The dog days of summer are reaching toward us and it’s nearly time to leave behind the summer days of freedom and dig into the new school year. For me, when summer starts, I am ready for the flexibility of summer hours, longer days, less structure and more spontaneity. But when summer is winding down, I am ready for the structure that the new school year brings; for the excitement of starting a new program, new schedules and for the routines to be re-established.
HOPE has had a wonderful summer. This month we welcomed little Christna to our family. She came to us when she was 11 days old. Her mother died from complications of the delivery only 4 days after Christna was born many weeks prematurely. Christna arrived weighing only 3 ½ pounds. We have spent a lot of time speaking with medical people here as well as in the States and have learned much about caring for a premature infant. We are happy to report that after less than 2 weeks in our care, she weighs 4 pounds 12.5 ounces. She is bright-eyed, alert and a fighter. The girls call her ti pope (which means little doll) as she is smaller than many of the baby dolls they love to play with.
The girls had a fabulous month while we were in the States as well. John and Carma Benson from Zanesville, Ohio filled in for us and spent the month loving them, spoiling them and treating them like queens. John and Carma are a huge blessing to the HOPE family and to us personally. The younger girls changed a lot while we were away too. It’s a whole new perspective for us to come back and see them so changed. It’s one thing to see them every day and know that they are growing and learning new words and new skills. It’s quite another to get hit with the changes after being gone for a month.
The girls just finished up a 2 week summer school/bible school session to help them retain the information they learned last year and prepare them to start off the new school year. They did a little program for us where they sang and danced and recited scripture verses and told stories.
We continue to be amazed by what God is doing here and blessed by how He is moving in our lives. Though some days are tough we press on remembering Galatians 6:9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.