What a Little Change Can Do

Having been a teacher and a mother, I know first-hand the importance of reading, books, and storytelling in the development of children. Being read to and reading independently develop a multitude of skills in young children; skills they will carry with them into adulthood. Reading stimulates their imagination. It expands their understanding of the world. It improves their concentration and memory, boosts their critical thinking skills, develops their empathy, and develops and expands their language skills. In my classroom, I created an inviting, comfortable area for my students to sit and read. I filled the shelves with row upon row of books for all reading levels and varied interests. I made sure that my students had time to read every day, and I read to them every day. At home, our children's rooms were filled with books as well. Each day ended with a bedtime story. My world has been filled with reading and books all of my life. 

Until...I moved to Mozambique.

There is an alarming absence of children's literature in Mozambique. There are no reading books in the homes. There are no reading books in the classrooms. There are no children's libraries where children can go and borrow books. There are very few stores that even carry reading books for children, and when they do, the prices are exorbitant. How can our children be leaders if they do not have the opportunity to be readers? For years, I have wanted to create a library of books for our children who live in our Sunshine Houses. I want them to be surrounded by books that stimulate their imagination, take them to far away places, and inspire them to dream. I want them to develop the reading skills that will advance them academically. Yet as with most families anywhere in the world, one must decide where to allocate their funds. I was concerned about the cost of a library and the ability to grow it. 

Until...Mrs. Judith Adamec's second grade class from the Saint John the Evangelist School in Warrenton, Virginia. 

For many years, Saint John's the Evangelist School has partnered with our foundation. This partnership began when my sister, Jill, taught there. She invited me to speak to the student body about our work in Mozambique. They then had a Vitamin Drive. Students who brought in a bottle of vitamins were given a Dress Down Day (when they did not have to wear their uniform to school). These children were beyond generous. They did not bring in one jar; many brought in two! They didn't bring in just the small jars; they brought the large ones! We ended up with boxes and boxes of vitamins to bring back and distribute to orphanages in our area. The following year, students in the sewing club made dresses for the little girls in the orphanages and donated bags of underwear for the children. We then began a partnership where the students hold fundraisers to raise money to pay the school tuition for 3 of our girls at our second Sunshine House. I try to get to the school to share with the students as often as I can, usually at the beginning and ending of each school year. When I was there two years ago, Mrs. Adamec invited me to her classroom after I spoke, saying her students had something for me. They presented me with a box of cards for the children and a monetary gift to bless them. They had raised the money by donating their pocket change. That year we used the money to provide a nice Children's Day celebration on June 1st. As I was leaving her classroom that day, a little boy asked me if he could speak to me privately. After the other children went outside for recess, he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a few coins. He told me to use the money to help the children. Whoa! I was speechless and teary eyed. Clearly, the students at Saint John's have been taught to selflessly care for others. Their hearts are beautiful. Going there to share with the student body is always a highlight of my trips back to the US. 

This past year, Mrs. Adamec again challenged her class to bring in change to change children's lives in Mozambique. Even though they were not able to complete the school year due to the COVID restrictions. they still were able to make a beautiful donation to our foundation this past month. As soon as I received her email, I knew what to do with the money. What better way to use these student donated funds than to start a Sunshine House Library! I purchased a good number of books and a bookshelf to store them on. We made plans to house them in our third Sunshine House and arranged with Virginia, the oldest child in this house to be our librarian. Virginia is perfect for the job...mature, responsible, and organized. 

We arranged for all the children to meet with me to introduce them to the books and to the check-out system. As I arrived at the house this morning, they were all inside and waiting anxiously for me. My colleague, Delcio, helped me carry in the books. We set them on the veranda where we would meet. We then went into the house to put the special snack we brought for them in a shaded, cool area. When we came back outside, we saw that the children were already eagerly looking through the books and sharing them with each other.  They were so enthralled that they didn't even notice we had returned. 

We asked them to put the books back down in the pile so that we could talk with them. We shared with them the story of how we were able to provide these books for them. We talked about the importance of reading, as well as the importance of borrowing and returning the books. We reinforced to them that our trusted librarian, Virginia, would not give them a new book until they returned the one they borrowed. 

Finally, I wanted them to experience the joy of being read to. My favorite part of being a classroom teacher was to read to my class. So I chose a delightful book about a zebra who didn't want his stripes anymore.  I had a blast reading the story to them. They hung on every word and laughed along with the funny events. After listening to the story, they were motivated to choose one of their own to take home to read. 

