WHAT DOES HOPE LOOK LIKE??

She shyly entered the room, looking tentatively from one adult to another.  Her hands were buried in her skirt, where she tried to hide her nervousness by bunching the dirty fabric in her fists.  I knelt down to look into her eyes and gently asked, "Simesh Manoo?"  (What is your name?).  With barely a whisper, she told me her name and I scanned down my list to find her care-package that had been sent by her sponsor family. 

I held my hand out to her and called her by name.  She reached for my hand and we walked over to the colorful packages laid out in numerical order.  Reaching for the one that had her name on it, I lead her to a chair where two adults waited for her with big smiles on their faces - knowing the suprise that was in store for her!

Months before our trip to Ethiopia, to visit Trees of Glory and Kind Hearts care-points, I had invited each sponsor family (for 152 children) to send me a care-package that I would personally deliver to their sponsor child.  I suggested items like a shirt, chapstick, toothbrush, pencils, soap, and granola bars, along with the most important items - a letter and photos - all to be fit into a gallon zip-lock bag.  Packages started arriving in droves at my door, and I marvelled at the care and attention that went into each package and the special gifts that had been picked out for a child on the other side of the world.

Sponsor families emailed me explaining how they had spent hours, some with tears in their eyes and in their throats, as they pondered and wondered and hoped and prayed that this special child would know how much they were loved and how each and every item was picked just for them with such care and thought.  How do you fit LOVE into a gallon zip-lock bag??

With a little over a week before the trip, when every package had been counted, and checked and verified, so that we had a package for every single child.  Children's Hopechest contacted me with news .... 42 MORE KIDS HAVE JUST ENROLLED AT KIND HEARTS!!!!  I gasped with happiness and panic at the same time.

Finally Kind Hearts had become stable and secure enough to enroll more kids - but with barely a week to prepare, we now needed at least 42 more care-packages - and activities and projects for all the new kids too!  I emailed the travel team - and of course everyone immediately responded by gathering as many items (school supplies, chapsticks, pencils, clothing, toothbrushes, etc - and gallon zip-lock bags) as possible so we could create care-packages for each new child once we arrived in Ethiopia.  No child would feel left out or forgotten on that day!

During trip preparations, I advised our travel team to "always expect the unexpected" - and when we arrived at Trees of Glory, we discovered that 21 new children had just enrolled.  So now we had over 60 new children between the two care-points!!  And we were prepared - with enough supplies to create care-packages for each new child!

On the day we planned to give each child their care-package, we set up a room with 3 "stations".  Each station had 3 chairs - one for the child, one for a translator, and one for a Hopechest travel team member.  We were able to spend quality time with each and every child - going through each gift in the care-package, reading the letter, and looking at photos.  The kids were delighted with their gifts - for most of the kids, it was the first time they had received a brand new shirt, or brand new pencils, or brand new anything.

When the letter was being read, I watched as each child became still and motionless, and soaked in every word of love and encouragement that they knew was meant just for them.  But the very best part was when the pictures emerged from the bag.  Each one of us on the travel team had tears in our eyes as we watched these children soak in the faces of their sponsor family, examining every detail and sealing them into their hearts.  We watched later as the children would reach into their bags to look at the photos again and again.

There was something very different about the kids this year, compared to my visit last year.  It was very obvious that the kids were healthier and more energetic.  Nutritious food had filled in the hollow spots in their bodies and provided energy to play and run, and learn in school.  Food and clean water had allowed their immune systems to better fight against illnesses and sickness.  But there was more ... and it took me a day or two before I fully realized what it was. 

It was HOPE.  Laughter filled the schoolyard.  The little boys had swagger and the little girls had confidence.  The children were gushing with affection.  Hugs and kisses were distributed freely.  Confidence and self-esteem enabled them to look directly into our eyes, with big smiles and big hearts, ready to receive our love and affection.  So this is what HOPE looks like!!  Feeding a hungry child fills the stomach, but love and prayer fills the heart.  And these kids have hope overflowing in their hearts.

If you are interested in sponsorsing one of the new children at Kind Hearts or Trees of Glory, please contact me at kjwistrom@yahoo.com.  We have 60 new children and only about 10 of the kids are still in need of a sponsor family!

