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My friend Sue was reminding we are bathed in prayers. Your prayers and I just cannot convey adequately how much we appretiate all of you - your prayers and your love.  I am so overwhelmed how you have all shared our joy and celebrated with us.

 Gertie is grieving in the wee hours.  She doesn't necessarily wake - but cries.  We are having so much progress in the language department -- and yet it couldn't come any slower!!!  Roland's business trip got postponed until next Tuesday so we are so thankful for this.  He is feeling better today - but ralphed pretty bad last night.  Thanks for your continued prayers. 

In some ways this is so new and in other ways I can't believe we have only been home for three days.  They days are soooooooooo long!  Roland is so sick. Please be in prayer for him - that he would heal from whatever he has.  He needs and wants to work and yet feels terrible.  I won't post that he has lost 10 pounds already.  : )   - He would NOT like it if I shared that with you all.

Well, we arrived home Friday night -- minutes away from Saturday morning.  Let's say our marriage was put to the test and I was nearly "commitable." 

We just missed our flight by minutes because Ethiopian Airlines forgot to figure in the time change - as well as being an hour late.  Although in Ethiopia if you are an hour late you are not late.  We couldn't get a flight out until sometime on Saturday and that would have been at a different airport -- so Roland made the call to drive. 

Both my emotions and physical exaustion were at a limit I have NEVER reached in my entire life.  And then we had to drive... Anyway, it has been an insane week.  I am still processesing what I saw, what I now know, and how I feel about it. 

Just received word from Sarah and Roland that they missed their connecting flight in Dulles International Airport.  The Bokma's are going to be renting a car and driving the remaining distance of their trip.  Please check back for regular updates, we will post as we know more.- The Van Drunen family.

(FROM SARAH ON Mar 11, 2008 7:19 AM)

It is about quarter after 4 on Tuesday afternoon. We have had a full day and are 7 hours ahead of you.
We met Dibora and Yabi on Monday morning after a little paperwork. They knew us - and Dibora made a running leap into Roland's arms before I even spotted them. She then jumped ionto Kyle's arms - who was filming - so the video we haev of our meeting is kind of funny b/c the camara gets set down.

Day one Ollie Yabi had trouble making eye contact with us. They slept so well last nght - Yabi stirred a few times.

(FROM SARAH ON 3/9/08 )

Hello! We made it last night about 11:00 p.m. We are 8 hours ahead of you. It is 8:26 and we are having breakfast - with our familes.

we have met so many people - so many Christians - so many on mission work and shared our story with so many. It has been unblievab\le. Bed is so hard.

Claire and Simon - we love you so much. We are going to meet Gert and ollie at 10:00 - in an hour and a half.

There are donkeys and chickens walking around and we awoke to the sound of Muslim prayers across the city.

We went to Meijers tonight to get the diarhea meds and picked up and apples and carrots and forgot to go to the pharmacy.  Forgive my brain - it's fried. 

Mom and Dad VD (how did I get thru highschool with those initials?) came over tonight to talk and take Claire and Simon home with them.  Mom and Dad gathered in a circle with us and prayed for us.  I love praying with my mom - and knowing she prays; she is my prayer warrior.  But when Dad prays I cry.

I was reading in Zephaniah this morning.  In the last chapter -- these words jump off the page:  rescued, saved, gathered, rejoiced over, sung over.  Hmmmm - God is so good.

I am amazingly calm and I thank you all for your prayers because I shouldn't be.  -- Calm that is.  

I'll probably write more tonight but I have a few last errands:  picking up the Diarhea Meds that Doc Matt  wrote up for us JUST IN CASE. 

You know how when you're packing for a vacation and you' worry that you are forgetting something or you'll need something you didn't think of (oh worry is bad right?)  - I mean concerned that that maybe you're forgetting something or that you'll need something you didn't  think of  or you're packing the wrong sizes or wrong clothes for the weather and what if these shoes are too big for Gertie and too small for Ollie!  Yikes.  And then normally for any other Canadian type vacation your husband might comfort you with something like:  "Well, if we don't have it and we need it, we'll buy it."  That just doesn't work when you're heading to Africa.  I just don't think a run to the cornerstore in Addis Ababa would be quite the same.

God has and is showing us how enormous He is, how generous He is.

This morning I was feeling a little overwhelmed and called my girlfriend who I knew wouldn't be home.  But she was home.  She cleared her schedule for the day to bless her family and see if there was anything she could do for me.  She was going to call me earlier - but had sat down to spend needed time with her kids first.  She had just finished a game when she stood up and walked toward the kitchen.  That's when I called.