My Final Reflection (Friday)

Starting your day with Hardo bread, Kevin's eggs and a cup of Jamaican coffee while looking out at the mountains is close to perfection. After 7 days, it doesn't get old. For our last day of work we spent the morning at My Father's House, seeing some of the residents like Dwight and Michael, and then joining in the morning prayers with Father Gregory. After a tour of the grounds, we had the chance to buy some pottery that is made on site before heading back to Mary's Child to finish the work we had started earlier in the week. To quote Jenna, it's amazing what can be accomplished when you put 20 motivated and strong adults to work for 3 days. The entire yard was transformed. Bridget and Karen put the finishing touches on the walkway, Team Fence painted and finished off the fences, and the boys mixed concrete for the base of the trash storage unit. I even had enough time to plant some flowers, with the help of Julie #2 and Gary, Mustard Seed Communities' resident earth guru. I have never seen a man be so gentle with God's earth!

After some much needed baby holding (every woman on the trip had a baby on her shoulder out in the courtyard at the end of the day, there are pictures), we headed down to Mathew 25:40 for an ice cream party and some active playtime. My favorite memory from the day is Cesco, Kevin and Andrew forming the base of a human pyramid that held 5 or 6 boys at one time. Everyone was being showered in love and ice cream.

As the title of this post says, this is my final reflection on the week. Coming back for my 4th trip to Jamaica I thought I knew what to expect. However, once again, God has proven to me that He works in mysterious ways, and nothing is ever as you expect it. This week was an emotional roller coaster. I was thrilled to be coming back and so excited to see all the kids that have become part of my family. On the opposite end of that spectrum, this week we lost one of those family members. Anthony was one of my babies, one of the kids I always refer to when telling people about the trip, one of those people that is always on my mind. This colored my week. I was much more reflective and quiet. For those of you who know me, you know this is out of character. I started to think about how the work we does impacts these kids, and if my physical and emotional exhaustion helps one child live a better life for one day, then it is all worth it. I have always known that in coming here, but the perspective on Anthony's short life and how many people he touched in that time makes me want to work even harder to give all the other children one more happy day. And for that, I am eternally grateful to him.

In closing, I think it is appropriate to paraphrase one of my favorite benedictions: "Our worship has ended, but our service has just begun."

~ Kasey (4th Year)