Sunday, April 10, 2011

I cried today for a cat.


I cried today for a cat. Michello. We went to Luljeta's house today to deliver 50 lbs of flour for bread for the month and 25 lbs. of corn feed for the chickens. We do this often for those who live out in the village so they do not have to pay $5 for a delivery van that brings it only 1/2 way up the mountain. They then have to get it home in a wheelbarrow up and down the rugged mountain 'road'. Not an easy task.
We delivered the flour and corn and walked around the yard talking to the kids. Since we had been in America for furlough many things were new. Aulona showed me the trees she planted with her dad and we admired the extended fence that her mom finished. We even check to see if the chickens had laid any eggs - there were 5! As I looked around I did not see Aulona's furry best friend, Michello. In the past, there was always a 'story' about Michello and his cunning tricks. When I asked, I noticed Aulona got very quiet and let her hair cover her face. She spoke quietly and said that Michello has been gone 2 months and she thinks he is dead. Then, she rushed off to the outhouse to regain her composure. I followed, crying. I found her and wrapped my arms around her and we cried together. I don't even like cats, but I love Aulona. I meet her when she was a little girl of 7, now she is a teenager of 14. 'Precious' is the best word to describe her. On our prayer requests cards that all the ladies and girls fill out this is what she wrote - when she was 12!
" I want to ask God to make me a girl after His Own heart. I pray that I am an even better student as God wants me to be. I pray for all the believers, that they fulfill the desires of God and walk in the right road always."
As I watched her in church this morning singing with all her heart, I thought, this is why I am here. I am here for Alona, for Lujeta, for Lule and Julie, and Ilda ... I am here to love them, encourage them, teach them and to cry with them. God gave them to me and I love them so!

No comments: