A few weeks ago, during a gathering of our Project 7 group, it was mentioned that my girlfriends would like to do a garage sale to help us raise money for our Haiti adoption/trip, which was not even planned at that point, just a hope, a dream.
Wow! Sure! Great idea! Fast forward...I have no words sufficient to describe yesterday's yard sale and the number of people who knowingly and unknowingly contributed to it's success. Huge, huge success.
My dear friend, Natasha, lead the troops and organized the day. I am in awe of her selflessness. As word got out, she just kept getting calls, texts, messages.
"I have stuff to donate."
"I'll bake for the bake sale."
"I'll make lemonade."
"I'll bring lunch."
"I'll help with tables and set up or break down."
People just kept stepping in to help. What was going to be held at my house, was now in the parking lot of Kyle's Discount on Main St., hugely visible to everyone who drives through town. Prime location. And Kyle was kind beyond words. Wouldn't take money to rent the lot, put up tents for us to have shade, let us borrow clothes racks, and on and on.
As the day went on, I realized quickly this was not going to be a few hundred dollars for our trip. I was giddy with the thought that we may have our tickets paid for, or at least close!! That would have been amazing! At 1:00 I ran to the bank with some of the money...Tickets AND room/board were paid for! By 1:00!! We still had 5 hours left!! I cried all the way back from the bank.
As the afternoon went on we marked things down, and had a fill a bag for a donation the last few hours. $100 for a bag of clothes and a lamp, $40 for some toys and books, $20 for nothing. And one women sticks out in my mind. She browsed for a bit, walked up to the table, and handed me $3. "I didn't find anything, but this is what I have." She gave what she had.
Goose bumpy kind of cool stuff happened all day.
By the end of the day, the final count was MORE then enough. MORE! I get such a kick out of this kind of thing.
We are so blessed with a group of friends that are selfless, generous, thoughtful and believe in a God who can take our efforts and multiply them. We have a community that thinks nothing of helping others.
We are humbled by the entire experience.
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Monday, June 18, 2012
Avenues
I'm struggling a bit with some of this adoption stuff. And maybe not how you would think. It's so complicated. So multi-faceted, so much bigger then a "simple" solution.
We so want to adopt, but our reasons are shifting. Our perspective is broadening. The whys and hows are getting messy.
The more I read and talk and research and pray, the more I understand that we may be a part of a bigger solution. I'm asking myself more and more not how many children could we adopt, but rather how many Haitian families can we help stay together. It's a different solution to the same problem. So, so many blogs I read have been putting this idea to work. Helping men and women keep their children seems like a much better solution then to take a child from it's native land. It is still a valuable solution, but not the best. I NEVER thought of this before. I would have NEVER came to that conclusion on my own. Poor babies+rich Americans=adoption=less poor babies. Right?
It's not that simple.
Adoption is still very much a part of what we want to do. Although, I am starting to feel like this is beginning to be much less about what I want and more of what God wants as we move along. That's a good thing, but I just don't know how that's going to look down the road.
We so want to adopt, but our reasons are shifting. Our perspective is broadening. The whys and hows are getting messy.
The more I read and talk and research and pray, the more I understand that we may be a part of a bigger solution. I'm asking myself more and more not how many children could we adopt, but rather how many Haitian families can we help stay together. It's a different solution to the same problem. So, so many blogs I read have been putting this idea to work. Helping men and women keep their children seems like a much better solution then to take a child from it's native land. It is still a valuable solution, but not the best. I NEVER thought of this before. I would have NEVER came to that conclusion on my own. Poor babies+rich Americans=adoption=less poor babies. Right?
It's not that simple.
Adoption is still very much a part of what we want to do. Although, I am starting to feel like this is beginning to be much less about what I want and more of what God wants as we move along. That's a good thing, but I just don't know how that's going to look down the road.
Bring the rain
You know how the air changes before a big storm. The sky shifts, the air temperature drops, the air smells and feels different.
That's what if feels like RIGHT NOW in our lives.
And I know that storm will bring much needed rain, but the wind will be strong, the hail may be large, but we so need that rain...
We're already getting those first few beautiful sprinkles...
I knew way back when we first started talking about adopting from Haiti that we wouldn't be able to do it alone. And we're not alone.