I'd like to show you what HOPE looks like ...  These are some of the HOPE-FILLED kids that attend Trees of Glory care-point ...

 This is Dereje's original sponsor photo (above). 
Below - this is Dereje in November as he received his package from his sponsor family!

This is Konjit's original sponsor photo (above). 
Below - This is Konjit showing us a photo of her sponsor family!

This is Cheru's original sponsor photo (above).

Below - We watched this stoic and serious young man,
become giddy with joy as he laid eyes on his sponsor family.

This is Ashene's original sponsor photo (above).

Below- We all watched with tears when Ashene met his sponsor father face-to-face!

This is Adanu's original sponsor photo (above).

Below - This is Adanu as she received gifts from the sponsor family
that she knows loves her and prays for her!

This is Chala's original sponsor photo (above).

Below - Chala is able to attend the care-point because of his sponsor family!

This is Kube's original sponsor photo (above).

Below - Kube hugs the gifts she received from her sponsor family!

This is Dege's original sponsor photo (above).

Below - Dege is all smiles as he sees photos of his sponsor family!

This is Birtukan's original sponsor photo (above).

Below - Birtukan tells me about her sponsor family and shows me their photos!

This is Meseret's original sponsor photo (above).

Below - Meseret with quiet confidence as she looks at photos from her sponsor family.

This is Birtukan's original sponsor photo (above).

Below - This giggly, exuberant little girl was overjoyed at the
gifts and photos from her sponsor family!

Below - Here is a photo of our amazing travel team who made an incredible investment to travel to Ethiopia to demonstrate love and family to our precious kids at Kind Hearts and Trees of Glory!!!  This is the team that made sure that each and every child felt loved and special!!

"There is no way she would be able to attend school if it wasn't for her sponsorship" ...

Fitsum slipped her hand back into mine, as we now journeyed toward her home.  She was nearly skipping with excitement as we navigated narrow paths along rutted cow paths and small, square plots of land planted with Tef (wheat) that looked like it was nearly ready for harvest.  Beniam was still leading the way, looking over his shoulder every now and then to see if we were keeping up.  I felt Fitsum's hand squeeze mine and I looked up to see a little stick and mud house in the distance that her eyes were focused on.

I slowed my pace until she stopped and looked up at me.  "Is that your home," I asked her.  She nodded and we stopped for a picture with her family home in the background.

One of her sisters was keeping watch for us, and I saw a slim figure quickly vanish from her look-out spot.  I smiled knowing she was probably inside whispering "They're here!! They're here!!"  As we came around the corner, a thin, attractive woman met us at the door and greeted us warmly.  Fikre introduced everyone and then Fitsum's mother gestured toward the open door and invited us in.  Fitsum skipped inside, plopped onto a bench on the far wall, and patted the space beside her for me to sit next to her.  She entwined her arms in mine, and sat contentledly, swinging her feet, as we spoke with her family.

Fitsum's mother and father joined us on the benches - while her 3 sisters knelt or sat on the floor nearby.  Fitsum's father seemed to be staring blankly over my head, and I wondered if he was bored or maybe even enduring this meeting, perhaps feeling like we were invading his home  (but that was not the case).  After a few moments, he abruptly got up and exited the house, to pace back and forth in the yard, talking animatedly to himself.  Fitsum's mother then lowered her voice and explained something in great detail to Fikre.  He nodded with understanding - and then turned to explain to me.

Many years ago, when the children were much younger, he had started acting more and more strangely and distracted. Gesturing to her head, she had explained that he has a mental illness and disappears for long periods of time.  He is no longer capable of work, and so 3 of her 7 children work outside the home to support the family.  Her only son works for a farmer in his fields so that the family has something to live off of.  Two of her daughters work as daily laborers or house cleaners when they can find work.

All of the children work at various odd jobs so they can afford school fees.  Sometimes they are able to attend a government school and sometimes they cannot afford the uniforms, school supplies and books - so they work and save money, until they can attend school.  Fistum's three older sisters, who were all there with us in the house, were all focused on finishing school.

