updates

We haven't posted in some time so here is what we've been up to:
1. My love of redoing furniture has been flaring up a lot so here are the pieces I have been working on;
first, a chest of drawers given to us by our parents that will go in Ivey's room since we are moving her to the room with no closets. I painted it turqoise-which is slowly creeping into first place for my favorite color-and modpodged different scrapbook papers on each drawer face. I did not change this hardware because I like the ones that were there and they were in good condition.


These are two candle sticks also given to us by parents who grabbed them when our aunt was getting rid of them. I was wanting some kind of planter for our orchids and these worked out great. I just painted them cafe mocha and added my favorite material: burlap.


This antique phone desk was given to us by a friend who got it from someone else who was getting rid of it. It was stained a dark color and had a dusty old torn red fabric for a seat. This green is too bright for me so I intend to repaint it a more sage green but haven't gotten to it yet.

There are always several project going on at the same time here at our house. I don't know if I could function any other way. Right now there are two in the garage that I am so excited about. One is a tv stand that we recived from parents who were redoing their playroom. I am adding a spring rod to make it an armoir for Iveys room. I intend to paint it, paper the inside and put on new knobs which I got on sale 50% off at Hobby Lobby. They are these great pink and white swirled vintage glass knobs. I can't wait to finish that. Iveys birthday is in Jan. and I am in the process of making her a doll house. She has been so nurturing to her little dolls lately that I couldn't resist a doll house. I searched for ideas online and came up with one I like. Those photos will be on a different post.
Since I have been so busy with projects Levi has taken up cooking, and reading to his animals


and of course he loves his train set and I am more and more impressed with his skill at putting together great track designs.
We did a crayon project together where you take all the crayon scraps and bake them in egg shells to make new crayons. We had plenty to use since our children seem to LOVE coloring(ie throwing the crayons at each other) lately.


And Ivey, when she's not whining, or getting lipstick everywhere just dances and sings all the time...but that is my next post....

New items in store at GreenIvey@etsy.com

Lavender Bubble with gingham ribbon tie straps and elastic legs.

this is a recap of our trip that Erica did.
http://vimeo.com/12292225

Four years

When I was around eight years old I lived in an apartment building next door to a friend named Charity. We both stayed home while our mothers worked (For my social worker friends-her mom was the neighborhood manager and was only a building away). We were not allowed to go outside so we would talk on the phone. This apparently was not enough as I decided that I needed to be on a more personal level and see her face to face. This problem I solved by deciding to drill a hole in the wall. When my mom got home I could not understand the gasp and utter disbelief. Surely she was proud of all the hours of hard work that had gone into this solution. She was not. And, neither was Charity's mom whom had to rehang a picture that I had apparently knocked off.
A few weeks ago I walked into our master bedroom to find Levi carving a hole in the wall with a screwdriver. The first thought that entered my mind was, "What in the world is he thinking?" but the second was that my mom's curse/blessing worked. How many times had she said she wished for me to have a child just like myself.
For four years now I have witnessed a progression in slow motion. A child who is becoming scarily, strangely like me. And there is no way I could love him any more than I already do. He got Andrew's humor and I laugh at him all the time. I wished for freckles across the nose and he has them. I so love my firstborn son and I have so loved these last four years that I have been blessed to be a mother. I pray for many many more.
Beautiful little Ivey:

The last day

On the last day at the center the children had a going away ceremony planned. We did not, however, see it all. It began with some beautiful songs led by Betty and Sam. There was a procession of girls in grass skirts that danced. There was intent praying for us and our safe travels. There was a time where the kids were able to tell what they were thankful for. One little boy from Shengi got up and told how thankful he was to have a place to sleep and food to eat since his father died in a ferry accident and his mother couldn't feed him. Then he sat down, put his head in his hands and cried. That was the beginning of the end. The next song was one where the kids would sing verses to each of the American women leaving. Sam and Betty's sponsor Lori was on this trip and as the song started Sam sang the verse 'thank you mommy Lori, you gave us hope when all our hope was gone' and all the kids joined in to say 'it is hard to say goodbye to someone like you'. Anyone who has followed TRS and knows the background in this relationship knows that those verses couldn't be more true. The place Sam, Betty, and Fallah came from is the stuff of horror movies and nightmares. A place where any unimaginably horrible thing that could happen-did. So Sam had a hard time getting the words out and I had a hard time holding back sobs. When I looked over at Lori, she couldn't hide the tears behind her sunglasses. Next was Karen who sponsors Fatmata. Fatmata sang, 'thank you auntie Karen, you gave us love when all.....'. She couldn't finish because she was crying. I pulled out a tissue b/c at this point there is no disguising my own tears. During each of these verses I discretely looked at Albert and John. I was trying not to make eye contact knowing the risk I ran of sobbing uncontrollably. To late. Albert was crying. Oh no, oh no. Amy confirms what I just saw and I have to go to him. As the kids sang on I held Albert to me while he cried so hard his body palpatated. No noise, just crying. And I am so far gone. This is breaking my heart. The song ends and the caretakers tell the kids they can go hug the aunties. So every kid swarms the women and there is a time of everyone just crying. Like a funeral. I looked around thinking about what a bizarre event I was witnessing. I looked for John and when I found him he too was crying. I picked him up and held him for a minute rubbing the back of his neck. We all sat down and all I could do was tell them that I was coming back. Uncle Andrew and I were coming back. But they already know. Even thought we will be back it will be many months. As we left I felt so terrible. It was an extremely long set of flights home. My stomach was tense and my throat was strained from holding back the symphony that I didn't want the other passengers to hear. My eyelids are tired not only from the lack of sleep but from holding back an inevitable flood. And at about 3:00pm on Wednesday I was happily reunited with my family at the airport. But as we walk out I can't help but think of a place half way around the world where there are 79 little people who are laying their heads down for the night that have no hope of being reunited with theirs. Make no mistake about what I am saying. They have fantastic caregivers and teachers, and The Raining Season is a really great place. But it is still an orphanage. They can't celebrate every birthday. They don't have parents telling them how proud they are when they learned to dress themselves, when they have great results on report cards or even when they do well on their driving tests. If they fall down there is only time to quickly assess the injuries and brush off when there are 79 kids to care for. You don't get held until you calm down because there's not time for that. As great as the caretakers are they aren't able to ask each child personally how their day was. And so my heart hurts for these kids. They are such beautiful little spirits and deserve so much more than that. This is not the last day I will see them, but it is the last day I will see them for months. All I can do for now is pray that God will give them peace and courage until the very last day when they will have all they dreamed and more. When love will be in abundance and they will never fear if they will eat the next day. And I will be there then, laughing, dancing and singing a different song right alongside them.