There is this sense that our lives need to be in order to embark on a journey like this. I know some will not understand why and why now for us. We don't make much money, we have 4 children already, we have very busy, wonderful lives.
What's interesting is that over the course of the past few months those are the very things I wrestle with. Pros and cons. Risk vs. reward. The hows and whys.
I live in a comfy place of low expectations. I expect pretty basic things from people and from myself. Which makes this whole thing very intriguing to even me. This is bigger than us. This drive and desire to know intimately what Haitian life is like, how their culture thinks, how we can be of the greatest service to them, does not come from me. It can only come from Him. It's an excited fear I feel. How do you explain knowing a journey will be painful and difficult and WANTING it!?!
My answer to every inquiry, comment, speculation is "I don't know." I don't know how we're going to afford our trip, our possible adoption, and/or whatever opportunity arise from our trip. I don't know what issues our future children may have, biological or adopted. I don't know why we feel this way about this foreign country. I don't know why now. I don't know why so many people have rallied around us with a MASSIVE garage sale, bake sale, lemonade stand! I don't know why we have these people in our lives at this moment?
All I do know is we need to go down this path. I honestly don't feel like I have any control of it anyway. I am an observer to what God will orchestrate. In just these few short months, I can see His hand here and there.
And while feeling like an observer, I know there is so much we will need to do. This will be the most challenging thing we've done. We will be pushed and pulled and grown. It may be a complete disaster. And I welcome it. I don't want to think or feel or act like the world can't be helped by little ol' me and a great big God. Bring the rain!
Mercy Me's song :-)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8HgAVenbUU
That's what if feels like RIGHT NOW in our lives.
And I know that storm will bring much needed rain, but the wind will be strong, the hail may be large, but we so need that rain...
We're already getting those first few beautiful sprinkles...
I knew way back when we first started talking about adopting from Haiti that we wouldn't be able to do it alone. And we're not alone.
There is this sense that our lives need to be in order to embark on a journey like this. I know some will not understand why and why now for us. We don't make much money, we have 4 children already, we have very busy, wonderful lives.
What's interesting is that over the course of the past few months those are the very things I wrestle with. Pros and cons. Risk vs. reward. The hows and whys.
I live in a comfy place of low expectations. I expect pretty basic things from people and from myself. Which makes this whole thing very intriguing to even me. This is bigger than us. This drive and desire to know intimately what Haitian life is like, how their culture thinks, how we can be of the greatest service to them, does not come from me. It can only come from Him. It's an excited fear I feel. How do you explain knowing a journey will be painful and difficult and WANTING it!?!
My answer to every inquiry, comment, speculation is "I don't know." I don't know how we're going to afford our trip, our possible adoption, and/or whatever opportunity arise from our trip. I don't know what issues our future children may have, biological or adopted. I don't know why we feel this way about this foreign country. I don't know why now. I don't know why so many people have rallied around us with a MASSIVE garage sale, bake sale, lemonade stand! I don't know why we have these people in our lives at this moment?
All I do know is we need to go down this path. I honestly don't feel like I have any control of it anyway. I am an observer to what God will orchestrate. In just these few short months, I can see His hand here and there.
And while feeling like an observer, I know there is so much we will need to do. This will be the most challenging thing we've done. We will be pushed and pulled and grown. It may be a complete disaster. And I welcome it. I don't want to think or feel or act like the world can't be helped by little ol' me and a great big God. Bring the rain!
Mercy Me's song :-)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8HgAVenbUU
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Full Circle awesomeness
Last week, it all came together. The full circle. The moment when the trajectories meet again. When history and connections and memories show us that our decisions and lives can sometimes lead us back to someone from our past. I was talking to my dad last week about our Haiti adventures. About our contact, Pastor Thomas Bernard and how much I have enjoyed emailed back and forth with him.
He was explaining to me some of the long family connections and in passing said, "you know some 20 years ago, Grandpa and Granpma sponsored Thomas when he was at the seminary."
I said, "He's not that Thomas. The "Israel and Thomas" Thomas!"
Dad: "Yeah, he is."
Me: Laughing and somewhat in shock...
You see, I've met Pastor Bernard and I didn't know that was who I was communicating with.
If you remember back a few months when this adventure was starting for us I wrote about these 2 Haitian men that my grandparents had taking care of and how I loved them and they are who started my lifelong love for Haiti. One of those men is Pastor Thomas Bernard and I didn't know it! We just ALWAYS referred to them as "Israel and Thomas". No last names.