While they chose their books and signed them out with Virginia, they enjoyed a special snack of cup cakes and juice. This is a rare treat for them. And to be honest, I love spoiling them like this on occasion. As you can see, these treats were a hit!

As I was passing out the snacks, I spied our Helio. He had chosen a book to read and was already curled up on the sofa reading with his mother, who was helping him with the harder words. Yes!!! Our library is already a success and is already fulfilling my expectations. 

While they were eating, three of the girls near me asked me why I do such nice things for them. Taken aback, I responded that everything I do is because I love them and I'm just doing what God has called me to do. Giggling, they responded that I am an angel. I'm not so sure about that. But I am sure that Mrs. Adamec and her class of second graders are indeed angels, as are all of the kind people who generously give to our foundation. I have said it before and I'll now say it again (and I am sure this won't be the last time I say it), I only wish that our donors could be here to receive the thanks and appreciation I get to receive. If it was not for that second grade class, there would be no library. If it was not for the student body of St. John the Evangelist School, there would be no tuition payments made for Chelsea, Cristina, and Maura. If it was not for all of you, we could not give the needed support to uplift our Sunshine families and the other people we assist here. Thank you for giving me the privilege to bless, serve, and uplift these beautiful children.

Don't Forget to Stop and Smell the...Garbage???

We have all heard the saying, “Don’t forget to stop and smell the roses.” I saw this played out before my very eyes today, and it left me feeling inspired to notice the little things, or in this case, the “little-noticed” people, all around me.

Today I received a life lesson that has greatly impacted me. It didn’t involve the smell of roses but the smell of garbage.  I learned that each day, we pass by people without noticing them. People who appear to be doing insignificant things, when in reality they are doing great works. People who are invisible to us as we go about our day. People who work to make our lives better, and they receive no recognition for it. People who need our encouragement. People who are not asking us to notice them, but when we do, they flourish because of it.

Our Sunshine houses are located in a community called Matola Santos. As I drive to them, there is a wall along the main road that separates the road from the primary school. It is along this wall, about 100 yards long, that the entire community deposits their trash. Imagine the build up of trash from hundreds of families daily dumping in the same area. The piles of garbage eventually spill out onto the road. When it rains, the currents wash the garbage down the road as children play in the water. It is a health problem and an eye sore.

About once a week, a crew of 4 women come to clean the area. Using their hands and one rake, they scoop the garbage onto an empty rice bag. Then they hoist the garbage onto a trailer brought in by a tractor. One cannot even begin to imagine how filthy this work is…the smell, the rats, the decaying garbage. It is disgusting. These women come week in and week out to earn a living. It is the lowest of low positions. Yet it provides a measly income for them to feed themselves and their families.

As I drove down the road today, I saw the ladies out laboring. I said a little prayer for them and asked God to bless them with a treasure, maybe something hidden in the pile of garbage that they might discover. At that very moment, the car in front of me swayed over to the opposite side of the road, directly towards where the ladies were working. As I wondered what the driver was doing, I saw him stretch his arm out the window. In his hand were several 100s (each 100 meticais bill is the value of about $1.40 USD). One of the ladies reached out and took the money, and he drove on.

I don’t know who was more excited…the ladies who had just received the money or me! I was so touched by this man, who took notice of the ladies’ toil and shared a token of his appreciation with them. My heart was leaping! I was so happy because of what this man did. I was deeply moved as I imagined how blessed the ladies were that someone took notice of them and their efforts. And I was humbled that I have never thought to do the same.

I drove on but could not keep going. I had to turn around and go back. Not necessarily to copycat the generosity of this anonymous donor, but to let those ladies know that I also see them!

To the surprise of the ladies, I parked and got out of the car. I was sooooo nervous! These gals are hard core! They always look so tough and resilient out there hauling the loads of garbage. Would they accept my impromptu visit… or would they chase me off? Would they be able to understand my American-accented Portuguese? They were very inquisitive as I approached them, navigating my way through the piles of garbage. I began to thank them for all their work. Because of them, the community where our Sunshine children live and play and go to school is kept clean and safe.  I shared with them how moved I was by the man who had just passed and given them money. I pulled all the money in my wallet out and handed it to them, apologizing that I wished it was more. To this they responded, “God will bless it and make it more!” Despite the masks that covered most of their faces, I was able to see them up close and personal. They were not “hard” or rough. They were kind, gentle, and appreciative. They were the kinds of ladies you would love to sit and drink tea and chat with. They looked like the grandmas that feed you cookies and love you well. Their eyes were smiling and their voices were kind.  

