Nicaragua

  I found an organic farm where we could stay and learn all sorts of things with the main draw being a cook. You haven't ever really been on a vacation until someone cooks all of your meals for you. Despite the many luxuries, this was by far the most spiritually, physically, and emotionally intense trip I have ever been on in my life.

After our driver picked us up I asked if there were any orphanages in the area because we wanted to stop in and see if there were any specific needs that we might be able to meet while we were there. Alberto then proceeded to tell me that we were going to go by one in about thirty minutes if we wanted to stop in and Damien and I both agreed. He translated for us while we had a long conversation with the director. We were able to see that the kids were very well taken care of as there were about 5-6 in small homes with a caretaker. While we were walking around we didn't see many of the kids because they weren't out of school yet.
 As we were about to leave three young little girls came up to me. One of them grabbed my hand and so I knelt down and then another put her hand on my face. They were asking me my name and how I was and I was in turn asking them and telling them how beautiful they were in Spanish. It was as if time was standing still for those few minutes. I cannot put into words what happened to me at that moment but I know without a doubt that I had an encounter with God that I still haven't gotten over. I actually thought to myself maybe this is what Moses felt like when He encountered God in the burning bush only for me it was in the eyes of these little Nicaraguan girls.