Departing Thoughts From Our Girls….
We are on the final days of our nearly 11 years here in Brazil and it’s been one emotional roller coaster. At least for me.
I have been the one melting down more than anyone. On occasion, Clyde will too when he’s talking to folks about leaving. The kids are more resilient with their emotions. So far they look forward to being with family. I’m sure their “saudade” or missing folks will come on the other side.
I asked the girls to write an exit essay. I wanted to share it with you. They have given me their permission to share with you all. I think it is interesting their perspectives and thought you might enjoy it.
Here are excerpts from Makenna’s essay:
“I personally would not change one thing about how God has planned my life. I am so blessed and lucky to be able to have grown up between two cultures and two languages. Most kids my age do not get the experience I got. Ten years of hard work and planting seeds into peoples lives. Ten years away from the comforts of our own culture. Ten years of growing up learning the Word of God. I’m not going to let those seeds die, and I hope to come back and water them.”
“Maddy and I are survivors of dengue. In case you don’t know what dengue is, it is a virus carried by a mosquito that gives you red spots on your body, high fever, vomiting, headache, diarrhea, body pains, dizziness, nausea and a stabbing pain in your eye when you look to the side. You will even reject your favorite meal, drink and snack. It lasts for about two non-stop pain weeks. “
“Now, after three years of living in Maribel, the community has a church. Dad is training some of the members of the church to become leaders. We have been friends with everyone. Mom and I became experts on cooking from scratch, cleaning fish, and learning what to do with meat that was killed half an hour ago. In the community, if someone kills game, they share it with the village. If their is a birthday party and you invite a couple people, the whole village comes. Our family feels like we have a family here.”
“Through all my adventures, moving, and fellowship with the Brazilians, it will be impossible to forget where I was brought up. Being raised in two cultures will always be a part of me.”
“Even though we will be far from Brazil and our Brazilian family, I will cherish them and they will always be in my heart.”
Excerpts from Maddy’s essay:
“I have experienced so many adventures as a pastor’s kid and missionary kid. I’ve lived in Brazil for the past ten years. It has been the most awesome experience of my life, so far.
“We have lived among ribeirinho people for three years on the Iriri river. A ribeirinho is a person that lives on the river and lives off of fish and land animals. These ribeirinhos get their money by fishing, harvesting rubber or mining gold. They have manioc crops and they grow a lot of fruits and vegetables like bananas, sugar cane, squash, green onions and more. They are very hospitable and relaxed. Once, we were doing missions on the river and my dad caught a fish. They made a fire, barbecued our fish and let us sleep in their house. In the morning, the got fruit and made coffee and cuzcuz.
God has blessed me with many things, but most of all with being a missionary kid and pastor’s kid. He blessed me by placing our family in Brazil. I will miss many things and many people, but I won’t forget the experiences I had in Brazil.”
As a mom and homeschooling mom, my heart delighted in their thoughts and articulation. I know God will use this fundamental time to build their foundation and that their perspectives will be different than all their friends they will hang out with. My prayer is that they don’t feel their experiences were invalid when the mob of influences come.
Thanks for reading!