December shots

Just random shots from Rachel's Christmas musical, the youth variety show, and our trip to the symphony....because, goodness knows, I don't blog anymore!!  Maybe 2015 will bring a fresh start!

Westward Ho! Fall break 2014

So my blogging skills are basically non-existent. So instead I give you a photographic overview of our Fall Break trip to Minnesota, South Dakota, & Wyoming.

Return of the Lazy Blogger

Now I have stooped to just posting a PicStitch photo of our fun evening out at Victory Field.  Side note:  the Indians won (they usually lose when we attend) and Rachel got a ball that got away from an outfielder during mid-inning warm ups.

Party Weekend

Today the youngest of the Hackney 4 turned 9!  We celebrated Rachel's birthday on Saturday with grandparents, aunt, uncles, and cousins.  Saturday was spent munching on cake and playing outside in the gorgeous weather with her cousins Makenna & Carson and the neighbor kids who frequent the house.

Apparently the 16 year old is still young enough to get a present from Memaw on his sister's birthday.

Today (her actual birthday) we went to church and then headed out to the nature park for a picnic and some exploring.  And where there's a creek there's splashing!

We also managed to cross paths with these happy girls and their family.

Kicked off the summertime with a visit to the Ice Barn on it's opening weekend!

While there we manage to cross paths with more church peeps!  Our church's people must tend to congregate in the same places.

Also want to say a very special Happy Birthday to Wannaporn, our sponsored child in Thailand.  She turned 9 today too!  This cupcake is for you special girl!

The "No Where Near Complete" List

So we come to the end of this particular journey.  I hope there will be more to come.  Some of what I experienced will never leave me,  some I’m sure will fade with time.  There are some experiences that I’m still processing and some that I will never be able to fully process.  But for this evening, if I had to boil what I’ve learned down to a short and tidy list it might look something like this:

• One person can not change the entire world, but you can help change the world for one person.

• A smile and laughter are universal and can cross any language barriers.

• Being a part of the family of God is a bond that transcends culture, language, economic status, and nationality.

• The economy class on a Boeing 777 was not designed with sleeping comfort in mind.

• Most of us in the western world are incredibly ignorant and unaware of how rich we really are.

• Pack light, but be prepared.  (If you can reconcile those two then…bonus!)

• Always go for the window seat!

• The world is breathtakingly beautiful and also tragically broken.  See and delight in the beauty, but don’t ignore the broken.

• Have patience and kindness for the airline customer service employee.  They didn’t cause your plane to be late and they are the only one who can really help you.

• We take things for granted:  I have a new appreciation for indoor plumbing, the Indiana Department of Transportation, clean water, immunizations, access to quality healthcare, a secure home…..really this list could go on forever.

• We are too distracted and too busy in America.  Distracted by a flood of useless information and busy doing things that have no lasting value.

• When your bus passes a child jumping up and down, waving, and yelling “Wazunga!”, it makes you smile to know you brought that kid some fun just by being white and funny looking.

• Words are important.  Words of encouragement to a child are invaluable.

• Monkeys can and will steal a yogurt right out of your hand.

• I love a good photo, but don’t miss experiencing the moment while trying to document the moment.

• I could go for a cold Stoney Tangawizi right now.  (African kicked-up ginger ale)

• When you are exhausted and at the breaking point, God will put people in your path that will show you mercy and kindness….don’t forget to pass it on.

The world is home to a vast sea of humanity.  God sees and knows them all.  There are none too small to be noticed, none too poor to be dismissed.  There are none too powerful to be beyond need of Him and none too broken for His forgiveness.  I saw a seemingly unending parade of faces and people.  They passed me in the airport. They served me dinner.  Their faces flew by as I traveled down an African highway.  They tagged and transported my luggage.  Face after face; all of them known and loved by God.  For those 12 days, I hope I was able to serve as His hands and feet.  I hope they saw Jesus in me.

If getting there is 1/2 the fun, then coming home is…..

Our flight out of Kilimanjaro had a fairly late departure time (sometime between 9 & 10 PM).  We flew to the capital city of Dar es Salaam and sat on the plane while the staff cleaned up the cabin and a new flight crew came on board.  The interesting fact for this otherwise non-descript part of the trip was that at one point we were over the Indian ocean as we descended into the airport.  Wished I could have seen it, but it was night. 

We took off for the 10 hour overnight flight to Amsterdam.  I was sitting with a group of students from an international school in Europe.  The kid next to me had a British accent.  The next leg of the trip further confirmed that I don’t sleep well on planes.  The teenagers on the other had could sleep just fine bent into the shape of pretzels with their mouths hanging open.  At one point I told my seat buddy that if he needed to get up, please don’t hesitate in letting me know even if it meant waking me up.  Kid never got up during the entire 10 hour flight! 

Tulip fields in the Netherlands

 We landed in Amsterdam for a 3 hour layover.  I spent part of the time trying to exchange some dollars for euros to take home.  I was getting nowhere at the currency exchanges.  I had the rate all messed up in my head.  I thought the dollar was stronger agains the euro and when it came time to pay for my drink at Starbucks and I was told that it would be 8 dollars, I’m sure my jaw hit the floor.  Oh well, I handed her a 10 and ended up with a few euro coins to throw in my pocket.

