Thoughts From Saturday--Written 11/26/2007

Saturday morning we got to see the Acres of Hope Office. It's less than 5 minutes from the Guest House. There's a caged monkey in the front yard who loves to tease the two German Shepherds. Inside the office, there are small, tall cubicles all around--it kind of feels like walking through a labyrinth. From what I have seen so far here, I think it is a very nice office. They even have a conference room!

There were several beautiful, exquisitely dressed women sitting on the porch, and I asked later who they were--I was guessing they might be staff wives who were just waiting for their husbands who were working on a Saturday. But they were Birth Mothers. I was very surprised, because I pictured the Birth Mothers coming in to be destitute, clad in rags. These women had very fancy hair-dos, clothes, nails, shoes... everything. I was told that even the poorest Liberian has one nice outfit, which they always wear to meetings, church, etc.

We spent the rest of the day at the Guest House. It was nice to relax a little, spend time just playing with Micah and getting to know him, and getting a chance to talk with the Liberians in the compound a bit more. In addition to the staff, there are children Rich and Lynda sponsor that are here sometimes. Saturday afternoon was spent playing, singing, taking pictures, and sharing life stories and thoughts on God.

We had a Liberian dinner of potato greens and chicken, which I loved! Oh--and Mooso, the cook, made some flat bread earlier in the day, which was very similar to chips. They were extremely yummy!!! Speaking of Mooso, she told me I have a very small neck. That was a first! She, and everyone I can think of, calls me Mom. And if they are asking after Corey, they ask me where Dad is. I'm not sure if it is just a cultural thing, or if they just do that with all the Moms and Dads who come through the Guest House to keep things simple. From what I have caught on to with "Liberian English" so far, it seems like the words are just shortened, and the accents are placed on different syllables. And it also seems like they speak in fragments, simply omitting lots of words. For example, instead of asking, "Are you going to eat something?" it might sound like, "You go eee?" Of course, these are just my first impressions. I certainly don't consider myself an expert after just a few days here! Ha!

Micah continues to be way too easy. ;0) He has what we're calling the "lift reaction". The moment he feels hands under his arms that are about to lift him, he peels into the widest grin you've ever seen. But really, if you just look at him, he smiles. If you talk to him, he smiles. It's so, so unreal. The only things he hasn't loved so far were his first bath and nail clipping. I heard that the Nannies just bite the nails to keep them trimmed, so I'm guessing the clippers were a new experience for him.

Speaking of Nannies, we learned that Micah's primary Nanny from the time he was born until about 3 months ago is the woman who is the Head Nanny at the Special Needs Nursery here in the Guest Compound. She is the smiliest, warmest woman I have ever met. Jesus RADIATES through her, and I was completely over-joyed to learn that Micah has spent most of his time here with her. Maybe she's the reason he's so smiley.