A Visit to My "Home"

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My Papua New Guinea "Family"
The warm breeze blew in from off the ocean and ruffled my hair as I was watching the light fade over the ocean. A little girl with tight, curly hair sat in my lap and breathed deeply and peacefully. She’d fallen asleep there as she sat close to stay warm as the evening grew cool. This was my Papua New Guinean “home.” The place where I’d first lived in a village and where I’d been “adopted” into a Papua New Guinean family for the first time. I was visiting my host family in the coastal village where I had lived and trained last year. This was the first time I’d been able to come back. It felt like home.

This is my family's "kitchen" and house behind
It was also the first time I’d been able to go back since my host father had died in January.  I sat with my host family and heard about the events of the last year. I listened to all that had occurred with “Papa” and how the family had been doing since then. Eventually, conversation turned to other things and I heard about the daily dramas of life in the village and the various comings and going of family members. It was a lot like sitting around the table with family at Thanksgiving and hearing about what they’ve been up to since you were last together. Except, mine happened over a plateful of plantains and greens with coconut milk over rice, instead of a plate of turkey, gravy and mashed potatoes.

The gals getting ready to jump into that gorgeous water
I realized how amazing it is that God has brought me here to Papua New Guinea (PNG). He has graciously given me a family and has preserved the relationships with that family even though I have not been able to spend much time with them. It’s both a testimony to God’s hand in my ministry here in PNG and to the wonderful, hospitable hearts of Papua New Guineans. As I looked up at the stars the last night I was in the village, I thanked God for all He had done. I felt so full and so thankful for all He had done and also I felt hopeful and reconnected to both why God brought me to PNG and to the people of PNG.

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