An International
Misunderstanding
By Candace Payne
Have you ever wanted to help out
and do good, but it didn’t quite
turn out as you imagined it would?
Instead, everything you did to try
to help actually made things much
worse? I went on a missionary trip
to Zambia in Africa to help students
in an orphanage and adults in the
community, and it felt exactly like
that.
The Zambian sky was a bright blue,
and the weather was a perfect
seventy-three degrees with not a
rain cloud in sight. The earth felt
untouched by modern technology
and conveniences. As a matter of
fact, it felt as though I had traveled
back to a much simpler time. Instead
of a concrete jungle, we saw plains
of grass and wide-open spaces with
animals. And the sunsets seemed
to have no end. It all was magical. I
was in awe.
Now, I guess I didn’t pay enough
attention during our planning
meetings, because I thought we’d
get off the plane we’d been on for
nearly a day and go straight to our
rooms to freshen up and grab a
quick shower. Well, that’s not what
happened. Instead, we met our
contact at the airport, and he ushered
us onto a five-hour bus ride to reach
our location. I got on the bus, we
made our way to our lodgings, and I
began to unpack some clothes from
my rummaged suitcase.
Why was it rummaged, you ask?
Apparently Zambian authorities
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