this day.

This day. No words to express its full beauty, but I will try to give you a little glimpse.

It started in a sunflower field. Literally. Prancing and dancing and snapping photos through a sunflower field on the side of the road in South Africa. Goofing around with the Geurink kids and trying to find THE perfect sunflower. I decided when I go home I am just going to dig up my whole backyard and fill it with sunflowers. I am sure the rents will be all for that. :)

Only a few minutes later I was sipping a cold homemade berry juice. A cool breeze on my arms and two women I love sitting on either side of me. Chatting, sipping, laughing. A final Living Life trip that was absolutely perfect.

Back at Beautiful Gate we had a goodbye ceremony for, my friend, Jenny. 5 times she has been to Lesotho now. I hope to be able say the same thing one day. Tears shed, scripture read, and cake was fed. Not looking forward to saying goodbye to my English friend tomorrow, but also happy to know she will be back.

After the ceremony we find out there is a police officer in the office. This officer fetched a child out of a latrine and brought her to Beautiful Gate. He happened to remember it was her birthday today. Him and his wife brought her 2 dresses and a doll as a gift. You would have thought it was their own child. "She is getting so big and she looks so healthy, she must be getting enough food", says the man with a smile on his face. Its the best feeling in the world knowing our children are loved and not just by our staff and volunteers.

Fools. Us Americans, made ourselves look like fools. Bryan realized he had Jenny's camera and we couldn't resist leaving a few surprise photos for her. Running around campus, seeing how many strange faces we can make, and laughing like there is no tomorrow. Seeing Jenny's reaction later that night was priceless.

(why do I make faces like this???)

Throwing kids around during play group. That always seems to be a highlight. Hearing the kids yell, "Ausi Paige!!" as they run up to greet me. Its not a normal afternoon at play group unless I have at least 5 kids crawling all over me. One is doing my hair, one is pinching my nose, one is showing me a trick, another just wants a cuddle. And I just love it.

Healing rain. The sun was still out yet the rain was pouring. Giving us a much needed chill after an extremely hot day. Dancing (literally) through the rain like its been years since the last down pour. Some BG kids join the fun and we even drag a house mother out too. Running, laughing, and screaming with the kids. Those moments were priceless. It was one of those times where I just wanted to freeze time.

"Holy Uncreated One..." A time of worship with the guitar and my gifted roomie, Terp. Watching the sunset, praising our Lord. He is the one who brought us all together. He is the one who brought us here.

Thank you Jesus for this unforgettable day.

peace and love.