It All Started With A Kiss

One night after dinner I decided to dig into the bottom of my suitcase in my secret stash of Hersey Kisses to satisfy my chocolate craving. I shared one with my host mother as well, which opened up and started a night of bonding and talking to each other. While we enjoyed the chocolate together at the kitchen table my mother began sharing with me that one of her closest friends from her past used to give her Hersey Kisses all the time. And with just that simple comment conversation continued and we seemed to talk about everything and anything. It was awesome. My mother lives a life where Christ is so apparent in her everyday life and it is such an inspiration for me. To talk to her and get to know her a little better than just above the surface was really special. She shared with me about past relationships she has had, how her faith has grown and about struggles she faced in her childhood. My host mother has not had the easiest life. She has shared with me about troubles financially, physically and emotionally. But she is the strongest women! She is amazing! She has had some very painful experiences in her past with family and what is amazing for me to see is how loving she is and how she has learned to forgive and move on.

It was such a lesson for me to sit and talk to my host mother that night after dinner. Not to mention how beautiful it was to hear her testimony in Spanish. Although, it was not as easy for me to reciprocat as much as I would have liked, I learned how important it is to listen. She is such a positive women and living with her for 3 months has been the biggest blessing! I can see God's love, mercy, grace, strength and pacienct shine through her life. The coolest thing is I can see these things in the smallest actions she does such as setting my breakfast out every morning before I leave for class at the crack of dawn, braiding my hair, painting my nails or washing and painting not only my toes but also a friend of mine! My host mother is a great example and I am so happy to be living with her and her family.