April 14 Monday at Kind Hearts by Jacob and Katie Kimble

Words will fail here as I try to describe what we experienced today.  We had the awesome opportunity to visit Kind Hearts School today, which is a care point for Children's Hope Chest.  As we pulled up in the vans, all of the kids greeted us with singing.  It was awesome!

        The first child I met was a boy named Abdi.  He was so full of joy.  As we walked around Kind Hearts he would not let go of my hand.  He melted my heart.  I cannot wait to see him tomorrow.
        I was also able to see the river that I use as an example in my water unit at school.  The water was black, and it is the same water that the children drank until last year when a well was finished on the property, provided by St. Joseph Christian School.  The water is a great picture of the gospel.  Without the clean water well, the community and the children were drinking water that could ultimately bring death.  The clean water provided life, the same thing Jesus promises us. We were able to gather around the well and give thanks to God for what he had provided.

        After lunch all the guys went and played soccer with all of the boys.  The soccer field was a parched piece of earth, that did not look like much, but today it was a sacred place.  Today I watched five high school boys run around playing soccer and loving on kids.  It was incredible.  It was really special watching two of those guys, Sam Starr and Kyle Fox.  We have been doing Young Life together for four years and it has been awesome to watch them grow into the men they have become.  Their lives tell a compelling story, and those stories point to Jesus.

        It has been really neat to be able to experience this with my wife, Katie.  We have talked about doing something like this for a long time.  This experience is a growth point in our marriage.  There is no other person I would want to experience this with.
        Before we left, we put on a skit telling the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000.  Before the kids went home they all received a bag of goldfish crackers and bread.  As they were leaving Abdi and I found each other and were able to say goodbye, which was awesome!

        I know words have failed.  There is nothing I can say that can really communicate what we experienced today.  The best part about it, we are going back tomorrow.

                Jacob

     
Katie Kimble's turn:
Hello,
        As others have already stated, this experience has been incredible! It's hard to believe that we have been here four days. I want each day to last as long as possible!
        The second night of sleep in Addis was much more extensive for most of the group, which helped with energy levels today.  Every morning I have been able to spend some quiet time on the roof of the guest house.  During these morning meditations, I've had the opportunity to observe the city as it begins to wake.  It is an interesting time to reflect on the beauty of the city.
        Today we journeyed to Kind Hearts Care Point on the outskirts of Addis Ababa. Kind Hearts is a school for 1st through 4th grade; however, there were children as young as 3 that attended.  Two 3-year-old boys were twins and captured my heart! All students who attend Kind Hearts are sponsored by families in the United States. Hopefully those families who sponsor students understand the impact they have on kids in Ethiopia.

        Makayla Meinert and I were in charge of the bubbles station. We quickly found out that the girls were not interested in playing with bubbles. They were, however, interested in dancing....especially to Shakira.  The girls at Kind Hearts love the song Waka Waka by Shakira. Coincidentally, this is one of the songs on my running playlist (great beat). As I played the song on my phone, the girls gave me a lesson in Ethiopian dancing.  It was a mixture between tribal and twerking. Since I am the dance coach at Central, I showed the girls a video of my Central girls performing a routine. They thought the dancing was hilarious! After we listened to Waka Waka approximately 20 times, I introduced the girls to other musical artists. They liked Justin Bieber but did not like Ke$ha (my kind of girls). With each new song, the girls pleaded for me to show "example, one example".  I taught them some moves for techno music and even how to line dance. My moves were met with sarcastic encouragements of "very good" and laughter of embarrassment/excitement at my poor quality of dance.
        Having the opportunity to experience this with my husband had been extremely meaningful. Jacob is amazing with children! It is the one of the characteristics that attracted me to him. One of my favorite parts of the trip has been watching him spend time with children in Ethiopia! Jacob knows how to love people well!
        As we were leaving, the children wrapped their arms around us in full-body hugs. These children are not afraid to express their affection for one another and for us. "I love you very much" echoed through the group. I am thrilled that we have the opportunity to go back tomorrow!

        Katie