Korah-Day 13 saying goodbyes

You have to click on this picture and blow it up. Do you see what it says? "Jesus Christ is here." It was taken in the dump. If it doesn't speak volumes, I don't know what does. Yes, Jesus IS in the dump and in the face of each person suffering there. I believe that with all my heart. If we really believed that...that Jesus is actually in that dump...would we leave Him there?


The kids went to the dump this morning for a short visit but Katie said it was long enough. She said that the pictures and videos we've seen of it don't even come close. She said she couldn't believe how tall the mounds of garbage are and that there are deep valleys between the mounds. She also couldn't believe how many dogs were there. They apparantly fight the people for the food, pulling it out of their hands...uhg. It made me wonder why they don't kill the dogs? Just too many? Don't know how? Or maybe there is just a healthy respect and if they let the dogs have what they want, the dogs won't attack the people? She said that the garbage trucks were arriving and the people scampered to get there first to see what good stuff might be coming that day. How sad.

They were not allowed to take any pics there because it seems that the 'powers that be' are not requiring Sammy to get a permit to allow people to take pics of the goings on in the dump. It really doesn't reflect well on them for the world to see how people are living there, does it??

They did get to go to Korah and say their goodbyes but Katie couldn't find Fasika or Habtamu and she is so sad about that. She told Kayla (an American girl working as a missionary) to please tell them that she tried to find them but couldn't. I thought that maybe it is for the best. It was those 2 that would have been the hardest to say goodbye to and who would take it the hardest. Maybe it was God's protection. Katie will write them and is going to sponsor Fasika. Habtamu, it turns out already has a sponsor but Katie wants to stay in contact with him anyway.

Katie said that she gave away her 2 pair of shoes, the one she brought and the one she bought there. I can't remember who she gave the ones she brought to...I think Fasika. The ones she bought while there she gave to a sweet woman who does all of the mudding of the huts, a job no one else would do because they were afraid of getting cut by the broken glass in the mud. She did the work joyfully alongside her husband. Neither spoke a word of English but the husband took his hat off to the kids every time he saw them;)

A few days ago, when the kids were working alongside her, the woman motioned that she needed some water so De went and got her a cup of water. Her hands were covered with mud as well as her face as she was working on a hut at the time. She motioned to Katie to get the pills out of her pocket and give her 4, so Katie did and put them in her mouth with De following up with a drink of water. She was thankful and continued with her work.

One of the leaders of the church told them that she was HIV+ and so was her sweet husband and these were her antiretroviral pills to keep that keep the disease at bay.

This really had a big impact on the kids and became very personal to all of them.

It seems she gets the medication from the hospital in Korah, which really surprised and thrilled me! Thank you Jesus for the ability for some of the people to get the medication they need to live. I just didn't know any people in Korah had access to such medication. Oh, Lord please provide it for the ones who don't currently get it who need it. I need to figure out how to go about donating to that fund!

Well, in an hour the kids will leave for the airport. Katie must have eaten something that didn't agree with her and was up all night, feeling like throwing up. She does feel somewhat better today but please pray that she won't feel like that on the trip home. Throwing up on an airplane...no thanks!

They are all excited to get home and I have a great dinner planned for tomorrow night...burgers topped with guacamole, potato salad (De's favorite) and lots of fresh fruit and a little lemonade!

Katie said to me, "Mom, I am really ready to come home but you don't know how much I DO NOT want to get on that airplane."

"Yes, I do honey. Yes, I do:)"

Blessings,
Laura