JUST SHOWED UP

Mailove (pronounced "my love") is a young woman about 20 years old. She is the older sister of two students, Jeff and Dawencia. When their mother died in June 2015, the two bounced to a couple different living situations. Eventually, they were sent to her and her boyfriend. I wasn't sure how that would pan out considering their age, but it has, indeed, become their place of permanency. 

Ever since their mother passed, I've tried to visit them as much as I can. I felt God tug on my heart to love them with a motherly kind of love, pouring out as much of it as possible. I've never been a mom, so I just did what my mom did - smothering them with hugs and kisses, telling them to make good choices, always letting little Dawencia sit on my lap, and reminding them how much Jesus loves them.

When Mailove became pregnant with her first, she asked me to be the godmother of her baby. I was hesitant to say yes. I've been asked before and honestly, I just didn't want to be the token white girl. I told her I wouldn't live here forever and, if she'd like, she could ask someone else who will.

But she still wanted me to do it, so of course, I said yes. 

Now, I'm the godmother to one of the cutest and chunkiest babies on this little island. 

What a honor it is to be chosen to enter into their story. I never would have imagined that by diving into the lives of students, God had plans for me to go deeper into the lives of their families. 

However, this is far from my own doing. As Conor Grennan (via Little Princes) said, it's "...not because I was qualified, but because I had showed up." I am merely a servant commissioned to do His work, a hand-crafted vessel used to pour out His love. Someone who just showed up.