Happy Day After Thanksgiving To Me!

Today I opened my mailbox to find two letters! Yay!

First up, a letter from Eric. Eric writes his letters in English, but sometimes his sentence structure and paragraph order can be a little confusing and jumpy. But, it's such a huge improvement for just a few years ago, that I am so proud of him! I'm going to type the letter exactly as he has it.

This letter was written on October 7th, 2014. Eric is 19 years old and lives in Uganda.

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Dear Kayla ,

Hello Kayla. I am happy to see you in photos. Next year, I will be able to see you. My friend is Rabani. How are you doing these days? It is good to have you as my friend. In Uganda the police people keep law and order. I am happy to write this letter myself. My brother Moses and mother are doing well. I am happy to receive your letters. Thank you for praying for me. I am now 19 years old. I am doing in my class well. How is Christ Jesus to my friends. I am praying to God in my church. How is your church to you? In my school I like music class and dancing. Read in my bible Isaiah 20:2-20. Thank you for writing these letters to me. At school we are going for a trip to Kampala next month. That is November. Pray for us. Kampala is our capital city. I am happy to see pictures of your uncle Mike, Aunt Jennifer, and your two cousins Reagan and Sophia. I am praying for your sister to complete her course and get a job. 

Eric 

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I also received a letter from Daniel, in Colombia. Daniel is such an intelligent boy and you can really tell this from reading his letters. He's a very articulate little guy. I also got some great surprises with this letter. I'll post those after the letter.

Daniel is 9 years old. This letter was written October 10th, 2014.

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Dear Kayla, 

Hello my dear sponsor, Kayla. I, Daniel, say hi to you affectionately and I feel very happy to be able to write to you, once again. I am doing very well, thanks to God. I have seen the photos of the children's camp that you sent me and what you do over there seems so much fun. It is awesome to see the way the swim in that place. I would like to go to a camp because I have never ever been to a place where they organize camps for children. Regarding the story you told me about loose teeth, it's a funny story, but I do not know any story about it. I want to tell you that the project organized a field trip a while ago. They took us all to a pool and we had so much fun there. What I like to do the most at the project is painting, drawing, and going out to play soccer with my friends. I want to tell you that in my opinion, friendship is sharing, being respectful, and above all, being very good friends. My family sends a lot of kisses and regards to you, as well as a beautiful family pictures. I want to dedicate the following bible verse to you: 2 Kings 6:16. 

Your Friend, 

Daniel

Here is the family photo that Daniel sent me. Daniel is in the front, in the white shirt. 

Daniel also sent me this, telling me that he has accepted Jesus as his savior. Hooray! 

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Life Updates and a New Photo

It's been quite a week for me.

On Tuesday, I came home from work to find that somebody had broken into my apartment. The door was completely kicked/shouldered in and basically destroyed. The lock is very strong, but unfortunately, the screws holding the lock to the door frame were very short, so all it took was a couple of hits and the lock popped completely out of the frame.

I didn't go into my apartment and called the police. Two guys showed up and went into the apartment, guns out, to make sure there wasn't anybody still in there. Thankfully, it was clear. Then I was allowed to go in to assess the damage. Sadly, the thief had stolen my laptop and $10 in laundry quarters (seriously). I don't have the financial means to buy the latest technologies (nice TV, ipods, ipads, gaming systems, etc) so, there was nothing else for the thief to steal. My mom and I joked that when the thief got into my apartment, they looked around and wished they had chosen another apartment to break into, haha.

Anyway, the police took my statements, took a few photos, and took the jar my laundry  quarters were in to the station to look for fingerprints, but really, it's a long shot that they'll catch who did this.

I called my landlord, who called the maintenance man, who fixed the lock on my door, with longer screws. The door is still damaged, but a new, stronger, door was ordered. It should be in and repaired, for real, next week. Here is what I've got for now:

Just in case the door isn't as secure as it should be, I've taken extensive measures to keep it closed. I'm just going to use my back door for entry until the front door is fixed. 

