But today is one of those "I miss Sri Lanka" days. I've been having a lot of those lately. After spending four months in Galle, Sri Lanka over the past few years, I have developed deep relationships with the precious people over there. They became like my family.
Mama Sitha, my Sri Lankan grandmother, would bring me hot tea every morning. She would come into my bedroom and say, "Excuuuuuuuuuse me...teaaaaaaaaa!" in her cute little accent.
I miss waking up to the sound of Buddhist monks chanting in the distance and seeing monkeys jumping from tree to tree in the jungle surrounding me. I miss Sara. She accepted Christ while I was there and she became like my sister. Now she's living in another country with her new husband. I'm afraid I will never get to see her again.
I especially miss my friends from the village in Hikkaduwa. This particular village was very poor. Some of the houses were made of mud and had no electricity. I would go to this village every week to work on houses (but mainly, I played with the kids while everyone else worked on the houses!) Every morning, we would drive up in Pradeep's van with the windows down and I could hear the little kids shouting, "Mery! Mery! Play?!" They would grab my hand and take me to their homes where they would show me their photo albums and serve me tea and practice the few english words that they knew. They would turn on the radio and we'd do silly dances together and laugh. I would give anything to go back and see them, even if it was just for a day. It's hard to explain how much I miss that place. I crave to go back and my heart aches when I think about it.
(Anusha, Hassein, Violet, Geetani, Kasun, Dineshika, Achini, Hashinka and Tataranga from Hikkaduwa)
A few days ago, I received a letter from Hashinka, a beautiful 15-year-old girl from Hikkaduwa. It had been over a year since I had heard from her and I was beginning to worry I would never hear from her again. But when I opened my post office box and saw that little white envelope with red and blue lining, I could barely contain my excitement! I opened it as quickly as I could and right there in the post office, I burst into tears! haha- people must have thought I was crazy. I was just so happy to hear from my friend. I even sniffed the page to soak in any lingering scents from my beloved country. In her letter she said, "Mery, please try come to Sri Lanka. We are very eagerly looking for your arrival." My heart melted when I read that. I wish I could tell her how desperately I wish to go back. How I think of her every day when I see her face on my wall and pray for her and her village.
It's been a year and a half since I've been and it'll be at least another year or two before I would be able to go back. I thought it would get easier with time, but it's only getting worse. Instead of thinking of it less, I think of it more. I feel like God has called me to go to these people. My love for them is indescribable. The calling I feel is kind of scary in a way and I don't really know what it means. But something tells me I'll be going back someday. I just hope it's someday soon.
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