She shuffles up the stairs into the church building. Three children tag along at her side. She is neat and clean as are the kids. Today she’s put on a little rouge and a touch of lipstick. Her smile is hesitant yet warm.
We are there to offer minor medical and dental care. This trip we do not have a doctor, just a nurse, and the dental care is handled by a hygienist; still the gratitude for the care is obvious. It’s hot; the wind blowing through the open-sided building is filled with the heat of the day. The ladies seated around the perimeter of the large room are fanning themselves. Children wander about from family member to friend but eventually settle into a quiet wait.
We have visited at her home. It has a wide porch suitable for sitting in the shade. She is one of the few homes where we have not been invited in. Laundry hangs between the poles of the front porch.
Last visit we shared Christ’s love with the men who surround her. I believe that her husband was one of the men who sat in hammocks strung between trees at the river’s edge and listened to the Gospel. She wears a wedding ring and was meeting the needs of one of the men. She wears the rubber bracelets with the Gospel message. One of her daughters is signing ‘love.’ The picture above was two years ago. The girls, both strikingly cute, have grown and personality pours from them. I am sure that this year they will have matured greatly.
I wish I knew my friend’s name. I thought it was somewhere in my journal but I have searched and it’s not there. I cannot wait to smile at her again, to hug the kids and to know that our coming will bless her day.