Finally & Forever by Robin Jones Gunn Page A

native garb with headdresses and colorful shirts or long robes that had designs running up and down both sides.
    Her companion bid her farewell and headed across the room with his hand extended, ready to greet another man whose face lit up in an eager smile when he saw Bin.
    The fellowship around the tables seemed more charged with energy than it had been any other night. Every man seemed to have lots to say and was eager to greet all the other conferees. Katie noticed Eli’s parents seated across from one of the pastors. The three of them were engaged in such a deep conversation that none of them were eating.
    Katie thought it best not to impose herself on their private circle, so she sat by a woman from Scotland who served in the laundry facilities. She was quite a bit older than Katie and had wide shoulders and a fair, smooth complexion. Her accent was fun to listen to. She told Katie she had been at Brockhurst for eighteen months and loved what she did, washing laundry.
    Since the twenty-four cottages and the many motel-like rooms didn’t come with individual washing facilities, all the laundry was done at a central location. Eli had familiarized Katie with how it worked and that she needed to pay various rates in Kenyan shillings for whatever she had washed. So far she had managed to rinse some of her things in the sink and hang them to dry over the bathtub.
    “And what is it you love to do, Katie?” the woman from Scotland asked her.
    Katie didn’t have an answer. “Just about anything. I’m here to help.”
    “Yes, every young woman I have met from the West has come to help. They want to do something important and useful so they can go home knowing that they helped to change Africa.” She picked up her teaspoon and wagged it at Katie. “The surprise you will discover is that you will not change Africa, my dear. No, Africa will change you.”
    The words stirred something deep in Katie’s heart. She kept her unblinking gaze fixed on the woman.
    With evenly paced words the woman said, “The key is for you to discover what you love to do, what you were created to do, and then do it for the people around you with love. That is the abundant life, dear girl, no matter where in the world you live.”
    Katie slowly swallowed her last taste of something that reminded her of rice pudding and thought about her dinner companion’s statement. She wished Eli wasn’t working at the Coffee Bar so he could have joined her for dinner. It would be interesting to hear his impression of what had just been said.
    “Lovely sitting with you, Katie.”
    “Yes, lovely sitting with you.” Katie wished she could remember the woman’s name. She knew it would come to her later. She also knew it would be an important name to remember since she was one of the permanent residents.
    Katie lingered a few minutes by herself, thinking and letting the wise counsel she’d just received sink into her soul. Lingering was a significant step for her. She was learning how to slow down a little and sit at the table after she had finished eating. She might have practiced that skill a bit longer, but she was eager to get over to the Coffee Bar to see Eli.
    Rising from her seat, Katie carried her dinner dishes to an open window area where the uniformed kitchen staff received them, scraping and stacking them in what seemed like an orderly, British manner. Katie said hello to the young woman who reached for her plate and then thanked the woman for doing such a great job.
    “You’re welcome.” The young woman sounded American. She had cinnamon-colored hair, fair skin, and lots of freckles.
    “Where are you from?” Katie asked.
    “Kansas.”
    “I guess you’re not in Kansas anymore.” Katie tried to make it sound like the reference to the
Wizard of Oz
was apparent.
    The young woman smiled kindly, as if she had heard that joke one too many times. “What about you?” she asked.
    “I’m from California,” Katie said. “I went to Rancho