“I like meeting you Sely”

Dai Loc is an orphanage about 45 minutes outside of Da Nang. I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Promise house was mostly younger children, and the atmosphere was absolutely wild… Kids everywhere running and screaming. But I knew Dai Loc had older kids, and many of the kids were from the surrounding villages and had at least one parent. However, because their family could not afford to feed or take care of them, they were sent to Dai Loc. Parents from the poorer areas often have to choose at least one child to send away so that they can afford to take care of their other children… I struggle to understand.

We took a van to Dai Loc and I was able to see the countryside really for the first time. Mountains constantly surrounded us, and I was captivated… In the winter my dad used to plant winter rye grass. I loved it because when everything else was gray and cold, the grass was bright. You couldn’t help but stare, almost like it drew the color out of everything else so that it got all the attention… that is how I felt about the rice fields in Vietnam. They were so green, I’m almost sure it’s a shade I’ve never seen… some of the houses were on stilts over water and others were small with little gardens in the front and vines growing all around the yard. The houses you see most are made out of cement and are panted bright colors, usually very open houses. Some of them made me think of the spanish houses you might see in Arizona but then with a Louisiana kind of twist. Most of the homes are open so the chickens, dogs, whatever can just run through. And all along the road were markets with fruits I never even knew existed. Many have spikes haha so you def want to remove the skin first.

I’m just rambling now, which is easy for me to do, but I just wish I could show you what it all looks like, and sometimes pictures just don’t cut it. I will get some good ones soon though… We stayed at Dai Loc all afternoon and evening. We played hockey with them, soccer… we drew pictures and watched Tangled. I almost felt a little ashamed as we were finishing up Tangled. It was the great happy ending that we love, but I noticed that they couldn’t take their eyes off the TV. I’m sure because they rarely get to see movies, but I wonder what they were thinking. The daughter comes home with her prince and is rejoined with her two loving parents. If I were one of them, I wonder how I would feel about such an ending?

We sat around and chatted for a while. The “Mommas” of Dai Loc are 4 Vietnamese women. Sim, Fee, On, and Hoam. (I did that phonetically, lol have no clue about the spelling) They kept walking up to me and touching my skin. “Dap” they would say… beautiful. If you are not aware, women in Asia long to be white as we like to be tan, so they think we are beautiful. Which, I am constantly amazed by how lovely they are…

When we were leaving a teenage girl walked up to me and begged me to come back next week. She could speak a little English and asked if we could practice. Her name is Jan, and I can tell something is really great about her. When I climbed into the van she said, “good Nigh Sely, I like meeting you and you are ver soable” That last word was sociable. lol I’m very excited to learn their names and know their stories.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Friday night, i’ll have a good Saturday. Sending all my love across the sea!!!

And I Trembled…

It is true that we don’t always understand the circumstances in our lives. And I don’t always like to talk about mine, because I think it embarrasses me that I feel the way I do sometimes.

In Lord of the Rings, Frodo asks why the ring had to come to him. He feels that it is too much to handle and that someone else would be better suited for the job. But then wizard man reminds him, we don’t always get to choose what comes to us, but we get to choose what to do with the time that is given… those words ring in my mind now. I have struggled for years with what my life was supposed to look like. I have longed for a home of my own, I have wanted a love of my own, and desire a curly-headed little girl that I can wrap up and kiss goodnight. I am living the adventure I dreamed about, but often have to do it alone. I have asked my friends, family, and God why so many times, that I can’t count them. Last night, God made my heart tremble.

A little girl around the age of 6 or 7 curled up under my arm, with her head in my chest. After her two more came. I smiled down at them, kissed their foreheads, and then raked my fingers through their hair… Having your hair combed is one of the greatest privileges I know. And I wondered how many times these beautiful little orphans had someone to do that for them. I kept taking deep breaths to keep from crying, and one by one, I twisted, twirled, and braided… I knew they were hurting for some attention, because we had brought in new balls for the kids to play with, and none of the girls budged. They would just hold on to me and look up and smile. Here is where God spoke, clear as ever…
“Shelby, you have asked me for a long time why you don’t yet have a family of your own… and I hear you my beloved. But it is because I needed you to love this baby girl. She is mine also, and I love her. And tonight, just tonight, she needed you to play with her hair, kiss her head, and smile. She needed to know someone cared about her tummy ache, and needed to know someone believed she was special… as I do, her father.” When the girls weren’t looking, I looked away and let every tear I had been holding back run down my face. Today has been a hard day, and I will not always understand the circumstances or have answers to all my whys… but my father gives me courage when I need it, he gives me love when i’m alone, and step by step he will reveal exactly what I need to see. Though the darkness may last for a night, joy comes with the morning.