My grandma was super nice and she bought me a new laptop. I will be paying her back, of course, but I really do need a laptop constantly. I don't have cable or a smartphone with internet access. My laptop truly is it and access to the internet really is a requirement these days, for work, pleasure, etc. 

I thought I would be more nervous to be in my apartment, but I really don't feel scared at all. I've lived in this apartment for 3 years and while it's not in the best of neighborhoods, I've never once felt unsafe. My guess is that somebody was walking down the alley behind my apartment, saw that there were no cars in my building's parking lot, and took advantage of that fact. The police believe that only my apartment was chosen because it is under the staircase and can't be seen from the parking lot, through our glass door entrance. Luck of the draw,.. But, I slept in my apartment that night and didn't feel the least bit worried. I figured the thief wasn't coming back for anything and the odds of being robbed again are pretty slim. 

I am most thankful that I wasn't home when this happened. My presence may have scared off a thief, or it may not have. Much worse things could have happened. Sometimes, people are just jerks.   

Anyway, when I got reconnected to the internet, one of the first sites I checked was Compassion (of course). I noticed that my beautiful Sadiya had her photo update! Yay!

Two More Letters!

Well, after receiving no letters for weeks, I've received six letters in a weekend. I'd say those are pretty great results. :)

I have two more to share with you today. I received these two letters yesterday.

First up, a short letter from Sadiya. Sadiya is one of my kids that I think doesn't like to write. Her project gets the letters out on time, every two months, but writing doesn't seem to be one of Sadiya's favorite activities. She shares a few sentences with me and then runs off to the project activities. :)

Sadiya is 10 years old and lives in India. This letter was written on September 23rd, 2014.

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Dear Sponsor Kayla, 

Greetings to you in the name of Jesus Christ. How are you and how are your family members? In my family, we are all well. How is the weather in your country? In our country, summer season is going on. Everyday I go to the project. Last month, my project provided me with a school bag. We celebrated Teacher's Day at our project. I received your letter. I am very happy to read your letter. Every Sunday, I go to church and Sunday school. Thank you very much for your support. Please pray for my family members. 

Your Loving Sadiya

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Then, I also got a letter from Fongwin. I love the imagery of rain and rain gear that his letter paints in my mind. :) 

Fongwin is 11 years old and lives in Thailand. He wrote this letter on September 2nd, 2014. 

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Dear Kayla, 

Hello, sponsor. I'm very glad to write a letter to you again. I'd like to thank you very much for your love and kindness for me and my family. Thank you very much for a general gift. I bought house supplies. My family and I are fine. How are you and your family? It's the rainy season in my country. It rains a lot. Farmers finished growing rice. There is a summer camp every year here, as in your country. The activities are alike, as in your country. It's very fun. I'll write to you again. My school has started. I bring a raincoat with me. Some of my friends don't bring coats or umbrellas with them, so they might get sick. It snows in your country, does it also rain? Please pray for my studies and my health. Lastly, may God bless you to be happy. 

Love in Christ, 

Fongwin

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First Letter, New Letter

I have two more letters to share with you. I received these yesterday, with the two letters from Allison.

First up, I received my very first letter from Chintada. He dictated some of my letter back to me, which I find a little funny, for some reason. But, he also shared things about himself, which I love, of course.

Chintada is 18 years old and lives in East India. This letter was October 9th, 2014.

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Dear Kayla, 

Greetings to you in the name of Jesus Christ. I and my family are doing well by the grace of God. I hope and pray that everything will be going on well with you. 

I am very much happy to receive your letter and hear about your family through this letter. I am praying for your family in my daily prayer. I know that you are 25 years old and are not married and don't have any children. I am praying for your marriage life. I am very much happy to listen about your responsibility that you are taking care of the children. I cam to know your favorite food, color, sweet, animal, and weather. 

