Hey, everyone!

Greetings from hot, sunny Liberia. :-)

Today was a “down” day. We were able to sleep in a bit this morning, and enjoy an amazing breakfast thanks to Brent and Todd. Brent is a master omelette maker and Todd was gracious enough to hold bread over a burner to make toast for us. Summer sausage and unidentified cheese blended through buttery eggs, plus peanut butter from home and grape jelly obtained at an astronomical price... Bliss.

After a somewhat lazy breakfast (we deserved it after the busy days we’ve had!), we walked to the Samaritan’s Purse compound in ELWA and spent some time with Rosie, the head of a national NGO in Liberia. Rosie heads up THINK Liberia (Touching Humanity In Need of Kindness), a ministry that works with at-risk women and adolescents. Although their ministry is focused on girls who are in dire situations, they also offer a summer program that welcomes women and girls from the local community. It’s a three month program that focuses on baking, sewing, and cosmetology--basic technical skills that many women in Liberia are interested in. Sounds like a great opportunity for the girls at Christ Our Hope orphanage!

Although our meeting with Rosie was wonderful, we were all eager to get to the orphanage! Today was the day that the children at Christ Our Hope treated us to a “program.” They sang, recited Bible verses, and all-around overwhelmed us with their brilliance and grace. It was an emotional afternoon!
As wonderful as it was to see the children’s talents on display, the rest of the afternoon was a definite treat. We all divided up into teams and played a couple of traditional Liberian games: kickball for the girls, and football (soccer) for the boys. Julie and I played two innings of kickball (honestly, we couldn’t have handled anymore in the crazy heat!), and then the boys divided up for soccer. The boys’ game was pretty intense! There were a couple of minor injuries, but I think everyone had a wonderful time.

This evening was spent swimming, playing Rook, and even watching a little Seinfeld (there’s a DVD set at the guest house where we are staying).

Time for bed! I’m exhausted...

Sending love and hugs from Liberia,
Nicole