Don't drink the blood. =)

Dear Aunt Alice,

I don’t think I’ll ever think about Moses in the same way again. I think, for the rest of my life, that when I hear about Moses, the burning bush, the plagues and the escape from Egypt, that I will always think of the Mukinge Hill Academy pupils and their drama. I’ll see Pharoah with his paper crown, Moses pouring out Koolaid “blood” and holding out a flour covered “leprous” hand, Grade 3 frogs/gnats/flies/livestock/locusts and the “Red Sea” covering the Egyptian army (it was two blue chitenge cloths).

Though the entire event was a smash hit, my favorite part of the day revolved around the “blood.” We had a bucket filled with water and I added a red drink mix to it (couldn’t find any food coloring at the last minute). I gave it to the boy playing Moses and told him that it was his blood. The boys standing there wanted to know what it was that made it red and so I told them that it was a drink mix, but they didn’t understand until I called it juice. At that point, they all wanted to try it. I heard one of the boys call out, “The blood is sweet,” and I had to respond with, “Don’t drink the blood!” I ended up promising one of the boys that he could stop by my house for some “blood” later in the week. I found myself chuckling because out of context, those lines would make the people back home think that we’re practicing some kind of weird religion at our school!!

These kids have stolen my heart. I’ve truly been blessed to serve here and to see what God has done and is doing in this place. At this point, I don’t believe that He is calling me to serve here full time, but I am open to the prospect of serving overseas full time. I’m leaving that to Him though because I am also open to the prospect of working with inner city children full time. Time will tell. But, no matter what, my passion for the orphans of the world has definitely grown. Orphans are no longer nameless or faceless for me. I’ve held them in my arms, tutored them at my kitchen table and taught them at school. I can’t shake the biblical responsibility to care for them. I don’t know what exactly that will entail, but I do know that it has to be a bigger part of my life than it’s ever been.