Day 2

Today was incredible!

Today I was able to meet the kids, scholars is what we call them, for the first time! They were all so loving and accepting towards us and me even though they had never met me before!

The day started at 7:30am Nicaraguan time. Breakfast was available, a bowl of froot loops for me, please and thank you! There was a morning prayer group right after breakfast. Then a brief meeting to address what would be happening today. Off to the bus we went!

We went to one of the scholar's mom's house first and had to hike down this very steep hill to get to her house….thank goodness I had sneakers. We arrived at her house and she greeted each and every one of us with open arms and welcomed us to explore her home. It wasn't until later that night that we were told how she and the other scholars would clean their homes, bath, and dress nice to meet us, because they wanted to show us that they were doing well. It was really touching to know that they truly cared for what VISEDAL was doing in their life and wanting to make us feel welcomed as well. So anyways, THe house was made of tin and the rooms were divided by some walls made of boards of wood and others made of string and sheets. The "laundry room" and "bathroom" were outside. Laundry is all hand washed in barrels and hung to dry. The little children and babies were bathed in this outdoor barrels and sink. It was so fascinating to me to see a lifestyle like this but yet they always had a smile on their face. Always being happy and laughing. To see poverty like this is unbelievable but to see people living in this poverty and full of joy is inspiring! I was sincerely touched and look at myself and to think I complain about the smallest things like sometimes having to share a bathroom with my brother and these people don't even have a bathroom but rather a hole in the ground. It is absolutely mind changing. I feel so ashamed of how I act sometimes. Being so blessed can be such a detrimental thing if not taught how to take care of those blessings.

So after that we went to a school to pick up a few of the younger kids and there were so many children. It was their last day of school so they were dancing and playing. As soon as we walked in they all came to greet us with hugs, handshakes, and a very timid "hola". The love that you felt walking into the school was so amazing! I didn't want to leave. As I saw all of these beautiful children I thought to myself "all I want to do is love them!". So that's what I did! We played with them, whether it was 'who poked me?' or taking pictures with them or even dancing with them and them showing us how to dance. It was so much fun!

We left the school and picked up the rest of the scholars at the central mall. We split into groups, younger kids under 13 in one group…a very big group might I add, males over 13, and females over 13. WIth each group we had different activities. The younger kids went to the zoo and the older boys went to the arcade. The older girls was the group I was in. We had two sessions with them where we opened up to each other and talked about self worth and self esteem and letting them know that they are a child of The King. Also having them keep a journal and learning about personal hygiene…we had them wash their faces and moisturize, etc. There was a really good seed that was planted and I can't wait to continue this for the next 5 weeks or so.

Now here is the really neat part! VISEDAL received a very generous donation which allowed all of the kids to buy a pair of shoes staying within the budget of $45. So we were able to take the kids shoe shopping at the mall! Now we went to Payless and they had a deal of buy one get one 50% off, so each scholar was able to get 2 pairs of brand new shoes that fit them! This was the first time many of them had ever had a new pair of shoes! It was so incredible and the excitement on their faces when picking the shoes out was where my joy came from. They were so excited! It was such a great experience!

We then said goodbye to the scholars for the day and said "hasta mañana" in english "until tomorrow" or "see you tomorrow". We came back to the hotel and had dinner made by the founder's mom….a yummy meal of spaghetti and bread. After dinner we have this time called 'highlights'. We discussed what the highlights of the day were and what was great to see. Oh and also each day we are given a theme. Today's theme was 'love and encouragement'. So we talked about how that was applied with the scholars and much more.

I was able to talk with two volunteers from the VISEDAL group and we sat and talked about life and God and it was great. They both were years older then me so I took in a lot like a sponge. Just call me Mekaila the sponge! But in sincerity it was really nice and I always enjoy gleaning from the wisdom and experience of those who came before me. It was a great end to an amazing day!

I love it here and I am so excited to be able to stay for a month with these young people and in this amazing country! I am so blessed to have all of the support from back home, because if it weren't for the folks back home and God, I wouldn't be here!

Well I'm off to shower and then to bed! Goodnight! :)