Living With Children Builds Your Character

After first and second terms of school here there is a month break and two months after third term. During this time, my house is always raided by many young girls that have no where else to go.
It's always a lot of fun for all of us, although not without challenges. My apartment is only a two bedroom and sometimes (most times during the holidays), there are more than 10 children plus myself sleeping there. That means a lot of noise. There's always a mountain of shoes by the door. There's never any clean dishes. Actually not much stays clean. The house looks disorganized. I think you can get the picture.
It is inevitable that there will be arguments, misunderstandings and people will get on each other's nerves. That is true of me as well. I go from living single to having a house full of people. I know I'm here as a missionary but at times things get on my nerves. Like when I want to sleep and there's all these shouts and giggles coming from all over the house or when I want to get something to eat and find it's already been eaten, etc.
I struggled with this at first. I kept feeling guilty. How could someone who is here as a missionary be allowing children to get on her nerves? Because I'm human and every change takes adjustment.
I also see it as a chance for God to grow my character. It's given me a chance to practice patience. It's definitely challenged me to not be selfish. I've learned that possessions aren't as valuable as the joy of living with people. I've learned that there are many lessons to be learned as well as taught.
But, most of all I've been blessed to share my life with some truly amazing young ladies. As much as I feel I've given them, they've given back a hundred times over. I've learned to treasure every moment with them whether it's correcting them or laughing with them. I've enjoyed our late night conversations and you definitely can't feel lonely with so many people in the house.
Second term starts next week on Monday. The children will all be departing to their schools on Sunday. It's going to take a minute to adjust to not having dirty dishes piled in the sink and the quiet. At least my little kids will be coming back to school so at least the house can be disorganized for half the day!