Love of a child

For some reason my stomach hates me in Peru. It is really easily thrown off and is driving me up a wall. When you are not feeling top notch its easy for it to effect your mood as well. That was definitely the case this morning. However, when I was mending kids clothing in the Chispas this AM, Annabelle, who has only been here for about a week now, came over and watched me work. Then she reached over and gave me a huge hug and giant kiss. Completely warmed my heart. She is having a little bit of a rough time getting use to things here. She doesn't go to school yet because we have discovered she has a fear of it. Because of this whenever she has to leave her house she gets scared you are bringing her to school and will throw her self on the floor screaming and crying. I don't yet know her past, but I have been told she comes from an abusive background. She is very shy at times.

The last two days she has been talking my ear off. She will go on and on and on about who knows what. I can understand Spanish so-so when the speaker is talking slowly for me. She breezes through our one sided conversations. I pick up some words here and there. Annabelle does seem content to just talk though. When I try and learn a new word from her she laughs at me and starts to copy my English words instead. It's wonderful to listen to her laugh. I think a child's laughter is possibly the best sound in the world. Carefree, and full of love, without worry, without a history, just childlike and impish. Isn't that what every child should have?

Yesterday Allison and her helped me bring in the children's laundry. I wrapped them in about four towels each and stuck underwear on their arms and pants on their heads. We had a great time doing chores together. How great is it that David and Vickie Miller founded this place where broken children can come and receive the love, healing and education they so dearly deserve. It's a blessing the world is full of angels like them.

Please keep all the children in your prayers. They are doing so well and have come so far. With their little smiling faces it can be easy to forget that some of them come from an ugly past. Pray that the workers and volunteers will remember this and go the extra step, the extra mile to give them all the more care and love necessary for them to regain trust in man. More-so that the children can really see the light of Jesus.