I asked them if I could take their photo. I told them about my blog…that I share stories about my life in Mozambique with people in America. I told them that I hoped to write a story about the kindness of that man that would inspire people to do kind things for others as well. They were happy to indulge me…if only we could see their smiles hiding behind those masks!

From now on, I am going to be on the lookout for the unnoticed people that are in my path every day…people that I take for granted. The people that I breeze right on by as I busily go through my day, never acknowledging that they are even there…like the traffic police who are completely ignored at intersections and the security guards who keep watch all day and night to provide safety for me. I will no longer pass them by…I will stop and take a moment to do whatever I can to let them know they are seen and appreciated.

Wouldn’t it be great if you were to do the same in your part of the world? What if we all began to look around us and notice…really notice those around us? Maybe…just maybe, our world would be a happier, more grateful place.

Community Built through Shared Tasks

My best days here in Mozambique are the ones that have been the most uneventful. Days where I pass time with people doing the simplest of things. I enjoy just sitting with people and visiting as they get their hair braided, sort beans, or  hand wash and hang their clothes to dry.  These common tasks can take a full day to complete. Hence they are more of a social event filled with conversation, laughter, and the sharing of the chores. Here we do not have the distraction of technology and the busyness of life. Life is more social and community oriented. People take the time to sit and visit with their neighbors, getting to know them and sharing their burdens with each other. 

 I recently spent a day with one of our Sunshine families making badjias. I adore badjias! They are a traditional Mozambican food- a small bean patty fried in oil that you put in pão (the Mozambican bread which sort of resembles a small loaf of Italian bread) and eat like a sandwich. As we all know, anything fried in oil is delicious. As the bread soaks in the oil from the badjias, it makes for a great grunge of a meal that is so satisfying...especially when enjoyed with a Mozambican Coke made with real sugar! People make the badjias at home and walk around the street selling them to passersby for only 2 meticais a piece. This is the equivalent of 3 cents. To make the perfect sandwich, you would use about 5 bajias for a half loaf of pão. I have enjoyed these sandwiches over the years, and now I was ready to learn how to make them. 

BUT...after seeing the work and time that goes into making badjias, it is most certain that I will continue to purchase them on the street! The labor that goes into making them is exceedingly great! In my opinion, they charge wayyyyy too little an amount for these delicacies! As we worked together all morning making the badjias, I took photos so I could remember the process. The photos illustrate the work that was done as well as the sense of community that is a part of the process. 

After the beans are purchased at market, one must sort through them and pull out any debris such as pieces of grass, small stones, etc. The beans are then poured into a pilão.
A pilão is a gift traditionally given to a daughter from her mother  when she gets married. 

The beans are then pounded with the long wooden pilador- which in my opinion weighs at least 10 pounds! Again and again and again the pilador is lifted and brought down upon the beans in the pilão. It is not a task for the weak!

Ilda was kind enough to let me have a try...I lasted only about 30 seconds until she took control of the pilador again stating that we would be working all night if I were to continue my feeble efforts!

All of this effort is required just to remove the red shells off the beans.

As you will see, most of the steps require several people to participate. Here, Ilda is using the pilador to smash the beans while Madalena holds the pilão steady and Virginia adds in more beans.

From time to time, the beans are taken out of the pilão and placed in a basket called a pimeira.

The pimeira basket is used to toss the beans into the air and cause the deshelled beans to separate from the skins. This is an art form to accomplish successfully. Virginia made it look easy. I thought to myself, "Finally...a task I can do!" But when I tried it, there were more beans on the ground than in the basket! Again, I was pushed to the side to allow those more experienced to complete the task. 

Ilda, Helio and Nina are removing the beans that still have shells on them. These are placed back into the pilão and pounded yet again.

After the beans have been deshelled, they will be ground using this bowl, called a moedeira, made from clay. Virginia scrubbed for a long time to get it all clean.                                               

  The deshelled beans are placed in water to soak and soften. 

While the beans soak, the garlic is peeled and crushed. 

The fuel for the cooking braai is prepared. Coconut shells are broken up and used as kindling. 

 The charcoal is placed in the braai with the coconut shells on top. A little plastic is added to make lighting it easier.

After the beans have softened, the water is drained.

The beans are placed in the clean moedeira. The pilador is now used to grind the beans into a pasty flour. This takes even more physical effort and stamina as you press the pilador in and rotate it around and around repeatedly. The moedeira does not have a flat bottom. It is all curved, so it is placed in a tire to help hold it steady. 

