These Are the Moments. . .

It seems that there is more for me to tell you than there is time in which to tell you. I am experiencing far too much to be able to fit everything into this space that I have. Then again, perhaps even if my time and space were unlimited, I would still never have the ability to make you fully understand what it is truly like for me. . .
The past week or so has been full of it's ups and downs, as every week is. The good things that happened outweigh the not so good things by far, as they always do. The preschool program has been amazing! The local villages have been beyond receptive to our new school and are very eager for their children to become involved. This program has been limited to children of ages four, five and six because our resources are limited, but I am hoping that someday we might be able to expand beyond that. As of Thursday, our numbers peaked at forty-two children! That's a lot of kids! It is most encouraging to see their willingness to participate and learn. It almost brings me to tears every morning when I ride up on my bike to see them all eagerly awaiting my arrival, nearly falling off their benches with anticipation.
We have, however, hit a slight and most unfortunate snag. The young man whom I was training, Fremont, has been called up to work in the mine. This is something he has been waiting for, and it is very good news for him, but we had no idea it would be so soon. It has left me without a teacher and interpreter. I went to the children this morning to tell them the news. Someone from the church was supposed to meet me there to interpret, but no one showed up. After singing with the children for a while, there was nothing left that I could do without an interpreter. So, I told all 30-some kids to follow me. I walked them up the road to the roadside and bought them all a piece of bubble-gum. They were very excited! :) Then, not knowing what else to do, I told them, "Mukeye kikwipilo kesha." Which means, "You should come to the church tomorrow." That's all I knew to say, and I figured we would take it from there. We parted ways as everyone headed to their villages. Later I saw the man who was supposed to meet me to interpret and he went and told all the parents to take the rest of this week off from preschool and hopefully we will have a teacher by next Monday. I walked some of the kids home and met their parents. They were so excited to introduce me to their moms and dads and their parents were very excited to see me. It was a good day. We are searching desperately for a new teacher, though, and praying hard.
As long as I live, I will never forget walking down the road with over thirty preschoolers following me. I was packing one on my back and had five holding on to each hand. The rest of them were stumbling over themselves trying to get close to me. I was thinking about this later that day and I was trying to figure out how I could re-capture it so I could share it with everyone. There is no picture, no video, and there are definitely no words that will ever show people what it was like and how it made me feel inside. I found myself talking to God about it last night in prayer, because he is the only one who was there with me. I kept saying, "Oh, I loved it when. . ." or "Remember how she smiled after. . . ?" I can picture God nodding and smiling right along with me and I am forever thankful that he is here for me to share these things with. These are the moments that I wish I could pause and hold onto forever. These are the moments that I want to share with all of you. These are the moments that I live for.