Birthday's and Banana Cake

Today was our first group day. The Vineyard Church in Cincinnati drove in from Abuja today and we hit the ground running. As soon as they were fed lunch and got a quick run down of our campus and how to function in our community we were off to do ministry. We went to two places today. The first was kind of a fun stop for the group...it's a "shop" called Giden Bege where they sell Nigerian skirts, outfits and purses. But the real magic is that it is not only a shop but also a ministry to widows. In Nigeria, widows are considered worthless. They cannot get great jobs and most of them really struggle to support themselves and their children. This ministry walks alongside widows and helps them to learn to sustain themselves by teaching them sewing and business skills. They give them a place to live (their building used to be a brothel and they have transformed it into apartments for the widows and work space) and over the course of a year or two teach them all they need to have a self-sustaining seamstress business. The stuff they make is just beautiful. And in Nigeria, it is common practice to wear skirts that go below the knee at all times, so it is a much needed occupation. Today it was fun to go there and watch the women get excited over the group that came to support them and make purchases.
After that stop we headed straight for CLAPAI to have a birthday party for the children who's birthdays were in May, June and July. And I can't begin to imagine what it would be like to have to share my birthday with 4 other kids on a day that isn't even my birthday. But I cannot begin to express how much these kids appreciated and reveled in the fact that it was "their turn" to be recognized. We gave them each a package with a few little toys in it, had some amazing banana cake and then had a huge balloon fest. At first some of the kids were pretty timid and seemed to not know what to do, but after about 30 minutes they were all running around like crazy with the balloons and the Americans having a blast. It does not take long to fall in love with these children. Today I was playing catch with a 12 year old (she just had a birthday) named Loveth. She has a twin sister named Lovina. When I was playing with her I asked her if she liked school. When she said yes, I moved a little bit deeper and asked her what she wanted to be when she grew up. She told me she wanted to be a doctor. I know why. Each of these children at CLAPAI have been impacted in one way or another by the HIV virus. Either their parents have it, have died from it, or the kids have it. (Right now there is only one child at the home who is HIV positive) But it makes sense to me that Loveth wants to be a doctor. Without CLAPAI she would never even have the chance. But now she is getting an education and has people around her who believe in her. I have no doubt that it is possible. I am going to ask you to pray for her. I think about the students I work with in Cincinnati. If one of our 12 year olds walked up to me and told me they wanted to be a doctor, I'd be almost 100% positive that if that's what they wanted to do, they would do it. It's a different story for Loveth. Pray that she will make it...and make a difference in the life of someone in her shoes.