finish with our games, a barbecue and worship service. Also pray for the weather tomorrow. This is one of those times when you know people are praying but really feel the need for backup. I am grateful to have Dave. He will be preaching in a few minutes. Blessings, Sharon"