I can personally verify that this task takes a lot of muscle. So when the children and I get tired...

We call the "big guns" back in again. Ilda is very experienced and strong from years of doing such work. She made us all look like weaklings. 

 As the beans are ground, more water is added to make it into a paste.

As we worked, other women in the community who were passing by would stop to lend a hand and chat for a bit. 

 It was fun to experience the sense of support and community these women share.

 Once the beans are finally ground into a paste, the dough is scooped by the spoonful and fried in hot oil over the braai.

This is repeated again and again until the bowl is scraped clean.

 Finally, we have a bowl full of fresh, hot badjias!

And now for the best part of the day...sharing the fruit of our labor and eating them together!

A New Journey for Argentina

At first, I wanted to title this story, “Where There’s a Will, There’s a Way”, but I’ve already used that one. So I came up with, “Worth Waiting For", but I’ve already used that one too. At this point, I realized that we do a lot of waiting around here! That is the nature of life and work in Mozambique. We have learned to be patient and persistent. This is a story of patience and persistence…with the most lovely of endings!

Let me introduce you to the newest member of our growing Sunshine family…7-year-old Argentina. Isn’t she indeed lovely? 

But Argentina’s story is far from lovely. She never even knew her father. He abandoned her and her mother before she was even born, and he later died. Her mother died at some point in her young life, leaving Argentina an orphan. She was in the care of her elderly grandmother, who died mid-year 2019. She had no one left to care for her. She had no family members with the ability to take her in. While we do agree that with family is the best place for children to be, often the case is that the extended family does not have the means to take orphaned children in to live. Argentina went on living with other children in the house of her grandmother. Her Aunt Sara, a good friend of Zelda, the caretaker of our first Sunshine House, told Zelda about Argentina back in September and asked if there was anything we could do to help her. Argentina was suffering. We went to Social Action to pursue placing her in one of our homes. We were beyond disappointed to learn that we were not able to take her in. She lived in the capital city of Maputo. Because it is the capital, it is its own separate district, just like our Washington, D.C. So she was living outside of our area of influence and reach. I found this hard to believe. We had just accepted into one of our homes 3 children from Manhica, which is 2 ½ hours away. Now we were being told that we could not accept this little girl who lived only 20 minutes away? My question to them…So we have to leave her to suffer because of where she lives? The answer…Yes. I determined that this little girl deserved better. I determined to wait it out because she was worth it. I determined to be patient and find a way…And I did!

Zelda’s friend, Sara, is Argentina’s aunt. She therefore has the right as family to take her into her home and care for her now that she was orphaned. This would bring her into our area of influence. All we needed was for Sara, and her husband, to agree. It sounds so simple, but in a developing country it is not. Sara and her husband live below the poverty line. They have barely enough to care for their family, let alone to feed another mouth. After presenting my idea to Zelda, I held my breath in anticipation of their answer. They responded the next day saying they would take Argentina into their home! In fact, Sara went right away to fetch her. In appreciation, we provided food for them so that having Argentina there would not be an added burden to their family.

We waited a bit and returned to Social Action. They went to visit the home of Sara and to meet Argentina. They wanted to leave Argentina in the care of her aunt and uncle. Sara burst into tears. She said they did not have the means to care for her and that her husband would not accept this. This changed their mind and they agreed to move Argentina into our Sunshine House. She will live in the same neighborhood as her Aunt Sara and can visit and play with her cousins freely. It is the best for them all!

We then had to wait a bit more while Social Action prepared the paperwork. This past week we were informed that the paperwork was done and we could move Argentina to her forever home! I was ecstatic and relieved. But most of all, I was so happy for Argentina. She would now have the security and stability she would need to flourish.

Argentina now lives in the care of Guida at our second Sunshine House. She will have all of her needs met- spiritual, physical and emotional. She will attend private school and will one day have the opportunity to further her education at a training school or university of her choice. As her new t-shirt says, her future is bright! She now has an older sister, Cristina, and two sisters who are the same age as her, Virginia and Maura. When she was brought to her new home, all three girls ran and enveloped her in a big group hug. They said that now they have a new friend with which to play.

I was so anxious to meet Argentina but decided it best to give her a day to adjust to her new family and home before the emotional white lady showed up. I went with my husband, Don, the next day…armed with clothing and a stuffed animal to welcome her. I often try to put myself in the place of these children. I wonder what they must be thinking and feeling. But I do not have the mindset to do this. As someone who was privileged to be raised in a secure home where I never wanted for anything and had a mother and father to care for me…how could I ever understand what it is like to be abandoned, orphaned, impoverished and alone?

