The past few days I have been overjoyed watching the interactions between the AACS community and the people here in Colombia. The guys on the trip have been a complete blessing to me the way they interact with and show love to the children. It brings a smile to my face every time the McCollum sisters see an old friend here in Colombia and light up. The way that the Kuehnes do not speak fluent Spanish but still portray the hands and feet of Jesus by their actions towards others. I felt overjoyed watching all this happen around me, but I did not yet feel like a part of it. I knew it would happen, and last night I was encouraged by Brooke and Mrs. Woody telling me that "God works in mysterious ways" and "He gives you a great moment when you least expect it." I knew this was true so I was not disheartened even though I had not yet had my "moment".

Today started out with breakfast and celebrating Melissa's quincenera (her 15th birthday). We sang happy birthday, we had a card, two "Happy Birthday" banners, confetti poppers, and a pink button with ribbon that said "Birthday Girl" on it. It was a fun morning for all and it was awesome to share this experience with the others on the trip.

Soon after, we loaded onto the bus and headed to Hogar de Paz, a ministry that works with young children (mostly elementary school kids). Once there, we had rotations that had to do with the parable of the lost sheep. We told them the lesson, made a craft, a snack, had games. I was having a pretty good time. Afterwards, we had lots of time to kill so we took the kids across the street to the playground and hung out with them there. This is when I had the "moment" I had been looking for.

Earlier, while we were doing the rotations, I had a girl in my group named Laura. She was 11 years old and super sweet. I liked her immediately because she obeyed the rules and did what she was told. What's not to love about that, right? But once we went to the playground her and I bonded. We all stayed at the playground for over an hour and during that time Laura and I jumped rope, had sack races, played on the jungle gym, talked about life, took selfies, and I even taught her some English. It meant so much to me to be with her and talk with her. Even though I was the one teaching her English, I feel like she helped me to improve my Spanish. Obviously I did not understand every single word she said, but I understood a lot. And even when I didn't, the smile on her face would say it all. She was having a great time - and so was I! It was truly fantastic to have the Spirit moving that quick. Less than 24 hours before, I was slightly disheartened because I had not had my "moment," and just like that He gave it to me.

As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. So the AACS kids went back into Hogar de Paz and had lunch. Laura had not yet been picked up, but a few minutes into eating she was getting ready to leave so I stood up and gave her a hug. I thought that she had left, but once I sat down, she ran and gave me a kiss on the cheek before heading out the door. That definitely made my day.

After lunch we went to a different Hogar de Paz. From what I understand, "Hogar de Paz" is a common name for ministries here. We did a very similar thing here, which consisted of games, crafts, and a story. However, we only stayed for an hour and a half or so at this ministry.

Once we left the second Hogar de Paz, we travelled to "Catedral de Sal," which translates to "the Salt Cathedral." This place is exactly what it sounds like; it is an underground salt mine that has been carved to be a Cathedral. It has over a dozen crosses cut out of the rocks, each one representing a station of the cross from Catholic tradition. It was somewhat like Lurray Caverns, except salt. Plus, we were allowed to lick the walls if we wanted!

Aside from Catedral de Sal, the final thing to end this lovely Tuesday was to go out to dinner for Melissa's birthday. We went to Crepes and Waffles to celebrate. Here we had great food and team bonding, just getting a chance to relax and talk about the day. Today was truly a great day and tomorrow we get to see the children from the first Hogar de Paz again. I hope to see Laura tomorrow and I can't wait to see what the Lord continues to do with this group of AACS students throughout the week.

~ Shannon Baden