Trip recap Part 2...the real work begins

ok...lol... jet lag brain is still working here. So the pictures are backwards :o) Please bear with me. I will get it right before I am done.

We ended our day with a rainbow. We all felt it was a beautiful sign from God sharing His pleasure with a day well spent. A funny story about this rainbow.... John tended to ride around listening to his iPod, and this day wasn't an exception. So we all were taking pictures of the rainbow and admiring it when John suddenly turns to one of the team and YELLS "Hey! Look it's a rainbow!" :o) We all just cracked up.
These were neighborhood kids outside of the Mercy Development center that we had been working in all day. We were walking along when they asked us for "photo" so we obliged. How cute are they?!
I was officially crowned an Ethiopian by these 2 because they were able to braid my hair. Oh, this is NOT a good look for me, but they enjoyed it. J, on the left, and I spent most of the afternoon learning about her and her family and her life on the streets. She showed me her room and shared with me her photo album. What a gift! As I listened to her story I was more and more convicted of my own lack of faith... her strength and conviction were truly amazing to me. She's got one giant faith for one so tiny.
This is Brita working with H on her Biology. Brita is a biology teacher and this was right up her alley. :o) She had a blast working with her.
Eating lunch, Ethiopian Style.
The amazing cook. She was so very sweet.
Working on the kitchen. This room was small and dark and dingy. This yellow went a LONG way to helping brighten it up.
J and I painting the door. She was helping me learn some Amharic words while we worked.
Eryn waiting to put on a second coat of pink.
Men at work.
The dining room before....
The kitchen before....

Beautiful butterflies....

The Mercy Development center is a wonderful place. It's separated into the boys and girls compounds. We worked on the girls side. Samy and Ruth are the caretakers there and they are truly amazing people. They are from India and work for YWAM. Ruth is a tiny little ball of fire and light. She and Samy fit right into our group as if they had always been there. Their commitment to the girls and the project were amazing to watch. Ruth wasn't much bigger than many of them, but they all looked up to her and respected her words.

This was a wonderful day of progress and relationships.