Goodbye, Deste.

Saturday dawned ominously for our family.  As soon as we awoke, we hurriedly dressed and rushed to the hospital.  Deste's last day had come, and we wanted to spend every minute of that last day playing with him and saying good-bye.  

Talk about SPUNK.  This little guy has it, in spades.  He knows just how to lift his little eyebrows and twinkle his eyes at us to get a piggy back ride, or help with his coloring, or maybe even a coveted Fanta drink on a hot afternoon.  He managed somehow to become part of the "leadership team" of the Kids Club, which means he gets to be up front with us, leading songs, and otherwise looking important in front of his wide eyed peers.  

Deste became an orphan four years ago, at just a few weeks of age.  His entire family ~ mother, father, brothers and sisters ~ took a simple row boat across Lake Kivu to buy groceries at the market on Saturday morning, and they never came back.  Their boat sank, and they all drowned. Deste was spared only because, as a newborn, his mom had decided to leave him behind with a friend for the afternoon rather than take him to the outdoor market with the family.  A distant relative, only 16 years of age, was located and she agreed to care for Deste.  She is now 20, and is doing the best she can with her high energy 4 year old little bundle of cuteness.  (Good thing he is so cute, because he isn't so great in the obedience department.  His cuteness gets him out of a lot of trouble.)

Deste has a problem with his lungs.  Possibly T.B.  He spent the last four months in our hospital.  He had so much pus in one lung, it was 3/4 full.  He was here when we arrived, and we began to think of him as a permanent fixture, not really grasping that he would ever leave this place.  His smile was the first thing we saw each time we walked to the hospital, and it was usually the last thing we saw when we left, as well.  He, Daniel, Muhore and a few others have become our special little posse of kids, and we just hadn't accepted that we would ever have to say goodbye.  

But goodbye came on Saturday.  He was well enough to go home.  We packed a little going away bag for him for his trip home, full of exciting prizes like bananas, bread and a plastic toy car.  We rejoiced with him, and we cried in the privacy of our home.  His home is in the Democratic Republic of Congo, so it will be difficult to visit him.  But we WILL visit!  We are trying to plan a trip right now to check on him.  

We miss this boy.  A lot.