Field Resource Coordinator Kelly does research on a crazy-looking grasshopper in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Story photos by Mark and Kelly Hewes.

The first few days after arriving in a new place are always the most magical. In the far-flung places where MAF serves, surprising smells and exotic sights are around every corner. There are new fruits to try and interesting bugs to hold and new words to learn to say “hello.” We notice all the little things (the good and the bad) that have long become ordinary to families who have been on the field a while. We try to take as many pictures as possible in the first few days, because even in a short time, we stop seeing the new things and everything starts to become routine.

Matthew Lind (left) and Randy Clairmont install an IT tower in Kinshasa, DRC.

So often, we meet MAF missionaries who are changing lives every day but don’t always see the incredible things they do as exciting anymore. There are mechanics who work on engines day after day so that planes are always ready to fly, and IT staff who keep communities connected over long distances. We see MAF wives and moms keeping their households running on top of developing deep relationships with neighbors and helpers (all in a new language!). We watch pilots fly pastors to do outreach and medicine for hospitals and satellite dishes to connect villages.

Pilot Kevin Spann (left) and mechanic David Burton working on one of the airplanes in Kinshasa, DRC.

Of course, can’t-wait-to-tell-everyone-back-home stories don’t happen all the time, but sometimes it’s easy to miss the incredible work happening right in front of us. I hope that I can continue to see things through fresh eyes wherever we go and recognize the amazing things that are happening every day through the ordinary.

~ Kelly

MAF wife Karen ministers to street kids at a local church center in Lubumbashi, DRC.