A Generous Heart

   It was a very long, but wonderful day! I walked to Smile Africa in the in the hot African sun…and I have a nice burn to prove it! It was a really nice, peaceful walk. I walked straight to Smile Africa so that I could spend as much time with my kids as possible. As soon as I arrived, Betty ran and jumped into my arms. I really missed those greetings in the morning. Soon after, Bogere also came at running at me and leaped into my arms, knowing that I would catch him. The 3 of us then walked in to the clinic to say hello to all the staff that I had not seen yet. The second I walked in the room, everyone screamed! We all hugged and laughed and had a nice time catching up with one another. I really missed all of these people.

   I then walked into the baby room to say hello to Caleb. The second I walked in the room he laughed and smiled and came running over to me. That was usually how I started my day… a running hug from Caleb. It was so great to have him back in my arms again. Once I spent some time with Caleb, I walked around Smile Africa and said hello to the other 400 children that I was used to seeing on a daily basis. Most of them remembered my name and ran to give me a hug. I felt so blessed to have all the kids remembering who I was.

   My dad was coming to Tororo, so Pastor Ruth went to pick him up from the near by airfield and I remained at Smile Africa. Finally my dad arrived. It was a special day for the near by slum. Our church had raised money to build portable toilets for the slum near Smile Africa. This was a huge deal because sanitation is a serious issue. There is a lot of disease in this slum because of the lack of good toilets. It was a really exciting moment to finally have the toilets up and working for these people. It is really going to help out a lot. It was such a great celebration as the people rejoiced with one another. It was such an honor to experience it.

   As I walked through the slum, I recognized a lot of the people…and they recognized me. I had spent a lot of time with them, talking with them and making sure their children got home safely. Most of them knew me because of the situation that happened with Bogere. They were there when Bogere’s mother asked me to take him away in fear of his life, they were there when I tried to offer her a way out, and they were all there when Bogere’s step father beat his mother to death. I guess you can say, I have been through a lot with these people.

   As a church, we also raised money to buy some mattresses for guardians of our children. The majority of the Smile Africa children and their mother sleep on the floor, in the dirt or mud. We raised money so that these children could have a safe place to sleep that would keep them safe, comfortable, and protect them from disease. Pastor Ruth, my dad and I, passed out these mattresses to the women and they were so excited! As we handed out each mattress, their eyes lit up with so much joy. They would finally have a comfortable place to sleep…some of them, for the first time in their life.

   Smile Africa also just rescued a little boy, Clovis. This sweet boy is suffering badly from HIV, malnourishment, abuse, and neglect. He is so tiny, I could feel every single one of this bones. Clovis is about 7 years old, but has the weight of a 1 year old. As I held his little body in my arms, my heart broke. He had a very high fever and needed to be rushed to the hospital. I wanted to stay with him every second. I held him on my lap and prayed for him. I prayed that God would move quickly in this boy’s body, I prayed for miraculous healing. Please pray for Clovis, everyone. Since he has HIV and is very very sick, he needs miraculous healing, or he will die. Please pray.

   This was a very busy day, but a rewarding one. I was so glad to be able to see the people in the slum get new toilets and mattresses. Seeing the joy on their faces was amazing. My heart, though, is still burdened with the suffering of Clovis. I am giving it God and praying with my whole heart.

“Thank you Jesus for all that you do for us. Thank you for loving us and keeping us safe. Thank you for providing a way for the people to have new toilets and mattresses. I pray that they will take good care of them so that they will have them for a long time. Please heal Clovis’ body. Take all the suffering away. Thank you for his healing and bringing him to Smile Africa. We love you. Amen.”