You would think by month 8 I would have memorized a few good worship songs…
…but as this little African baby fell asleep on me the only song I could think of was the teapot song.
You know the one, "I'm a little teapot short and stout, here is my handle here is my spout…"
I think one of the best feelings in the world is when a baby falls asleep on you.
You get to love on them, kiss their chubby cheeks, tickle their bare bellies…
…you get to play mommy.
And then they wake up, they hop down, they run their little bare feet away, they leave you, and they go back to their homes.
They go back to their real moms.
And maybe you'll see them again but maybe you won't.
Maybe they come back the next day for more attention and love but it's very possible that they won't.
And then I'm back on a bus with my family of 48, herded like cattle from one bus to another. One check point to the next. Country to country. And it starts all over again.
New faces smiling up at you, new cheeks to kiss, new bellies to tickle, new feet to chase.
I've realized that I hate goodbyes. That they are never easy.
But as a short term missionary they are inevitable.
As we travel from place to place we leave pieces of our heart behind.
Moving from person to person is heart wrenching.
The traveling pains kick in.
I might have brought blessings and love to people along the way but I can promise you that they've changed my life more than I've impacted theirs.
I think back to the people that have left their impressions on my heart
I remember a quiet 18 year old boy from Honduras who made it off the streets…
a wrinkly face with a princess crown on her head
a lady boy who discovered the love of Jesus Christ
the tears of a teenage girl who just lost her father
and a pastor's wife who found freedom in her relationship with God
These are people I know I won't see until we meet in heaven again.
That reality is hard to swallow.
But it's a truth that brings me comfort and makes goodbye bearable.
I will see you again. That's a promise.
Though the traveling pains are hard and hurt like hell, the relationships and memories are well worth the scar tissue.
