Yesterday changed my life, let me tell you why.
It all began with me being excited beyond belief. I just had one of those nights that I couldn’t sleep much because I was so excited for the next day. It felt like christmas in October. It was the day I had been waiting weeks for. I was meeting my family’s sponsor child through Compassion International.
Over a month ago I got an email from my mom explaining that our child, now teenager, through compassion lives in Bolivia. I thought, sweet, maybe there is a slim chance that I will get to see her while in Bolivia. For all I knew I would be 30 hours away from her in some remote village, or she would be the one in some remote territory. She lives in the same city that I am in. Not only that, she lives in the same district of the same city that I had no say in going to.
The day finally arrived. I hopped into a taxi and arrived at the compassion office in Cochabamba. I was introduced to my translator and the coordinator for our sponsored girl’s project. The day started fairly interestingly, with a slight fender-bender, which is pretty normal here in Bolivia. A taxi ride later and we were at the project. There are tons of kids with smiles all over their faces. I was happy, really happy to be there.
I am asked to come and meet in the meeting room, a space that is also a church that could seat about 250 people. There were about 120 kids in this room, faces lit up with hope and excitement. I was called to the front of the room. It was explained to me that I was the first visitor to the project, the first sponsor to visit their child. My mind was blown, but I didn’t have time to process, as they began to shower me with song and gifts. One hour later, and after a complete performance (clowns included), I met Thali. The girl who I expected to be little had gotten big. The picture that we had been writing to all these years finally had a voice a smile and quite a bit of nervousness. She greeted me in the name of Jesus. After talking to her a bit, but trying not to overwhelm her, we headed to her home.
Three doors from the project was her home. I never went inside, but sat on the front stoop. Her mother poured me a glass of peach juice and we sat down to talk. She told me how she prays for my family daily, and how thankful they are for us. The mom explained to me that she had given up hope before compassion. She didn’t even want Thali to enroll. But, with the convincing of a Christian neighbor, Thali was accepted. We sponsored her days after.
Tears began to roll down her mother’s face as she told me of their hardship. Their father, an alcoholic, just left them. Thali’s mother doesn’t know how she is going to provide, and help her daughters succeed. This broken mother cried tears of thankfulness as she poured a heart of gratitude out to me. She said, you are the reason that Thali has a future. Your family has provided a way for her.
After many tears, her mother nodded Thali to go into the house. I knew there was something coming for me. And I wasn’t sure if I could take it.
The family that just lost their father, the mother that didn’t have it all together, lavished me with gifts like I had never seen. Table settings, beautiful handmade crafts, hats and purses. Their generosity hit me like a brick wall. All I could do is say thank you. After that they showed me this new, awesome little puppy. They asked me to name it. The only word that came to mind was “hope”. So they named their new dog hope.
Before I left the home they asked me to pray. I didn’t know where to begin. After a few minutes of prayer, and my eyes slightly swollen from holding back tears, we were done, and I was blown away.
The generosity from those that don’t have much shows the sincerity of their heart. I will remember today forever.
Oh yeah, and she has kept every letter that we have sent her.
