The Passion Returns

I have to admit, my passion for Sponsorship had waned quite a bit over the past year. I don't know why. I still thought about my girls every day, and I knew I *should* be writing to them and connecting with other Sponsors on MSC ... but I didn't. I regret that time that I've lost, and I am SO relieved to feel the passion returning, hovering just beneath my breastbone.

A lot has happened since last I wrote.

Jessica from Ecuador moved, and left the program. I did not take a replacement child for her.

Anna Marie graduated from the CI program. She is still attending college, which is funded until 2017. It's nice to take a break from the constant fundraisers for her! I'll probably start up again next year to fund her senior year of college. Although she has graduated, I am still able to support her through CI because her younger sister is sponsored. Thank goodness! I was not keen on the idea of dealing directly with her college, and I did not want to sponsor her younger brother.

Joyce has finished her first year of college. She is attending a private college in another city. With Anna Marie's schooling funded, I have been able to turn my own resources to supporting Joyce. I've also inquired about sponsoring her younger sister Jocelyn, who I know from one of Joyce's past letters isn't sponsored.

Yojana will graduate from the CI program in a couple of months. I had originally intended to sponsor her youngest sister in her place, but now I don't think I'm going to. Yojana is working in the city to help support her family, and she writes that she likes her coworkers.

I still have my twins Cindy and Sandy in Guatemala, but I'm finding more and more that my heart for sponsorship is in the Philippines.The twins still do not write their own letters, even though they are now nine years old. I hope, once they begin to write on their own, that I will be able to feel more of a connection with them. I do not write to them nearly as often as I should, for which I feel terrible.

I'm waiting for an updated Family Report from Jie to see if she is still in school or not. I think she was just old enough (like Joyce) to graduate high school under the old system at 16, but I don't know if she's gone on to college. I would be surprised if she has--her family is desperately poor and has recently expressed struggles with even feeding themselves.

Piyu's most recent letter speaks of her upcoming exams, for which she is studying hard and expects to do well. I need to find some way to support her if she scores high enough to continue her education--I'm so frustrated by my lack of finances! That pay cut I took when I stepped down from being a supervisor *really* hurt my ability to provide for my girls.

There's not much to report with my young teens and youngest girls--probably because my focus has all been on the struggle of keeping the older girls in school. For this reason, I am *very* glad that the new educational system is in place in the Philippines and all the rest of my girls will be in high school until they are eighteen.

With the exception of taking Jocelyn when Yojana graduates, I have made the decision to not take any "replacement children" when any of mine graduate or leave the program for any other reason ... not until I get down to five sponsorships. As much as I love having so many, I feel like I am doing them a disservice by stretching my resources too thin. So eventually, if they do not leave the program beforehand, I will be down to Ruth, Danise, Anikka, Jasmin, Cindy and Sandy. The twins will graduate at the same time, of course, and at that time I will *finally* take a new child. That'll be ten years from now. That's mind-boggling.

Lots of Updates (and Lots of Photos)!

My dear friends, I have been remiss in keeping up with this blog lately. As many of you know, life hit me pretty hard in late spring and early summer. I'm finally feeling like I may be on the upswing ... just in time for the holidays!

Let's begin with simple updates:

Annual Photos!

Dianne

Jasmin

Jessica, August

Jessica, December

Jie

Paola

Maria

Yojana

Next, we'll talk about new Sponsorships!

Jannati

Luke and I decided to jointly sponsor a young lady from India. Her name is Jannati--some of you may recognize her from a Spotlight Child blog I wrote several months ago. Jannati lives in Delhi with her parents and five older siblings. The family's three-room home is entirely brick--floor, walls AND roof! They have regulated electricity, a private water pump and a septic tank, and they cook on a gas stove. There are two beds in the home, but Jannati sleeps on a mattress on the floor. She attends school, where her favorite subject is languages. In her free time, she likes to run and play hide-and-seek with her friends.

