Children's Day
September 10 is the National Children's Day and most of the time, children are longing for this day long in advance. This year, however, it was not only a day it felt more like the Children’s Month because every weekend groups visited us (students, churches, companies, course visitors, families, ...). Each group has put together an exciting program for us, including a clown show, a Zumba dance program, various dances, games, etc.
Again this year the children were allowed to eat very fine and specially prepared cakes and muffins and each child received a few gifts. Of course, as always, the Piñatas was a must.
Like every year, each child received a new outfit from Greta Hofmann. They put their new clothes on immediately and showed them off with greatest pride. Thank you Greta!
International celebrities
On the Children's Day, we have been invited by the local government to see some international celebrities. The first celebrity was Biper, a well-known cartoon character from Argentina. Biper is a 9-year-old boy who spreads positive messages with music and, together with his friends, is confronted with the problems of adolescents. He calls Jesus his best friend. Our children knew all the songs and sang along with all their heart.
The second celebrity was a clown named El Payaso Crioyo from Puerto Rico. He sang several songs on the subject of "detoxification of the new generation".
It was exciting for our little ones to get to know these celebrities in person and to be present during their live performances.
Visiting the slum
In this special children's month, our children welcomed many visitors, received gifts, cakes, etc. We are always very happy and grateful for it. However, we sometimes have the feeling that our children, during this month, slowly forget about the reality due to the abundance of gifts and therefore it is especially important to us that they constantly keep in mind the value of the most obvious little things. One example for that happened during meal time. While at the table, we had to remind many of the children not to play with the food or to eat everything on their plate. To us this is a worrisome development, knowing how little other children have right on our doorstep.
It motivated us to establish a personal fundraiser, which always takes place at the day of Prayer and Repentance, to teach the children a life lesson. This means, that our children will not give away what they have left, but exactly what they need. That's why we cooked a delicious menu that day which consisted of rice with chicken, potato salad with bread, a passion fruit juice and for dessert a banana cake with a bag of sweets.
Instead of enjoying the meal, the children grabbed their plates, hopped on our bus and we drove to a slum. Each child then got out of the bus and gave away his "own" lunch plate. As a result, they had seen the cruel and harsh reality of many children. They were visibly surprised that the children were coming running towards our bus and impatiently waiting for us.
Besides the food, our children also wanted to give away some of their stuffed animals and toys. Furthermore we brought along some of our clothes from our stock, to surprise the children in the slum even more.
In the evening everyone was very hungry and the plates were quickly finished. At the same time, they became aware again that they are privileged to be here in the childrens home and no longer need to grow up in poverty. Doubtlessly, this initiative reminded them again to appreciate their daily comfort.
We believe the action has achieved our goal and hope that this experience will be remembered for a long time to come.