Second Round Safari

Safari Daaaaaaay 2!

The morning came early, it seemed… Oh wait… that’s because it WAS EARLY! 5 AM, baby! Woooo! It was pitch black. Now, I am a morning person. Truly, I am. But it gets a little tricky to be chipper when it’s BLACK outside! No light! No sunshine! No vitamin D! CAN’T FUNCTION!

Our sink was plugged this morning. And the water was murky and brown… mixed with our spit and face wash remnants… It was YUMMY!

Especially when my toothbrush fell in.

NOOOOOOOO!! GROSS, MAN! NOT ok.

Ayiyiyi.

We took a LOONG ride first off, to drive to breakfast. It turned out to be a three HOUR drive to breakfast!

But it was EPIC. RIGHT as we left the reserve, we saw ELEPHANTS!! I think they are my favorite animal to watch. I was in the third car. The first car was almost charged!! I was so jealous. It was a fantastic way to start the day.

I drove with Andrew first off. In my car, there was Kara, Liana, Micah, Colton, Jenny, Matt, and Kristina. We had a lot of fun singing the Lion King: “In the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps toniiiiiiight! AH BUM BUH WAAAAAYYY!!!”

We saw giraffes up close and personal! We legit FOLLOWED it down the road! I’ve never been so close to a wild animal!

At lunch, Baba commandeered Andrew’s car.

Our after lunch drive was not as eventful.

It began to rain. So ccccold in that Indiana Jones car!

When we returned, we had an awesome dinner once more.

Kelsey, Leslie, Callie, Shayna, Mary Bette, Zach and I played BS. I LOVE that game. It brought me back to my theatre days… I always played that backstage.

Unfortunately, I got sick during the night. Not so positive. But it was cool because I spent the entire time I was awake in prayer. It was really good, for real! So I was grateful to be awake on SAFARI in AFRICA! My life, man.

It was beautiful when I actually got to fall asleep.

You Make Beautiful Things

April 2, 2011

SAFARI!!!!!

I had the best bus ride EVER. I sat with Kara, Zach, and Wailana. We played Would You Rather, and had some phenomenal bonding J As it should be!

Ok, who is a Disneyland fan? I would like to take a moment to commend the creators of the Indiana Jones ride. My safari car was JUST LIKE THAT!!! Before, I was definitely not the hugest fan of Indiana Jones, not going to lie. It’s a bit claustrophobic and scary, honestly! But NOW, I will LOVE that ride, because it’s exactly like safari! You guys, it sounds the SAME! And it rides the same!!! It’s so epic! Yet ANOTHER reason to love Disneyland. AH. Like I needed another reason.

Today, I rode in the car with Heather, Matt, PJ, Zach, and Shayna. Super great group. Reg was the driver. He adores safari. It is so cute. He has gone so many times, and yet, every time is new and surprising for him. That’s how I want to live my life J

I LOVED safari-ing! SO completely great! Driving through the game reserve was divine. There’s not really another word for it. We were driving through God’s land, just as He intended for it to be. I felt like such a dork, but I couldn’t help but praise Him for a good 6 hours!

You make beautiful things

You make beautiful things out of the dust

You make beautiful things

You make beautiful things out of us.

Guess what we saw?!?!?!?!?!?

THOUSANDS of impala (deer-ish little dudes), rhino (WHOA), Buffalo (their horns look like a giant mustache), and BEST OF ALL:

We saw a lion. A LION!!! I was so excited!!! Besides leopard, lion are the hardest to find! That was my favorite part of the day.

Matt and I played a rhyming lyric game. As much as I thought I was going to KILL Matt in the game (I am a rhyming MASTER), he beat me! I was so pickin’ impressed!

When we got back, we were assigned roommates. My only thought: “PLEASE don’t let me get Jenny! Anyone but Jenny! NOT JENNY!!!!”

So of course,

“Nightingale? You’ll be rooming with Pasch.”

Pasch, Pasch… who is Pasch…? WAIT. It CAN’T be… JENNY! WHAT IS THIS?!?!?!?!

Just kidding, guys. I love Jenny so much!!! I was super ecstatic! But Jenny was in a different car than I was, so she wasn’t back from safari just yet.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Matt called, “I have an announcement. There are lots of wild animals roaming this camp. Hyenas and lions come in here every night. That means you are not allowed to leave your tents. We will drop you off in your tents, and pick you up for every meal and every drive. This is serious, people. Don’t do anything stupid.”

