In Uganda it is shameful to cry.
This morning the team gathered and shared experiences from yesterday. The stories were moving.
“Love me”
Scott shared a story of one little kid that came and stood next to him and leaned on him. Scott had not joined the play session but it did not matter. The kid just wanted human contact.
“Just touch me”
Life in Uganda can be harsh. With rampant disease the people do not get the touch psychologists tell us we need. At the first place we went yesterday one little girl pushed through a crowd of other children just to hold my hand. I tried to join a volleyball game with her but she did not want to let go. She craved the simple touch of holding hands that so many of us take for granted.
“Pay attention to me”
Sidewalk chalk. Something so little yet it can have a great impact. Most of us can find old sidewalk chalk in our garages, but yesterday when we opened some for the kids they acted as if it were a precious gift, even though they did not know what to do with it. Noticing their hesitancy I took my piece and crouched down to their level. I am no artist but I can draw a simple smiley. The kids saw what I was doing and emulated it. The team started drawing simple pictures and the kids copied them and recieved many high fives and “Great jobs!”s. The acknowledgment spurred them to draw pictures for us. The validation and attention brought smiles to many brown faces.
In Uganda it is shameful to cry, but many a tear was silently shed. Many a tear was whisked away quickly and in secrecy, but I saw, and my team saw.
This trip cost over four thousand dollars and it was worth every penny to see these kids smile. To bring a little joy and brightness into their lives. To bring a message of hope for their futures.
$4,000 is not much in the U.S. but in Uganda it can provide a years worth of schooling, clothing, food, and a roof to live under for hundreds of children.
Just $300 dollars per year can sponsor a child at Destiny Orphanage. A wonderful place where children are freed from their sicknesses, freed from hard life on the street, free from constant contact with disease.
I do not know about you but I easily spend $300 per month at coffee shops in Seattle.
I want to change lives. I want to impact the world with positive light. I want to provide hope to children in a society with little hope.
Destiny Orphanage has many children needing sponsors right now. I will sponsor. I will give up a few cups of coffee each month to provide hope to a child.
Will you join me? Will you provide life and healing for a kid who will otherwise be living in filth and disease on the street?
Together we can make a difference.
Together we can change the world.
It starts with one child. One life. One smile.
