This month (month 8) in the Philippines was like a breath of fresh air, literally. After the sweltering weather of Cambodia we were all relieved to be in a place where the feels like temp was not in the 100s. No more heat rash?! It’s a dream come true. 

My team (a mix of girls from previous co-ed teams) was close to the city of Manila, but we felt a world away, tucked up on a mountain in San Mateo. We were working with an organization called Grow International and got to partner with them on a few different projects including helping run kids clubs, rebuilding a garden, and my personal favorite – flipping burgers at a local snack shack. Yes, cooking pizzas and making fries was part of our ministry this month!

As usual, we were captivated by all the little dirt smudged faces that would come running after us down the street. I think they may have been equally captivated with us. 

Here’s a glimpse of who you might encounter on the dirt road leading to the church we called home for a few weeks. Prepare yourself for some irresistable dirt-smudged sweeties. 

Oh, and here are some larger version dirt-smudged sweeties! Meet Team Girls Night Out!

This is Rudy, Katie and I the first night we worked at the Snack Shack! Rudy’s family runs two different locations, so we got to help support his family by joining in and serving the locals! Warning: Do not try the balut! It is a baby bird fetus still in the shell. I have a video if you ever want to see. Ewwww. 

Some of you may have read about this on Facebook, but our team decided to host a Beauty for Ashes event for women in the community. Not only did we raise enough money to cover the cost of the event, but because of YOU ALL we were able to go above and beyond by blessing the schools run by Grow International. $800 was raised to go towards the cost of books for the kids attending classes through Grow.

The ladies who attended our Beauty for Ashes event were pampered and loved on, and our hosts were floored by the amount contributed to their school fund. Thank you for your help in making this idea a reality!

The end of our time in the Philippines was culminated with an overnight camp for 9 street girls from Manila. They were like any regular middle school girls I know (they like to take selfies and paint their nails and listen to music)…except they are used to living on the street. They are used to asking strangers for money. They are used to the tempation to get high, and they are used to the fear of being harmed or raped at night. These girls were like the little heroes of the month. They were strong-willed. They were joyful. Their stories were heart-breaking, but they had so much energy and they were fun to be around.

We didn’t have much time with them, but we poured out what we could. We laughed and prayed. We roasted marshmallows and talked around a campfire. It wasn’t near enough. It wasn’t enough time and it wasn’t enough breakthrough, but we were impacted by these girls and will not forget the time we shared with them. These are the faces of struggling kids throughout the world. Kids you forget to think about and kids that go on fighting for themselves when no one else will. It’s a sobering reality recognizing that there are so many of them and what could we possibliy do. But it’s a reality that I am glad we got to see a glimpse of. We should see more glimpses like this. We should remember that in our own comfort there are millions who fight every single day to make it to the next. 

Here’s to the girls we got to love on for a couple of days. We are thankful for them and  the ways we were impacted by our time together at camp. There is a lot of conviction in facing what little we had to offer these girls, but I hope those that have built the foundation of relationship with them will continue to pursue them and help lead them in a better direction. 

Whew. 

Thank you for investing in this trip….for indirectly investing in these girls and allowing us to partner with Grow this month. 

Three more countries to go! I hope we can keep getting rocked by the people we encounter. Ultimately I hope we get rocked even more by our Abba and his heart for the forgotten and the unseen. 

Come Lord Jesus Come!

<3, Heather