He and Israel called my grandparents, "mom and dad." We would often talk of them over the years and it just never occured to me that the Haitian Thomas that I knew was in fact, THIS Haitian Thomas that I was emailing.
Pretty awesome, right?
So here's a little family tree action...Pastor Louis and Luci started a Lutheran church in Haiti and my grandparents were missionaries there and stayed very close with Pastor and Luci over the years. Thomas Bernard is Luci's brother. He started a different Lutheran church 15+ years ago without much support from the states. His sister-in-law, Josie, runs an orphanage. An orphanage that I hope and pray we will be able to visit in August and talk with her about adopting from that orphanage.
The connections are pretty cool, huh?
He was explaining to me some of the long family connections and in passing said, "you know some 20 years ago, Grandpa and Granpma sponsored Thomas when he was at the seminary."
I said, "He's not that Thomas. The "Israel and Thomas" Thomas!"
Dad: "Yeah, he is."
Me: Laughing and somewhat in shock...
You see, I've met Pastor Bernard and I didn't know that was who I was communicating with.
If you remember back a few months when this adventure was starting for us I wrote about these 2 Haitian men that my grandparents had taking care of and how I loved them and they are who started my lifelong love for Haiti. One of those men is Pastor Thomas Bernard and I didn't know it! We just ALWAYS referred to them as "Israel and Thomas". No last names.
He and Israel called my grandparents, "mom and dad." We would often talk of them over the years and it just never occured to me that the Haitian Thomas that I knew was in fact, THIS Haitian Thomas that I was emailing.
Pretty awesome, right?
So here's a little family tree action...Pastor Louis and Luci started a Lutheran church in Haiti and my grandparents were missionaries there and stayed very close with Pastor and Luci over the years. Thomas Bernard is Luci's brother. He started a different Lutheran church 15+ years ago without much support from the states. His sister-in-law, Josie, runs an orphanage. An orphanage that I hope and pray we will be able to visit in August and talk with her about adopting from that orphanage.
The connections are pretty cool, huh?
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
12 years
ago I got married. I spent all day getting ready and I didn't see him at all that day until the wedding which ended up being at 9:45 PM. It was exciting and I was blissfully happy all day knowing I would get to see him that night!
Yeah.
Fastforward 12 years and we saw each other for a 45 minute lunch before I had to run off and pick up Autumn from a camp and he had to get back to work. May see him for another half hour or so before the day is over. Timewise, not all that different from that wedding day. Lifewise, we're on another planet.
It's ok. Would I like to spend my anniversary actually seeing the hubs? Sure, I would. The reality is that jobs, kids, schedules, ball games, etc made that tough this year.
What 12 years has made me realize is that those special, meaningful moments that you expect to have on big days (anniversaries, birthdays, holidays), get spread out. We still have those mushy, feel good days, but they're random. We grab them as we go along. The truth is I like it that way. I like our crazy, busy life. I still like my husband, which I think trumps "love" at this point in the game. I like knowing that just because we didn't get that date night or fancy gift or honeymoon, we're still good. Really good.
I'm excited to see him tonight when he gets home, maybe moreso than I was that night 12 years ago. We'll have a drink on the porch, chat about what's going on and call it a Happy Anniversary day!
Yeah.
Fastforward 12 years and we saw each other for a 45 minute lunch before I had to run off and pick up Autumn from a camp and he had to get back to work. May see him for another half hour or so before the day is over. Timewise, not all that different from that wedding day. Lifewise, we're on another planet.
It's ok. Would I like to spend my anniversary actually seeing the hubs? Sure, I would. The reality is that jobs, kids, schedules, ball games, etc made that tough this year.
What 12 years has made me realize is that those special, meaningful moments that you expect to have on big days (anniversaries, birthdays, holidays), get spread out. We still have those mushy, feel good days, but they're random. We grab them as we go along. The truth is I like it that way. I like our crazy, busy life. I still like my husband, which I think trumps "love" at this point in the game. I like knowing that just because we didn't get that date night or fancy gift or honeymoon, we're still good. Really good.
I'm excited to see him tonight when he gets home, maybe moreso than I was that night 12 years ago. We'll have a drink on the porch, chat about what's going on and call it a Happy Anniversary day!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)