In November, I was looking through the list of waiting children to find another candidate for a Spotlight Child blog. As I clicked through the girls in the Philippines, I noticed several photos that were very different from what we're used to seeing. Most of the Philippine children dress in their very best clothes and smile charmingly for the camera, and the photos are taken with pretty floral backgrounds or on nice benches at the center. These new photos ... were different. They all seemed to have been posted in the same seven day span, and nearly all of them had the bright yellow "Most Needy" marker.These photos looked like they may have been taken right in the children's neighborhood. They're not smiling. They're not dressed in freshly-washed, new-appearing clothes. Many of them are barefoot.

They're the sort of images that appear in the television ads, actually.

And they were heartbreaking.

Danise

Anikka

Two of the little girls in particular grabbed at my heartstrings: Anikka and Danise. Their birthdays are only two days apart; they both turned five a couple weeks ago. They both have dirt floors. Anikka's roof is thatch, her family has no electricity, and they get their water from a nearby stream. Danise's family has a palm-leaf roof and illegally-tapped electricity. There is so much I can do to help both of these girls--they have so little! So I tightened my belt a little more, and decided to sponsor them both.



And updates from my other girls:

Anna Marie

Anna Marie has successfully completed her first semester of college, studying in a Bachelor's program for Business Management with a focus on Human Resource Development. The funds for her second semester were submitted to Children International in September, and the semester began in October! I want to thank everyone who contributed to the fundraiser--all together you provided over half of the total amount due! If you are interested in helping again, I do have a fundraiser set up for her third semester (or, of course, you can always contact me directly if you don't want to donate via FirstGiving!).

Joyce's Birthday

Joyce's Family

Joyce turned fifteen at the end of August. I sent an SNG for her in celebration of her special day. Most of it was used to buy food and clothes, of course, but they did use some of it to have a birthday party for Joyce! Her whole class and her teacher came, and she had a birthday cake for the very first time in her life. CI sent me a LOT of photos, including some of her family AND one of her with her classmates and teacher--how cool is that?!

Joyce's Class and Teacher

When a fellow Lifter, Macky, traveled to Guatemala this autumn to visit her own sponsored children, she offered to put together a collection of goodies for my three girls there, too! Of course I took her up on her generous offer, and the smiles on my girls' faces make me so glad I did!

Cindy & Sandy

Yojana

Whew! I think that MOSTLY catches everything up! I'm sure there were a couple other SNGs that I haven't even scanned the photos for yet ... I'm getting there! =)

Mixed Feelings

Today I received the response to the inquiry I sent about Yojana's education and post-high school plans. The report says:

In the first quarter (of ninth grade, last school year), she failed two subjects ... however, she made a commitment to herself to study hard to improve her grades, fortunately, she finished ninth grade with success. Yojana wants to continue studying, she would like to become a Nurse to help sick people. Her family looked for a school in which she can be able to study this career but they found out that she has to wait until she turns eighteen (she just turned seventeen). Since she is not interested in another career, she decideded to look for a job to save money to pay her career.

Yojana's parents are happy to realize that their daughter wants to become a professional. They want to support her but right now five of her siblings are studying so the expenses are many.

In the long run she won't be able to attend university because this is a non-formal education (!?!?!), she will get a degree that will allow her to work as a nurse in a hospital or in a sanatorium.

The career (program) is only one year from January to December. She will begin in 2014. Yojana and her family are thankful with the sponsor for the interest in helping her with her education and for the support they have received.

We encourage the sponsor to ask for related costs regarding the first year of Nursing Career in August 2013.

Well! That's a lot to digest. I am glad that she knows what she wants and, until she is eighteen, she is committed to working towards realizing her dreams on her own. It's frustrating that she has to wait a year--I will have to be sure to encourage her to stick with her dream. I know once people stop schooling for any length of time, it becomes harder and harder to go back to it, and I don't want her to fall into that trap.
It's interesting that she only has to study for one year to become a nurse, and that it's non-formal education. So different from here in the States!

I actually felt a small sense of relief when I opened the report and didn't see a list of expenses--after paying for Anna Marie's first semester, I was worried about how I would afford Yojana's higher education as well. Now I have the opportunity to save up a bit (though I have no real idea what the target amount is!).

I am not surprised that Yojana's parents are struggling with education expenses--she has SEVEN siblings! The two youngest are still too young for school, though it will only be another year or two. I had already planned to sponsor one of her younger sisters when she graduates the program.

