Some of the first words that Tony said to us this month were “Your time here is not about the projects, it’s about the relationships”. I’ve seen the truth and the importance of those words play out this week. We see a lot of kids each day and to be honest, at first, they really intimidated me. They know pain, loneliness and desperation more than any child should and because of where they’ve grown up they are rather aggressive.
However, this week we found a way to get past their rough exterior. The start of a new friendship began with Paul singing the words of a Justin Bieber song to an 11 year old girl sitting on a yellow school bus. Her name is Nicole and when she found out that we come from the same country as the young pop sensation she instantly loved us. We showed her pictures of our friends and family, talked about Canada and our favourite things and from that moment on she showered us with her love and gentleness.
On Wednesday night, the girls on my team and I decided to host a mini “girl’s night” for three of the kids who spend a lot of time here. We wanted to spend an evening pampering them and giving them the opportunity to just be girls; we brushed and braided their hair, made bracelets, ate candy, sang and painted nails. They were overwhelmed with joy and we were happy to break down barriers with the simple things that most girls love.
Their stories are heartbreaking but they’re here (at Tony’s house) to escape the pain, have fun, receive love and be inspired. This week I learned that love transcends all barriers and that little girls like Nicole just need attention for their hearts to be changed.
