I got to see Sam today!!! He wasn't at the Community Resource Center when we arrived because he had gotten hungry for lunch. The anxiety of waiting for him to come back to the CRC made my heart race and the thought of being so close to reuniting with him made me want to burst into tears. It was finally decided that we would just meet Sam at his house. The first stop we made was the first time I had been inside a compound house and not just outside. It was smaller than I ever could have imagined. Literally a one room 4x4 room for an entire family. So humbling. Sam's house was the next stop. I stood up from my seat to put on my chitenge and I saw him walking down the street toward the bus...I could see him! We were finally in the same place at the same time after a year of missing him so much my heart would ache. I grabbed his gift and hurried off the bus. When I rounded the corner of the bus he was there and ran into my arms giving me the biggest hug his little arms could give. I was so overwhelmed with emotion that I couldn't even speak. I laid my head on his as he buried his head in my chest and I choked back tears. I looked down at him hugging me and saw the biggest smile I've ever seen on his face. After a long hug I was finally able to ask how he was and tell him that I had missed him as he said he missed me too. The world came back into focus and I remembered that there were other people in the world besides the 2 of us. I asked him if I could see where he lived and he grabbed my hand just as he did for an entire week last year and he led me to his house. I first met his grandparents who were in town visiting. I then met his youngest brother, cute Judge, his 2 sisters that are older and another younger brother. His mom arrived after several minutes of sitting and talking about his family, school, friends and futbol. His mom was so sweet and greeted me with a hug. His mom and grandparents both thanked me for helping Sam and their family. I then gave Sam his gifts. The first thing he opened was his new shirt that says, "Somebody in Texas Loves Me." I read him the shirt and explained that Texas is where I love and so the shirt means that I love him. The next thing he opened was a picture frame of me and my family on one side and me and Sam on the other. I wish I could have captured the expression of JOY on his face as he opened it. He beamed, smiled from ear to ear and even gasped a little withe excitement. And finally, he opened his Bible and I read him the inscription: To Samuel, From Auntie Shannon. He said he was very happy. I was able to pray for God's blessing over him and his family before I left. Sam joined us on the bus for the rest of the day and I loved being reminded of his little personality. He of course wanted to help carry in all the groceries, help people with their seats on the bus and help wherever he could. God has given him the gift of a servant's heart and reminded me all day that He has great plans and a great purpose for Sam's life. After visiting Simon and 3 other kids houses with gifts of tomatoes, onions, cabbage, mealie meal, eggs, dried fish, 3 kinds of meat, juice, sugar, salt and oil, we went back to the CRC where I spent time with Simon, Emmanuel and Samuel. Poor Eman was so hungry he ate uncooked popcorn kernels off the floor. Ben shared some crackers with my boys as a snack. When we were about to leave, Sam started to run off and I called him back to say goodbye to me. He ran into my arms as I picked him up and hugged him. I told him I had missed him and would see him Monday at camp. He then voluntarily gave Carly and Christina hugs and ran off. They both said to me, "I get it." I thank God for another year to be in Sam's life and see him in person. He is a blessing and I pray God speaks a message to him this week. The blessing of Sam in my life is more than I deserve.
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