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The Covering

Today Dr. Auntie Nicole did checkups on all the kids and it turns out a few had to go in for sicknesses. One of which was Malige. They were gone for a short while and I didn't really think many people noticed them depart but when they drove back in all these kids went running to the car yelling, 'MALIGE! MALIGE! MALIGE!' in almost a cheering chant like form. I was so taken aback. Erica and I just looked at each other in surprise. What a sweet little family of kids this is. He was truely missed by his friends and they were so concerned. Isn't that the sweetest thing in the world?

the poorest place in the world

I just kept trying to look forward, following Lori's lead to jump a puddle when necessary. I tried not to notice the dog who had taken a machete to the back and I REALLY tried not to notice the woman who had taken one to the face. I being the usually chatty type did not open my mouth, but it wasn't because I didn't want to talk. There were bugs. If I did, I said short answers and held my teeth together. Once we got to the center of kroo bay I listened intently as the people welcomed us. I couldn't understand or hear what they were saying. As I was trying to keep up this mind game of not talking or looking I watched the area about the size of two soccer fields. It was all dirt, with some mud puddles from the rain. I saw a pig leave its mark. Jessie said in my ear that all these kids just pile into people's homes at night because most of them are orphaned. What? I forgot my mind game for a split second. I saw some of the kids faces full of anticipation. And before long the games began. The boys on our team had given away every soccer ball and every team began playing around with their new prize. I began to count how many naked children there were, how many with only undies on. I lost count. Then I forgot to only look forward because suddenly I had to step back. They were kicking the ball our way and running through the muddy pig refuse. It splashed right before me almost onto one of my teammates. They were barefoot! All the sudden one of the women grabbed my hand. I struggled mentally to smile and shake her hand and when I tried to pull away she held it tight smiling and trying to talk to me. Oh no. So I squeezed her, smiled and tried again still to no avail. She isn't going to let go. Still smiling. Still trying to talk to me and I still can't understand. So I diverted the attention to the baby she was holding and then I forgot again. I did the pigs to market game with her fingers and tried to tickle the baby who did not think it was funny. Probably because children are smart. Then I noticed the large empty yellow jug she kept scooting around to keep close to her. Probably her water jug. Then it was time to follow the team back to the cars and go. I am ready. Just as I thought I had escaped she was there again, to walk me out. She held my hand all the way up the hill. She mysteriously found that third hand I always wish I had when I am holding Ivey. She held her baby and jug and my hand. And while I got in the car and drove back to the hotel I had to think about who won. She was the picture of hospitality, trying to engage me in conversation and make me feel comfortable, walking me out as a face for her people thanking me for the visit. And when I lie down tonight in this air conditioned room on this mattress and pillow-with a blanket, she will collect water for herself and her baby that is full of parasites and she will probably go back to a tin shingled hut and lay on the ground. Who knows if she will eat tonight or even tomorrow for that matter. And I would like a rematch. Because in the war of the spirit I know already that I fell short. I already know I disappointed on a grand scale. Since I can’t go back I have to go forward and hope that I am able to do it again. I will not look only forward, I will look around. I will not stay silent and clench my teeth about this atrocity. I will not choose to draw back but to embrace these lost souls who suffer much. And I am so thankful that I got to learn that lesson by the grace of that sweet girl. And I’ll pray that if she noticed my discomfort that she is comforted in knowing she was the bigger person.

malaria

So now that the word is out I'll just tell everyone now that I am back to 100%. I got it a few days ago and it totally knocked me out of beach day. I hated that I missed that whole day with the kids but it is what it is. I had to get some shots but I felt better the next day. I wasn't planning to tell anyone b/c I didn't want anyone to worry. I really am ok. Thanks for all the prayers and concerns.

Silly Faces

This video of Albert and Isatu is so funny.

