Do you ever just want to be held?

To rest your head on someone’s shoulder and just let it all go?

On June 14th, visiting Cheele, the village I sponsor through Beauty for Ashes Uganda, was hard. And over dinner, as my teammates and I all shared our respective stories reflecting the fullness of humanity, I knew I wasn’t alone.

Then, I became really thankful I was on a trip with a bunch of moms because all I wanted in that moment was to be held by my mom who’s thousands of miles away; however, I had a number of moms step in and hold me tight as I cried and cried and cried.

I’ll probably be telling stories from Village Day for quite some time, but, for now, I just want to be. I’ve been seized by the affection of the mamas of Cheele and the incredible women around me on this trip.

It’s okay to be. Rest is healing.

It’s okay to cry. Crying is freedom.

With love,