From a YES host: Goodbye to the Adventure

Cindy Nichols was the host mom of Dennis Lengishon of Arusha, Tanzania, and Victor Yusuf of Bauchi State, Nigeria. During the 2009-2010 academic year, they live in Lewis, Iowa, and attended Atlantic High School.

Cindy kept a personal blog, “Adventures with my African Sons,” to share her hosting experiences. This is the last post she wrote about the amazing adventure…

The adventure is over, but the relationships aren’t. That is what I realized as I packed up the rest of their room today. The precious time we had with Victor Chongkon Yusuf and Dennis Daudi Lengishon in our home is over for now. But the fact that they will always be a part of our family will never be over.

They could not take everything with them back to Nigeria and Tanzania, so they had to make some hard decisions.

Victor left his trademark plaid coat since it didn’t fit him anymore, a reminder that he grew 4 inches and gained 30 pounds of muscle while he was here. I will hang it in the closet and the next time he comes to visit, I will make it into a vest!

Dennis left his beloved “cowboys boots” and his hat, which reminds us of his love for Walker, Texas Ranger and for anything western. He had to choose between the boots and a heavy chemistry book so we were not surprised that he chose the book. I told him we would keep them here for him to wear when he comes back.

Also in the closet will be the slippers. There’s just something comforting about having some of their possessions remain with us – just like my other kids who went off to live their lives but left some of their “stuff” at home.

Today, I’m thanking God that, although the adventure is over, the relationships are not.

This is the last post I will write for this blog. Thank you, loyal readers and those who occasionally stopped in. It has been a pleasure to share our year with you.