 The other girls at the house met us at the gate. They were excited to show off their new sister. We entered the yard, and a timid Argentina emerged from the house. Her face gave me absolutely no clue as to what was going on inside of her. I introduced my husband and me to her and welcomed her to our family. She politely listened, and gave Papa Don a wave and “Ola” when I asked her to do so. Then that quickly, I was at a loss for words…so I pulled out the stuffed animal.

I don’t know what it is about stuffed animals, but they always break the ice. The soft dog brought a broad smile to her face the moment she laid eyes on it. I placed it in her waiting arms and she tucked it in close, wrapped her arms around it, and held onto it. This left me with the parallel picture of her…Argentina brought a smile to our faces upon seeing her. We have tucked her into our Sunshine family, have wrapped our arms around her, and will hold onto her. The waiting now is over...for us both. She was well worth the wait. Our journey together has begun.

Finally!!!

We purchased our third Sunshine House a year ago. At the same time, we were finalizing the registration of our foundation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Mozambique. We received our approval in December 2018. We rejoiced because we now would be able to work with Social Action for Women and Children to receive orphaned children into our homes. We met with the director of Social Action in February and received her approval to receive children. We shared with her our vision and requested children aged 7 or younger, as we wanted young children whom we could shape and transform. We were excited and ready to fill the beds in this third house. But…Mozambique being Mozambique, February became March, March became April, and on it went until we found ourselves in the month of September and still without children and our house still empty. I was in despair and wanted to scream, “There are 2 million orphaned children in Mozambique, can you not just give me 4???”

Social Action finally contacted us a few weeks ago and told us they had 3 little boys for us!!! I was over-the-moon happy…in fact, I cried! As we looked into it, they were very slow in sharing any details with us…the age of the boys, their grade in school, their names, etc. We had no information. Until the day they unloaded on us that the children were much older than what we requested- a girl of 14 and two boys of 12 and 10. Our response was, Nope, Nope, Nope. Again we explained to them why we wanted younger children. As I met with a case worker at their offices, she folded her hands and begged me to consider these three children. She said that as soon as she heard about them, she thought of our foundation and believed we were exactly what these children needed because we would provide them with a family. She pleaded with me to just go and “have a look”. I pictured myself doing this and regretting it…how can you go “have a look” at three orphaned children and not bring them home with you? But I agreed to go see them.

The children lived in Manhica, a two hour drive from our home. We traveled there on Friday, September 6th- me, Amade, a manager at our Sunshine Nut Company, and Marcia, our local contact at Social Action.  We met up with the case worker in Manhica. She took us to the children’s home. It had belonged to their parents and now was theirs. We pulled up to a very small cement home with a battered front door and closed up windows. Inside I could see a little boy sitting in a plastic chair with his head down on the plastic table in front of him. As we got out of the car, adults and children began to assemble in the yard of this home, everyone curious to find out why we were there. The little boy in the house came outside. He sat down on the front step of the home with his back to us. He refused to look at us or speak with us. 

Meanwhile, the curious neighbors began telling us about the children. Their remaining parent, their mother, had died two years earlier. Since that time, the older girl cared for her two younger brothers while continuing to pursue her education. She was now in grade 8.  Neighbors occasionally brought rice for them to eat, but they had little to share because they themselves are poor and have very little for their own families. The house had no water or electricity. The only furniture the children had was a plastic table, a plastic chair, and a grass mat to sleep on a night. 

They had one pot to cook in and one plate from which to eat. The older girl and the younger boy had remained in school. They said the girl was very responsible and helpful. Yet “this boy”, they said referring to the little guy on the front step with his back to us, he refused to go to school and was a thief, stealing various things from the neighbors. At this point, he began to cry. And at this point, I had had enough of the neighbors’ input. “This boy” had a name, Vicente, and he had feelings, which were being sorely abused. I asked Amade to take Vicente away and speak to him privately. When they returned, Amade said Vicente was crying because he was afraid we were there to take him away. He had been threatened that a home would be found for his older sister and younger brother, but that he would be taken away to a center for troubled, problem boys. He said he would not leave his family.

Amade and I went around to the back of the house to talk privately. This is when the younger 10-year-old brother, Helio, came home from school. He came out back to talk with us. The whole time we talked, his hands trembled with fear and he could hardly look us in the eye. We asked him to call Vicente to join us. 

