Tag Archives: fun day

by

Parents Play, Too!

DSC_9500

Winston’s father, Guillermo, prepares to race his son on the inflatable obstacle course.

Child visit day is special in so many ways.

There is nothing like those first hugs with the sponsor children to whom you have been writing. Having the opportunity to observe them in person, to talk and play with them, and to see their facial expressions gives great insight into their personalities.

You learn things that you just couldn’t learn through letters.

And as wonderful as all of those things were for me to experience as a sponsor, there was an added beauty in the day in being able to see my sponsor children’s parents joining in the fun.

DSC_9502

Winston’s father on the obstacle course.

These are parents who struggle to provide for their children daily in ways it is impossible for me to imagine. Yet in spite of the difficult circumstances they face, they each took a day off work and traveled several hours by bus to meet me, a stranger from another country who sends letters to their children.

It was humbling to meet them and to receive their thanks throughout the day.

It was heart-warming to be accepted instantly into their families, as their sister in Christ; to be loved as one of their own.

And it was beautiful to see the joy on their faces as they played with their children.

After Winston beat his father, Guillermo, in an obstacle course race, his dad requested a second race. He wanted another chance to win against his son, and he did. And the smiles and laughter between father and son were priceless.

Hania’s mom, Onifacia, seemed quiet and shy at first, maybe overwhelmed by the day’s events. But with an air hockey paddle in her hand, she was a fierce competitor! After I played several games with her daughter, I invited Onifacia to give it a try. She was tentative at first, getting a feel for the game, but in no time, she was slamming that air hockey disc hard and fast across the table, smiling the whole time.

And Osmar’s mother, Delores, had an easygoing, fun-loving manner that was impossible to resist. We were teammates in a serious boys vs. girls soccer match, where I saw her steal the ball from her son more than once, and tease him about it afterwards.

Quick moments in a day filled with emotion and activity, but priceless and unforgettable memories that I’ve tucked away, as I’m sure those parents and children have as well, to be treasured forever.

DSC_9570

Hania’s mother dominating the air hockey table.

DSC_0395_2

Osmar’s mother guards the goal.

DSC_9503

The racers take a break: Guillermo, Winston, Osmar and Logan.

by

Boats, Cars and Smiles

One of the boys’ favorite activities during our visit day was driving, whether it was boats or cars. Please enjoy the beautiful smiles in the following photos.

DSC_2448

Jose, Aidan and Kerri ready to race!

DSC_2242_2

Jefry piloting his very own little boat.

DSC_2221

Esteban driving a race car.

DSC_2190_2

Kerri and Esteban

DSC_2191

Jose and Aidan riding together.

DSC_2280

Jefry and Kerri

DSC_2271

Esteban getting ready to take aim at Kerri.

DSC_2270

Jose enjoying the boats.

by

The Meeting

In a trip that was full of new experiences, sights and sounds, filled with emotion, with each day ending in exhaustion, heart overflowing with God’s blessings and love, everything came together in these brief, beautiful moments. I met my boys.

Yes, meeting them was the main purpose of this journey to Nicaragua. If not for them, Aidan and I would not be there. But we had experienced so much already, changed so much already, how could there be more?

But of course, there was more, and it began with this meeting.

DSC_2124

Anxious sponsors listen as Kim, our tour leader, reads off bus assignments before the children arrive.

After much anticipation, a sleepless night, and an early-morning wake-up filed with anxiety and nerves, Aidan and I headed to the hotel lobby, loaded down with gifts for our boys. There we joined the other sponsors on our tour, and listened closely as our leader, Kim, read off our bus assignments.

Five buses would be arriving shortly, carrying our sponsored children, and we were excited to learn that we’d be on the first bus!

Finally, we saw the buses pull up in front of the hotel. The first sponsor from our bus headed out and hugged his children, then they posed for photos. At this point, it was becoming difficult to hold back the tears. I squeezed the hand of the sponsor in front of me, and moments later, she walked outside to meet her beautiful young lady, followed by more hugs, more tears, more photos.

And it was our turn.

I handed my camera to Kim as Aidan and I walked through the lobby doors, and I saw Jose walking toward me. We hugged, I kissed him and cried, and we hugged some more. Then we tried to pull it together enough to pose for a few photos.

