I felt mostly prepared for Zambia after getting to hear about this wonderful place from my bestie Ellen for years. I thought I knew the feelings it would evoke, the things that would be hard about it, and what I would want to do upon returning to the states with that experience. Oh, how wrong I was!
While it was wonderful to be prepared in some ways, the country continued to surprise me, day after day. Unfortunately I experienced some weird side effects of the malaria medicine I had to take which caused me to be some what mellow throughout the trip so looking back through pictures, sometimes I feel like I am experiencing it for the first time. (Weird I know, and hard to understand--ask me about it if you want more info!)
The most memorable things from this trip will always be those 8 precious faces. Ellen couldn't have said it better when she said, "you will never, ever forget the faces you see over there." She was so right. The 8 kids at the home, as well as countless others we met in villages. Their faces are ingrained in my head. And I am so grateful for that. I will never forget their daily life, their struggles, their fears, their joys, their laughter and their hope.
Another aspect of Zambia that I will never forget is how impoverished, yet joyful the people of Zambia are. I have so much hope for that nation because of the people I met on my trip. They are full of the Lord's joy and love and are raising up children in the same way.
After the mission work we did in Lusaka, the team went to Victoria Falls. I am fairly certain I will never go to another place as beautiful as this. This is probably the closest thing to Heaven on Earth as you're going to get. This was a wonderful oasis to journey to for some rest and reflection after such a life-changing experience. I hope I never forget the beauty of this place and how crafty our Creator is in His work.
Lastly, we experienced some amazing wildlife on a sunrise photo safari nature drive. Again, seeing the evidence of how our God loves us through His amazing creation--I could never have imagined this.
As I have bouts of inspiration or deep thoughts about ending world poverty, I will be sure to blog more about my adventures in Africa. I know this post wasn't sufficient but this is what I could manage for now. Super overwhelming and daunting task.
Shout out to my best friends who I got to experience this with! Such an incredible support and encouragement to me throughout the entire thing! I am so thankful we had/have each other!