I am not studying in college, but I am learning tailoring training at the project center. Please pray for my tailoring training. The weather is very cold here. What is your weather? Please pray for me and I will be praying for you. Thanks, in Christ's love. 

Chintada

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Next up, a letter from Maria. It's a short letter, for her. She usually writes a little bit more. I know that most projects have kids write letters before they go off for fun activities. In cases of short letters, I like to picture my child hurriedly writing so they can run off to join a soccer game, sing a song, do some art, etc. 

Maria is 10 years old and lives in Brazil. This letter was written on September 9th, 2014. 

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Dear Sponsor Kayla,

Hello! How are you? Me and my family are well. I'm in 5th grade and my grades are good. We are in exam week. I am studying hard for exams. The subjects I like the most are math, English, and science. Here in the project, I do swimming and art. Tomorrow, we will go to the zoo. I will like it a lot because I love animals. I have a dog called Morena. Thanks for the letters you sent. 

A hug from your sponsored child,

Maria

Kisses!

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The Drought is Over!

It has been over two weeks since I last received a letter from my kiddos. I know that two weeks is that long of a wait, but when you write to as many kids as I do, you start to get used to receiving multiple letters a week. I was beginning to get a little grouchy only seeing bills in my mailbox. :)

But today, I received four letters. Whoo hoo!

I'm just going to share two of those letters today and two of them tomorrow. Both of these letters are from my girl Allison.

I have been writing to her for eight months and hadn't heard from her yet. But today, I got two letters from her today. They were both written on October 3rd, so I'm not sure what the hold up was, but I'm happy to have them now. They are both response letters to letters that I've written.

Allison is 10 years old and lives in Ecuador.

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Dear Kayla, 

I send greetings in our Lord Jesus Christ's name. I am also happy to get to know you. My name is Allison and my mother's name is Janeth. My stepfather's name is Victor. I have two siblings, a baby sister name Analia and my brother Cristopher. I am 10 years old.My birthday is on November 25th. My grandmother's name is Irma. As for your questions, yes I do like babies. My favorite food is roasted chicken and I like fruits. My favorite color is red. In my spare time I play and read books. What sports do you like? I don't like to spend the nights alone. I like to be with my parents and siblings. You are beautiful. I must close for now. 

In Jesus's Name,

Allison

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Dear Kayla, 

I greet you in the name of Jesus. How have you been? I've been fine. I tell you that I'm on vacation and I've had a beautiful time. I'm very happy to greet you. How is the weather there? It is cold here, but I'm happy because I finished taking my exams and I've had a good time with my family. Do you study? I'm eager to meet you. Do you have pets? I have a dog. I'm having a good time on my vacation. Do you like to read the bible? I like to read it and know more about God. I like to play a lot and I like to watch TV. Well, I'm glad to have greeted you and I say goodbye in the name of Jesus. 

Allison

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Fruits of the Spirit

As you all know, I work with the little munchkins at my church. Well, we sing a lot of songs. Singing fun songs is one of the best ways to teach kids (and get them to remember!) bible verses, stories, messages, etc. At any given time, you'll hear a kid walking around the church singing a song from VBS or Sunday School. 

And...as an adult, you'll walk around singing those songs too...

I have had this little ditty running through my head for weeks. On the positive side, I now know the fruits of the spirit, in order, without missing a single one. Score one for children's songs! 

And (yes, I've started two sentences with and now), because I like to tie things in child sponsorship all the time, I decided to share some kiddos that are waiting for a sponsor. These beautiful girls are all named after one of those fruits of the spirit. How cool is that? 

Love is 4 years old and lives in Ghana, with her mother and 4 siblings. She has not yet started school. She enjoys singing and playing group games. 

Sponsor Love Here

Joy is 5 years old, from Kenya. She lives with her parents and 2 siblings. She does well in kindergarten and likes to play group games. 

Sponsor Joy Here

Patience is 18 years old and lives in Ghana. She shares her home with her parents and 2 siblings. She is doing well in middle school and enjoys singing and jumping rope. 