Her mother explained to me that Fitsum is the youngest of the family and was a surprise - she was not expecting to be able to have more children.  "If it was not for Kind Hearts and her sponsorship, there is no way that she would be able to go to school, since she is the youngest.  We are so thankful to her sponsor family."  I then explained that it is my parents who sponsor Fitsum and that they have a photo of her at their home.  Her mother smiled warmly and her eyes seemed to suddenly glisten with tears.  Noticing this, Fitsum wrapped her little arms around me even tighter and looked at her mother with a questioning expression.  Her mother said something to her in Amharic, and Fitsum responded with a flurry of soft-spoken words.  Fikre translated, "She says YOU are her second mother!"

I asked about each of her children and about her hopes for them.  As we got up to say our good-byes, I presented them with the coffee beans and sugar and thanked her for opening her home to us.  As she followed me to the door, I got a glimpse into the adjoining room which was there bedroom.  Sensing my curiosity, she asked one of the girls to open the shutter over the window to let light into the room. 

Similar to Beniam's family bedroom (except that this one had no bed), clothing was stored in plastic "grocery" sacks and a few garments hung from a rope clothes-line.  The family slept on what looked to be burlap sacks laid directly on the dirt floor.  There was even a short dirt "wall" that had been sculpted and formed from wet mud to separate the childrens' area from the adults'.  She showed me with gestures that she sleeps on one side of the wall, and several of her children sleep on the other side.  The older kids sleep in the main room on small mats and her husband now sleeps in a lean-to shelter that is attached to the kitchen.  She explained through the translator that he does not sleep in the house any longer because he sleeps in fits and has "episodes" that kept everyone awake at night.

I looked out the window to the stick and mud hut they used as a kitchen - and I could see plastic sheeting and rags that created a small, covered sleeping area for him. 

We stepped out into the sunlight to cross the yard to the "kitchen".  Inside the blackened interior I could see the remains of a cooking fire with ashes, and a large injera pan.  The kitchen was a separate structure from the house to keep the smell of food and smoke from permeating the house, and to keep the fire from blackening the interior of the house.  Fikre cautioned me as I stepped inside, "Be careful, it will smell like goat head in there."  I asked, "Why would it smell like goat head?"  And he laughed and pointed to the floor where the head of a goat laid.  "Oh - that's why,"  I said with a smile.

Each of the family members hugged us good-bye and again, I was honored with the affectionate 3 kisses from Fitsum's mother.  She hugged me tightly and asked Fikre to tell me to please visit again.  I asked if I could take a picture of the family in front of their home - and they loved looking at it afterwards. 

As we said good-bye, I told her how much I appreciated her clean home and how she mothered her children.  I told her what a "stand-out" Fitsum is and how my parents loved her the moment they saw her.  I also asked her if she realized how stunningly beautiful her daughters are.  She gestured to heaven in thanks and told me that she was very aware of their beauty.  I promised her that I would try to visit the next time I am in Ethiopia.  (And the next day when all the care-givers arrived for the meal we prepared, I caught her eye in the crowd as we prayed before the meal, and she waded through the crowd afterward to greet me and hug me again.  We were no longer strangers - we were now friends ... and even family.)

As we turned to leave, one of the sister tapped me lightly on the arm and spoke softly to me in Amharic.  I turned to Fikre to ask him to translate and he tilted his head and asked her to repeat what she had said.  She shyly asked again and Fikre turned to me and said, "She is asking if you have any pencils that you can give her for her schoolwork."  "Yes.  Pencils are very important for school! I agreed with her.  "When you pick Fitsum up from school this afternoon, find me and I will have pencils for you."

As we walked back to Kind Hearts, we had to climb off the walking path to let a boy and several cows go by.  The cows were worth several thousand dollars and I understood as I looked at the young boy that this is how he was earning a living for his family - by herding livestock all day and that he had a coveted and important job keeping track of cattle with such value.

A little later on our walk back to Kind Hearts, I was admiring a huge, sprawling tree and as we approached it, I noticed what looked like drums, secured in the branches.  Pointing to them, I asked Fikre what they were, and he explained that they were bee-hives, which a family will harvest the honey-comb to sell at the market.  (I had even noticed children selling dripping, sticky cakes of honey-comb on street corners in the villages.)