Jeniba laughs

Andrew: You wake me up every day. Don’t need no starbucks. I was like baby baby baby OOOOOOOHHHHHH. Like baby baby baby OOOOOHHHH. That was on Foday’s radio today and I just had to laugh and think of you! For anyone who doesn’t know, Andrew is a huge Justin Beiber and Miley Cirus fan.
This day was mostly spent at the center. We gave the kids their sponsor gifts. For some of them it was the first toy they had ever had. Amazing what a joy a $1 hot wheel can be.
There are so many little things I noticed today that I decided to just make a list instead of paragraph form.
• Sierra Leonian drivers honk their horns more in one day than Americans do in two years. They honk for all the people in the street to move. They honk at dogs. They honk at the guards to open the doors.
• We passed a gate today where someone had handwritten in white paint ‘look out for bad dogs’. I don’t know why but that really made me laugh for a long time.
• TO HOLLY: The kids loved the bears, raccoons, rabbits, and bumble bee’s! You should be so proud of all the time and hard work you spent on your hot chocolate and lemonade stand. Here are a few pictures for you.


• Jeneba laughs and smiles now!!! If that were the only thing I saw this week I would be reaffirmed that The Covering is a great place.
• Today I saw bulges in John’s pockets so I asked him what he had in there. He proudly displayed one red and one blue bottle cap (like from a plastic water bottle). I am not sure what he usually does with such treasures but today we tried to flip them by slamming our fingers on the rim. He laughed hysterically so it attracted the attention of several others which began a long line of ‘turns’. Why do I note this? Because he obviously wanted them and yet he didn’t try to keep them in his possession. He was happy to let the others play it to. I was surprised because I mistakenly assumed he would act selfishly. Why would I assume the worst when everything I have seen from these kids indicates the opposite? They are so helpful to each other. I saw several kids at lunchtime feeding the younger kids. And I saw several sharing their brand new toys from sponsors willingly and happily as soon as they walked around the corner with them. I also saw Albert standing by Dauda looking concerned and supportive when he got a bad scrape on his shin. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, they are such beautiful little people!
• If you would like to give to a great cause for 79 orphans, there are 2 needs at the center: one is a water tank which cost about $900 to buy and install. Also, they need a generator which runs about $1200. For more information you can go to Savetheorphan.blogspot.com
• So, after watching the process of feeding about 75 kids I have decided not to complain about how many pieces of silverware we go through or how I have to sweep after every meal. These people do such a great job! Everything runs so smoothly, especially considering the staff to kid ratio.
• Lastly, the staff had washed and hung all the laundry to dry before they went home for the day. After a while I saw a few of the pieces had blown off b/c they don’t use clips they just drape them over the line which by the way happens to be high on one side and very low on the other. So I went over to pick them up and put them back on the line. Isatu followed me and ran her hand down the length of the line bunching the clothes up until they would fall off in the dirt. I turned around and said “No Isatu” and began hanging them again. Just as I got the first one up she had gone around me to the other side and did it again! And twice while she was doing it I said very sternly “No Isatu!” and she giggled and giggled and did it a third time! I had to get Fodey to tell her to stop. I would like to give her the benefit of the doubt and say she didn’t understand but I find it highly unlikely……..

Beach Day

Unfortunatly, John wasn't feeling well so he didn't have a great day but everyone else definately did.

impressions

It is so funny what misconceptions you can have. What thoughts you think under total assumptions. And, it is funny what you can be totally spot on about without any knowledge of it. I met John and Isatu's father today. He was smaller than I imagined. Only about an inch taller than me. I wasn't nervous b/c I assumed he wouldn't be there. Then when we drove up all the sudden there he was and here I am looking like a mess coming from serving at the hospital all morning in the heat. For the second day in a row I felt like a complete nerd but what can you do when you are one. So, I just had to hope that he would like me as I was. And he almost cried. He hugged me. Several times. He held my hand and walked me through his home. I complimented his home and he proudly posed for photos with me. I lost count of how many times he said thank you. And we both understood some strange connection of caring for his kids. And I love him. I love this man that I do not know because he is a pastor of the United Methodist Church there in Grafton. I love him because he gave up a most prized possession-3 actually-in a selfless act to help others. And I love him because he totally accepted me and was so kind. He was exactly who I pictured him to be when I first saw his children. Just not as tall.

Andrew, I am happy to tell you that I did not see Yanni at St. George's Foundation and I did not give her the photos. I found out she was one of the Network kids and has been reunited with her family. Praise God for saving her life. So, I gave the 4 photos to the other kids there and told them how I was your wife and that you were sad you couldn't come but that it was my turn to get to visit them. I also took a photo with them that I told them we would bring copies of the next time we are there. Also, I am so happy to report that Lucy was doing great! We were so amazed that she was responsive, hugging Lori, and clapping with the beat when the other kids were. I couldn't have been happier about that.

We only saw the kids for about an hour today since we were on the east side of town all day. I felt bad because the kids just woke up when we got there and we very groggy. Then I really think Albert was disappointed when I had to leave so quickly. I know I was. We did spend the time drawing and I have a great little page of doodles that are supposed to be me, andrew, levi and ivey in my journal courtesy of Albert. Tomorrow we are supposed to leave at 9:30 and go to the beach all day with the kids. I am so excited! Pray for safe travels since we will be transporting at least 100 people on roads that are about as safe as hunting in Arkansas.

Also, I have nothing to say about the children's hospital. Like they say, pictures speak a thousand words.

