A Fond Farewell at the Jordan

The third day of non-stop driving was to the Jordan border to sent off Azhin, Vanya, Donya and their mothers. This was my first real experience saying goodbye to kids and moms that I had gotten to know very well. Everyday, Azhin would call out my name incessantly, “Justiiiiin, Justiiiiin,” wanting to play. Um Donya (“Um” means “mother of”) had taught Donya (the baby) how to blow a kiss during her stay here, and all the Kurdish moms would laugh and joke with me because Donya would often blow kisses on command to no one but me. Azhin, Vanya, Donya, and I had many opportunities to bond through playing games and giving them attention in general, going with them to their doctor’s appointments, eating meals with them, and simply experiencing family life together. While I am sad to see them go, I am overjoyed knowing with full confidence that they will live normal happy lives and have been changed forever in many ways because of their stay here and that I personally had a part in it. I will cherish these memories of them, and will certainly ponder from time to time how they are getting on, and what they will be like when they grow up perhaps 10 or 15 years from today. When we loaded them on the bus to the other side of the border the mothers were crying but the last I saw of them they and their children were waving with smiles as the bus pulled away, certainly one of the most rewarding things I have seen so far.