Oh, lovely. If I step outside my tent, I will be eaten? No, MALLED?! And the fact that we were going to be dropped off in our rooms for an HOUR before someone came to pick us up made me think I really wasn’t feelin’ being alone…

So I was roommates with Shayna and Melinda for an HOUR! We had good fun. We took awkward third roommate pictures and I drilled Melinda about being an RA. It was “very niiiice.” (As South Africans say J)

Dinner was delicious!! I was SO FULL after! But a good kind of full, hey? (<- dude, I just AM South African. It cannot be denied!!! I’ve found my HOME AT LAST!)

Jenny was a beautiful roommate. SO good. Wonderful bonding J I just enjoy her so much.

When the generator lights turned off (10:17 PM), IT WAS SO DARK. I could NOT see my hand in front of my face!

And I was already under a glorious “Princess” (as Jenny called it) mosquito net. There is a small malaria danger in this area, so I was sure to take advantage of it!

But complete and utter darkness + mosquito net + my random anti-breathing issues = CLAUSTROPHOBIA!!!! I had a small freak out. By God’s grace, I was able to reach my hand outside of the miles of fabric of the mosquito net, find my backpack, and magically locate my tiny alarm clock out of the piles of shtuff in my backpack. Thanks, God! Having my alarm clock let me have light! I kept punching the light every three seconds. The claustrophobia began to melt away, and I was able to sleep.

Something Different

April 1^st, 2011

Friday.

CHAPEL! There was something different at this chapel. Normally, people enjoy chapel, but you can tell that some are more into it than others. Today, everyone seemed to hold a raw humility and new reverence for God. We have been broken. And everyone has been broken in different ways. Yet, we have all been broken together. After chapel:

CLASS. ALL day. Each service site presented a video and shared about their experience. I cried during iThemba’s.

It was amazing to see God’s plan in each site. He hand picked each individual and tailored each experience to grow every person in a new specific way. Some people were more impacted than others. But I honestly believe that everyone has been changed in some way, no matter how small. And I also know that in the future, more and more change will result from service sites. It was such a blessing to hear about everyone’s experiences.

The Ethembeni staff came to hear our presentation!

It was precious. We ALL cried at some point. Because the staff was there, we were able to tell them how they have impacted us and how they have changed us! We will be forever blessed because of what they showed us.  

I am in awe of how these wonderful people wake up every day and have the strength to spread hope, light, life, and love to the hurting but beautiful children of Mpophomeni. They pour their hearts and souls into Ethembeni! I am so inspired. Once again, a life just isn’t worth living if it’s lived for oneself. Thank you for reminding me of that, you wonderful people!

There was so much embarrassing bawling going down. It was great.

The only other exciting thing of my day was going in the game reserve. I am going to miss it so much!

Final activity of the day: Packing for Safari! I am so excited! Animals aren’t really my thing, per say… but I’m sure it’ll be great J

Til tomorrow, dear one!

Love Knows.

March 31, 2011

THURSDAY

The LAST DAY of service sites!!!

It was surreal. The whole day occurred slower, with slightly less color. I felt as though I was watching a film, instead of actually living. I tried to soak up each precious moment, and commit those moments to memory so I could live with my loved ones at Ethembeni for the rest of my life.

Our morning was spent writing letters. I wrote SO MANY! And yet, so much remained unsaid. Partly because of time, partly because of language barriers, but mostly because some things are too sacred, to holy, to be minimized by trying to capture them in words, phrases, and sentences. This is new for me; I love words!

It was quite therapeutic for me to write those letters, however. At last I felt the freedom to tell them what words couldn’t. I told each person how much God loved them. I have been super intentional about trying to demonstrate God’s love. As much as I wanted to verbalize this, I felt that my time at Ethembeni was supposed to revolve around actions, which I’ve heard speak louder than words. In these letters, I found a new hope. I tried to keep the language simple, but I did not edit anything that was on my heart. I am trusting that there will be someone who can translate any confusing thoughts from my letters! I feel like I made a final hurrah by giving them something tangible and whole that they can keep with love from the Lord.