After my visit to Fitsum's home, she stayed close by my side each moment we were at Kind Hearts.  Her and I had made a special connection last year - and this year it was cemented even further.  Later that afternoon as the kids began to leave the care-point for home, I looked toward the edge of the schoolyard where Fitsum's sister had just arrived to walk her home.  The sun was low in the sky and there was a beautiful rosy glow in the trees as she waved to me.  I gathered up a handful of pencils, pens, markers and notebooks and offered them to her.  Her face broke into a beautiful smile and I asked her to do something for me ... "Work very hard in school!"  She nodded emphatically and hugged me.  Fitsum, her sister, and a few other kids stood under that acacia tree waving until our van drove out of the schoolyard.

She gave me the traditional 3 kisses as she invited me into her home ...

As we made our way through the traffic, dodging pedestrians and gasping for fresh air amid plumes of black exhaust fumes, Fikre leaned over to me and said, "We were able to arrange for you to visit the homes of two of the children today."  Months earlier, I had contacted Sarah at Children's Hopechest, asking her to arrange for me to make a few home visits while I was in Ethiopia.  I explained to her that I understood the care the kids were getting at the care-points and the needs we were addressing, but I wanted to better understand where the kids were living and in what conditions.

I looked at Fikre with surpise, and said, "Today?  Shouldn't we bring a Thank-You gift?  What is the custom here when visiting someone's home?"  Fikre smiled back at me and said, "Ah yes, that would be a good idea.  We will stop and purchase some gifts."  I asked what would be appreciated by the families we were visiting and he suggested we purchase coffee beans and sugar.  Both are considered a treat and would be very well-received.

Shortly after our quick stop at a roadside stand where they used an old-fashioned scale and weights to measure the coffee and sugar we requested, we arrived at Kind Hearts to a sea of little faces anxious to see us.  It felt like bedlam for awhile as little arms reached, and little hands grasped, and little lips kissed. 

A few hours later, Fikre motioned me to the edge of the schoolyard where Beniam and Fitsum (a little boy and a little girl that attend Kind Hearts) waited with big smiles that they could hardly contain.  (Beniam is sponsored by the Beal family, and Fitsum is sponsored by my parents!)

Beniam was so excited that he took the lead and quickly started to outdistance us, as he kept looking back over his shoulder and beckoning us to follow him.  Fitsum slipped her hand into mine and we followed Beniam for about 20 minutes as we walked to his home through the beautiful Ethiopian countryside.

The views were stunning as we crested a hill and walked down into a valley to cross a small river on stepping stones.  Then back up the hill on the other side, through a field of Tef (wheat), along a mud path that was deeply rutted with livestock tracks and hoofprints during the rainy season.  Then across another river, and we grabbed hold of Eucalyptus tree trunks to pull ourselves up a steep incline where several mud & stick homes were clustered on the edge of a hill. 

As we came around the corner of the house, an old man who seemed to be waiting and watching for us, looked up, eyes wide with surprise, and quickly ducked into a dark doorway.  Suddenly a small woman appeared and shyly approached us.  A conversation in Amharic ensued and then she gestured to me to come into her home, where she embraced me and gave me the traditional and affectionate 3 kisses, alternating from one cheek to the other and then back.  Fikre explained that she had said they were expecting a visitor but not a "Firenge" - a foreigner - and she was so nervous and very honored to have me in her home.

We ducked through the doorway into the darkened room, and as my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I noticed how the interior walls of this mud & dung hut had been painted repeatedly until they had an almost smooth, glossy coat.  Beniam disappeared into an adjoining room (their bedroom) where he rummaged through a few sacks of clothing looking for his school uniform. 

His mother explained that he was embarassed to have forgotten to wear it, especially on a day with special visitors.  When he could not find it in the bedroom, he came out and we had to stand up to look in the small wooden chest that we were using as a bench.  And there it was, with a few other items of tattered clothing.  He grabbed it, went into the other room to change, and emerged with a proud smile on his face to come and sit by me, while I talked with his mother.

