Coming Home...

Well, my last night has creeped up on me and tomorrow I prepare to say my final good-byes...

Tonight I was in the kitchen with one of our younger boys giving him his asthma treatment before bed when all of a sudden I felt myself overwhelmed with the idea of not being here the next night to say goodnight to these kids or the next or the next. Tomorrow night I will find myself back in Friendswood...far away from Roatan and far away from these precious, mischevious children. I tried to stop it as the tears started forming but before I knew it I was balling in the kitchen, Kerry just staring at me helplessly as he held up his asthma mask that covered his nose and mouth. "What's wrong," he asked. "I'm just sad because I'm leaving," I said. "You don't have to leave," he said..."you don't want to leave." "I don't want to leave Kerry but I have to..."

I'm feeling the only emotion one can feel when they say goodbye to a place and people they've grown so fond of and fallen so in love with...I'm sad and I'm going to miss these kids a lot...

Thank you again to all of you who have supported me in this journey with finances, prayer and support. I wouldn't have been able to make this journey without it and I thank you all for providing that. Sunday at Ecclesia Clear Lake we will be showing a video that Alison and I made while she was still down here and talking a bit about our time here..I'd love to see whoever can make it there that night to watch it..Church starts at 6 pm..just email me if you would like to attend and are unsure of location..I'd love to see you there and talk about my time here or feel free to contact me on my cell phone-832-231-5177

Peace & Love,
Naseem

Goodbyes

This has been a sad week...Ryan and Taryn left on Monday and Lucia left us yesterday. I had a child like breakdown after Lucia left...I wasn't really breaking down over her departure in particular but rather an accumulation of emotions that hit all at once. I'm starting to understand on a very small scale what it must be like for the children to have people here leave them that they get so close to. It's not my first or last experience with having people I love, care about and grow used to having around leave but it doesn't change the fact that it's hard. It's part of life and I'm not sure it gets any easier. We are called to be relational people as we are sons and daughters of a realtional father..but their is no guarantee how long those people and relationships will last and be present. Saying goodbye may be one of the hardest things to do and it doesn't necessarily mean that person is countries apart..sometimes we say goodbye to people who are physically very close and even worse far away in other ways...anyhow, enough of my spill on goodbyes...

Today I have mainly been parading around our youngest, Jeffrie, who cracked me up for most of the time I was with him. I wish I could properly describe these kids. They are all so unique and full of so much personality that I feel my descriptions don't due them justice. The funny things I catch each kid doing at various time creates a constant source of entertainment and laughter. I'm quite confident I have never laughed so much as I have in the past ten weeks or been so amused by a group of children. One of our younger boys was playing with the puppies the groundkeeper's dog had and as he held the puppy as if he was a tiny infant he tapped me on the arm to make sure I was watching the puppy and him as he anounced, "Look the puppy is looking at me cause he thinks I'm cute." Then he proceeded to tell me to be quiet so he could rock the puppy to sleep...

As usual I hope all is well back in H-town! My parents, sister, and brother in-law come to visit the island one week from yesterday and the kids and I are very excited about the visit! I look foward to showing them around this place I now call home...

Peace & love,
Naseem :)