One of the letters I wrote yesterday was for Auntie Lihle’s daughter, Luyanda. I had met her twice, and Lihle told me, “She loves you! She asked if she could call you. But I told her that I didn’t have that kind of money. So can she write you?”

“Of COURSE!” So I wrote her a letter too.

She came yesterday. And she brought me a letter and candy!!! The sweetest thing of my entire life!

In the letter, she told me she loves me and that I am her star. So sweet.

We had a talent show today!

Here is the script I wrote for our team and NonJabulo:

Ethembeni’s Got Talent

Judge 1: TONIGHT is the night you’ve all been waiting for! Soon we will decide WHO is the most talented person in ALL of the WORLD!

Judge 2: And now, the FINAL round of Ethembeni’s Got Talent!

1) Hillbilly (Claire).

Hillbilly: Hi, I’m Billy Bob Horris. I like to ride pigs and dance in the barnyard!

Judge 1: What will you be singing?

Hillbilly: I’ll be singing “I’m Proud to be an Amer-ican.”

Singing…

Judge 2: Wow, #1, you are very talented… but I don’t think you are what we are looking for. Judge 1: Audience members, what do you think? (cheering, booing, etc.)

2) Opera (Karissa).

Opera: Hi! My name is Eunice Picklehopper. I really like math. And singing. I’m really nervous right now.

Judge 1: Don’t be nervous. What are you going to sing?

Eunice: I’ll be singing Rhapsody of Mpophomeni.

She sings.

Judges: I think every dog heard you from here to Cape Town! But still, you have a wonderful singing voice.

3) High School Musical (Shayna/ Renna). 

Sharpay: Hi! I’m Sharpay Evans and I’m going to be a star!

Ryan: Ahem. WE are going to be stars, Sharpay.

Sharpay: Whatever.

Sharpay and Ryan: We LOVE to perform!

Ryan: And now, please enjoy one of our showstoppers. Feel free to sing along!

They sing.

5) Shayna (Nomjabulo.)

Shayna: Hi, I’m Shayna. I want to be a hairdresser! I also want to be a social worker. I love to sing to make others happy.

Judge 2: What song are you going to sing?

Shayna: I’m going to sing “I Gotta Go my own way.”

Sing

Judges: That was so beautiful! (Standing ovation.) We love you, Shayna!

Host: It’s now time to choose the winner! Shout out the number of your favorite contestant!

The judges deliberate. The contestants freak out.

Judges: And NOW. The moment you’ve all been waiting for! The WINNER of Ethembeni’s Got talent is: SHAYNA!!!

Shayna: Thank you so much! I love you all! Goodnight!!!

So Nonjabulo (who wanted to be called Shayna) got the chance to act and sing! I felt like I was able to give her a bit of my soul, as we share a passion for performing. She was wonderful. And it just made me realize how BLESSED my childhood was. All I did was theatre. And I loved every minute of it. And here is this girl who will most likely never be in a show of any kind. So, even if for a moment, in a super small way, I was blessed enough to help her live her dream. I am so blessed because of it.

Saying goodbye to the kids was surreal AGAIN. One of my favorite little girls that I want to adopt is named Akhona. I watched her being carried home through the gate and was overwhelmed with the recognition that I will probably never see this little angel ever again.

I realized that if I was to describe this experience, it would be thus: (yes, THUS J)

My life and the lives of those at Ethembeni are two roads. The roads are so completely different in every imaginable way: race, color, language, where we live, our life goals, our pasts, our presents, our futures, our ways of life… the differences are ENDLESS.

And yet, SOMEHOW, God brought these two paths together in passing, just for a few weeks. I was blessed enough to be forever impacted, molded, and transformed by those on that path, and hopefully they can say the same about me. They will always be on my heart.

They taught me how to love. Each person that I got to know in any increment told me yesterday, “I love you,” when they were saying goodbye. What? How?

From the very beginning, these people have defined love. When I was on crutches, EVERY DAY, all of the staff members would ask “HOW is your foot?!” EVERY day, without fail. Who honestly cares that much? And every time there would be improvement, they would be so excited! And even when there wasn’t even an ace bandage to remind them, they would continue to ask me how my foot was doing.

I feel like my job here at Ethembeni was love through action. I am used to love through words. Karissa shared this amazing quote with me: love instinctively knows what is needed.

For me, that meant that I needed to love on these children by holding them, tickling them, smiling at them, etc. And I learned so much through that.