Unexpected Events

yesterday I new I would lose connections so I posted a short bit and did photos and sure enough I did. Here is a little more lengthy post to go with the photos from yesterday.
Today we were all supposed to be ready to go at 8:00am and Osseh had trouble getting the cars together so we all spent about 2 ½ hours trying to get online and trying not to go nuts with anticipation. The drive probably took 10-15 minutes but felt like a lifetime simply because I could not wait to meet these children. When Jessie announced that we had just turned onto the final hill I thought we were about to have to get out and walk b/c it was REALLY steep. Kelly, Jessie, and I came to a consensus that it is probably a 40 degree incline. As we come up to the center Quami honks to let them know we were there, they open the gates and all the kids are singing and holding welcome signs. I immediately spotted Albert-the oldest child we sponsor. I waved and smiled like a wild woman. I know I looked crazy. Frantically I visually searched the crowd of 79 kids to find John and Isatu to no avail. Such a mix of emotions flooded me; Excitement, JOY and a slight nervousness to name a few. We parked and got out as all the kids came toward us. All of the kids had chairs sat out in rows and went to take their seats. As they sang a few songs I spotted John and then Isatu. After the last one sat down one of the leaders told the adults to go sit in any seats not taken. An amazing stroke of good fortune happened and John moved seats to come sit in my area so I asked him if he would like to share my chair. He did! All through the program I would go back and forth from gawking at John’s gorgeous face to smiling and waving like a lunatic at Albert who kept leaning forward to smile and wave back. After the program ended John picked up my very heavy backpack to carry it for me even though it was about as big as him. Albert made a bee line for us and I probably squeezed him too hard but I don’t know if I could help it….probably not! There was just too much of an overflow of love coming out. I still hadn't met Isatu so Albert went and got her and we got the chance to talk and take photos. The first thing Albert said when he saw the camera was ‘Uncle Andrew’ and pointed at the camera. Then the first photo that popped up was of Levi and he immediately said his name and the same when Ivey’s photo came up. He remembered! I looked up and realized that somehow an event that I had longed for but had prepared myself wouldn’t happen-happened. I was with all three at the same time…and only one other person was there. Did I mention there are 79 kids at this place? How did this amazing thing happen? How is it that I am kneeling here with these three people laughing and talking just like I had (unrealistically I thought) envisioned? Albert led us in to take a tour of the Covering and as we went up the steps he pointed to the bottom row and told me about when Uncle Andrew was there they did pictures and videos on that step. He doesn’t know that I’ve watched that video more times than I’ve brushed my teeth in the last 3 months. We got to see the classroom/devotional room. I got to meet Hamidu, Dauda, and a host of other kids that I have prayed for and looked forward to meeting for many months now. I LOVE the look of surprise they have when you know their name. One kid asked if I could take him to America. That is a hard question to answer. You feel like your going to crush all their hopes and dreams. After seeing the classroom Albert showed me his bed. He has a blanket with horses and John showed me his bed with hockey sticks and pucks. Sounds simple but it is their only personal little spot on earth. So I told them how much I liked their blankets and beds and Albert wanted me to meet his teachers so we headed off to our next excursion. The teachers were very complimentary of him and said he was a very good boy and that he has been doing very well in school. I told him how proud I was of him and couldn’t have meant it any more. Somewhere along the way Isatu found something more fun that walking around with us and so it was just the three of us left. We probably spent about 20 minutes taking silly photo’s together. I let them take turns taking the picture and they loved it! I had to say goodbye to go to a meeting with the team but I could have stayed all day right there in that spot with those people just laughing with them. After the meeting the team was about to leave to go to lunch but as we walked out there was loud music coming from the back followed by an announcement by one of the kids that the girls had their grass skirt’s on. We all went running around the corner to see the event and it was a fun site to see. All the older girls were wearing what looks similar to a Hawaiian skirt and were dancing to African looking drums being played by two of the other kids. I stood back while the others went closer so that I could get my camera out of my bag.
I looked up to see Isatu coming toward me so I bent down to talk to her. I’ve been told by several people who have been around Isatu on the past trip that she isn’t the type to just sit in you lap. I had been expressing that I couldn’t wait to just hold her and they were letting me know that I shouldn’t get my hopes up. She is very busy. So I bent down and talked to her for a few minutes and asked if I could hold her. She said yes! and she did! for a long time! AND she didn’t want me to put her down when I had to go. I was really surprised but even more surprising is that when we got back from lunch she spent quite a bit of time in my lap playing, talking and laughing with me and the others.
At some point I was playing with some other kids when I heard someone crying and realized it was John. He is very quiet usually but was flailing around and crying as if he were in pain. The care taker told me he had had an injection for malaria and that his bottom hurt. It was the same type of shot Jessie had and she told us they really are very sore for days. The way he was crying broke my heart just as if it were Levi or Ivey so what could I do but go run to his ‘rescue’ and scoop him up. I held him while he cried and laid his head on my shoulder feeling such a deep sense of love for him. We went to get a water bag and I toted that seven year old (good thing he’s on the small side) up two flights of stairs and back down again. And you know, I felt privileged to walk every step of that. How many times I have longed to hold him and comfort him and here in this moment an opportunity presented itself. We sat together for at least an hour and a half watching the other kids play soccer and he would occasionally get excited about some move or save or something and whenever anyone would come along to sit with us I would just make sure they didn’t get to wild and bump his leg. He tried to tell me things a couple of times that I couldn’t understand but he did ask me where Levi was. And while he had trouble remembering her name he tried to ask about Ivey as well. I thought that was sweet.
So, three unexpected events made this day one of the best days I have ever had. I am still reeling a little about it and as I write this I am thinking about how I wish that I could write words so precisely that you could fully understand the magnitude this day holds on my life. I wish that you could understand the full joy that I am still feeling from the fact that I met, hugged, held, talked to, and laughed with these beautiful beautiful people. Maybe the only way is for you to come yourself.

