Noonday

...and if you spend yourself on the behalf of the hungry 

and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,

then your light will rise in the darkness,

and your night will become like the Noonday.

Isaiah 58:10

This past weekend my sweet friend, Nikki, hosted a Noonday trunk show to support our adoption.  I've known about Noonday for awhile, it's pretty well known in international adoption circles.  In sharing in  my journey (and our mutual love of all things Jen Hatmaker) Nikki recently came across it too.  We'd both been drooling over their catalog for several weeks when Nikki decided that she wanted to host a trunk show.  When she learned that Noonday parties are often used to support adoptions (It's founder is an adoptive mother), she generously changed the focus of the party so that a portion of the proceeds support the Kirk Family adoption.  Nikki is my best friend from high school.  Ever the Lucy to my Ethel, we've found ourselves in a ridiculous number of very silly escapades.  Our husbands regularly eye roll at the things we cook up.  She is uniquely and unapologetically  "Nikki", there is no one like her, and I love her for that.  She is a champion of forgiveness, and a lover of the light.  I am better for knowing her.  

Holly, myself, & Nikki

The party itself was a lot of fun.  I was humbled by all the people who took time to support us by coming to the party or by ordering online. During the trunk show we heard about Noonday and their mission to partner with artisans in impoverished countries to provide a pathway out of poverty.  We met Holly, our Noonday Ambassador, and heard how she got involved with this company because of a desire to "do something" about extreme poverty and the orphan crisis.  (See that "Stuck" bracelet on her right hand in the photo?  It's the same one I wear everyday on my right hand.  It turns out we were at the same showing!  I love that she's still wearing it in support of families like us!)  We heard the stories of some of the lives that have been changed because of Noonday.  Obviously, I have an interest in Ethiopia.  I looked up the story of the Ethiopian artisans early on and instantly fell in love.  I had been telling this story to everyone I knew before the party, and it was this story that Holly chose to tell during the party.  For those who weren't there, or who haven't seen me lately, let me paraphrase it:

There is a mountain range in Ethiopia outside of the capital of Addis Ababa, called the Entoto Mountains.  There are streams that flow through these mountains that have long been thought to have healing properties.  Individuals with HIV/AIDS have, in desperation, flocked to these streams, outcast from family and friends, in a last ditch effort to achieve restoration and health.  A small group of people, recognizing the overwhelming need, created an outreach program in the Entoto mountains.  They created social programs to improve access to medications.  Through Noonday, they also created a way for these people to have a sustainable income.  Now here is the part of the story that I love.  They collect artillery shells from the local farmers scattered from old wars and conflicts.  They take these shells and melt them down to create beads for beautiful jewelry.  Just. Amazing.  From the ugliness of war to the beauty of a new life.  From the purpose of ending lives to the purpose of extending them through life giving HIV medication.  From destruction to salvation.  Redemption.  Beauty from Ashes.

I purchased a couple of these Ethiopian pieces for myself.  They will remind me of the beauty from ashes in my own life, of the miracle of God's redemption, and of the way he's taking this world and making beautiful things out of dust.

You can find out more about Noonday here. 


p.s.
On the adoption front, there isn't a lot to report.  We are still waiting for our local MOWA letter before we can move forward.  Our son is one of many waiting to have MOWA letters released from this area.  It is likely that our new infant referral will come from this group of children in the same orphanage in Awassa waiting for their paperwork.  So our new referral will probably come at the same time that we hear of progress on our older boy.  They continue to say any day now.  We've been hearing that for awhile.  Friends have been asking me how they can pray more specifically.  This week we've been praying that the local MOWA officials' hearts would be burdened with the task of releasing this group of children.  That they would feel intensely that it needs to be done.  That they would be haunted with urgency until the task is completed.  But until then...we continue to wait.