Hello from Sunny Jamaica!

This post is from Monday.  Since we arrived to Kingston, Jamaica, we have had some problems with the Internet. The good news is that it should be fixed now.  This is no guarantee but it might happen. ;-)

Mark Twain once said: "Life is a book and those who don't travel only read one chapter".

I would say: "Life is a book and those who haven't been on a missionary trip have to try it once. Otherwise, their book will miss one of the chapters".

It was a fabulous start of the day! Lindsay and I were up at 5 AM. So, it gave us enough time to enjoy morning yoga and savor every moment of it!

After that all the team met in the common area for a light breakfast that included Jamaican coffee, Nutella, and some other snacks. Then Andrew  reminded us about today's agenda and we were ready to kick off the daY!

It was around 6:30 AM when we left Jacob's Ladder (the place where we are staying). It was cool and peaceful outside. We got to the bus and Lorenzo (our driver on this trip) took us to the other part of the island. I was savoring my ride to our next distination.

Looking through the window, inhaling fresh air, listening to Caribbean music and being surrounded by the mountains was a part of our morning journey.

Then we arrived to Sophie's Place and children were just so ... loving! Even though most of them have a very severe disability, I was amazed how one simple touch can put a smile on their faces. That moment brought a radiant happiness to my life!

I was also surprised how quickly Lindsay, Britt, Jen, and Jess became PROs communicating with children! Their unconditional love for the Mustard Seed children, and their total acceptance and support of them, lit up my own soul!

Our veterans: Christina, Jordan, and Andrew were very happy when they came back to "their children". I can still see Christina making up a story on-the-fly about Zazu the rabbit and Jumpy the lamb for Donovan and Tiara. I was inspired by just sitting there and letting Tiara (a lovely three-year-old girl) brushing my hair while we both listened to Christina's story.

And it's not even the end of it, we have spent some time doing outside work as well. The whole process of moving rocks and painting walls under Andrew's and Jordan's supervision brought us even closer together as a team! And it was a good work out for all of us ... busy New Yorkers (yes, I'm going to include myself into this category as well). Haha

After Sophie's Place, we headed to Mary's Child to visit teen moms and play with their newborn babies. Chatting with young moms and soon-to-be moms was an experience itself! What I didn't expect is to hear from 13 year old pregnant Jamaican girl saying something like this: "I'm not sure what exactly I want to do in life but if I can choose any profession, I would love to be an architect and have a team who will help me to design skyscrapers. Also, I want to travel the world and see different places. In the meantime, I love to draw, play cricket, and soccer! And yes, I love to swim and I want to learn how to surf. Do you surf?"  I was completely speechless and ask her how she feels about having a baby at such a young age. She said: "I'm not totally happy now but (she paused here) I will be for my baby!" I was very glad that I had a big bag of stuffed toys, some clothes, and souvenirs with me. Every girl had an opportunity to choose something for herself. During half an hour that we were in the living room of St. Mary's facility, girls kept us company and seemed very pleased with our presence. I have savored every single moment of that interaction.

On our way home, we stopped at Mega Mart (a supermarket similar to Costco in the U.S.)  and bought dozens of Jamaican coffee, sauces, and spices. So, my dear friends, I can't wait to invite you for a cup of coffee or tea when I'm back to New York, and share with you even more stories about our Jamaican trip.

Love,
Iryna (2nd Year Veteran)

http://www.mustardseed.com/goto/NYC