The trip that changed my heart
There are so many opportunities I have been blessed with over the years, and I am thankful to God for each one of them. I’m forever indebted to him. Compassion International is a child sponsorship program that we linked up with during our Mannsworld Family Tour. If you came to one of the shows you probably remember a representative getting on stage and telling you how important it is to sponsor a child and that your money makes a difference. HEAR ME OUT
The area we visited on this trip can be researched via Compassion Dominican Republic
In order to improve the quality of life for the women living in this area, a group of women hold weekly meetings in order to help educate them on how to properly take care of their children by purifying their water and by providing the basic necessities for their living conditions. Before this trip, when i heard “sponsor a child” and I saw anything remotely close to giving my money to a child in another country I would IMMEDIATELY decline.
This experience made me aware of the fact that I take advantage of the small things
While it was one thing to watch the videos and encourage people to sign up and get involved, it was an entirely different experience to actually be out in the field and see that the money you decide to donate has been going directly to a great cause, and it was truly eye opening. We boarded a bus that seats about 30 people and went to a small town to see the program that is set into place to help mothers with their children. My group went to visit a couple and their baby at their home. We got off the bus and walked for what seemed like FOREVER down dirt roads, over rocks, under trees, pass children playing outside with no shoes on, past chickens and horses, and I asked are we almost there? I asked this question because I stopped seeing structures and started to see tin shacks that looked abandoned. “This is our home” is what the woman said and pointed at one of the tin buildings. Their home was a tin building probably the size of my bathroom at home. There was a translator with us who encouraged us to ask questions so we went right in. Is there electricity? Their answer was sometimes but not everyday. What about water? They come twice a week to draw water and they have to walk about 30 minutes to get the water. When they get the water they have to boil it then put 5 drops of chlorine in the water and wait for it to cool before they can even use it. The conversation took a turn for the best because now it was their turn to ask us questions. They asked my age, how many children I had, and what I liked to do for fun…I said I’m a home body so I just like to stay in…They burst out laughing and although they didn’t speak English I knew what they were saying. The lady held up 3 fingers and said that’s why you have 3 kids from staying in the house so much!!!! We didn’t speak the same language but we had a moment…
Their living conditions didn’t affect their smile and the MAIN thing is that they are believers. They know that God is with them and that’s what gets them through each day. That pretty much sums up my first day in the Dominican Republic. If you are interested in reading more about The compassion International program click on the link. If you would like to know more about sponsorship just click the link right here Why should I sponsor a child?