Sponsor Patience Here

Faith is 5 years old and lives in Kenya. She lives with her mother and doesn't have any siblings. She is doing well in preschool. She most likes playing with her friends. 

Sponsor Faith Here

Update on IN-860

After somebody asked in the comments the other day, I realized that I never updated you all on Compassion project IN-860.

For those that don't know, back in July, the project my boy Sagar attended, IN-860, which is located in a red-light district in India, was put on probation for three months. The project earned probation because the connecting church wasn't following Compassion's strict financial guidelines. The church/project staff weren't using the money from sponsors in a way that was benefiting children. Sadly, this can happen.

Compassion gave the project three months to, basically, get it's act together. Compassion staff worked very closely with the project over those three months, but unfortunately, the problems could not be resolved and the project closed.

However, this is not the end of the story. Another church in the community, decided that they wanted to partner with Compassion. So, a new project was opened and all of the children that were attending IN-860, were transferred to the next project, IN-868.

So, I will not be losing my sweet boy. I get to keep connected Sagar and his lovely family, as well as the community I've enjoyed learning about.

Hard to Wait

It has been 10 days since I last received a letter/had something to post about!

It's so hard to wait!

I really don't have anything to say.

I just didn't want to leave my blog empty anymore.

Umm...have a good weekend!

:)

Teenagers are Pretty Great

I received two letters today, both from some pretty great teenagers/young adults. I love the back-and-forth, pen-pal-like relationship I've developed with my teenagers. It's so great to encourage to encourage them and be encouraged by them. I am very thankful for these relationships.

First up, a letter from Lina. Lina is 15 years old and lives in Colombia. She wrote this letter on September 4th, 2014.

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Dear Sponsor, 

May God bless you. Know that I am doing very well, thank God, and my family is fine. My project's name is "Lluvia de Amor" (Rain of Love) and we have many different activities there, like going to the sports field or to a pool. I attend there Wednesdays and Thursdays and I like it because I have a great time there. I have a very good tutor, his name is Jhon Deivy and we enjoy talking and having fun. He has taught me that "love is waiting." What I love about the project is when we learn "abilities for life." It is my favorite activity there and I'm learning many things that I didn't know. In the project we usually eat beans, lentils, and meat. Thank you for all your presents, for your monthly support, for your letters, and everything else. I send you Proverbs 2:6 for you to think about. I say goodbye with a big hug. 

Lina

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Next up, is a letter from Wendjy. He is 19 years old and lives in Haiti. His letter is dated September 18th, 2014.

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Dear Kayla,

I'm so glad to communicate with you and I'm always happy for this moment. How are you? What are your new activities for this moment? I'm doing well, thanks to God. Thanks for the letter, the photo, and the card. You asked about the weather in my country. It's very hot and it's sunny. At night it is cool. There are fruits like avocado and sugar cane. You asked me about something special when children lose their milk teeth. It is very interesting because other people and parents are glad to see that and they (***illegible word***) the children when they have lost their milk teeth and the new teeth are always nice. I passed the state exams. The school year has already begun. I started back at school since the 2nd week of September. I live with my older sister. Thanks for the card. I wrote a scripture in it to offer to someone, but I didn't find someone who is in such a situation to offer it to. Pray that card will allow me to have a good school year and pass the state exams next June, and to finish my classic school and then go to college. I want to share Colossians 3:16 with you. It says, "Do all you do for the Lord, but not for men." 

Wendjy

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It's Great to Hear from Kalpesh

It's been over four months since I last heard from Kalpesh. He's always been such a regular writer, so my guess is that a letter has gotten lost along the way. However, today, I received two letters from him! They were written only six days apart from each other and they each appear to be in response to one of the letters that I wrote to him. He's definitely been busy writing at his project.

Kalpesh is 12 years old and lives in India. This first letter is dated August 26th, 2014.

