what do you see

On my first home visit, I saw poverty.

Homes were maybe the size of my master bathroom, and they housed five or more people. Sometimes there was a bed. Some had a few stools for sitting. Others had bags of what appeared to be some sort of grain to sit on. Sometimes there was nothing. Sometimes they had huge rocks for their floor. There was no electricity, no bathroom, no running water anywhere that I could see - on the inside of their home or the outside.

Sometimes I saw sadness. Many times... I saw hopelessness. 

I am about to return to Ethiopia for the fifth time which will include home visits.

When I go, I will see people. Beautiful, kind, hospitable people who welcome me into their home.

I just saw a post on Facebook. Although it wasn't a home visit, it is a picture of a picnic here in the states and a picnic in Ethiopia. 

The quote under the pictures was this... Amazing how different our picnics are and amazing how we can love them both.

That is how I feel about home visits. I love visiting people here as much as I love visiting people in Ethiopia. Homes don't matter. Stuff doesn't matter.

People and relationships do.