I’d like to believe I stood true to both of those things, most of the time. I tried my hardest to be brave: bungee jumping and white water rafting on the Nile River, voicing opinions in a culture where women aren't known for standing up for themselves, walking into situations knowing that bad things could come out of them, choosing to live in a country where I would be an extreme minority, riding on the back of a motorcycle weekly just to get from place to place, traveling solo back from Nairobi, but most importantly, walking out of the compound each day knowing unforgettable things could happen if I was all there, if I trusted God and didn’t just go through the motions.
I’d like to think I truly, wholeheartedly, loved. Never in my 23 years have I loved as deeply or as fully as I did the children I encountered every day in Uganda. But it was a two-way street. Because they first loved me freely and without judgement, I was able to let every guard down, let every difference become invisible. I loved and was loved through smiles, conversations, waves, hellos, good-byes, and my favorite: I was loved through endless hugs. Never underestimate the power of a genuine hug. I learned on my last day full of good-byes, that when things are just too difficult to say, a hug says everything. It says good-bye, it says I love you, it says thank you. That’s what each of my hugs (since my words were muffled through tears) that day said to my kids at SWB.
I was not only able to give and receive love, but MAN was I able to see the love God was spreading all over Uganda. It seemed like each week I came across another person, another organization, another way passionate and purposeful people were making a lasting impact on Uganda. Each time I talked to these people and tried to connect with them in some way, I could see Jesus flowing from them in the way they talked about what they were doing and what they were passionate about. These people have been called and guided, and although they may be working for small organizations or NGOs that most people have never heard of and never will hear of, those small things are what are actually making a difference in the world. Think if we can help everyone be like that — if we can help all people become difference makers in some way, this world can make some serious leaps and bounds.
I kept my eyes open. I left home, I let go, and certainly made it to the great unknown. I would have never known this beautiful place and these beautiful people if it hadn’t been for the support and push of so many people around me. Family, friends, coaches, teachers. And one year later many of those people were waiting with open arms to welcome me back from that beautiful, great unknown.
I’ve learned more in the past year than I have in any other year of my life. A few things I’ve learned: It's possible to be a difference maker, even if I’m no one special. I’m a completely ordinary person that was not called to do what I did because I was qualified, but was qualified because I was called. If God continues to qualify me in each step in my life, I can’t imagine the possibilities. It's possible to thrive in uncomfortable situations. It's possible for good things to come out of bad situations. It’s possible to love your neighbor as yourself, and it is certainly possible to love strangers. It’s possible to do things you think you can’t do. In short, I've learned a whole lot about possibility and a whole lot about opportunity. But most importantly, I’ve learned it’s absolutely possible, and absolutely necessary to unconditionally love people. It's necessary for them, and for us. All people. Regardless of their past, their present, their faults, their appearance. Differences mean nothing, it simply makes us all a little more interesting. LOVE people. LOVE the life you are passionately leading. LOVE and trust God and all of His plans. He leads us to some pretty incredible places!