2 unlikely events

In a nutshell, I got to hold Isatu and I got to spend one on one time with the three we sponsor even though it was a pretty much 0% chance that would happen in an orphanage with 79 kids. It was not something I tried to do nor planned out in any way but to the contrary had decided was not an option. Isatu is way to active to let anyone hold her but she spent quite a bit of time doing whatever she could to get me to hold her and was clinging to me when I had to leave to go to lunch. I couldn't have asked for a better day.

Sierra Leone Day one

1. The most eventful thing I can say about our traveling to get to Freetown is that some drunk guy almost got kicked off the plane for getting overly excited and hitting two girls on our team, unsuccessfully gave Kelly a high-five, and dropped a few f-bombs.
2. Once in Freetown I had my first helicopter ride which was fun.
3. We got to our hotel and found out it didn't have internet connection, a conference room or a toilet in Ericas case so we had to move all 31 huge donation bags and all of our own bags to another hotel. I think we ended up getting in bed at 1:30pm.
4. We went to dinner at a place called Alex's and I had chicken schmarma by candlelight and the ocean.
Some guys came out in the water eating fire sticks which was unexpected.
5. I can't believe we are 5 minutes from the center and I am seeing the kids in the morning. It is so difficult at this point to be patient.

Sponsor a child!!

Here is a new video that Erica posted about child sponsorships. ***WARNING*** you will see some mad soccer skills closer to the end.

Seriously though, please think about sponsoring 1 or more of these kids. They need our help and we have been given plenty. To whom much is given; much is to be expected. Go to www.therainingseason.org for more informtion on the waiting kids.

Heather is going to Sierra Leone in May. Please be praying that doors will be opened, mountains will be moved, and God will be glorified in all of this.


http://vimeo.com/10231747

Salty crackers and flashlights (posted by heather)

Levi was riding in the car with his grandparents and wanted to play with their car flashlight. Mimi said that she really wanted him to be careful with it because it is her favorite one and she would be upset if anything happened to it. Of course Levi dropped it between the seats and it stopped working. He dramatically says, "Mimi, I am so so sorry that I dropped your flashlight."
She replies, "I am sorry too.". Levi responds, "Well, I forgive you."


Tonight we have some friends over for chili. Andrew asks Levi if he would like to say the prayer. He did and here is the prayer: "Jesus, thank you for our food.....and for the saltiest crackers I've ever seen.........(something else that no one could understand because of all the laughing)."

Levi asked me for something (for the hundredth time after telling him no all day)in front of Andrew and trying to use a teachable moment I said that he should ask his dad because Daddy is in charge of the whole house-including Mommy. There was this slight pause and then with this very mischievous smile he leaned close to Andrew's face and said, "be mad at her" and then laughed.

DESPARATE NEED!!!!! (posted by andrew)

PLEASE!!!! go to http://www.savetheorphan.blogspot.com/ and help save the lives of 38 more kids. The Covering saved the lives of our 3 kids and needs help saving more. This is not a joke. There are 38 kids whose lives are hanging in the balance. Sponser a child or donate to these kids. I just left from there are they are not just pictures. Please help, every little bit counts. I am desparate for these kids!

Farewell posted by andrew

Today we started out by going to the Freetown market to get a few souvenirs. I was amazed at how many friends I had. I am sure it was because of my irresistible personality and not the fact that I had a roll of Leones in my pocket. I was able to pick up all the souvenirs that I needed with a lot of negotiation. Just like most countries other that the US you have to haggle for prices. I hate doing that most of the time, but sometimes it is fun playing the game. After the market we went and met Mrs. Mansaray for lunch. She is the Asst. Director of Social Welfare and we had a great meeting. She is going to be an integral part in saving the orphan here in this country and after meeting with her it is evident she has a big heart for children. She just took in 2 disabled children herself. We were able to bounce some ideas of each other and we are both exited about the future of this project.

After lunch we went and checked on the hovercrafts we are taking back to the airport tomorrow and headed back to family kingdom. They have a playground here and the staff of the Covering brought all the kids over to play. It was a blast to see them playing and having fun. For almost all of them this is the first time they have played on a playground. We had a picnic lunch that included sodas, a huge deal to the kids. The kids surprised Tina by getting her a birthday cake and singing her happy birthday. It is really going to be hard leaving them. I am going to miss them tremendously.

I bought an Africa shirt to wear to church tomorrow at the market. I might have to rock that thing to work one day.

We headed over to the Covering and the kids had a farewell ceremony prepared. They sang songs, prayed, danced, did skits, and gave farewell statements. Once again the love of Christ is overflowing at this place. They opened the floor for the kids to come up and thank God for something in their lives. Quite a few kids came forward praising and thanking God for the Covering because they can now have food to eat, a place to sleep, and can go to school. All of them are so grateful to be able to go to school. It is a joy to be a part of lifting up praises to God with them. They did something really cool during the program. They had each team member come to the front of the room 1 by 1 to be prayed for. When the team member was a man they had a young boy come up and pray over him; a young girl would pray over the women. What a sweet sound to hear these kids pray and what a humbling experience to have them pray over you.

Tomorrow we are going to Osseh and Quami’s church. I am really looking forward to that. I really enjoy worshiping with believers in other countries. It gives you a little glimpse of heaven when all the tribes and nations will be at the same place before the throne. After that we are heading back to the Covering for 1 last farewell and to finish up some of the bios and last minute items. We have to be at the airport at 5pm so that they don’t give our seat away for our 11:40pm flight. Yep, we have to be at the blazing hot airport almost 7 hours before we take off. That should be fun. We get back to Nashville at 5:00pm on Monday, so with the time change we will be in transit for about 24 hours straight. We have gotten very little rest this trip and are completely exhausted. Hopefully I will get a little sleep on the plane this time.