Isaiah 54
The Future Glory of Zion
1 “Sing, barren woman,
you who never bore a child;
burst into song, shout for joy,
you who were never in labor;
because more are the children of the desolate woman
than of her who has a husband,”
says the LORD.
2 “Enlarge the place of your tent,
stretch your tent curtains wide,
do not hold back;
lengthen your cords,
strengthen your stakes.
3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left;
your descendants will dispossess nations.

Where I drive, Live, and Eat!

These are a few details from my day. First I took a picture of one of my traffic circles that scare me lol today I figured out though, if you find the toughest looking guys and sqeeze between them, then you are good. Soon i’ll know their names and we will get matching tatoos.

I live with the Brewers who founded Orphan Voice. They have 5 adopted daughters whom have become attached to my hip. So far I have had 2 dance parties, skate board lessons, and story time with Shelby… that is where they all lay on my twin bed and somehow I make them all be still. You will see a picture of the steps I climb daily to my room. I call it the thigh master.

Last is my lunch… it’s the traditional Vietnamese dish. Pho, which is mainly noodles, herbs, and beef. Not to bad. It mainly tastes like herbs and water.

Tonight I’ll be visiting the promise house, which is the orphanage in Da Nang. Super excited to meet the kids! Not feeling so great though. I had to drive home in the rain today and it’s a little chilly.

For those who have asked my Address is
Anthony and Cindy Brewer (Add my name)
F2- 03 Tran Hung Dao
Son Tra District
Danang, Vietnam

My cell phone is- Country code (which I think is 84) 01687294004

The wind in my hair!

So today I finally rode a motorbike and did not crash or fall over…. YAY!! But we had to drive through a giant roundabout with a ton of Vietnamese speeding towards me. So, I thought I would wet myself but I got all the way through it. The key is to go with your instinct and forget all rules. Fun place to live huh? haha in a normal intersection where we would usually come to a stop and look, they don’t. You just zoom through. So at least I don’t have to worry about getting a ticket for breaking a driving rule. Sometimes when you cross traffic, you just push through and make people stop, including cars and trucks. And I usually go through them pretty quickly so there is no time for error! Not room, time! lol The faster i’m out of that circle the better.

So today I came into the office to start working on memorizing the child sponsorship policies, because that is what I will be taking over. Basically finding medical and educational help for kids in the orphanage and surrounding villages, which are very poor. But Vietnam isn’t like any of the other countries i’ve worked in. In order to do anything here you have to have permission from the government. Going to church, visiting the orphanages, whatever. So it takes time to do just about anything. So while i’m waiting for the process, i’ll be in the office organizing and preparing. I will be visiting the kids this week and doing some activity nights with them. Also I met with a group of women this morning on the beach to do stretches…. which by the way, I got spanked by a Vietnamese woman… first time for everything haha after the stretch they basically rub each other down, and it was my turn. She just started slapping my rear, and all I could do was laugh. What a fun day to be alive!…

I’ve been wracking my brain for affective ways to work in the community around me and to meet the people. It’s hard obviously because of the language barrier and the fact that I must be very careful with how I go about things. But I met a girl who wants to practice English with me, and i’m going to try and start beach game night on Tuesday or Thursday’s. Lots of good opportunity when people are just hanging out. Lots of ideas! I do get discouraged because I cannot do things the way I am used too. But I know my father knows what is needed here and what is needed in me.

