19
Location: Beijing
As the lights in the cabin came on, our group woke up one by one. The train from Datong to Beijing was about six hours, leaving us with a mild case of sleep deprivation. We pushed through the Beijing train station and headed to Yang Fang for a quick rest until we could check back into our hotel rooms. A few hungry people took to eating peanut butter and crisp chocolate cereal in an attempt to recreate Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. Because of the general lack of sleep, we got a usual post-train rest from eight to one. The conversations over lunch had a theme of comfort food, which left the whole group longing for a little something closer to home. A few of the foods we miss the most are mac and cheese, raw fruit and veggies, salads, burritos, as well as pancakes and French toast (just in case any parents were wondering what to give their kids when they arrive back home). Our afternoon service was business as usual. Some people helped to teach older children English, some played with Dew Drops kids, and some held the small babies. We noticed some of the kids have checked out of the hospital while we were in Baotou and Daotong. It’s exciting to know the kids are getting better, but we can’t help missing them. Most of us wish we could have given them more care because we know service like ours can be hard to come by. Some of us have spent the majority of our time at the hospital helping a small group of kids, or even just one child. This means that even though we can help them, we got easily attached. Each kid has their quirks and mannerisms, which have taken place in our hearts.