When I asked what gifts I should take to give the important people I would meet on my missionary trip to the Central African Republic (CAR), I was told to bring "cheap bling". I did not know quite what this meant, so I asked my good friend and owner of Byzantium, Joyce Griffiths, for advice. Joyce showed me examples of earrings that she felt qualified then decided she would hand-make four pairs of unique earrings to give.

When I went to Africa I thought the red, white, blue, and yellow pairs of earrings were going to adorn the ears of the four Central African women who lead the Orphan Care Committee. They are great women: Alexandrine, director; Suzanne, Delphine and Claudine, widows who nurture the orphans in their neighborhoods and are involved in the daily operation of the Orphan Welcome Center.

During the second week our team was there, we started giving out the gifts we had brought. Somehow I felt unsettled about giving these ladies the earrings. They deserved the gifts, but I felt I should look around for other women who could use the earrings as encouragement . I knew these very special ladies would be appropriately recognized because the other members of our team had brought gifts for them.

The First Pair of Earrings

I spent my second Monday in Africa at the Orphan Care Center. The highlight of my day was spending time with Chamberlin, the child I sponsor. As I gathered the gifts I planned to give him, I thought about the earrings. Maybe I could give a pair to his grandmother, his caregiver. I figured that she needed some encouragement. I chose the earrings with the red crystals.

Since I don't speak Sango, one of the intern missionaries interpreted for me. Chamberlin is 15 years old and has the greatest smile. I asked him where he got his smile, and he said that his mother gave it to him before she died. I asked him if his grandmother is well. He looked sad and said that she is sick, but he doesn't know what makes her sick. Since the family has no money for the doctor, she can't get a diagnosis or medicine. I asked if there are other children at home and Chamberlin said that there are seven more. He has three brothers who are enrolled in the orphan care program, and there are four cousins at home. I couldn't imagine how exhausting it must be to take care of eight children when you're sick. After we talked, Chamberlin left to find his brothers so that he could introduce them to me.

Tuesday morning Alexandrine, the director, told me that she had given Chamberlin's grandmother, Georgette, money to get a blood test. It came back HIV positive. Georgette was perplexed when she got the diagnosis. She is a widow who hasn't had sexual relations for many years. How could this be? She was the primary caregiver for her children while they were dying of AIDS. Unfortunately, caregivers aren't trained to take care of themselves – to use gloves when wiping away blood and body fluids. This is how Georgette contracted the virus. The children don't know that their grandmother has the virus because there is a stigma associated with HIV. Georgette doesn't want anyone to know.

I was numb. I wanted to do something. I decided to find out who sponsored the other brothers so that I could tell them that the grandmother was sick. As providence would have it, one of the brothers, Serge, is sponsored by Josh, a member of our short-term team. Foekre's sponsor lives in Pennsylvania; Ulrich was waiting for a sponsor, and I was able to arrange for him to be sponsored by a family from our church.

That Tuesday in the midst of hearing all of this sad news, Serge told me that his grandmother really liked her earrings. God had directed me to someone who needed those earrings to encourage her.

The Second Pairs of Earrings

The first time I visited CAR was in 1999. I was a member of a team of ten women. Our mission was to travel around the country encouraging the women by attending rallies and getting to know our African sisters. After a long trip that took us from Columbus to Chicago to Paris, we landed in Bangui. It was dark and different. We were tired from the long two-day trip. A smiling woman named Marie Helene Hibaile was the first person to meet us at the airport. She greeted each one of us by name welcoming us to Bangui. How did she know who these tired, culture-shocked women were? She was the woman who made the dresses we would wear at the rallies. Along with our measurements, she had a group picture of us and had memorized our faces. Her smile was so welcoming. She became the face of Africa for me. We spent many days with her as we traveled together over 1,500 miles to the many rallies.

She and her husband are leaders of the national church, and I really looked forward to seeing her again. I was glad to see her on this trip and enjoyed her hospitality when she had us over for lunch. Her kindness to me meant so much. I gave her the earrings with the white crystals.

The Third and Fourth Pair of Earrings

Two ladies who did so much to make our stay comfortable in the Missions Guest House were Ann and Rosalie. Rosalie cooked, and Ann cleaned and did the laundry. Ann has been working at the Guest House for a number of years; I met her in 1999. Both of them did their work with joy and excellence. They made us feel at home. They received the final two pairs of earrings.

by Sylvia Totzke

Cochabamba, Bolivia

Erfurt, Germany