Sierra Leone

I've been reflecting a lot this week on life... going through a bit of a post-trip-of-a-lifetime letdown.
It's been a crazy ride, this story we find ourselves in.

If you had told me five years ago that by the summer of 2011 I'd have traveled twice to Africa, once alone and once with my whole family, I'd never have believed you.

And yet - here I am.

Coming home this second time around I've been sort of side swiped by how now, more than ever, I am destined to live a life divided. Forver torn between two worlds... the place I call home and this country on the other side of the globe that has captured my heart.

My hope here is to tell you stories... to share the ways in which Sierra Leone grips my heart. Since I cannot take each and every one of you along with me, I will do my best, with words and pictures, to introduce you to my second home. My hope is that you will begin to value this tiny country in West Africa - to begin to care about it's people and pray for it's peace. Perhaps you'll donate some out of your excess to make a difference in the life of a child. Or maybe - you 'll come along with me next time. If the Lord wills it, I hope to return every couple of years.

Sierra Leone is one of the world's poorest countries as measured by the human development index.

Some startling and revealing statistics:

• Life Expectancy: 48.2 years
• Average years of schooling/adults: 2.9
• 63% of the population of Sierra Leone lives on less than $1.25 a day
• Average income: $825 a year.

After the 11 year civil war ended in 2002, hundreds of thousands of people who had flocked to Freetown in an attempt to flee the rebels in the provinces chose to stay in the city. Freetown was developed to support a population of about 250,000 and now it is estimated that it houses at least 1.5 million. A million and a half people living in a city with no garbage service,  inefficient sewers, polluted water, no job opportunities... Many of the people who came to Freetown during the war lost years of their lives and education to the war. They don't have the skills to return to the provinces to farm and provide for their families and they don't have the education to succeed in the city.

 

It could very well seem hopeless.

 

And yet - they are not a country without hope.

 

The people of Sierra Leone are amazing. Strong. Generous. Kind. Welcoming.

 

I love Sierra Leone.

 

I love it's crazy, crowded streets. It's vast, lush, green spaces. It's smiles. It's determination.

 

Come along with me to Sierra Leone.

 

Home.

We've been home since Monday night...
Amazingly (a TOTAL answered prayer) we are hardly jet lagged at all. Last time I went it was a full week before I felt normal... so this is a huge improvement over that. We all get really tired around 8:00 pm and Asia and I have been waking up pretty ridiculously early the past two mornings, but generally, we're all functioning really well.

That's really a little picture of how God was SO faithful to us throughout the entire trip. We had no illnesses, no travel glitches, no major family squabbles. I keep telling people "The whole thing was completely above and beyond all my hopes and dreams and expectations."

And it was.

I'm working on editing and narrowing down our 1280 photos and will begin telling our stories in the next couple of days.

I'm so excited to share everything.

How could you not just LOVE seeing your kids living out a picture like that?

Still alive... overwhelmed by God's grace.

For the first time in over two weeks, we have the ability to get online...
There's no way for me to sum things up at this point. Especially because we're still in-country... still processing... but we're alive and VERY, VERY well. God has been amazing faithful to answer our prayers for this trip - abundantly, over and above all our deepest hopes and dreams.

Really - it's been SO good.

I cannot wait to get back and begin to tell you our stories.

But for now, we're going to soak up our last five days in this amazing place.

Smooch you all from Sierra Leone.

Paris, safe and sound!

Just a quick note to let everyone know we made it here! After some challenges that were easily (divinely) worked out, we found our apartment and spent the day touring around a bit... spending the afternoon at Musee D'Orsay and having a lovely dinner out together.

The kids are doing amazing... Paris is lovely... all is good.

Our internet is problematic, so updates will be tricky. We'll do our best!!!

Our sunrise flight to Seattle begins our journey...

Sorting flip flops with one week to go...

We've collected 350 pairs of flip flops to take along with us to Sierra Leone... we will bring about 150 along with us to hand out to the kids that live on-site at the Children's Village, and then send the rest of them over to the COTN offices to be shipped in the next large shipping container they send.

It's been so fun to see all the different styles people bought... from great big black ones with stripes to teeny tiny pink ones with glitter-y straps... I think there will be a lot of smiling faces as we pass them out.

So, the flip flops have been sorted... today we got a lot of errands and purchases on my list taken care of... things like bigger memory cards for the cameras to journals for the kids to be able to document the trip to a few books and games to take along for all the hours we'll be sitting in airports and on planes...

We all started taking our anti-malarial meds today.

It's really going to happen, this crazy adventure... one week from today we'll be somewhere over Greenland on our way to Paris...

We're starting the packing process - making sure we stop wearing the things we'll be taking along so I won't be doing laundry Thursday night before our six a.m. flights Friday morning...

Crazy week ahead... Asia's in a wedding in Bellingham tomorrow (he flew over yesterday and will be back Sunday afternoon) a long day volunteering on Sunday at the Couer D'Alene Ironman and then heading straight to the finish line to watch for our friend Wade's finish. Monday is our 19th anniversary, Wednesday is Asia's birthday and we leave Friday. Asia and I are both working too, gearing up for a nearly four week absence.

Phew!

So excited... so appreciative of the opportunity... SO eager to see Tejan and hold his hand again as we talk about his life... his dreams... his future... how did I get to be so lucky to know this amazing boy/man across the world - and be able to call him my son?

Less than three weeks...

My to do list is quite long these days, as I'm sure you can imagine...
June is always a crazy month, with graduations and end of school events... but add a 25 day trip with a family of five and I've got quite a bit on my mind.

All the major details are taken care of. Passports. Visas. Plane reservations. House sitter. Apartment rental in Paris. Accomodations on the Africa Mercy Ship. Project guidelines.

Next up: finish collecting flip flops (we're hoping to take along 1000 pairs to pass out to the school kids and villagers!) and packing.

It's so hard to believe we're leaving so soon. After three years of planning and hoping and praying it's actually happening.

I'll be posting our itinerary and a prayer calendar soon... I'm really excited to have a team of people praying each day for specific requests while we're gone. Knowing there is a unified voice of intercession going up on our behalf will be an incredible blessing.

I do not plan to blog much on the trip. I am not even taking my computer. I hope to be able to post occasional Facebook updates... and perhaps a short blog post when I have access to a computer... but frankly, my priority while we're there is to drink in every moment. I'll journal by hand (still my favorite way to record life) and then blog the trip for you on our return... last time I went it was a great way for me to process my trip and slowly work through the many feelings and thoughts that arose after such a life changing experience.

Thank you so much for your continued interest and support...

We're down to the final countdown!