A.Rae of Hope: April 2012

sis·ter

1. A female having the same parents as another or one parent in common with another.

2. A girl or woman who shares a common ancestry, allegiance, character, or purpose with another or others, specifically:

a. A kinswoman.

b. A woman fellow member, as of a sorority.

c. A fellow woman.

d. A close woman friend or companion.

e. A fellow African-American woman or girl.

3. Informal Used as a form of address for a woman or girl.

4. Abbr. Sr. Ecclesiastical

a. A member of a religious order of women; a nun.

b. Used as a form of address for such a woman, alone or followed by the woman's name.

5. Chiefly British A nurse, especially the head nurse in a ward.

6. One identified as female and closely related to another: "the sisters Death and Night" (Walt Whitman).

adj.

1. Related by or as if by sisterhood; closely related: sister ships; sister cities.

2. Genetics Of or being one of an identical pair: sister chromatids.

WAC.

Related.

by or as if by Sisterhood. Closely Related.

What’s so wonderfully beautiful about never having been on a mission trip before? You really never ever know what you’re going to get. You never know what to expect.

And I never expected coming home with two new sisters.

True, God-given sisters.

WYNNE ‘TRIPPET’ ELDER

‘W’AC Part #1

Wynne and my relationship is unique. Having never met before until we landed in DC on our way to Ethiopia, she and her husband come flying into the airport, late--barely making the ET connector, having packed like four 80 lb bags and getting through security without any additional charges, I made a mental note to myself: “These two are surrounded by a huge Grace Bubble. Make sure to be their friend.”

… and our friendship grew into so much more…

Over the course of our trip, we learned so much about each other. Our darkest secrets. Our funny quarks. Our deepest hurt and pain. Our love for football, tattoos, headbands, and Korah. Our love for photography. (But please note, Love and Talent are two VERY different things…. Wynne has the talent. :D ) We can go weeks without talking and dial up a Skype call and start right where we left off. Silence isn’t awkward to us. Friendship ministry is on our top ten most important things in life to us.

But what I share the most with Wynne, is our love TO GO. We both share the same passion for Africa and know we are called to DO MORE with what we have been given. What I love about Wynne… IS THAT SHE’S DOING IT.

And even more? She’s BEEN to Rwanda. She’s met, hugged, and loved on the same kiddos that I am but a month away from meeting. And I would be honored to share what she’s shared about her experience there…

Wynne.

I’ve been blessed to have met you. My life is so complete knowing I have you in it. Your sisterhood is priceless to me. And today, the world REJOICED when you entered it. I pray HUGE blessings over you today, your birthday….

MARCH 21, 2012

when we visit orphans...{Rwanda week}

So a little break from the heavy :)

I did a few posts from my last trip simply about what we "do" when we go Visit Orphans

{with Visiting Orphans!}

since I have so many fun pics from Noel, I thought I'd show you!

What we do...

{picture by Alison Holcomb}

We sit on benches with friends and chat. about their hopes & dreams, about the justin beiber playing on my phone, just about life!

{picture by Alison Holcomb}

They give us tours of the rest of the orphanage

toddlers sleeping....

they have pigs!!!

{picture by Alison Holcomb}

we paint fingernails

we watch the shows they put on for us!

drumming in this case!

it's so fun to get to cheer, watch, take pics, video and cheer on our friends!

I always feel like a proud mom at her kids school show!

inside & outside shows!

and "sport" aka gymnastics shows!

the boys aren't the only ones with skills - we got treated to a dance show!

you might even get called up to participate!

we also...

hold babies

pick up lots of little kids who just want some loving!

watch the little kids dance and sing and have fun

watch the big kids play sports!

we lead the kids in worship

smile for pictures!

and take pictures...

we befriend the kids who sort of sit to the side. we ask them what their hopes and dreams are. they take us to their room to show off their hair braiding skills :)