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Dear Sister, 

Greetings to you in the great name of our Savior Christ Jesis. I am very glad to get your letter. Thank you so much for sharing some of your favorite miracles which Jesus did. Really, each each and every letter encourages me. I am very glad to hear about the miracle of the healing of Peter's mother-in-law from her fever. Another miracle is that Jesus stopped the big storm. These two examples help me to believe strongly in the name of Jesus and encourages me to share the gospel and greatness of Jesus. Thank you so much for the lovely letter. How have you been? What about your job? Here, I am doing very fine and also my schooling is going well. Right now, it has been raining. This year, there was about a one and half month delay to the rain, so everyone was worried about that. But, God sent rain, so praise the Lord! Once again, thank you so much for the letter and for loving me. May God help you in your job. 

In Christ, 

Brother Kalpesh

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The second letter was written September 1st, 2014.

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Dear Sister Kayla and Family, 

Greetings to you in the name of Jesus Christ. I am very glad to receive your letter and stickers. Here, by your prayers, I am doing fine and healthy. I hope you are also doing well. 

I received my photo update, which you sent me. I saw my photo and it is very beautiful. (Self-confident guy).  I keep it in my bag for remembering and I stick your stickers on my notebook. Thank you so much for the photo and stickers. 

I hear you are doing the job of a nanny and caring for two children and you spend time with them. I see the children's photos and they are beautiful and sweet. I love them. Please send more information about them. 

Jesus loves me and died and rose again for me. Thank you so much for sharing this great love. 

My schooling is going very well. I go to school by bus everyday. I received two t-shirts, pants, and inner garments, which you sent me for my birthday. Thank you so much for your help. May God bless you. 

Your Brother,

Kalpesh

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Double the Joy from Xhuliano

The other day, I received two letters from Xhuliano. His letters are never dated, so I'm always curious how far apart he writes letters. I almost always receive two letters on the same day. Either he writes them close together or World Vision collects them until they have enough letters to mail out in bulk. Maybe I'll ask Xhuliano to start dating his letters. Anyway, here are they.

Xhuliano is 13 years old and lives in Albania.

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My Dear Friend, 

I was very happy for receiving a letter from you again. I do too pray to God for my family, just like you. I hope you are doing well too. I and my sisters love you very much. I am very happy that you work everyday. You are a wonderful girl and very good at what you do for those two little children. They must be very happy with you. My friend, I love you very much. I would love to have such wonderful children that one is starting to speak. (I told him the youngest girl I nanny for is learning how to talk). It's the most special thing when they call you mommy and daddy. My dear friend, you are such a special friend. 

I have a great time in school. I started school on September 15th. I couldn't wait for the day to come. I met my teacher and classmates. I want to learn more from you, my friend. I feel like a very lucky boy for having the opportunity to have you as a friend and I hope to have you meet my family and me sometime. Marsela is in kindergarten now and she is very happy. She has a lot of fun there. Stelina and I take her to kindergarten and I take her back home for lunch. 

I send you a big hug with lots of love and wish you the best of luck in your life. 

Xhuliano

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Onto letter #2!

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My Dear Friend,

I was so happy for receiving your letter. I wasn't the only one who got happy. My two sisters did too. Marsela took off her arm plaster that day, because she had broken it. It was a big surprise for us, my wonderful friend. 

My dear friend, I feel so blessed for having such a good friend as you, that I always tell how I feel and I always will. I have had a very difficult time without electricity. I've told you about my problem. My uncle helped us by using the money you collected for us and solved the problem. I thank you and your friends for collecting the money that we needed. That week, I had a wonderful surprise. Me and my family thank you and your friends for having such big hearts. God bless you and everyone. I used some of your money and the money my uncle gave to get electricity. The rest was so buy groceries that my family needed so much. 

I still have my pets and I look after them every day. I have some ponies now and I love them very much. The postcards you sent me were very beautiful. I thank you so much for them. I send you lots of hugs and kisses. God bless you. 

Xhuliano

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