Even when we said goodbye, I could see love in their eyes. Love abounds.

I am forever changed, because I have been unconditionally loved.

Epic-ness from Danielle tonight:

“I realized freedom isn’t about getting to do whatever you want. It’s being free from your own fears and insecurities so you can be free to fully live for Christ. Free to love big and live big.”

Fat Balls and Ugly Flashbacks

March 30, 2011

WEDNESDAY

Last FULL day at Ethembeni!

Fat balls. WHAT?! Yes. We experienced Fat Balls. WHAT are they?! DEEP fried ZULU BREAD. EPIC. They were HEAVY!!! Dense hunks of deep fried DEATH. But did I mention they were glory-filled death?! OH my word. They are a zulu snack. Yikes. The memory STILL haunts!

I may or may not have had a slight mental breakdown. Everything was hitting me at last. The gravity of the lives of the little ones of Mpophomeni. Leaving them and never returning. Karissa, Tyler, and Shayna were so supportive. Thank you, team!

I wrote a script for Nonjabulo and our staff for the talent show tomorrow! It shall be epic. No lie. J

NETBALL! This afternoon we played netball. For the first time, I actually played. It was a whole lotta peer pressure and my ankle wasn’t killing me. Therefore? PLAY!!!

Then I realized WHY I never played before, besides my lame gimp-hood. This phrase replayed in my mind like a broken record:  THIS IS AN UGLY FLASHBACK FROM MY CHILDHOOD. Again and again and again!!! WHY do I suck at sports?! It was so sad, you guys. SO depressing.

Obviously… I am writing this quite a bit later… I apologize for being behind on my blogging… but honestly, I have been living it up over here. Therefore, I don’t feel guilty J But this is all I remember from Wednesday. Hurrah. J

Butterfly: She Came, She Loved, and Everything Changed.

March 29, 2011

TUESDAY.

Today was the last day the whole staff would be together.

SO the staff gave us our farewell gift:

A beautiful card and our Zulu names.

Ok, not going to lie. This project was headed up by our social workers. And I loved mine. I truly did! She was so precious! But we didn’t bond as well as I’d hoped due to the language barrier, and how shy she was. But I loved her. So I wasn’t expecting much from my name or my card.

But I was happily surprised.

My Zulu name: Noluthando.

In the beautiful broken English written in my card by my social worker: “Noluthando: She have love and caring everyone, since she came in our family centre everythings change.

“I love your smile, laugh and your music. You sing so beautiful. You are so full of joy. Thank you for all you do at Family Centre I love you so much. From Samke.”

Ok. Ok, now. What a BLESSING! I love and care for everyone, I came and everything changed?! And the fact that she told me I was full of JOY?! Come on!!! This wonderful woman barely could make conversation with me in English! Yet she could notice that I am JOYFUL, the very thing God is teaching me now?!!?!?!?!?!?!

I am in awe, Jesus. Jaw-dropping, gum-popping AWE.

The rest of the staff wrote in the card as well.

Phindile: “Hi Renna. I love you smile, and singing. God be with you in your plans.”

Nonie: “Hola Chica Bonita! You’re so amazing in everything especially in singing acting. I really have been inspired by you keep it up good work you so good on it.”

Nhlaka: I enjoy having you around and I love the way you sing and I wish you came back if you got a chance. May God bless you.

Sikhu: Thank you, for having in Family Centre was amazing, your drama, singing, may God grant His spirit in you.

Zwe: The first day when you shared your story I was touched but I saw the courage and boldness in you. Beautiful voice to praise God, I will miss all that and I hope you enjoyed your stay in South Africa! Just a remind God as a great mission for you. Stick in his heart and you will find it.

AH. Zwe!!! I told him my waterfall story the first day. I have been praying for boldness. I love that: “God has a great mission for you. Stick in his heart and you will find it.” I want to stick in God’s heart more than anything. Thank you, Zwe.

And finally, Claire.

Claire: Ok sweet Thando, where to begin? You make an incredible first impression, princess. There are so many things I could write, but I’ll stick to this: thank you for being so beautiful, working s hard and uttin g up with huge, crutch-shaped obstacles so wonderfully. My prayer for you is that you would know who God has made you- the butterflies are symbolic! Love you lots sweetie pie!