Somewhere over Great Britain

The next leg to New York went smoothly.  I watched a few movies and the clouds cleared just in time for me to catch a glimpse of Great Britain and Ireland as we flew over.  I loved being able to see new parts of the world, but there’s nothing quite like touching down back in your home country.  As an added nice touch as we went through customs we got a much needed, “Welcome Home” from the agent.

Gathering up our luggage it was time to say our goodbyes to the wonderful people who had become family over the past 12 days.  After a round of hugs I headed to terminal 7 to see if I could possibly catch an earlier flight home.  It was around 3pm at this point.  My flight didn’t leave for Washington until 7:30 PM.  After an hour layover in D.C. my flight to Indy was scheduled to land around midnight.  I asked at the United counter and was told that there were no direct flights to Indy.  I must have looked really tired because upon a second look from the United employee,  she said she would see what she could do.  She mentioned LaGuardia, but I didn’t want to have to go to another airport.  I told her it was OK, but she insisted on looking a little more.  She said their was a direct Delta flight that was leaving in about an hour, and I could try it.  If I didn’t make it in time, then come back and see her and she would put me back on my original flight.  At any rate I wouldn’t have lost anything.

Delta was in terminal 2.  Long story short, after a running trip to the airtrain to terminal 2 I arrived too late to get on the flight with my checked luggage.  I made my way back to United where the very nice lady apologized profusely that it hadn’t worked.  No problem, I said.  I appreciated the effort on her part.  I grabbed some McDonald's and called Mom.  I was interrupted by a call from United.  My flight had been delayed.  After they gave me the new arrival time, I knew there was no way that I was going to make the connection.  I headed to the gate and on my way checked the flight status.  It went from delayed to cancelled!  Now I’m having visions of spending the night in NYC.  Not the worst thing in the world, but at this point I just wanted to be home.  I found a United employee at one of the gates and told her what I was dealing with.  She said, “OK…you are on flight blah, blah, blah at 7:30 AM tomorrow morning”   You’ve got nothing else??  Please.  She looked again and found a direct flight leaving at 7:45 pm from…..LaGuardia.  After asking enough questions of her to get step by step directions from her (I was exhausted at this point), I found myself in a seemingly unending line for the taxis.  It was at this moment, after almost 48 hours of no quality sleep, that I hit my breaking point.  I’m not normally an overemotional person, but here I was standing with all my luggage waiting for a taxi…in tears.  I apologized to those around me and was quickly assured by these lovely strangers that they understood and I would have plenty of time.  A couple of them even offered to let me go in front of them and I quickly accepted. 

Haveem the taxi driver loaded my luggage and pointed the cab toward LaGuardia.  I found myself again apologizing for being in such an emotional state.  He kindly said that I could take a nap; he would get me there in time.  Haveem dropped my off at Delta and as he unloaded my luggage I told him he was my hero!  After a kind Delta employee helped me check in and assured me that he would get me home, I found my gate and saw the most beautiful sight….my plane, ready at the gate and being loaded.

I even managed to sleep a little on the flight home.  We descended and the clouds began to light up from the city lights below.  We dropped through the clouds and Indy has never looked better.  Flight attendant came over the speakers with those wonderful words, “Welcome to Indianapolis.”

Tanzania - The Last Day

After a full week of visiting Compassion’s child centers, safari, and spending the day with Mwajuma and Fadhila I felt I had squeezed everything I possibly could out of the trip.  I joked with Sean, our trip leader, on Monday night that he could drive me to the airport now because he had nothing left to offer me. 

Tuesday would be our last day in Tanzania.  We spent the morning at Compassion’s Tanzanian country office.  I have to admit I was feeling tired that morning and not overly excited about going, but I’m so glad we had the opportunity.  It really was great to see the care of the staff and the scope of their work.  Not only do they handle the details of sponsorship, they are pouring so much into programs to alleviate poverty country-wide.  We heard about clean water programs, building programs, and other interventions.  Partnering with Compassion really is a large-scope & holistic approach to meeting needs.

I stopped by the mail room before lunch and saw the team in action sorting letter, both incoming and outgoing.  I was really tempted to go to the box for Mwajuma or Fadhila’s center and see if I had caught up with one of my letters.

I also fulfilled a mission for a special family back in Brownsburg.  Brad & Jen Murray and their 7-year old quadruplet boys sponsor a little boy in Tanzania.  Jen writes a wonderful blog over at www.4tunate.net  I offered room in my suitcase to take a small backpack of gifts that I could leave at the country office and then they would be forwarded on to their child.  I had met up with the family before I left on my trip and we prayed together over their gift for the trip and for their sponsored child.  I gave the little stuffed bear that was included a squeeze and left him in Philbert’s capable hands. 

 We said our goodbyes to the wonderful staff and made a quick stop at a market in Arusha for a few souvenirs.  Bartering was the order of the day and it was a bit overwhelming, but I found a few items to bring home to my family.  After a quick stop at a store for some Tanzanian coffee, it was time to finish packing and load up for the airport.

It had been a long trip, but an unforgettable trip.  Tanzania would keep a small part of my heart, and I headed to Kilimanjaro Airport happy, thankful, and grateful.