This will probably be the last blog post I do on our trip. God has done some amazing things on this trip and I have honored to be a part of this organization. Thanks to everyone who read along all week. I am really looking forward to sharing all of the pictures and video when I get back. I want to take this last part to encourage everyone to sponsor one or more of these precious kids. They need our help and they have so much potential. They will be the ones that change this nation, not us, we are just helping them to get there. If you are not able to sponsor please get the word out to as many people as possible so we can reach people who can. Funds are desperately needed and after being in a place like this, believe me, we have it to spare. Continue to pray for these kids, the staff, TRS, and the children who need to be sustained until they can come home to the Covering. For sponsorships or 1 time donations please go to www.therainingseason.org

I will be back to this country many times and I am looking forward to seeing how our Almighty God changes things through these kids

Grafton posted by andrew

We had a pretty relaxed morning today. Jason and Tina had a meeting in our room at the family kingdom with Quami and Osseh all morning so we were kicked out for about 4 hours. I spent some time in the word praying through Ps. 27. It was a pretty cool time because I walked out to the beautiful beach and sat on a log to do it. I was able to pick up a few souvenirs and meet a young boy named John who I talked with for about 20 minutes. The countryside is gorgeous here and some day this could be a resort destination if anyone decided to start developing it.

After their meeting we headed out to visit Wellington Orphanage. It was a great facility started by a very passionate man named Pastor Mansaray. He took us on a tour and we got to meet some of the kids. They are a lot older than the kids at the Covering. These kids were rescued by Pastor Mansaray right after the war 8 years ago and he does not have room to take in any more kids right now. They are very well taken care of and it was refreshing to see their center.

After Wellington we went to Grafton Refugee Camp. That was exciting, but tough. This is where the children we are sponsoring are from. I was able to see their house and see their old bed. It was terrible thinking that they have spent the whole first part of their lives in those conditions. The house was a mud brick house with a rusted sheet metal roof. Their bed was just an old mattress on the floor that they shared. I was able to see John’s toy. It was an old red plastic truck with no wheels. After seeing where they came from it really makes me want to bless them with our sponsorship. I was talking with Quami and he said a house like that is a hell during the raining season because there are leaks everywhere. He said a lot of times no one sleeps at night because they have to stay up bailing water all night to keep their house standing. He said because of the mud bricks the walls fall down a lot during that season. Unfortunately I was not able to meet their father. He was away looking for work. I did get to meet their older brother who I didn’t know existed. He is 18 years old and they have 3 other siblings that live up country quite a ways from Freetown. What a shock it was to meet them, but also a blessing. I was able to tell him that we were their sponsor. When he found out he lit up with a smile and was thanking us for supporting them.

After Grafton we headed back to the family kingdom and we were able to eat dinner with Quami, his wife, and Osseh. After dinner we went back to the room and Quami shared his testimony. It was incredible and I mean incredible. To see how God literally saved his life over and over again and to see the kind of man he has become is unbelievable. He was literally tied up with 3 other guys during the war awaiting execution and he prayed and shared with us the scripture that God put on his heart. It was 1 John 5:12, “He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” Just after he finished praying another soldier came up to him and released him and his friend. Soon after that the other 2 guys were executed. There are more stories to his testimony that I will share when I get home. I wish that I had a recorder. We are trying to get him to come to the states soon to do a speaking tour. We are completely exhausted and every day we get more and more drained. Please be lifting up our health and energy levels so we can finish strong.

Olive posted by andrew

It has been evident over and over this trip that he has prepared the way for us. He has mended some relationships we didn’t think would be mended, he has set up some meetings that we did not expect, he has prepared children to meet us, he has caused us to meet people that are going to help dynamically change the impact we are having on the people, and I can’t wait to see what he has in store for the next couple of days.

In saying that I wanted to share something else that came to fruition this trip. One of our team members named Karen who runs an organization called Just Hope International that does works of sustainability like wells, farms, solar power, microbusinesses in Malawi and South Africa shared something incredible last night. She has gotten to know Erica and through that relationship decided to start doing work in Sierra Leone which is why she is on this trip. Most of you probably read my post about Olive who approached us because she wanted to better her life and go to the university. If you knew Olive’s story you would be amazed that she is trying to pull herself up out of the pit; she has gone through unspeakable hardships and has every excuse to do nothing with her life. Karen shared with us last night at our devo that a year ago she decided that she wanted to get involved with a young woman and directly help her improve her life. She started praying for this young woman and asking God to show her who it was at the right time. Ever since Olive came to our room the other night Karen has been pushing and pushing Tina for another meeting with Olive. No one really understood why she was being so pushy until last night. Olive showed up at the place we were eating as we all were leaving and Karen stayed back and talked with her for a while. She shared that she would like to pay for her college education, talked with her about the importance of it, had Olive share her goals, and told her about God preparing the way for this.