So! I've got August marked in my calendar, and in the meantime I think I'll send an SNG to help the whole family!

Letters from Yojana and Dianne

I found one of those beloved Children International envelopes in my mailbox today! Inside were two letters:  a CW from Dianne and a CP from Yojana.

Dear Ms. Dillon,

A very pleasant day to you!

My name is Dianne Alexis, but my friends and family also called me "Dianne" as my nickname. I am 9 years old, grade 4. Orange is my favorite color. I love to eat pork Adobo. Language and English are my favorite subjects. Watching TV is my hobby. Dancing is my talent. I want to be a professional teacher someday.

Thank you for choosing me as my sponsor.

Hugs and kisses,
Dianne Alexis

Lots of good information in her first letter! Her favorite color is orange ... just like Hazel's was. What a neat coincidence. I love that English is one of her favorite subjects!

Saludos querida Shannon

Querida madrina le cuento que estoy muy vien de salud alado de toda de mi familia. Espero de que usted este my vien de salud alado de su familia y de su novio tambien. Le cuento de que ya paso unas semanas de el dia de los santos y estubo muy alegre porque convibi muy alegre con mi familia. En estos dias estoy de vacaciones y estoy muy alegre y feliz porque gane el grado de tercero basico. Le contare un poco sobre mi estudio. Me gusta jugar basquetbool con mis amigas y la materia que mas me gusta es exprecian artistica porque me gusta divujar y pintar y mis maestras son muy divertidos. Despues de graduarme me gustaria segir estudiando y ayudando a mi famylia. My ciudad es muy alegre porque ay muchos arboles y pajaros al escuchar. El sonido es muy alegre y estar rodeado de muchas cosa tambien. Faltan unas cemanas para que llege la navidad. Estoy muy agradecida por esbribirme y mandarme su foto y de sus ermanas. Ay me las saluda y tamvien a su novio. Me despido de usted con vesas y abrazo con todo su familia.

Se despide con carino,
Yojana Aracely

Translation (mine, not CI's):

Greetings dear Shannon

Dear sponsor I tell you that I am very well of health along with all of my family. I hope that you are very well of health along with your family and your boyfriend too. I tell you that a few weeks ago was the Day of the Saints and I was very cheerful because I shared cheerfully with my family. These days I am on vacation and I am very cheerful and happy because I passed the third basic grade (9th grade). I will tell you a little about my study. I like to play basketball with my (female) friends and the subject I like the most is Artistic Expression because I like to draw and to paint and my teachers are very fun. After I graduate I would like to continue studying and helping my family. My city is very cheerful because there are many trees and birds to listen to. The sound is very cheerful and to be surrounded by many things is too. In a few weeks Christmas will arrive. I am very thankful for writing to me and sending me your photo and (photo of) your sisters. Greet them for me and also your boyfriend. I say goodby with kisses and hugs with all your family.

I say goodbye with love,
Yojana

Such a cheerful letter! I am so glad that she wants to continue studying -- hopefully, I will be able to raise funds to help her pay for either college or technical training. I shot myself in the foot somewhat in that area--Yojana and Anna Marie will likely have college expenses at the same time, which will be costly! It's so worth it, though!

First Letter from Yojana

I love finding those wonderful CI envelopes in my mailbox! Today's contained Yojana's CW letter, written in Spanish:

Estimada Ms. Dillon,

Querida madrina Ms. Dillon, espero que este muy bien de salud a lado de su familia. Le cuento que estoy my feliz a lado de toda mi familia. Estoy muy felliz por ser mi madrina y audarme. Hace unas semana que paso la feria y estubo muy divertido. Tambien estoy muy feliz porque estudio y que en algunos dias estare de vacaciones. Le cuento que el deporte que mas me gusta practicar con mis companeros es el basquetbol. Me divierto mucho practicando. Tambien ayudo a mis padres en los oficinas de mi casa. Le cuento que ya hace algunos dias que paso el 15 de septiembre y estubo muy divertido porque hacieran algunas actividades y el festival de bandas y estoy feliz porque estue tocando una pandereta. Ese dia estubo muy alegre. Me despido de usted con besos y abrazos.

