Saying Goodbye

Hey guys sorry for the lack of updates the past couple of days.  We had a late night Monday and an early morning yesterday as we headed home.  I'll try to catch up on everything I missed.

Monday morning we ate breakfast with a group of LDP students.  LDP (leadership development program) provides a scholarship and mentoring to graduates of the child sponsorship program.  Acceptance is very competitive as only the top students from the country are chosen based on their grades since 7th grade, their leadership in the church, and a series of interviews.  Once they are in, however, they are guaranteed to keep their scholarship as long as they maintain a certain grades.

After breakfast we went to a local market to shop for souvenirs.  They had all kinds of cool bags, jewelry, and even hammocks.  Everyone went home with great gifts to complement the wonderful memories.

We then went to the country office which is basically the Compassion administrative headquarters in El Salvador.  We met many amazing people who make sure the program runs smoothly including the people in charge of keeping track of and translating letters between children and their sponsors.  They showed us the box of about 900 sponsor letters that they get every week as well as the stacks of child letters waiting to be sent out.  Although the numbers seemed high, statistics on the wall showed that every year children write to their sponsors 2x as often as sponsors write to their children.  It may seem like nothing to us but letters mean the world to these kids who may never hear that they are loved if their sponsor doesn't take the time to tell them.  I know it's easy to get caught up in our own lives and to forget about sometimes but if you sponsor a child, please write to them regularly, it really can make all of the difference in the child's life.

When we got back to the hotel we were greeted by a youth band from a local Compassion center (ages 9-16) who performed for us before dinner.  It was a wonderful way to begin the end of our journey in El Salvador.  After dinner we sat around in a big group circle and talked about ways that the trip had affected us.  Although we had only met days before, many of us had formed friendships and realized that that night would be the last time that we would all be together.

The next morning we got up early and left the hotel for the airport at 6am.  More goodbyes were said at the airport and again when we landed in Miami to part for the last time.  I will truly miss the many wonderful people that I met on this trip and hope to be able to see them again one day.

Goodbye to the beautiful country full of amazing people- you will always be in my heart!

And for any of you interested in sponsorship, I brought home a child packet for a girl looking for a sponsor.  Her name is Maria and she is 10 (just like my sweet Marlen).  I have a month to find a sponsor for her but her birthday is Sunday and I would love to find a sponsor for her before then.  If you are interested, please respond with your email or message me on Facebook.

Los Bebés

Today we went to church at a local church that hosts a Compassion program.  We were again greeted by great fanfare as the whole church waited outside for our buses to arrive.  We were seated in the front of the church as special guests and they sang several songs in English and Spanish to make us feel welcome.  The paster's wife led worship and then the pastor preached on the American Dream.  He encouraged people that although America is a wealthy country with many opportunities, it is not worth leaving your family and sacrificing your children's wellbeing for the possibility of a better life for yourself.  He pointed to passages in the Bible that support couples and families staying together as a unit and parents always thinking of their children first.

The church had not only a child sponsorship program for children, they also have a child survival program.  This program is for pregnant mothers and children up to the age of three.  They provide check-ups to mothers and babies, help the mothers know how to care for their children, and make sure that the kids are progressing normally.

After church we were asked to hand out food to the mothers (they get extra food from the program once a month).  Then we hung out for a little while with the little kids while the moms were getting food.  We then went on a tour of the project.  They showed us where they measure and weigh the kids each month to make sure that they are growing as they should.  Then we went upstairs to see where the kids get stimulation.  The moms and babies were all on the floor doing different activities based on the kids ages to stimulate them mentally.  After that we went to see the different programs that the moms can participate in to learn a skill that could help them earn a living.  We went to a jewelry workshop, seamstress class, cosmetology workshop, and a shoe making shop that was mostly teenage boys who are enrolled in the project.

We then ate lunch with the members of the church.  After lunch the pastor's family performed for us.  He and his wife played violin, his oldest son played guitar, and his nephew played keyboard.  Then we split into groups to visit the home of a few of the mothers from the CSP program.

The family that my group visited was the saddest situation that I have seen first hand here.  The home was on a small lot with two others and 5 people lived in a cramped room with two beds.  The mother was a 17 year old named Elsie whose son is almost 2.  The baby's father (who Elsie will marry when she turns 18) is 38.  Elsie told us that she used to take her little brother (who is now 4) to the CSP program when he was a baby.  Her mother sent she and her little brother to live with her baby's father when she was 15.  When she got pregnant, her mom made her quit school so that she wouldn't bring shame on the family and then beat her to try to get her to abort the baby.  Elsie was very upset that her mother has never accepted her son and that she has told her that she wishes that she had never had Elsie (ironically enough Elsie's mom was 15 when she had her).  However, Elsie considers her son a blessing and has resolved to be the mother to him that she never had.  By the end of this visit our whole group and Elsie were in tears as we prayed for their family and then said goodbye.

After a quiet, reflective walk back to the church, we met up with the rest of the group and gave the gifts we had brought to the project director to distribute to the families.  We then said our goodbyes and headed out.

