Marina

If you read my last
blog (Simply Silent), you met my friend Marina.

This is the story of
how we met, and what happened as a result.

The first time I saw Marina,
she was sitting on the lone pew in the sanctuary at church, waiting for the
first day of Vacation Bible
School to start.
She offered me a shy smile as I sat down a few feet away.
I asked her name, and she said (quietly), “Marina.”
That was how the conversation started.

I found out, after a few questions that Marina
had just finished fourth grade.
Her face lit up as she told me her favorite singer is Katy
Perry.
Her mom was looking for Vacation Bible Schools for her to go
to over the summer, and saw signs for ours.

Not too long after that, the music started, and Marina
was on her feet and moving closer to the stage.
I got up, too (camera in hand), and started taking pictures
of the opening festivities.

I wonder if she expected me to forget who she was between that
conversation and her group’s turn in the missions rotation (an hour after our
conversation), but I didn’t.
And her face lit up even more than before when I said her
name out loud without having to ask it.

The next day, before we started, Marina
came looking for me in the spot where we first met, best friend in tow.
“This is my best friend, Samantha,” she said.
Not only had she felt welcome enough to come back… she’d
brought her best friend, too.

They all came for the rest of the week.