DSC_2131

Meeting Jose for the first time.

DSC_2138_2

Aidan, Kerri and Jose after our first hugs.

Before we had a chance to recover, Esteban walked into my arms. The little pudgy 5-year-old, whom I had sponsored almost four years ago, who had asked me to visit in his letters, was now a thinner, taller boy, and hugging him at last was a wonderful feeling.

As soon as we finished our hugs, little 3-year-old Jefry cautiously walked up and greeted me. I only started writing to Jefry at the end of August. In fact, he hadn’t even received a letter from me, yet, and that, along with his age, left him a little unsure of what was going on. But he followed Esteban’s lead, and joined in the celebration, posing for photos after hugs.

DSC_2143_2

Finally hugging Esteban after almost four years of sponsorship.

DSC_2147

Aidan, Kerri, Esteban and Jefry.

We climbed onto the bus together, where I met each boy’s mother and project tutor, and I must admit, I had to ask for everyone’s names again later because it was all I could do to just be in the moment with my boys, hardly believing I was sitting next to them on a bus in Managua.

To break the ice during the drive to Play Zone Park, I gave each boy the soccer bracelet my daughter had made for them, and a little photo album full of family photos. We all looked through the photos together, Esteban making sure Jefry turned the pages in his album right along with the rest of us.

It was a beautiful start to an unforgettable day.

DSC_2149

Seated on the bus, traveling to Play Zone Park.

by

God is Good

JoseAidanslide

Jose and Aidan enjoying the waterslide at Play Zone Park in Managua.

We are two mothers sitting side by side, watching our sons laugh, play together.

They are climbing the inflatable waterslide’s ladder, then racing down the slide, two boys from different countries who became fast friends this morning. After they tumble into the water, make their splashes, they resurface with huge smiles and climb up again.

JoseAidanLadder

Jose and Aidan

We laugh, too, every once in a while. We are both mothers of sons. She has three, and I have five. But mostly we are quiet, sitting together in the shade, finding refuge from the heat, taking in the scene in front of us.

Our translator asks me, “Is there anything you want to ask her?”

His job is to translate, to encourage us to communicate, and he is very good at this. But he is also a young man. How can he know that mothers don’t always need words to communicate? Mothers can be content watching their sons build a friendship, marveling at their sons from different worlds together, laughing, splashing more.

Is there anything I want to ask her? Of course there is, and questions buzz through my head like a swarm of bees. How can I narrow it down? Which questions are most important?

By nature, I often enjoy silence more than talking, and she seems the same, this mother of my sponsored child. This hard-working woman, whose struggles I can only imagine, has taken a day off from her duties to visit an amusement park with her son to meet me, her son’s sponsor, who lives more than 2,000 miles away from Managua.

Our time together is short, and my questions are many, and as our translator patiently waits, I desperately choose one.

Jose&Mom

Jose and his mother

“Can you ask her, what is Jose like at home?,” I say.

He asks, and she answers, “He is obedient.” She says he plays well with his 5-year-old brother and helps him a lot.

I nod and say, “That’s good.”

But she isn’t finished.

She tells our translator that Jose sometimes becomes so emotional when he reads my letters to her that he cries. She says he can feel how much I care for him in the letters.

I can feel my throat tightening as I take this in, as we continue to watch our boys together on the waterslide, smiling, sliding, splashing.

Then she tells our translator that I sent Jose a financial gift earlier this year. She says she is so grateful for the gift.

I had sent money in March for Jose’s 11th birthday.

She explains that the gift arrived at a very difficult time for her family, that they were struggling, and it enabled them to purchase shoes for Jose and food. She is very grateful, she says again. Unsure and awkward when accepting thanks, I nod again.

I take a deep breath to push back the emotion, and I explain this gift was from God, not from me. He blesses me, and in turn uses me to bless her. And his timing is perfect. He knew when they would need the gift.

After my words are translated, she nods, and I nod. We hug each other, our eyes watering, then look ahead at our sons again, side by side. I swallow hard as my throat tightens again.

Our translator watches us, then says simply, quietly, “God is good.”