I share this not to brag on Karen, although she is an amazing woman, but to share how God prepares things ahead of us. He is active in the world if we just open our eyes to his works and not write them off as coincidences or accidents. I thought it was really powerful how God orchestrated this from Karen deciding to give back what God has blessed her with through a young woman, from getting to know Erica, to deciding to go on this trip, to meeting Olive at Matilda’s hospital as we were walking out, to getting to know her story through Tina, to having her show up at our hotel with her school papers to see if anyone would help, to showing up at the restaurant as we were leaving, to seeing the tears in her eyes when Karen told her, to seeing the hope that she now has, to seeing the drive she has to better herself. I can only hope you can meet Olive some day. She has a very gentle spirit, but has an internal strength that is evident as soon as you are around her. Her story is going to end up being a movie. Like I said in a previous post; everything is God’s, he just moves it around for his glory. I can’t tell you how many people are going to be impacted by Olive’s life, but it will echo through this community and God has been teaching us on this trip that if you win the people you win the government; if you win the children you win the nation.

Praise God for his ways are perfect. Trust God with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight. I want to encourage everyone to read Psalms 27. Spend some time reading this and praying through the verses. God put that chapter on my heart this morning and I am going to share it with our team later.

Intake posted by andrew

Today we stared out at the center most of the morning. We got to play with the kids for about 4 hours. Today was a holiday in SL so they had no class. We played soccer (I scored a goal and they started calling me David Beckham, just kidding, that was in my mind) and they drew pictures on some card stock we brought to take back with us. It was fun just relaxing with them. We are so surrounded by things to stimulate us it is fun to watch all of the games, songs, and activities they have created to have fun. You are very resourceful when you don’t have very many toys and no video games. The young boys even collected all of the sucker sticks from the other day and created a game with them. They taught me how to play but I sat out due to the fact that they were playing with 100 used sucker sticks.

I keep thinking we have done the best thing possible and then something else is on the schedule that tops it. What we did next was what saving the orphan is all about. We got to participate in an intake process. This is where a TRS social worker is referred a case, investigates to make sure the child qualifies, takes them from where they are currently living, and takes them through the intake process at The covering so they can call it home. We headed out to the east side of town and stopped in a very poor section of town. We walked down this dirt path and there were a few adults standing around with a scared looking little boy. How intimidating for a little child to have 11 white people and 4 Sierra Leonians come to take you to a place you have never been before. The TRS staff were incredible through this whole process. The little boy is 6 years old and his name is Sherif. We talked with the family a little while and the social worker informed us that his mother died in childbirth with his sibling, who also died, and his father abandoned them during her pregnancy.


His grandmother has been caring for him by herself since that time. They took us up to the top of the hill where he slept at night. Here are a few pictures of this so you can see Sherif before, his home before, him on his new bed with his new clothes piled at the foot, and him playing with the kids after only a few hours of adjusting. My heart broke when I saw his home. I don’t know how anyone could live in this little hole. It was actually a small sea crate that they had turned in to their 1 bedroom home.
He was so scared the whole time. He never said a word. He just looked around wide eyed and nodded his head when asked a question. Everyone was so gentle with him, but I know it was frightening. After getting some pictures of that place for his story we headed back down to where we met him and Quami, Tina, and Mohammed explained to him and his grandmother about TRS and where he was going to live. You could see the weight being lifted off of her. She was so happy for him. All he did was sit their and nod until Quami asked him if he was ready to leave and he jumped up off the stool. He is very malnourished and the fingers on his right hand were all cut up and bloody. We asked how he hurt his hand and they told us he picked up rocks to earn money for food. Are you kidding me….. God bless The Covering.

We headed back to the covering and arrived before Sherif and Mohammed. The children planned a welcome ceremony for him and when he slowly walked through the gate they surrounded him and started hugging him telling him that he was welcome at their home. It was one of the most precious things I have ever seen. Sherif was taken inside, given some food, water (he drank 3 bags of water), a bath, and some new clothes. We bandaged his hand and he went upstairs and just kind of sat back and watched the kids play for a couple of hours. He just had no energy and I’m sure he was trying to take it all in. It is a dramatically different place than where he was a few hours earlier. It was incredible to watch him change before our eyes. He slowly got more and more energy and by the time we left he was playing with the other kids and I think I even saw him smile when we broke out the bubbles. It is something I will never forget. His grandmother was invited to come visit so she could see where he would be saying and she was brought to tears she was so happy for him. I thought it was really great that Mohammed and Quami invited her to come see too. It kind of nips any child trafficking rumors in the bud when something like that happens. There was a reporter there to document the process and I think he was shocked at how well it was handled and it gave TRS some major street cred.

We spent the rest of the afternoon playing with the kids some more. We taught them duck duck goose and they taught us how to dance. They sang a bunch of songs and played a lot of games. We got to meet Pastor Daniel who is the head caregiver who has been out of town at a conference. He is really wonderful with the kids and you can tell they really love him too. He was the one leading all of the games and playing the drums for the dances. We headed back after a shorter, but equally tiring day and ate some dinner and now everyone is furiously trying to type blog entries before the internet goes down again. Thanks to everyone who is reading and praying. You can email me at Andrewsisco@gmail.com if you need to.

Isatu wearing "uncle" Andrew's glasses.

Andrew e-mailed this to me today and it is so beautiful to me!

Why we fight posted by andrew

This is why we fight.

Today we started off today with something great. We went to the center and gave all he kids their letters and photo albums from classes, businesses, and sponsors in the US. We did it 1 by 1 and it was really special to see the kid’s faces light up when they received a personalized item like that. I can just imagine them in their beds at night looking through those albums and reading the letters over and over. It really gives them a sense of worth; something that they have never had. We hung out at the center until about 12:30 and then headed out to Kroo Bay to try to open the doors up in the community by partnering with TRS so we could help their kids. I have never seen anything worse than this place. We thought we saw some hard sights the other day, but they were nothing compared to this place. It is a literal trash dump that refugees settled on after the war. It is at the bottom of the hill where all the trash and sewage run through from the city. There are thousands of people that live in this horrible place. We saw children with nothing on but a dirty pair of underwear scrounging through a river of filth alongside pigs trying to find anything that could help them survive. You will just have to see the pictures to understand.

