Tomorrow we will say goodbye. It will be a difficult day for everyone filled with tears and full hearts.  But that is a story for tomorrow. Today was a pretty typical day in the life of a mission trip to Peñasquitos.  There was some work on a home and we put on a VBS for the kids. We enjoyed a wonderful lunch and a snack of coffee and cookies, both filled with some great conversation with Pastor Mario, Pastora Vilma and some of the other adults. Somehow in the midst of it all I always seem to become a bit of a human jungle gym for the boys, they love to be tossed in the air, climb on my back, arm wrestle (usually 4-5 at one time) be lifted caught and a whole assortment of other things.

As we get ready to bring the trip to a close I can’t help but reflect on a few things. First, what a blessing and joy it has been to build this relationship with these people over the last 5 years. Second, I think about the possibilities for the future.  A trust and love has developed to the point that we are able to start dreaming of the future and what it can look like together. Finally, I think about what a special trip this has been for me personally as I have gotten to share it with so many new people. Only 3 of us have been here before and it is always such a joy to share it with others. To see how they engage and how they experience it. I have yet to bring someone who isn’t affected in a profound way but it is different for each person. To make it even more special, 6 of the new people are family members. To see seeds of love for the people planted in them and to watch them connect was a great joy. It will be a memory that will stick with me for some time. Now I look forward to seeing how those seeds grow.

This post written by Shane in February, 2019 and originally posted at https://healingnations.net/goodbyes-are-coming/2019/02/