For dinner we went to a restaurant located on a volcano with the most amazing views of the city below.  The dinner was excellent and it was fun to talk and relax a little and then get back a little early to the hotel to wind down.

Sorry there are no pictures of today- I wasn't feeling well this morning and we weren't given permission to take any pictures at Elsie's house.

Fun Day (and crazy, emotional, incredible day)

Today I met the sweet girl who stole my heart three years ago.  We headed out this morning to a park to meet the kids.  When we arrived a line of children with parents, translators, and project directors stood waiting for us.  I scanned the crowd for Marlen but before I could spot her, she came running to me and threw her arms around me.  Marlen was followed by her mother who joined in the hug as we all began to cry from joy.

Marlen and I

Our group: Marlen's mom, Marlen, me, our lovely translator, and Marlen's project director

After we had settled in a little we headed off to see what activities there were to do.  This 'park' had a soccer field, trampoline, rock wall, zip line, and was also a fully functioning horse farm.

We headed to the trampoline first- Marlen absolutely loved it!

Then we played soccer- me and another sponsor against Marlen and their sponsored child.  We didn't keep score but I'm pretty sure the kids won.  Marlen later told me that she is the captain of the soccer team at her school.

Then we hiked up to the top of the zip line (which they called 'the canopy' since you fly through the trees).  Marlen suited up for a turn but I chickened out and stayed at the top to take pictures.

Then we headed over to ride horses.  Marlen said that horses are her second favorite animal (behind dogs) and was very excited to ride.  After a couple of years out of the saddle, it felt good to be on a horse again so thank you to 'Santa' (hopefully spelling that right- it means saint) for carting me around the field today.

Then we headed to the rock climbing wall to give it a try.

They also had a tire horse swing that we took turns riding- lots of laughs!

This is water balloon volleyball.  Predictably enough it ended with me covered in water.  It did help cool me down though so I didn't mind too much.  The weather today was not as hot as yesterday but the humidity was horrible (as you can probably tell from my hair).

Then I gave her the gifts I brought.  She loved the sunglasses and umbrella (which came in handy since it started pouring rain about 5 minutes after this picture was taken).

The whole group of sponsors and kids with our faithful leaders in front.

In between all of the fun and games, I talked to Marlen, her mom, and her project director about her life.  I thought that I basically knew what it was like from her letters but was blown away by what I heard.  The entire day was so much fun but was also very emotional.  We all cried and it broke my heart to see Marlen's eyes filled with tears as I boarded the bus to leave.  I'm still processing a lot of what I experienced today and am physically and emotionally exhausted.  I can't wait to just crawl in bed and sleep but first we have dinner on the town.

All the Little Children

Today the group headed to western El Salvador to visit a child development center (ES750).  These are church based projects that children in the sponsorship program attend after school.  While there they receive tutoring, spiritual lessons, nutritious meals, and vocational training. 

 We stopped by the project to meet the people in charge there (and were greeted by curious faces peeking out of classes)

Then the big group split up into 5 smaller groups to travel to the homes of five sponsored children.  My group went to the home of 13 year old Brandon.  Brandon lives with his parents and has two older brothers (17 and 19) who live with them on the weekends and with the grandparents during the week to go to school.  Brandon's father works 24 hour shifts as a security guard (he gets every other day off to rest).  His mother makes and sells corn tortillas out of their home (by selling them for 5 cents a piece, she usually makes $6 a day.  Brandon was at school when we arrived but his parents were very willing to brag about their son.  His soccer and pingpong medals hung on the wall and his mother gushed about what a good boy he was.  When Brandon got home he smiled shyly at the group of American strangers in his house then ran to get a letter from his sponsor.  He told us that this is his second sponsor (a college student in Switzerland) and he was very excited because this sponsor wrote to him and his previous sponsor did not.  We then went with Brandon's mother to the corn mill down the road to grind the corn she had boiled that morning to make tortillas.  While we were gone, his dad went to but wood to stoke the fire in the stove she had made.  She showed us how to make the tortillas and let us try our hand at it (not as easy as she made it look).  We then went out back and helped Brandon and his dad plant corn seeds so that they would have their own corn for tortillas and would not have to buy it from someone else.  We then ate Pollo Camperos (basically the Latin American version of KFC for those of you who haven't tried it) for lunch then headed back to the project.  This family lived very modestly (especially according to American standards) but they were very humble and thankful and had no real complaints about the way that they lived.  Americans could learn a lot from them.

Me with Brandon's parents

Brandon's mother grinding corn

The art of making corn tortillas

Brandon showing us how to plant corn

One of several family chickens (Brandon's mom tried to get us to take some with us- she said they had too many)

After leaving Brandon's house, we went back to the project and were greeted by a great fanfare.

The gate and door to the church were surrounded by balloons and were were sent through a tunnel of balloon-weilding children as we made our way into the building.