Yojana Aracely

And in English (my own translation from the Spanish, not CI's):

Dear Ms. Dillon,

Dear Sponsor Ms. Dillon, I hope that you are in good health along with your family. I tell you that I am very happy along with all of my family. I am very happy that you are my Sponsor and you help me. A few weeks ago the fair happened and it was very fun. I am also very happy because I study and that in some days I will be on vacation. I tell you that the sport that I most like to practice with my friends is basketball. I have a lot of fun practicing. Also I help my parents with the chores of my house. I tell you that a few days ago happened the 15th of September and it was a lot of fun because there were some activities and the festival of bands and I am happy because I was playing a a tambourine. That day was very happy. I say goodbye to you with kisses and hugs.

Yojana Aracely

The back of the letter was a multiple-choice questionnaire to share a little about her life. She indicated:

I describe myself as: very kind, shy and serious.
My favorite sport is: basketball.
In the future, I would like: to be someone important.
The most beautiful thing in my neighborhood is: the landscape.

It's interesting that she describes herself as serious--when I was putting together her DP for Christmas, I kept thinking that she would appreciate more practical items, as she seemed like a very serious girl. Of course, I only had her photo from which to derive that conclusion, but I just had a feeling. =)

I had to do a little research about September 15th -- it was the day in 1821 when Guatemala declared independence from Spain. I'm glad she got to participate in the day's festivities--it sounds like she really had a good time playing that tambourine!

I've already written and sent my introduction letter, so I think I'll soon have a CP in my mailbox too. But of course I won't wait for that to arrive before replying to this letter! =)

Planning a Visit: Guatemala

So! After educating myself about exactly where Guatemala is located, I decided just for the heck of it to do some research into which airlines fly from here to there. Turns out American, United and Delta all do, and for FAR less than it's going to cost us to fly to the Philippines in 2014!

"Hmmmm," I thought to myself. "Baltimore to Guatemala City--with a layover in Miami--takes less than seven hours. That's doable for a four-day weekend!" This is particularly significant because in 2013, Julio and I will be doing a series of mini-vacations, one four-day weekend each month. We'll be alternating who plans each month--mine are the odd months.

After speaking with Julio, we decided that it's okay to trade days between our months ... so I'm thinking that March will be a three-day weekend, allowing for five days in May, which is when I'm thinking of making the trip.

Next step in the investigation process: pass agreements! I know we have one with Delta. A little research has revealed that we have an agreement with American as well, and it will cost a mere fraction of the commercial airfare to get there!

So it looks like this plan is a go! I'd better scurry myself to the Post Office tomorrow and get my Passport application rolling!

ETA:

On the flip side, reading the State Department's warnings and advisories about traveling to Guatemala makes is sound ridiculously dangerous and downright terrifying. Yikes!

One More Angel

I have been contemplating for a while now taking on an older child who has lost their Sponsor. I have also contemplated branching out from the Philippines for the first time in ten years. And I was really intrigued by the notion of Sponsoring a child who speaks Cakchiquel. All of these things were lurking in the back of my brain as I took a gander at CI's brand new child search functions.

Which is how I wound up fulfilling all three notions in one go.

This beautiful young woman is Yojana. She's sixteen years old and lives in Guatemala with her parents and seven siblings (six of whom are girls! Wow!). They live in an adobe home with one bedroom and a kitchen. They have regulated electricity but get their water from a neighbor's well. I can't wait to get to know her better (as an added bonus, writing to her will give me a chance to exercise my rusty Spanish skills!).

Interestingly, on her profile when she was waiting for a Sponsor it listed both Spanish and Cakchiquel for the languages she speaks. But now on her profile on my account, it only lists Spanish. I'm pretty sure that's just an oversight, although it IS possible to forget your native language (Mother Teresa did!).

Her favorite subjects in school are math and languages, and her listed talents are drawing and painting--I can't wait to see the drawings on her letters!

I'm hopeful, too, that when she graduates the program in 2.5 years I'll be able to Sponsor one of her younger siblings and continue to build a relationship with the whole family.

So! Welcome to my Sponsorship family, Yojana!