So today Tony suggested that I practice on the bike some… especially before I get into downtown. So I took the coastal hwy because it’s the most straight and least busy. Nothing can describe the feeling. You bikers probably know… driving by the water, sun on my back, hair in the wind lol or helmet…. ahhhh can’t even tell you how refreshing it was after being on planes and without my own transportation. I know that things will be difficult, but that 15 minutes was exactly what I needed for today. We must love the little things.

I’ll update soon on the upcoming plans on the field here and what we are preparing for.

And by the way… this part of the coast is sort of a tourist area, which is why it looks nice, it’s the cleanest place i’ve seen so far…. lol but trust me, it is very different a block down.

My first impressions

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.” Marcel Proust

Most of us have pictures of how Vietnam may be. Stories from soldiers, tv shows or movies, pictures online, the news… and I do not doubt any of their stories or perceptions. But let me draw a picture that I have seen.

To describe Vietnam I would choose 3 colors that I feel sum up the atmosphere around me quite well. (Even though understand this is only a first look, since I’ve only been here 3 days.) My first impression you could say.

Pink- Da Nang is called the city of flowers. Everywhere you look there are roses, daisies, tulips, almost anything you could want I Think… brightly colored boats in the harbour, ornaments that hang across the road, and buildings that seemingly blend together, as if they were all one to begin with. When you look down on the city it’s just a motion of excitement. You could never memorize everything because the details are so drastic that your mind would just stop. It makes me think of pink because it’s a happy color. lol Little girls like to wrap themselves in it the way I’d love to be wrapped in Da Nang. That’s the only way I knew to describe the feeling.

Gray- Ashes cover the side-walk as people put out their fires. That day they had enough fruit, money, clothing that they could offer as a sacrifice to their departed ones. Their ancestors. Buddha is a part of life, but so are the dead. The people here live by luck often, and never forget that there forefathers are watching them. They see the world as such. So I see gray.

Blue- The South China sea engulfs Da Nang. Fishing boats spread across the coast and harbour. Their life depends on the ocean, and without it they would be helpless. Children run to the water’s edge, splashing in the waves but to afraid to get in. Like the ocean itself is alive. Their respect is extraordinary in ways, and at the same time keeps them from fully living it seems. What it feels like to run into the ocean and dive into the waves… many will never know. The Vietnamese are very to themselves and reserved. It is different, but something I almost envy. If you look at them, they just smile and look away, like they are afraid for you to see them. They have beautiful faces… sometimes it’s hard to look away.

This is my first impression.

Few Pictures

I’ll put some pictures of me of eventually, when I don’t look so tired lol but for now, here are some I like. Beach in Danang. You can see the girl Buddha statue in the background, lol which I thought was Mary at first. Also, I have seen many bride and grooms out taking pictures. They throw bird seed on the ground so the birds will be in the pictures with them. And then the last are Da Nang at night… still have lights up from Chinese New Year, the bridge in the background is also covered with lights.

Jesus I am resting

There is a song by the Shelly Moore band called, Jesus I Am Resting. It’s a song I am listening to now. This song makes me close my eyes, take a breath, and come back to the knees of what it means to follow after Christ. And what I mean by come back to the knees, is just that… the humility of what it means to love a Savior who relentlessly loves you. It is my privilege.

Tonight is a hard night. I’m still a little jet lagged, and feeling somewhat cut off from people around me. No Facebook, no iPhone. It is just what I needed, but hard to face. There is another song by Bryan Adams called Never Let Go. One of the lines I have always loved says…

Could you lay your life down, so a stranger can live. Could you take what you need, but take less than you give. Could you close everyday without the glory and fame? Can you hold your head up high, when no one knows your name.

Resting for me right now doesn’t mean getting sleep, or taking some time off. The word resting means starting again. Giving up myself, including my selfish ways. It means sitting down with my father, and letting him take out all the bad, and filling me with only his best. That is resting.

Palms 91:1

Scary evening… beautiful day!

Hello dear friends and family… i’m am currently sitting in another airport because my flight to Da Nang was delayed. lol I’m not going to lie, I am verrry tired. So please forgive my writing, it will not be my best.