Once inside a whole show was planned for us.  The little kids (3-5) dressed up as faeries and animals and danced for us. A groups of 8-10 year olds performed a skit for us.  Then the youth band led worship, including the American national anthem.  We were then invited on stage to introduce ourselves and were given gifts that had been made by some of the older students at the project.  We then split into groups again to take a tour.  We were shown a classroom of young students learning about money, a group using the new computer lab, high school students learning English, and students studying cosmetology.  After a short (but strong) rain shower, we said our goodbyes and headed back to the hotel for dinner.

Some of the young performers getting ready to go in

A little flower dancer

A cute fairy dancer

I believe he was a dog

A class of 6-8 year old students

My new friend Alexa who sat next to me in the performance

Alexa and her friend with me after they brought me a 'surprise' (a handful of confetti poured in my hair)

The sun setting over San Salvador

Sorry this is sideways but I thought I'd end on a fun note.  All of the trees here are painted white on the lower halves.  Not sure why but it's kind of funny to see.

I meet Marlen tomorrow so it's off to bed now to hopefully rest up!

Getting There (the long way)

My journey to El Salvador began well this morning and we managed to arrive at the Atlanta airport on time.

 I got my bag checked and routed to El Salvador and headed to security to wait for my plane to arrive to take me to Miami to meet up with the group.
Minutes before boarding my plane I got a call from Compassion letting me know that there was a problem with our flight to El Salvador from Miami.  Some how our seats had not been reserved and most of the group had been put on an earlier flight instead.  I would need to make my way to the international terminal in Miami as soon as I landed to get ready to board again.  So much for a three hour layover.
Most of the group made it smoothly although there were a few who had to hand back for a later flight and a couple of missing bags.  Our Air Taca flight (and all of the Miami airport) spoke mostly Spanish which put me at a slight disadvantage after 5 years of French.  Sadly my beloved French is not doing so well for me here.  Once on board we were ok- they served 'dinner' (it was a 4:10 flight) of cheese croissant (think hotdog with melted cheese instead of meat), spicy snack mix, and a chocolate bar.  (should have photographed this but I didn't think to).  After some turbulence through clouds, we landed in Guatemala City (yes you read right- we had to stop over there before continuing on to San Salvador)

Hola Guatemala!

It was storming under those clouds but above them was beautiful!

We finally took off for the last leg of the trip to El Salvador.  The flight was only 30 minutes and I'm not sure we were at altitude for more than about 5 minutes.  So finally I'm here and looking forward to fun tomorrow!

Volcano view from the airport in San Salvador

Packing

Most of the day today was spent organizing and packing and making sure that I had all of my documents and copies of the originals.  Over the past few weeks I've accumulated lots of gifts for Marlen as well as her mom, grandmother, and brother whom she lives with.  I've also bought a few things for the kids and babies I'll meet when I'm down there.  I got everything out this morning to inventory and was surprised by the amount of stuff I had bought.

It took up most of my bed and made me worry about fitting it all in the two bags I was planning to bring (1 carryon and 1 checked).

Included in this pile were two very special gifts for Marlen.

A hand-made friendship bracelet (thank you Laura) and a cute cross bracelet I found in the church bookstore.

I've now gotten everything together though and, thankfully, I'm a light packer so it all fit with a little room to spare.  Now I just have to get to sleep tonight.  We're leaving for Atlanta at 7 and I should be in El Salvador tomorrow night around 8 (our time)- it'll be a long day of sitting in airports.

The Beginnings

My journey with Compassion began about three years ago.  A seed was planted on a mission trip and I went home to prayerfully consider what I had heard.  A few months later, after much deliberation and research on the organization, I began my sponsorship of Marlen from El Salvador.  At the time she was seven and I was seventeen (she's now ten and I'm twenty).

  I enthusiastically sent out a letter to the little girl whose life I had chosen to touch.  Over the next few years we wrote regularly and I grew to love and adore that girl who was touching my life in some of the same ways that I had hoped to touch hers.

 My journey took a new step last spring when I began writing to a boy from Haiti named Predilien whose sponsor is unable to write to him themselves.

  I also talked to my sister about writing to a child of her own.  She liked the idea and is now writing to a little girl in Ethiopia named Kalkidan.

I was glad that my family seemed to be wanting to get involved with Compassion a little as they became interested in my letters and pictures that I got in the mail from time to time.

Then, this past winter, my journey took the biggest leap of all.  I was notified of a Compassion tour coming up in May where I would be able to meet my sweet Marlen in person.  I was already considering a trip with school to several countries in Europe and was conflicted as to which trip I should go on.  I went around and around for weeks praying over it before finally deciding that El Salvador may be a once in a lifetime opportunity.  I reserved my spot on the Compassion tour and began to anxiously await the trip.  It is now two days before I am to board a plane bound for El Salvador.  I still have much packing and organizing to do but all I can think about is what it will be like to finally hug the girl whom I have loved for years.  One simple decision a few years ago has lead me on an incredible journey already and I know that it has only just begun.