Beniam's mother explained that her husband had died about 1 1/2 years ago of AIDS.  He had gotten sick and had just wasted away.  I asked if she was sick or any of the kids, and she said, "I was tested and am not infected," raising her hands and eyes toward heaven in thankfulness.  When her husband died, her elderly father moved in with them to help her with the house.  She does not have regular work and it has been a struggle to provide for her and the 3 children and her father.  As we spoke, I could hear voices from the other side of a tin partition, and she explained that they rent the other room of their house for income and they put up that piece of tin to separate the two rooms.

Beniam's little brother, who looked to be about 2 or 3 years old, had been standing near the doorway and seemed to be visibly upset, but his mother gestured to him with a smile and he climbed onto her lap and began nursing.  He also has an older sister, maybe about 7 years old, who sat quietly with us, listening with great interest.  Her mother explained that she is very thankful for Kind Hearts because Benaim's sponsorship enables him to have food everyday and an education.  Without the sponsorship, they would struggle to feed the other kids and none of them would have the opportunity to go to school.  (The older sister does not attend school.)

We chatted for about 40 minutes before we needed to go visit Fitsum's family.  I asked if I could see the bedroom and she grandly pulled back the little curtain in the doorway to show me a dark room with little pinpoint shafts of light that revealed a single bed.  I looked up at the tin roof with the holes that let the sunlight through, and asked if it got wet when it rained.  She smiled and said, "sometimes but it's not too bad."  She then gestured back to the main room (which was barely 10x10) and explained that her father slept on the floor in that room, while she slept on the small bed with all 3 of her children.

As we stepped out into the bright sunlight to say our good-byes, I asked her if the swelling on her neck was troublesome.  She explained that she has goiter and most of the time it really doesn't bother her, but when it swells, it becomes hard to breathe.  I complimented her on her tidy home and told her that I could see how much she loved her children and that she was a good mother.  I told her that she can be very proud of Beniam because he is such a good and sweet boy who loves her very much and is working hard in school. 

I also told her that the Beal family in America loves Beniam and prays for him and his family, and that I would tell them about our visit.  She hugged me again and again, as Beniam took my hand and with a big smile, he waved to his mom and pulled me along the path as we walked to Fitsum's.

The next day, we prepared a big feast for the children and we invited their care-givers too.  There were about 70 adults that arrived for that meal and as we explained to them why we were in Ethiopia and how far we had travelled to spend these precious days with their children, I picked out Beniam's mother in the room and nodded to her as she smiled at me and put her hands over her heart in a gesture of appreciation. 

Next blog post ... My visit to Fitsum's home.

I wish you could have seen the looks on their faces!

As of tonight, every single Kind Hearts sponsor family has been emailed photos of their sponsor child as they received their care-package!!  Tomorrow night, I will start working on the Trees of Glory photos and will begin emailing each sponsor family their photos.  Based on how long it took to sort and match the photos for Kind Hearts, the next batch of photos will take 3-4 days.

At Kind Hearts, there are about 100 children attending the care-point now and we wanted to spend quality time with each child as they received this special package from their sponsor family.  While we were delivering care-packages, the rest of the kids were doing various activities with the other travel team members - decorating tote bags, playing soccer or frisbee, making necklaces, making popsicle-stick frames for a photo of themselves, playing parachute games, etc.

We set up a room with 3 "stations", and the kids were anxious to see what was happening in that room.  Each station had 3 chairs - one for the child to sit next to an American, and a translator.  The travel team member (with the help of the translator) explained what was in the care-package to each child.  They showed them each gift and "oooohed" and "aaaaaahed" with them as each item was unveiled.  Some items even needed further explanation if the child looked confused or puzzled.  Letters were read, and each child listened intently to the words.  Finally, photos emerged and I found myself with tears welling up in my eyes as we watched little faces light up with excitement.

As each child left the room with their care-package tucked into their tote-bag for safe-keeping, we watched as they shared the photos of their sponsor family with their friends and teachers.  Throughout the rest of the afternoon, it was heart-warming to see the kids peeking into their bags again and again to look at your photos.

 I love this photo because you can see the kids patiently waiting in line
at the door for their turn!!