The morning sunlight streamed through the crack at the side of the curtain, and I blinked my eyes awake. As I sat up in bed, pain shot through my right arm. Even wrapped in a cloth bandage, my right arm throbbed from when I fell off the monkey bars the day before, on the playground at the boarding school for missionary kids in Nigeria. I scooted to the edge of my lower bunk in the dormitory and slid my feet…
At boarding school I got hurt while playing on the monkey bars when a friend gave me some advice, meaning to help, but it backfired on me.
For many years I dreamed of doing extraordinary work for the Lord, but felt relegated to living an ordinary life. Then I found my tribe.
Sitting in a women’s Bible study, I looked around the circle at the smiling faces. Am I the only one who has trouble with forgiveness? I wondered. As a six-year-old, my heart shattered when I was sent to boarding school for several years. When I returned home for vacation, I couldn’t express to my parents the homesickness, rejection, and abandonment I experienced. I felt hurt and angry. The many instances of abuse I saw from people who were supposed to…
My writing mentors used me as a critique guinea pig as we brainstormed my story. This was my first-ever time to be featured on a video.
When civil war breaks out in Nigeria, I’m away at boarding school. After hearing the news my parents may have to flee, I worry they won’t have enough toilet paper.
At our boarding school in Nigeria, girls were allowed to ask guys on a date since it was Leap Year. Deciding who to ask out was fun, but complicated.
When I returned to boarding school after a wonderful Christmas holiday, I again felt homesick and out of place. Eating in the large, noisy dining hall was especially distressing.
O Lord, you know everything about me. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away…and when I rest at home. You place your hand of blessing on my head. (Excerpts from Psalm 139:1-5 NLT) “Welcome back to Kent Academy for second grade,” the Auntie said with a smile. I carefully stepped out of the blue VW van parked on the playground in front of the girls’ dorm in Miango, Nigeria. “Follow me, Debbie, and I’ll show you to your…
At the end of my first year at boarding school I was so excited to go home. I’d made a few friends and learned the ropes but hoped I wouldn’t ever return.