In mid 1999, Jeff and I had hit a stride. We were four years on the Uganda mission field. We had weathered the initial waves of culture stress. We had endured the rebel crisis. And we were parents of an adorable baby girl. Our first furlough had been a blessing and upon arrival back in Uganda, I felt at home. It was a milestone.
Following our annual ladies retreat for East African Missionaries, I had committed to praying for a friend who was hoping to become pregnant with her first. As I committed to pray, I was unkowningly pregnant with our second. I began to suspect my situation and the nausea overcame me. Only this time around, I had a toddler to chase. It was a tough time.
One afternoon, Jeff came home from town and informed me that he had met a German girl who was in Ft Portal for a year to work at the Babies Home. He said she was eager to fellowship with Christians and that he had invited her for dinner.
Our first dinner with Caroline was great, but the conversation was a bit difficult. Caroline’s English was limited and my German was non-existent. Except for asking for a Diet Coke, I don’t speak much of the language of Germany.
Thankfully, Caroline excelled at language skills. Her English improved incredibly (really, how do you do that?!?) and over the next year, she became a soulmate. She supported me through the pregnancy and loved on Alex when he was born. She met with our church weekly. Her bright spirit and encouraging disposition lit up our lives and pushed us on.
She and I met weekly to pray and visit. The gift she was to me really defies the words on this blog.
Women need women to sound off to. To dream with. To share. To drink coffee with and share stories...
She watched movies with me, went on road trips to keep me company. She and I joked about interesting cultural issues we met and shared sarcasm over life in the third world.
I needed this fun friendship so much. She was a gift to me. Saving me from the mundane insanity of daily childcare and home management in a far off place with few or little distractions.
I was sad to see her go when her time in Ft Portal ended. But God had things for her to do. She moved back to Germany, married her prince and God has blessed her with two lovely little ones. I know she is serving Him well.
Her precious ones allowed her to come back and visit us recently. She arrived into our container chaos. But as I came to expect, she jumped right in, served and blessed.
How sweet the fellowship of those who love Him.
I can’t wait until Heaven--- no language barriers!
Ich liebe dich, darling Calo!
Come back anytime…but bring those precious ones too!
No comments:
Post a Comment