Mikayla's heart on Orphan Ministry

" My first trip to an orphanage was in Haiti last March. Leading up to the trip, I was nervous and wasn't sure what to expect. Some days I would be really excited about going and others I would be really scared. I had heard many heart touching stories about all the orphans that lived at the orphanage. It broke my heart to hear some of the things I heard. Like all the infections the kids had, how little the kids were and how poorly they were being treated. this made me kinda scared of going there. I wasn't afraid of the children; I wasn't sure how I would react to kids being treated like this.

While I was there, I experienced some life changing events. I grew relationships with these kids and I saw a 3rd world country for the first time. Even though I couldn't communicate verbally with them, I was still able to hold and love on them. the part of the trip I have remembered most was this little girl Christaline. She was about 3 years old. She clung to me and I would just hold her. I was not away from her the majority of the time we were at the orphanage. We taught the kids at the orphanage a worship song in English and all of the kids would sing it. It brought tears to my eyes when my favorite little girl Christaline came up to me and started singing it. It amazes me that a 3 year old would remember a song in a different language.

After the trip, it was really hard for me. I realized how lucky we are to actually sleep in beds, to actually eat three meals a day and to have a loving family here for me. I struggled for a while thinking about how we left them nothing and we came home to everything. this trip to Haiti has helped me not take things for granted and realize how fortunate I really am. I will never forget my first trip to an orphanage in Haiti, it was an unforgettable trip of a lifetime!"