T-17days

Two weeks from Friday I’m off to Ethiopia!  The support of each and every one of you has been overwhelming whether it be your enthusiasm, your financial support, your prayers, etc.  Truly overwhelming.  The journey has begun.  It started with …

The tap on my shoulder...

For the past almost two years I’ve been asking myself how I could “love well and live differently”.  I have met, read about, and learned from some amazing people!  I have watched in awe as they all have given so much of themselves for others.  Through one of those people I have watched in awe, I learned about an organization called Project Hopeful, a place called Awassa, Ethiopia, and a girl named Marta.  My family began sponsoring Marta several months ago.  We’ve sent her packages and cards and prayed for her.  Pretty sure that would be the extent of it at the time.  We also began closely following the work of Project Hopeful.

The Facebook post…

Project HOPEFUL Awassa October mission trip! We will be taking a small team to build relationships, serve the community, and also serve at Ajuuja orphanage. Interested? Email me. 

The clearest call to get up and do something I’ve ever felt…

Not sure if it was fear, joy, or just the power of the Holy Spirit, but the emotion I felt at that moment I can’t even explain.  I could almost hear God saying to me “let’s go!”  I have felt so called recently to raise my awareness so that I can live out the life that he intended for me and to make a difference in our world.  My opportunity was staring me right in the face.  With prayer, joy, and a little fear I signed up to go to Awassa, Ethiopia in October. You might recognize those words from the letter you received from me a few months ago, but as I type these words now, several months into this, I still literally tear up.  The emotion that goes along with this trip is incredible.  Why?  I’m not sure yet, but I’m going to find out!  

Time to prepare…

Shots, shots, and more shots.  I am now a pro at getting stuck in the arm.  It took a Google Calendar and a lot of planning to get all of the vaccinations necessary…  Yellow Fever and Polio – only to be obtained by the Health Department and they don’t take my health insurance.  Hep A, Hep B, Hep B again, Thyphoid, Malaria, a tetanus booster and, oh yeah, that script for an antibiotic just in case… just in case what J?  Did you know that you have to separate out the live vaccines – can’t have too many of those going on at one time.  Who knew.  Oh and Hep A and Hep B again when I return as well.

I can drive down the street with cash in hand and get vaccinations so that I don’t get sick because where I’m going there is a lot of sickness.  The part that’s hard to grasp is that the sickness is as preventable as the shots I’ve just gotten.  These are preventable diseases that those I’m going to meet are not protected from and that is indescribably wrong.

Thoughts…

I hope I don’t get sick, I hope I don’t get sick, I hope I don’t get sick

The Plane Ticket…

OH this was complicated, but only because I complicated it.  I will get up at 4am on Friday, October 18^th and head to the airport.  I will fly to Dulles International where I will meet up with my travel companions.  From there it’s just a hop, a skip, and a fourteen hour direct jump across the world to reach Awassa.  I’m certain that once I see the smiling faces of my travel buddies I will breathe such a sigh of relief, but oddly what scares me more than anything (well anything besides getting sick from the water over there) is the time between laying my head down to try and sleep Thursday until I reach them on Friday.  Will I oversleep, will there be something wrong with my passport, will my luggage be too heavy, will I have too many carry-ons, will I forget my vaccination card…. what if, what if, what if…

Observations…

Observation number 1: The generosity of others, the enthusiasm for what I am doing, and the conviction with which I am being sent is absolutely amazing.  The responses, emails, and conversations I’ve had with you all – just incredible! I truly feel that so many of you, although not sitting next to me on the plane, will be serving right along side of me through your support and prayers.

Observation number 2:  I now have several friends that I have never met.  We chat as if we’ve been friends forever.  I have no doubt when this is over – we will be!  I think I’ll have the best roomie ever! We’ve decided to share a blow dryer and if it blows up – it blows up.  We can sport a ball cap with the best of them.

Observation number 3:  In Awassa a cow can cost between $100 and $200.  For many the purchase of a cow is unobtainable in a lifetime.  The ownership of a cow can be life changing.  I found myself asking the question, “how much is a cow”? Now there is a question not many people ask. 

Meeting my new friends:

Our friends from Project Hopeful came to North Carolina to speak at our church.  The Eskridge crew hosted a get-together.  How can I feel like I am such good friends with complete strangers?  I felt like I knew them all already, but that’s probably because I’ve pretty much worried them to death with questions for several weeks now. Charisa tells me she is known for crying and I’m now known for having lots of questions.  The conversations were fascinating.  As much as I learned and as many questions as I had answered probably equals all of the questions and wonder I now have that I didn’t have before.

There was so much conversation.  I heard so many stories- their adoption stories, how they got involved in Project Hopeful, what their personal experiences have been, what they have seen and what I might see, what the food is like, what the people are like, what worship is like , what size suitcase to take, to even how they have each gotten to know the other.  I wanted a second set of ears right by my side paying close attention to help me capture all that I could possibly capture.  My head kept turning from conversations to the right to conversations to the left trying to learn as much as possible.  One thing I know for certain – I am in good hands!

Your generosity…

Heaven sent!  Beyond my travel expenses and because of all of you we will be purchasing at least one cow, formula for the orphanage (a huge need right now), mosquito nets to protect against Malaria, and more. 

Our Mission…

Go, Learn, Return, Respond.  I can’t answer the constant question, “what will you be doing while you are there” any better than that.  More on that when I return.

Thoughts at this point…

I feel so excited, so scared, so called, so inadequate.  I have a lack of command of the bible. I haven’t adopted. (I’m not even that great with kids.)  I don’t pray out loud with any confidence at all… So why me?  I have to be quiet, prayerful, and just listen.

Am I pumped – YES! Am I excited – YES!  Am I a bit scared and overwhelmed – YES!