Who knew?

Who knew? That is the thought that has repeatedly run through my head over the last 12 or so hours. Seriously! Who knew that you could wake from a deep sleep to fully awake in like a second and half. I surely did not. This morning about 5am I woke to the sound of a chicken having a fit. It sounded like she was laying an egg, but it was 5 in the morning and still dark out. I instantly knew something was not quite right. I lied there quietly in my bed for a few moments thinking..who knew a chicken could be such an effective alarm clock.
A few short moments later huge blast of adrenaline hit my system as I listened to the sound of feet running past my bedroom window. Yes, it is still dark and still 5 am. Not knowing who the feet belonged to sent my body into instant fight or flight mode and I could have taken on the world at the moment. Instead I quietly crawled out from under my mosquito net and went to the window. Nothing...now roaming the house and peeking out from window to window. Finally ending in the dining room and seeing my night guard standing out in the yard wearing only a sarong. This time it hit me twice....
First...who knew he could run so fast! As he passed my window it would seem he was setting some sort of Olympic record. Second...and a little more humorous...who knew big strong African men slept in skirts? :)
In the end it turned out he was chasing an animal. Some sort of cat like creature that was wanting one of the chickens for a quick early morning snack.
I realized during my coffee time this morning that I will be headed home in just over 30 days. Wow..that means 5 months has passed so quickly. Who knew? Who knew you could fall in love with a dirty, dusty, poverty filled village? Who knew that you could wake up so thankful for each day? Who knew that being so far from your friends and loved ones could be so hard? Who knew that the my everyday would be so completely different? Who knew that something so hard, that stretches me so far, and leaves me on my knees battered and broken, could be, would be so WORTH IT?
So the day continues and I find out that although the presidential election has come and gone, local elections are still continuing. Yesterday they voted for Mayor and Local council. Apparently people care about that a whole lot more. There has been some violence in both Kampala and Jinja. So apparently people really care...who knew?
Then I spent a good part of the day at the local HIV clinic. It was rather sad and always leaves me a little depressed. Today I sat in a seat surrounded by 51 children of various ages, all with HIV. 50 of them were from another NGO that works here in Jinja, but it was amazing to see all of them sitting there all at once waiting to see the Dr. Then my little guy....the one I brought to see the Dr..another who knew moment. Who knew.....that it would be me sitting in that chair chair today, holding that sweet little child, only 5 years old, as we got the news that he has officially advanced to stage 4 of his disease. Which means, he has gone from HIV to full blown AIDS. Oh how my heart aches. Oh how wrong it seems. How unjust and unfair. I'm so angry. I remember reading somewhere in the bible how the sins of the parents shall pass along their children and I think...Wow is this a case of that or what. This sweet child has done nothing. And yet his future is grim. His outcome, short of a miracle intervention from God, already decided. We will fight of course. And we will do for him all we can, but my heart just aches. He is already so sick. And me..of all the people in the world to be here today for this moment. Really...who knew? And then I remember God. God KNEW! He knows everything. He knows everyone. He knows the outcome and the sorrow and the love and the hope. He knew when he sent me that I would sit in that chair today. He knew. So....I don't understand why, I cant even pretend to. I don't know why not someone else, or someWhere else. But I do know that God sent me and so I am trusting him. I will trust him with the moment in that chair, I will trust him with the outcome, I will trust that he had a reason for choosing me, I will trust him with the violence in town, and I will trust him when I am awake at 5am. He is my rock and my fortress, my strong tower. He is my God! He is the ONLY God! And he KNOWS!