Dominican Republic Blog- Day 13- Dawson Gause, Pitcher, Tusculum College

With this being my first mission trip in my entire life I’m starting to understand what a mission trip is all about. The first place we went was Hogar del niño and it was a school for kids but, since it is the summer it was a day care for young kids. I realized how happy all the kids were just to have someone paint their faces and for them to play games and hug us. The second day we played a team full of Dominican players. All of them were extremely talented and great people. One player specifically was very talented at pitching but very raw with his mechanics. That kid made me appreciate all of the opportunities that I have had in my baseball career. I know he was more talented than I am but, I have been blessed enough play college baseball and he hasn’t because of the situation he is in. Thinking about me and that pitcher and comparing us made me think about how God wants the more unqualified person to do his biggest works so he can get all of the glory for his miracles. I am seeing how truly blessed I am for all of the things that I have. Today I got to lead our team bible study about being dealt a bad hand in life. Most of the time when I think of a bad hand being dealt to me is when I’m still hungry or when I don’t have WiFi. These kids don’t know what they are being dealt they just know how to live happy and smile. I thought I was coming to minister for all of these kids but, it is the complete opposite. These kids are opening my eyes to everything that God has given me and how truly blessed I am to be where I am today. I’m starting to be happy with the smallest things possible and be very appreciative for everything that I can get. I think this is a life changing trip so far for me and my walk with Christ.