I can’t put in to words how bad off these people are. I didn’t think anything like that was possible. We walked through the city to get to the tribal chief’s meeting area where we met him and the community council. Quami talked with them about TRS and how they wanted to partner with them to help their children. The team last time received a hostile greeting from them last time due to a lot of lies that had been spread. We had a member of the council apologize for their actions last time and we thought things were going to go well from there, but then a member of the council shared some frustrations with us and things got a little tense. He told us about some white people who came into the area a while back and took a lot of pictures and made a lot of promises, but it has been a year and Kroo Bay has not received any help from that. They were frustrated because they have to try to explain something like that to their people. We told him that we understood his frustrations. Quami did an excellent job saying that our group was different, he can see that since Osseh and Quami are speaking for us, and that any of the council members can come visit the covering anytime to see where their kids are going. This put them at ease and they agreed to partner with us and let us take some pictures to tell their story. We then followed the council through the city down to the soccer field where we gave the kids a new soccer ball and about 300 suckers. They were so excited that we had a hard time not being run over by the mob of kids. These children were in really bad shape. It was really uncomfortable being there. Not because we were out of our comfort zones because those have been removed by now. We got a lot of angry looks from the people and I felt really bad taking pictures of everything. I just held my camera down by my side and took pictures discreetly. I just kept telling myself that I needed the pictures to tell their story. The kids we saw there are why we fight.

We left Kroo Bay and headed to our meeting with the Social Minister, but he was meeting with the Vice President. We are going to try again on Friday, but that will be our only window before we leave so please continue to pray that God will open that door. Since he was not available we headed over to visit a great man named Edgar who works for an Evangelical group in town and has been a huge asset for TRS. After talking with him a while we went and ate at Crown Bakery downtown. We then headed out to the center for the rest of the night and what an experience. We just got to play with the kids for a while. We played soccer, drew pictures, wrestled with the kids and just held them. I love having those kids crawl all over me laughing. It was a joyous time to have them all laughing and playing after going to a place like Kroo Bay. It is amazing to see these kids transform. Some of them were in places like that a few weeks ago and with a little food, medicine, love, and attention they become kids again. Thank you to everyone who fought for these kids.

After we were done playing I experienced one of the greatest nights of my life. The kids had their nightly worship time. By that time it was dark and there was only a small lamp to light the room, but all the kids circled up and Augusta led them in songs and prayers. They sang songs about coming from the depths of despair and now Jesus is their joy. They sang a song about how much they love their Papa (God). Two things from God’s word came to mind while worshipping with these children; first that Jesus dances over us. We were all dancing before the Lord and I can just picture Jesus dancing over us during this time. The second is that Jesus delights in us. I never really understood this fully until I had children of my own. I truly delight in Levi and Ivey and they fill my heart with joy. I was thinking that God truly delights in these precious children while they lift up this pleasing worship to him. These kids were praying and singing their hearts out to God. What a convicting and wonderful experience. It was a really good thing that the room was almost dark because the majority of our team, me included, were weeping with joy while sharing this pure worship with these kids and because I would have been embarrassed if these kids were able to see the dance moves I was rocking.

I was reading in Revelation that the saints follow the Lamb wherever he goes. Thats what we are doing; we are letting him lead and saying here are our hands to carry out your work.

I wanted to share a short story. A young woman came to the place we are staying this morning to talk with Tina about financial help to go to the University. You could see the passion in her eyes when she talks about that opportunity. What courage it must have taken to ask us. There are no scholarships over here and no opportunity to raise the money yourself. She even wants to go to IT school because she sees that computers are going to be the up and coming thing in Sierra Leone. She is doing this all on her own and to see her try to improve her situation like that was touching. The young woman is Olive who is the daughter of the very very sick woman we went to visit in the TB hospital. She is Sam, Betty, and Fallah’s older sister. I wanted to share that with you so that if there is anyone out there who feels called to help her you would know of this opportunity.



Ok that sums up today so I am going to take a second to be selfish and talk about our sponsored kids  since this is my blog, hah! I loved loved loved getting to play with them today. They are really warming up to me and the oldest especially seeks me out whenever I am there. When we came back tonight he was asking about some of the things in the pictures from the album we gave him. He told me that I had a fine son. I got to play soccer with him for a second and he is really stinkin good. He has such a gentle spirit and smiles constantly. Whenever I am standing around talking and I feel a hand slip in to mine it is usually his. His brother finally opened up a little more today and I got to sit with him while he drew a picture today. He traced his hand on the paper and when I sat down I asked him if it was his hand and he said, “No, it is your hand.” I got a chance to hug and tickle their little sister. She can light up a room with that laugh.

Tomorrow we get to play with the kids for a lot of the day, visit Wellington orphanage, and participate in an Intake process. An Intake process is where the social worker from TRS, after an investigation to make sure the child is qualified, goes out and picks up the child and their belongings from the place they live and takes them to the Covering. I can’t wait! To see a child transform right before our eyes is going to be amazing. I can’t wait to see their face when they get to see their new home and how much the other kids are surrounded with love and attention. Sorry this is so short. Maybe I will have more to say tomorrow.