WOW! What a week it has been! I finally feel settled and mostly adjusted to the time change. I think I am about half way there with learning the names of the 60 children. I no longer ask what the weather is going to be like the next day because nobody cares and nobody knows. It simply is cold in the morning and warm when the sun comes up.
This week I have observed a lot of change at Beautiful Gate since I had been here almost 2 and a half hears ago. First, there are so many volunteers! Last time I was here, I was the only volunteer that worked in the houses for most of my time. Now, there is 1 (sometimes 2) volunteers to each of the 5 baby houses. These are mostly young volunteers in college or just out of college. It is strange seeing so many white faces around campus. Next, I notice that there are not as many hospital runs. If you followed me on my last trip, you would know that I would often go to the hospital with a run once or twice a week. Now, one of the clinics sends one of their doctors to us regularly so we do not have to make the trip so often with so many kids. And, the kids are just not sick as often. There is also a whole new building on campus! The Maroon House was built last year to house teams of volunteers that come to BG. This building is beautiful! The most enjoyable change is all of the new children. Though I am not happy to see more faces of children who have either lost their parents or have parents who did not want them, it is good to see that many of the kids that were here last time I was here are gone. They have either been reunited with their family or been adopted, and that is exciting.
Amidst all this change, there is still some things that have been consistent. The staff are mostly all the same and welcomed me so sweetly. When I walked into my assigned baby house, my house mother screamed and hugged me for a good 3 minutes. She does not speak very much English, but she kept saying, "I missed you, ausi! The children missed you, ausi!" The Geurink family, the orphanage directors, are still here and doing incredible work. There are about 7-8 kids that I remember from my last trip. One boy from my house was a baby last time when I left and now he is the one who runs the house and helps with the younger kids! Another girl in my house was one that I spent a lot of time with to try to teach her to walk. She walks now AND goes to school! SOOOO cool and encouraging to see these kids grow up and develop! Last, the Lord is still here and still working so evidently in and through the staff, volunteers, community members, and other missionaries. Even after my first night of being here, I was so humbled and overwhelmed by how my brothers and sisters are trusting the Lord and making HIS name known all around Lesotho.
Things to Pray For:
-My housing situation. I am living with a friend, who is a local, and another volunteer off campus and we may need to move at the end of the month due to circumstances out of our control.
-2 teams coming. Over the next 3-4 weeks we will have two High School teams coming. Pray that they are able to learn from their experience and grow in their knowledge and understanding of the Lord
-Patience....I have 6 wonderful, beautiful, yet mischievous, little boys in my house. Some days, my patience runs thin. I have already had a few "Come to Jesus" moments with a few in particular.
-That I would be able to in some small way show the love of our Heavenly Father to the people I encounter.
Thank you for your prayers and support!
peace and blessings,
Ausi(Miss) Paige
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