So the evening was crazy. When I got to the airport there were so many people, if Lam hadn’t screamed my name I would have never seen  him from behind the crowd. I’m in love. Vietnam is so great. It smells like Bolivia, looks like a mix between New Orleans, Charlotte and Vietnam. 🙂  We took a taxi to my hotel, a little place in an alley near Lam’s house. So fun I thought. Very simple room. The funny thing was that there was a leak from the ceiling over the toilet hahaha so I had an interesting time with that. Lam dropped me off and I took a couple of minutes to read and wind down before I turned off the lights for bed. I was kind of proud of myself for being able to stay alone and didn’t have a hard time falling alseep. Until 3 that morning. (Dad don’t read this lol)  I heard some people in the hall way. First let me just remind you that ignorance can be bliss, and i’ve been reading about the tragedy of human trafficking, had just finished it on the plane. So I am very aware at the moment of how easy it is for traffickers to work… I sat up to see if I could figure out who was outside, and then one of them reached for the door and started trying to turn the knob. I froze, my heart stopped. It sounded as if they were pushing on the door hard while they were turning the knob, because I heard some cracks. Then it stopped. I sat and prayed. “God what do I do?” I hoped that maybe they just thought it was someone elses room. Until they came again and started pushing on the door and rattling the knob. “Ugh!!!” I jumped up and ran to the door and placed both hands against it. Whoever it was, of course was speaking in a language that I don’t know yet. I laid against the door and prayed. They stood there a few minutes and then walked back and forth down the hall. I went back and got in the bed, realizing there was nothing I could really do at this point. So I laid down and closed my eyes. I heard them for a while but finally decided that I would trust God with it, because I was too tired to be afraid. I woke up every hour after that. The good part is, morning came. 7:45 am I was up and bathing.  I walked around the corner to my friend Lam’s house where they had BREAKFAST!! YAY!! French bread, yogurt, fruit, and 2 cups of  hot tea! Lam lives with a lady from New Zealand who is very nice and we all had a great chat. Lam then took me out on the motorbike. And this is where I really fell in love. People always ask me why I Like to ride with my windows down, and usually because I love the feeling of being outside, like i’m on a hay ride. So this was so fun for me. It’s scary sometimes when all these bikes and cars are coming toward you, but no one ever gets hit. I did lose a flip-flop though haha Lam had to run down the road and get it. Sorry Lam!

We had pho for lunch which is a traditional meal here. It is noodles, beef, herbs, and onions. It was actually very tasty.

What I saw from the motorbike… I saw a man peeing on a church. Notre Dame actually lol which was strange to me. Broke my heart for a lady who was carrying her crippled husband on her back. Guy got the handle bars of his bike stuck in the back of a truck and he had to run to pull it off. Vietnam has pizza hut, pizza inn, anddd dominos!!! 

NOW if I can just get on this flight i’ll be home sweet Da Nang. ALL MY LOVE!! PS… I think facebook maybe blocked here, so if someone could tag this to facebook I would be grateful!

Hong Kong

I’ve never posted anything from China so this is a awesome first for me. I’m sitting in the airport waiting to fly to Ho Chi!! I thought once I was in the airport I would be nervous and possibly stressed, but i’ve been beaming since I left.

I very gladly got a window seat on my flight to Hong Kong. And looking out the window I looked down at the great northern ice of Canada and then Siberia and so on. It was beautiful and it was hard to take my eyes off of. Mountains of ice, rivers that had broke through. Lifeless.

I started thinking about the great adventurers like Shackleton I used to read about as a kid and grew up loving. The ones that cross thousands of miles of unchartered territory to explore and change the world as we know it.

As I Stared down at the miles of ice, I felt like maybe in some way I could join them. Different times we live in I understand. Not much unchartered lands left. And they had a different mission than, and obviously went through more discomfort… as I sit drinking my coke and hot tea. But what drives man to do something so different and uncomfortable, scary and unnerving is passion and courage. He finds something he loves and his courage takes him there. I am not Shackleton, I am Shelby. I don’t have a cool beard or an ice axe. But I have passion, and a father that loves me and gives me courage through his word and spirit to follow. I can’t wait for the adventure of Vietnam, and i’m so glad I was blessed today with the views. I love you all very much and can’t wait to hear how our father is working in your life.