Manna Mail Call!

Earlier this week, I received a big envelope with one of my new favorite phrases on it, "Manna 4 Lempira." As I walked it down the stairs from my mailbox to my apartment, I knew what was inside was going to be awesome. My Manna boys really showed up! Letters and artwork galore!

Side note, but just to share my excitement. Due to the fact that I have been studying Spanish for so long, I decided to receive my letters untranslated. Over the last month, I have been doing a pretty intense Spanish review on this awesome app, Duolingo. I have been making myself work for about 20 minutes a day and I have really remembered many skills I had forgotten and actually have learned so many new words. I was able to read all of my Manna letters with only have to look up a few words. I felt so good about myself! 

But, my pride aside, I think I sponsor the 6 sweetest boys (maybe a little bias) in all of Manna 4 Lempira. I sponsor 6 boys but I only heard from 5 of them. I did not receive a letter from Jordy this time around, for whatever reason. 

From five boys, I received 6 letters (one mama wrote two letters) and some wonderful artwork. I am going to share it all in this one giant post. 

I will go from youngest to oldest. 

Anthony's mother wrote two letters; one from Anthony's point of view and one from her. I think it's a super cool way to write. 

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Dear Kayla, 

Hello, my friend. I am happy to receive your letters. I like all of the photos. You are very pretty. I could see in the photos how beautiful your family is. I am happy to see you in the photos. Thanks for sending photos. I am very happy. 

I like to play with my aunt Yorleny. She is 17 years old but she likes to play with me when she leaves school. She runs to hug me. It's super cute. 

Do you have siblings? What are their names? My favorite colors are red and sky blue. I like to play soccer with my aunt. My favorite foods are chicken, fruit, and fish. I live in a beautiful place. I love you very much. Write back soon. I send you many kisses and hugs and love. 

Anthony

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Hello Kayla, 

I am very happy to write a letter to you. I am Anthony's mother. I write his letters because he is still little. I can't write yet. My name is Lesvy. I am happy you sponsor my son. Thank you for your love and caring for my little son. He is a very charming boy. He is happy receiving letters from his sponsor. Thank you for showing us the love of Jesus. Anthony's favorite colors are red, sky blue, and yellow. His favorites toys to play with are Minions and Blaze. He likes to play a lot. We hope to meet you. 

I am a single mom. Anthony's dad left when he was born, but I am taking care of him. He is very calm and special to me. With these few words, I say goodbye with love and caring. We love you a lot. 

Lesvy

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Now Noel's letter. He is also too young to write by himself and his mother helps him write his letters. Noel is quite the little artist and sent me lots of artwork! 

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Dear Kayla, 

Hello dear friend! Thank you for writing me a letter. I'm doing very well, thanks to God. I have already been attending a public Kindergarten for 6 months. My wish is to be in a bilingual school like my brother Ivan. We are now on our first vacation. I hope God will help my wish come true because the situation here gets more difficult every day. What I like most about Kindergarten is the homework. Right now, I can't write alone; just some letters with my mom's help. The weather is spring here. It rains almost every day, in the evening. I am not able to send a family photo right now. I hope someday I will meet you. 

Noel Adelmo

 

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Next up, a the letter from Brayan. I have been sponsoring Brayan for 8 months and this is the first time I am hearing from him. The wait was well worth it. It's so great to be able to start connecting with him in this way. 

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Dear Kayla, 

Hello, my new friend. I am happy to write you this letter. How are you? I hope you are well with God and he gives you many years of life. Thanks for being my sponsor. You look very pretty with your family in the photo album. I want to tell you about me. I am 7 years old. I'm in 2nd grade. I can read and write. I like school and have good grades. My favorite color is red. I like chicken and hamburgers. My mom's name is Otilia Selima Aguilar. My siblings are Andrea, Antony, and Bayron. I have a family that I love a lot. My birthday is September 20th. I love you a lot. I hope you write to me. The place where I live is very pretty. Near my house are coffee plantations, many trees, a river, a creek, and many beautiful animals. 

Brayan

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This next letter is from Jarlin. It was written sometime after Christmas, written to a potential sponsor. A generic letter, at this point. Since I just recently sponsored him, I am guessing a more personal letter will be written next time. 

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Hello, my name is Jarlin. I would like to thank you for the supplies that you sent us. The ladies thank you for making the children happy. Many thanks! I wish you a Merry Christmas. 

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And to end, a letter from Ivan. He seems to have thought that I was going to visit Honduras, along with other sponsors that had visited. I wish! I, sadly, do not see a trip to Honduras in my near future. 

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Dear Kayla, 

Hello Kayla. I am fine. How are you? I thought you were coming to Honduras? One thing, are you coming to Honduras? Yes, I would like you to write your letters to me in English. You know, one thing, I have a great hand at drawing. If you send me a picture of you, I could draw you. I like your funny drawings. I will pray for you and your church. It is awesome that God has a big love for us, because when we need him, he is always there. My family is fine. The only problem is that I had a pain in my stomach about 1 1/2 weeks ago. I would like you to pray for me. Bye Kayla. 

With Love,

Mario Ivan

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