An African Update

It's strange to be writing from the comfort of my own home. Not in the lobby of the Manhattan Hotel or on the floor of the Dubai airport. I have several updates for you on behalf of our African friends.

AP and I talked to Gloria yesterday. She has already met with Gladys and they are well on their way to becoming family. Brandon was sick yesterday, but thanks to Gladys, Gloria had the money to take him to the doctor and get him medical care. We talked to Brandon on the phone, too. He is still working on his English, so Gloria helps him know what we are saying and how to reply back. It is really sweet to listen to. Precious and Gonte (pronounced Hunte) got on the phone for a bit, too. Gonte was upset that he got on the phone last, but we made him laugh and he forgot all about that.

I just talked to Maureen this morning. She is back at work for the first time in two weeks. I could hear her coworkers in the background excitedly saying things like, "she's talking to Rachel from America." She asked for Gloria's phone number and said that she had already talked to the people at work including a social worker and they have a plan to help Gloria, Precious, Gonte, and Brandon. She was so excited to let me know that she was going to care for Gloria the way that I had cared for her.

Cecil and Maureen's daughter both went to the doctor yesterday. Cecil picked up his first dose of ARVs and the little girl got medical treatment for some really bad sores that were on her mouth keeping her from eating. Maureen told me that she has a broken heart. Witness left for boarding school the same day we left for the USA. I could hear her smiling even through the broken heart. She called our friendship a miricle -- I think that is an accurate discription.

AP and I have enjoyed barraging our friends with pictures of the trip and filling in the gaps that I didn't write about here on the blog. Thanks to our friends for countless hours of patient ears. We have many more stories to come. I'm just taking a little headspace to organize them all before writting. Please pray for us as the realities of life in the US explode back into our lives. It is a bit overwhelming.