Claire cut out beautiful butterflies out of music note paper for the front of my card. It is gorgeous. I didn’t know what she meant by “the butterflies are symbolic.” So I asked her.

“Renna, I believe that your time here can be signified by the life of a butterfly. God has taken you out of the life of everything you know, just like a caterpillar. He put you in this cocoon, or Africa, where you are learning and growing and changing extraordinarily. When you go home, you will have transformed in every way and become a beautiful butterfly.”

I am in awe. AGAIN. Praise the Lord. Ah.

Drama day!!!

Remember Nonjabulo? She wants to be an actress. She is a beautiful 18 year old with a 2 year old son.

Today’s skit was Shadrach, Meshach, and Abendigo.

The Faithful Abangane (friends)!

Narrator: Kwasuka sukela, kwakukhona abangane abakhulu. (Once upon a time) there were three best friends.

Enter the 3!

Either with a secret handshake, and in three part harmony. Possible pyramid?

Shadrach: Shadrach….

Meshach: Meshach…

Abendigo: Abendigo…

All three: ABANGANE!

Narrator: Now these abangane loved God more than anything else. They prayed to him every day!

Shadrack: HI God! Thanks for the flowers!

Meshack: God, the sky is beautiful today!

Abendigo: I love you, God!

Narrator: But one day, an evil king named Nebuchadnezzar made up a new rule.

King: I have made a statue of gold.

A kid is chosen to be the statue.

King: Everyone must bow down and worship the statue, or you will die!

The kingdom bows down to the statue, quite sillily.

Narrator: But these three abangane LOVED God SO much, they refused to bow down to the statue. This made the king very angry!

King: WHY aren’t you bowing down to my statue?!

Shadrack: I’m sorry, king. We can only bow down to the ONE, TRUE God.

Narrator: This made the king FURIOUS!

King: THAT’S IT! I am going to throw you into the fire because you will not worship my statue!

Kids get in a circle and become the fire.

The King throws the three into the center of the circle.

Narrator: But instead of being burned, the three abangane were fine! The LORD sent an angel to protect them.

The angel dances into the circle and squirts water at them.

Narrator: When the king saw that the three abangane were still alive, he was AMAZED!!!

King: Shadrack! Meshack! Abendigo! Are you alive?!

Meshack: Yes, king! We’re doing just fine!

King: It’s a miracle! Now I know that your GOD is the one, TRUE God! Come out of there, you three!

They come out of the fire.

King: From now on, everyone will worship YOUR God, the God of Israel! Everyone, let’s stand up and worship!

Ujehova simangalis uyabus

Ezulwini phezulu

Ngothando namandla nokuhlakanipha

Ujehova simangaliso

There is only ONE true God. How many? (ONE!) Even when people are mean, and tell us to worship other fake gods, we need to be strong because God will protect us and bless us because we were faithful.

Together, WE can be FAITHFUL ABANGANE by only praying to God! Everybody say “faithful abangane” on THREE! 1, 2, 3! (Faithful abangane!)

Hurrah!

So I was Shadrach, Nonjabulo was Meshach, Aimee was Abendigo, Lindsay was the Narrator, Londi was the King, and Shayna was the Angel.

It was great fun. We videoed it so Nonjabulo could watch herself. She was SO excited!

It was beautiful.

I realized how BLESSED I am to have had the childhood I did. I was literally ALWAYS in a show, if not two or three. I loved it! I truly did. And I believe I was grateful. But meeting Nonjabulo gives my past a whole new significance. I had the opportunity to do what I loved. And my family was unconditionally supportive. They drove me to the ends of the earth! But Nonjabulo has neither the opportunity nor the family. Mpophomeni has no theaters. No acting programs that I know of. As far as family goes, she has her son, Sno. They live alone.

If for five minutes, I could help Nonjabulo’s dream of performing come true, then I can rest easily and believe that I made a difference. Yes, it was so silly! It was a skit in front of school children! But still, it was performing in a role. And if I have a blast doing them, I am guessing she does too.

Shayna pointed out that maybe my past of theatre existed so I could help these children.

What a thought.

My life was centered around theatre. I loved it! It was amazing! But what if that wasn’t the focus point? What if it was only preparing me to do a different kind of ministry? That thought makes me jump for JOY. It means that God was preparing me YEARS and YEARS ago for this time! That I truly was placed here in such a time as this! It would be the ultimate combination of serving the Lord and praising Him with my passions, gifts, and talents.

