Home

I am finally home after a very long day. We flew from Guyana, stopped in Trinidad for 2 hours, flew to Miami, drove to Ft. Lauderdale, flew to Orlando, flew to Raleigh, and then finally drove back home. It was quite the adventure! I must say, however, that all of the traveling was well worth being home.

I miss Guyana so much.
I miss the little children.
I miss Reshma and Naresh.
I miss the selfless love they all give, regardless of their circumstances.
I miss hugs from the little ones every single day.
I miss the Guyanese food.
I miss part of the team who we left behind-- Tessa, Peter, Josh, Andy

Tonight, I'm thankful that I can use the sink water to brush my teeth.
I'm thankful for my family and my best friends who were anxiously awaiting my return.
I'm thankful for the memories I made.
I'm thankful that those stories will be told to people who might join me on my dream to continually change the Guyanese people's lives.
I'm thankful for American food.

Painting security fencing to keep thieves from entering the orphanage 

I may have been a little tired...

Guyana, once again, was a trip of a lifetime. The children blessed me and helped me more than I could have ever helped them. God is so good, so so good. He revealed himself to me over and over again on this trip; I left Guyana comforted by the fact that He is in control and that He will keep the beautiful children and homeless men and women safe. He has a plan-- a good and perfect plan. I have many more stories, pictures, and videos to share later after I get back to the American way of life. Thank you for all of your many prayers and much support.

**Update
God moved in a powerful way. We were able to get all of our medical supplies back from customs; everything was like we had packed it, and we got it in time to deliver it to all of the orphanages and the rehab center. Just the fact that we were able to get it back so fast is huge! Praise God!

Guyana Day 5

Once again, we enjoyed another wonderful day in Guyana! We had breakfast at the hotel very early and headed out to Hope Home to we our friends there. Seeing Naresh and Reshma again was definitely a highlight of this trip; Naresh still has my name badge from last trip and Reshma still has my letter. She told me she wants to write in my journal again tomorrow which of course she can do! She also asked that next time I come I bring her a Rihanna cd. I think I can do that :) Our project at Hope is painting metal grates that will become part of a barbed wire fence to keep out thieves; that is becoming a problem there. I have many more stories to fill my blog with when I'm state side. We are about to leave to eat dinner at a US ambassador's house whom we met because of the medical crate incident. She is from Mississippi and wanted to eat dinner with some fellow Southerners. We happily accepted! More stories later... I need to focus on enjoying my last few days here! Much love to everyone back home, Lauren

Guyana Day 4

Today has been yet another incredible day in Guyana; something about this country is incredibly captivating. We enjoyed another morning of "sleeping in" and an amazing breakfast at the hotel. We then went to church and due to a little mix up got there early but it allowed us to participate in the Palm Sunday march with the church children! It was an awesome experience and definitely something I'll remember for a lifetime. The church service was really good too although it lasted three hours. It was kind of a Guyanese version of Life CC which of course made me really happy! After church we enjoyed a fried chicken lunch at the hotel and headed on to the streets again to feed the homeless. What an eye opening experience!! Those people have so much potential and I pray to God that they can somehow see it. Miles says his favorite part was having Clement, a former street resident and now an addictions counselor, join us. While riding, he saw alot of familiar faces and told us their stories. After the feeding, we headed to the Pegasus for a nice American style dinner! We have an early busy day ahead of us tomorrow. Much love from Guyana, Lauren and Miles

Guyana Day 3

Just a short post because Im having to use an iPod. Today has been alot of fun so far!! We went to the market this morning to do some shopping. That was very exciting, but extremely hot. Tessa says the temperatures will be extreme today!! We will be going to a little cafe for lunch and then back to Joshua House for our last few hours there. I'm so not ready to say goodbye but at the same time I can't wait to go back to Hope Home to see everyone there! Dinner tonight will be at Tessa's house tonight... probably an authentic Guyanese meal. Lots of chicken curry :) Hope all is well back home!! Continue to pray for our team and our safety. Much love, Lauren and Miles

Guyana

Just a quick update to say that I am back in Guyana again, and it is so completely wonderful! I feel like I never left; everyone is just so welcoming. We spent our day yesterday seeing all of the beautiful children at Joshua House and at the Red Cross orphange; we had Easter egg hunts at each place. We then went on the streets to feed the homeless around town and give out the flip-flops that CCHS collected. They were so thankful!

Today we went back to Joshua House to do some construction projects and hang out with the kids. It was so wonderful to see all of my old friends and to meet some new ones. We are just getting back to the hotel now, and we will have some lovely "pizza" for dinner tonight!

** A Little Sidenote***
When we arrived at the Guyana airport, the corrupt customs officers took all of the medical supplies we were bringing to help all of the kids. We have contacted many people within Guyana to try and help get them back. Please pray that God's will can be done in this situation. Also, pray for those officers who felt the need to take them; pray that they will realize we need those supplies to help their people. God has an incredible plan, and I can't wait to see it revealed, whenever that may be.

Thank you everyone for all of your continued prayers and support! Much love, Lauren