2020
I Am Happy
My father died when I was almost four years old, and my mom died when I was six. Sad, right? That is what I used to think. I even got angry sometimes and asked God why I had to be an orphan.
2020
Across the World
Across the world, we assume we are so different. Separated by geography, customs, food, governments, and economic and class status. And then the unimaginable happens, chaos encompasses the globe in a universal experience.
2019
Amazing Ten Days in Kenya
How do I summarize ten of the most amazing days of my life? I’m home now, still jet-lagged, but Kenya remains on my mind – the warmth of the Kenyans, the ever-present smiles, the stark beauty of the land, the evocative singing, animals I don’t find in my backyard, the children and the people we met, our awesome team…
2019
Vietnam Connection Trip
I grew up during the Vietnam War. Certain graphic images and military words are etched into my memory: Mekong Delta, Ho Chi Minh, agent orange, napalm bomb, Viet Cong…and the image of a young American soldier sloshing through a muddy rice field in the relentless pouring rain.
2019
Vietnam: So Much More Than A War
The tank squats low and heavy in the middle of the city at the center of a roundabout, a giant hunk of refuse. Dark, cold metal, it absorbs the tropical light like a black hole.
2018
Final Preparations: A Trip to Vietnam
I applied for the Hope’s Promise connection team trip to Vietnam in June, then I blinked, and here I am making final preparations. Emotions weigh heavy on me as I prepare to take an airplane to a country that is unfamiliar and uncharted territory for me.
2018
Always Held
You slip into the world raw and trembling, aching for tender touch. But instead, the one you most long for walks away.
2018
Thriving Against All Odds
I didn’t recognize the young man I sat down beside. We smiled at each other, and I extended my hand and said, “Hi, I’m Diane, what’s your name?” He smiled and said, “Stanley!”
2018
Speaking Up for the Voiceless
Last week during a break at a church board meeting, one of my friends took out her phone and began to show me pictures of her grandchildren. She took the time to tell me their names, ages and what was unique or notable about each child.
2018
Advocate
More than a million orphaned children live in Kenya. Yet, though I had previously worked in Mathare Valley, one of the largest informal settlements (slums) in East Arica, home to thousands of vulnerable children, I did not fully appreciate the plight of orphaned children until 2005 when I started working for an adoption agency.