Lord, could this be? Is this what you have for me?

Empty Hands that Offer Praise

March 28, 2011

It was a very big day today.

It was very good. But it was really hard.

We started off today by going into the township on a prayer walk. It was amazing. AH. I feel like I can’t accurately describe anything right now because my heart hurts.

There was trash EVERYWHERE. In an ironic, sad way, the colorful trash added a wry beauty to the township. Goats and cows grazed not in the grass, but in the trash. The animals eat the trash, and the people get sick from eating the animals because the animals are consuming the trash. There is also no trash program. People put their trash in a place in their front yards and then once a week, a man comes round and BURNS their trash, which emits nasty toxins into the air, also making people sick.

The cleanliness standard here is ridiculously low compared to the states. People throw their “rubbish” anywhere, because literally THERE ARE NO TRASH CANS! At Ethembeni, there is not ONE “rubbish bin.” Nada. Of course you’re not going to throw your trash away… because there is nowhere to throw it. Except on the ground.

We went to a preschool! Ohmygoodness. These children. I NEED to adopt a child. I am growing restless! A few things that really struck me about the kids:

1)    their eyes. Some of them were so full of life! Their eyes SPARKLED! It was completely beautiful! And yet, some of them had eyes with nothing. No life, no shine, no joy. Hopelessness. At the age of 3 or 4, they already had desolate spirits. They needed love. But don’t we all?

2)    The other thing that struck me was a feeling of timelessness. They are never going to leave their township. I have never met ONE kid who has left Mpophomeni. They live in innocent oblivion, never knowing what is out there. And I don’t know if it’s good or bad. On one hand, they are living contently. But is it really contentment if you don’t know about other ways of life? On the other hand, perhaps if they were introduced to the world outside of Mpophomeni, maybe they would be inspired to try to find a way out, and battle their way to a better life. But WHAT is better? And by whose definition? By the American standard, they NEED to get out and find a great job so they can provide for themselves and gain more material items. But is that better? Would this hopeful people loose their joy, trust, and faith if they suddenly had everything?

I hope that doesn’t happen to me when I am suddenly thrown back into my ridiculously blessed material life in America. But maybe that will be an experiment. I’ll let you know how it goes J.

The prayer walk was really positive. I loved being in the community and learning more about the place where my dear children at Ethembeni live.

I was proposed to again. Hurrah.

When we got back, I was having a party with my camera. Mandisa, an 18 year old with a 3, almost 4, year old son, came to the center early. She saw my camera and asked if I would take her picture. Of course! We went outside and took her picture. I asked if she wanted me to take more?

“Can I get Phila?”

She went and grabbed her son. And I did a mini family photoshoot with them on the jungle gym. After we were done, she asked to look at my pictures.

She went through every single picture on my camera. At every other picture, she would stop and say, “What is this?”

“Oh, I was singing at a baseball game. It’s kind of like rugby..?”

“I love to sing. I never get to sing for anybody. Is this your family?”

“Yes,” I tell her.

“And who is this?”

“Oh, that’s my dad.”

“Your father? He still lives with you?” I nod. “Wow.”

Silence.

She breaks it with, “And who is this?”

“That’s my grandfather.”

“He is still alive?! WOW!”

Next picture.

“Is this a dinner party?” She is looking at Francesca’s birthday dinner. We are all dressed up. Tommy is serving us by candlelight in a tuxedo.

“Yes. It was my best friend’s birthday.”

“Wow. Your life is perfect.”

Your life is perfect.

Those words will forever haunt me.

What was I supposed to say to that? All I could come up with was:

“Yes… It is. I am so blessed. I am so grateful…”

SO lame.

My life is perfect.

But you know what? They have some things I never will. They have a gratefulness that is unrivaled. They completely rely on God for everything. Literally. Without Him, they have no food, no shelter, no safety, and most importantly, no hope. They have legitimate JOY. They are JOYFUL in receiving every gift God gives. When your hands are empty, you can use those hands to praise the Lord. When your hands are blessed with anything, you use those full hands to offer thanks with your heart AND your full hands.

I wish I could show everyone this spirit! I wish I could capture it in my soul and be an example to those around me when I return to the States! Lord, give me the strength to honor these people I love with this new attitude.