The luxury of a wet wipe

Saturday we had a BBQ with the families who will be living in Building 8. Some of the kids from Building 7 also joined us. We had cut up a watermelon and gave it to them while we were waiting for the grill to heat up. They were so cute. And of course, kids with melons means spitting seeds, sticky hands, and messy faces.

This little one stole my heart. I was so tempted to sneak her away and bring her back with me. If I thought I could have gotten away with it, I would have tried.

When she was done with her piece of melon, she had a mess that was a little beyond a paper towel. So I grabbed the wet wipes Terri had brought. I handed it to her, and she looked at me, then looked at the wet wipe in her hand with a surprised look on her face. She wiped her hands, then tentatively brought it to her face. I didn't think much of it, until I saw her about ten minutes later, still running the cloth over her face. Then it clicked. She probably hadn't seen one before. I imagine wet wipes are probably considered a luxury, if they even have them around in Gliwice. And I started to feel a little bit of pity for these families with messy kids and no wet wipes. And it made me think of all the little things I take for granted. And how blessed I am compared to a great many people. But yet, sometimes we place way too much importance on these little luxuries. I've seen poverty and visited families in houses that should be condemed. I came home to my 4 bedroom house that's three times bigger than the apartment I helped build for a family of 8. I look at my bedroom that is overflowing with "things" that I can't bear to part with, and clothes that I haven't worn in years. I'd like to think that these trips will radically change me, but yet at the end of the day, I'm just your spoiled average 26 year old American Girl who spends way too much time on her computer, her cell phone, and is still attached to her "stuff".

But I'm realizing that stuff isn't everything, as cliche as that sounds. These families that I pity because they live without the luxuries of laptops and wet wipes are some of the happiest people I've ever met. As I look at the smiles on these faces, I think perhaps I am the one that should be learning from them. Wet wipes aren't everything you know.