My Little (Big) Miracle Family

Growing up as the oldest of five siblings (with two other half-siblings), I guess I just didn't feel like my family was big enough because two years ago I decided to double it.  I met Anique, Alice, Divine, Erick, Boaz, Jastine, and Elene while I was volunteering with my church, and I thank God for each and every one of them and what they continue to add to my life.

Missing Erick in this picture, with a random friend of theirs. 

They are refugees from Congo/ Tanzinia and came to the U.S. about 7ish years ago.  They survived a war, their parents are going through the process of a divorce, and they have to deal with the chaos that comes along with having a huge family.  But I have never met more joyful, thankful, hilarious, loveable kids.

Anique, the oldest, is a sophomore at Bluegrass Community and Technical College and works 5-10pm every day after school and on weekends to help her single Mom take care of bills.  She constantly sacrificially serves her family, laughs at the anxiety that she causes me, and is the first to give God credit for the amazing things he does in her life.  When it comes to financing school, miracles continue to happen to Anique and I am beyond thankful for this.

Alice is just such a teenager.  She takes selfies 24/7 (only a slight exaggeration), is always blaring African praise music from her phone, and says the funniest things (i.e., "there are lots of fish in the lake" meaning "there are plenty of fish in the sea") when trying to explain American culture to her family.

Happy visitors at Berea College, where Anique and 

Alice are considering attending next fall! 

Divine always seems to be stuck in the Mom role and is the classic middle-ish child.  She is a wonderful artist, and kind of has that aloof, middle child, artist personality.  She always makes extra efforts to clean up around the house, and can shoot a look to her siblings to make them behave.  I need to learn that look for my siblings. :)

Erick just wants to be a little man, and forgets to do his homework.  Math's the worst, so I would probably "forget," too.  He always loses his shoes, and eats the most (I never had brothers, so I did not realize how much young boys can eat!), and is learning to wear deodorant.  He is also always polite, which is a big deal for middle school boys.

Anique, Alice and Erick got baptized a few months ago... 

it was an all day event, and was super exciting to get to experience. 

Boaz always falls asleep in my car, and says my food is yummy, and comes up with the craziest stories about his future.  He just might be the billionaire astronaut that he aspires to be, folks.  He has told me that his wife with have the hugest engagement ring ever, so if you will be in the market in 15 years...

We got last minute Halloween costumes at Dollar Tree 

last year.. 4 costumes for like $14. Win. 

A few weeks ago Jastine and Boaz asked me about my boyfriend, which led to an awkward conversation about how sometimes boyfriends and girlfriends breakup.  Boaz asked me if I sit on the couch, eat icecream, watch sad movies, and cry (I told him I actually really do that), and he teased me quite a bit about it.  Anique told me a couple of days ago that when I dropped them off that day, Jastine asked her if they could pray for me together because he was worried about me.  And now I have to cry just thinking about how sweet that is.  Kids understand empathy better than we give them credit for sometimes.

They always fall asleep, and so quickly! 

Elene is just pretending though. 

Elene is still little enough to sit on your lap, and play with your hair, and tell you that she wants you to live with her.  My favorite sweet Elene stories include: (a) the time when she took off the bracelet that she was wearing and said that she wanted me to have it, (b) every time I bring over dinner and/or icecream, she invites all of the neighbor kids over to join (which always worries me, but there is always enough icecream somehow), and (c) she is always the first volunteer to help cook.

They became fast friends! 

I love them for making me feel appreciated, for eating my food and pretending to like it even when it's gross, for how much they love and respect their sweet mother, for falling asleep in my car, for being ambitious, and for being mine.  

A couple of months ago, at church, the pastor used a quote (that I can't find online, no matter how hard I have tried), but the paraphrase is... you are never going to see miracles unless you place yourself in the context in which miracles happen (or something really great and pertinent like that).   Until I met this family, I didn't believe in miracles in the same way.  I saw miracles as big, super identifiable, life-changing things.  Through their eyes, though, I am starting to see the miracles in serendipity.  Good, subtle things happen, and they know that they happen for a reason (by the way, God is the reason).  

My cute family always has something that they can use help with (like getting Erick to do his homework), so if you want to see some miracles happen, I suggest you get to know them and add them into your prayer repertoire.  Big things are happening people, and I'm so glad I just get to watch. 

Thank you, Clive Staples Lewis

It all started when my fourth grade teacher, Ms. Osterman, gave our class copies of "the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" for Christmas (but I'm not actually certain if I read it then or not).  In the last two or three months though, I did read all seven of the Chronicles of Narnia books, and I don't want to sound really dramatic (though I often am), but it changed me.  Each book provided food for thought regarding some of the big issues going on in my life right now, and helped me think about the way I relate both myself and Jesus to other people.  They were every ounce what I needed.

If I could share anything in the world with you, it wouldn't be my silly 24 year old insight.  No, like Ms. Osterman, it would be the wonderful children's books by C.S. Lewis.  But really... I have actually bought several copies of each book for this purpose, and would love to share!

What these books manage to do is explain Christian theology in such a way that doesn't push people away, shows Jesus's heart, and makes you forget for a second about all of the negative things that Christians, the church, and society as a whole have attached to religion.  What he did with these books is really just beautiful.  To spell it out: I would strongly encourage you to read them, regardless of what your belief system or current stage of life may be.

Initially, one book ("the Horse and His Boy") stood out as my least favorite, but in retrospect it was the one that I need to mull over the most.  I could talk about these books for every blog post between here and Christmas, but for today, I'll just focus on this one book and what it confronted me with.

 I had a 6 hour bus ride to Cleveland for work today, 

so decided to take a break from reading about domestic violence 

to reread "the Horse and His Boy" from my giant anthology.

As you may imagine, I finished the whole thing.

The book is centered around a boy (Shasta), a girl (Aravis), and two horses (Bree and Hwin). Aslan, the lion, is the main character in the books, and represents Jesus in a really great way.

To over-summarize, so as not to give too much away (because I trust you will read or reread it): They go on a journey, they get separated for a bit, and it is all very stressful.

During all of this, the kids each encounter Aslan on their own.  Both children ask Aslan about what he was doing for a third party, and he tells both children that it's not for them to know.

              

[Shasta]  “Then it was you who wounded Aravis?" 

[Aslan] "It was I."

              [Shasta] "But what for?" 

              [Aslan] "Child," said the Voice, "I am telling you your story, not hers. I tell no one any story but 
             his   own.”

Wow.  How very much like God, and how very much like me. 

On my laundry list of quarter-life crisis struggles, wondering why God seems to be giving me and others answers that are in conflict, and just wondering why he is putting so-and-so through such-and- such (I am as good at oversimplifying my life as I am the Chronicles books) is just taking up too much of my time, prayer, and worries.  

Thank goodness for Lewis's Lion, who said it so simply and perfectly.  God reveals his plans for our lives in his own time, and that is all we can ask for and all we really need.  It's a bittersweet pill to swallow (and thus I had to read the book again today). 

In closing, here is another great quote from the book that I found some comfort in:

"I have now lived a hundred and nine winters in this world and have never yet much such a thing as Luck.  There is something about all of this that I do not understand: but if we everneed to know it, you may be sure that we shall."

And a link to a lovely song...