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to you, my friend.

Suzanne Marie

Suzanne Marie

Hi! I’m Suzanne. Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to read a few thought I’ve had as I’ve learned to fly.

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Helping to host Ramadan dinners for the residents of Moria with one of our favorite partners, @ohfcommunitycenter ❤️ رمضان كريم

We are looking for a few more volunteers to join our Spring & Summer programs! If you’re interested in working in Greece, Fiji, India, Cambodia, or Uganda this summer, check out all the date options at www.help-international.org and shoot me a message and let’s chat! 🇺🇬🇰🇭🇬🇷🇮🇳🇫🇯 🥰

Earth-day posts from everyone have me thinking about just how connected we all are on this planet. And then I saw this photo tonight of a park ranger comforting a very sad gorilla who had recently become an orphan due to poachers killing his parents and 😭😭😭 The whole world needs a hug and for us all to step up our game. #earthday

I drove to Idaho today. My parents and grandparents are here. Yesterday I found out my grandma fell (she’s okay, but she broke some ribs 😢). I was going to drive to Twin Falls for Easter and now also I came to visit her in the hospital with my parents. As I was leaving Utah for Idaho, I was thinking about the unaccompanied minors we work with and all my friends that had to flee their homes. As I drove the three and a half hour drive, I thought about how the refugees I know don’t get to simply get in a car and go visit their families that they had to leave behind whenever they want to see them. I’ve witnessed them crying on their phones to their moms because they’re homesick and worried about the people still stuck behind. It’s heartbreaking. Many of their parents forced them to flee, to find safety. Many families only had enough money to get one person out. Will they ever get to see their parents again? If someone falls sick in their family, they don’t get to go check on them like I do today. My privilege sits heavy on my heart sometimes, but it’s very motivating and keeps me going. Today specifically hundreds of teens alone on that island needed a new pair of underwear and in just a few hours with a simple Facebook fundraiser, we got it for them. Such a small thing, but it’s something. Filling small needs daily, as much as you can when they present themselves, is how you don’t get overwhelmed by it all I think. I love my community. I’m grateful for the people in my life, even if it’s only virtually due to distance or busyness. Thanks for sharing love with me for the kids today.

As we arrived to the place where he said the refugees were, I could see the approaching fields scattered with makeshift tents. “That way is Syria” he said as he gestured toward the open fields, eluding to the Turkish ground we stood on eventually turning into the land they fled from. Everywhere there was a mother. Most had a small child in their arms or at their feet. How did they have the courage and strength to run from the bombs, through the cities and the snipers and the rebels and Assad’s army and ISIS to this hopeless barren potato field. I felt guilty standing with them; I knew we would be leaving in a few hours. Entering and exiting people’s pain is so uncomfortable - by far the worst feeling about crisis work or international development. How long would they wait before trying to move on or move back? Sadness hung in the air, thick like a hot day where you can’t escape the heat, but they chased it away the best they could with Arab hospitality, kindness, and tea. I hated that in the end, I knew that the food packs we brought were nice and useful for a few days, but what they really needed was someone to stop the war that chased them from their homes. I feel really helpless when I look at the big picture, so I try to focus on the small picture in front of me. I wonder where they are now.

A few months ago I came here for the first time and walked through this breathtaking building and was overcome with the intricate, delicate details - carved and painted and built over hundreds of years in worship to God. So sad to see such a beautiful thing that lasted through so much be destroyed 😭💔

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