Returning home

Wamena, Papua, Indonesia Heading Home October 2017   Tomorrow we board the first of 3 flights that will take us home to Wamena over approximately 30 hours of travel. There’s always a fair bit of uneasiness during transition, but mostly we are emotionally ready to get back. At the moment, there is only one pilot in Wamena and we’re especially looking forward to being able to provide some relief for him. Getting back will also mean the start of first grade for Isaiah. We’ve been home schooling up to this point as the school in Wamena doesn’t begin until first grade. Like most new students he’s a bit nervous (his parents more so!), but he has a lovely class and teacher eagerly waiting his arrival.  Furlough Recap   We left Wamena in March, making for 7 months away. The first stop was England where we celebrated our arrival with copious amounts of chocolate, curry, and tea. Ben and I then went to France for a week long debriefing retreat. Especially over the previous 6 months in Wamena, we knew something had broken in our emotional health, but weren’t sure what it was or how to fix it. France provided a much needed safe place to process everything we’d been through. Following on from France we headed to Helimission’s HQ in Switzerland where Isaiah came to join us accompanied by Grandma and Grandad England. After meeting with leadership we signed up again! This time for an ‘indefinite’ period of time and look forward to continuing to serve with Helimission for the foreseeable future. And of course we also made time to enjoy amazing Switzerland! Coming back to England we were excited to share with everyone about the work we do in Papua and made the rounds to many small groups and speaking in the service at City Church. It was a great time to reconnect with everyone. Sharing at City Church St. Albans. In July we left England for Texas. Anisha’s brother got married and we enjoyed a family reunion together in Branson, Missouri. We spent August in Florida and soaked up the time reconnecting with our friends and church family, sharing at small groups, and at Crosswalk. In September Ben attended pilot and mechanic courses at the Bell and Airbus factories. We returned to England for our last two weeks before we head home. The leaves are changing colors and the air is crisp enough to enjoy a few log fires. Ben did make one last trip to Switzerland, but we’re all back together again and winding down before the big trip tomorrow. The BIG News Four days ago we were officially matched by China for the adoption of a beautiful 3 year old little girl! There is still a fair amount of paperwork to take care of before we can actually travel to China to get her, but we’re hoping for the new year. In the meantime, you can join us in oooing and ahhing over all this cuteness. What’s next? Right now we’re trying to focus on getting stuck back into work and life in Wamena. However, this will only be for a few months as we’ll travel to China soon for the adoption. We’ll need to then return to the States to process her citizenship, passport, and obtain a visa for her for Indonesia. We aren’t sure exactly how long this will take, but hope to minimize the time as much as possible. Thanks so much for supporting and praying for us. It really means a lot! With love, Ben, Anisha & Isaiah HELP THE CAUSE Over the next several months we have some big financial needs, specifically for adoption travel and airfare. We would love for you to consider donating a special one time gift towards these expenses. Also, with the addition of a new family member, our monthly living costs are increasing. We'd love for you to consider joining us as a monthly sponsor. For information on how to give, click here: SUPPORT PRAYER REQUESTS · On time flights and that we’d all make it without losing any luggage. · We would all be healthy and well (Anisha has a bit of a cold at the moment). · Our home would still be ok and not need many repairs. · Isaiah would settle in quickly and comfortably at school. · Getting back into work and life in Wamena. · The remaining adoption paperwork, and specifically for the citizenship process to go smoothly and quickly. · Positive responses from the grant organizations we’ve applied with. We have some big adoption related expenses coming up soon. For the latest news: Anisha's blog: www.namasayamommy.blogspot.com Family blog: www.benhop.co.uk   Copyright © 2017 Ben & Anisha Hopkinson, All rights reserved.