We shared with them who we were, why we were there, and what we had to offer to them. All day, I had been praying for God to give me a sign that it was His will for us to take these children. As of yet, I was not feeling anything either way. We had been with the boys for an hour and I was starting to panic as I had one of those, “God! I asked You for a sign and I’m not getting one!” talks with Him. It was imperative for me to know that these children wanted to come with us and that they were open to receive what we had to offer them. I did not want to take older children who did not want to come, would run away, or cause problems. I told the boys that we did not want to take them away from their home, that it was their choice to stay. I asked them if they wanted to come with us. Immediately, with not even a second of hesitation, the older boy, Vicente, looked up and into my eyes and said, “Quero viver no seu crèche” (I want to come live at your center.)  It was the first time I had had the opportunity to even look into his brown eyes. Helio immediately followed his brother, eagerly looking up into my face and repeating the exact same words. My heart began to move… a little. I began to have hope. I looked at the boys and shared with them that they would not be living at a center; they would be part of a family now.

Amade suggested we pray with the boys before leaving. We were in a circle, Amade directly across from me, each of us with a boy on our right and on our left. Amade put a hand on each boy’s shoulder. As we closed our eyes to pray, I glimpsed each boy putting an arm around his waist. I then placed a hand on each boy’s back, and I felt one little hand slip around my waist from the left, and one little hand slip around my waist from the right. Tears filled my eyes as I knew I had just gotten my sign from God. These boys not only wanted to come, they were open to receive. The difference in the boys' demeanor from the time we met first them until we left only an hour later was incredible. They went from being resistant and distant to happy and hopeful. 

We said goodbye to the boys and headed back to Matola. We did not get to meet their older sister, Virginia, because she was at school. I had to laugh to myself to imagine what stories she would be hearing when she returned after school to her brothers.

For the whole weekend, I could not stop thinking about these three children and God’s goodness in connecting us with them. By Monday morning, I was ready to drive back to Manhica and bring them here, but Social Action had documents to prepare to enable this to happen. We made a plan to fetch them on Friday. That day could not come soon enough. We were all excited…me, Amade, Don, and the woman who would now be their new mom, Ilda. Ilda was actually giddy with excitement!

We arrived at their house on Friday to find the children dressed and ready to go. A small plastic bag held their only worldly belongings. Their grandmother and an aunt were present at the home along with a mix of community children and teenagers, who were there to see them off. It was a pleasure to meet Virginia. We knew the boys wanted to come, but we didn’t know how she felt. She greeted us…a kiss on the cheek and hug confirmed she was ready to come as well. Her eyes were bright with happiness. 

We began by signing documents with the children’s family members that gave us guardianship of the children. The aunt and grandmother shared their appreciation of the help we were offering. The grandmother’s main concern was that she had made sure the children always attended church and asked us that if we could, would please keep them attending. She was overjoyed to learn that it is our priority to raise the children knowing God as their Father, Jesus as their Savior, and the Holy Spirit as their counselor. She had us all join hands as she prayed a blessing over us and the children.

It was time then to say goodbye and climb into the van. The children got into the van so quickly that I didn’t even see it happen! I climbed into the back seat with them, trying to avoid being hit by their little flailing arms waving goodbye. The van door shut, Don began to pull away, and Vicente, the older brother, who was sitting next to me, literally collapsed into his lap and sobbed. 

He was not crying because he was sad. He was not crying because he was happy. He was crying tears of relief to be leaving this life behind him- a life of being unloved and suffering from hunger and illness and a lack of basic necessities. His sister, Virginia, sat next to him consoling him as Helio looked on. I pulled out a bag of stuffed animals I had purchased earlier, and like a miracle cure, the tears stopped and smiles spread across all three faces. They clutched their stuffed animals to their chest as we continued our journey to Matola. Along the way, we treated everyone to a KFC takeaway meal- the first of many new experiences for them. Their eyes were wide with excitement and appreciation.

We could not have arrived at their new home at a more perfect time as our other Sunshine children had just gotten out of school and were passing by. They looked beautiful in their school uniforms, shoes, and book bags. 

As Virginia, Vicente, and Helio got out of the van, the children greeted them with hugs. Their new mom, Ilda, came out of the house, giggling as she embraced each child in a warm hug. We brought them in the house and showed them their new bedrooms. They were overwhelmed to see beds and laid on them to see how if felt to be on a bed- another experience they never had.  

We continued the tour around the house- they were captivated by the television in the living room as well as the refrigerator in the kitchen. But the biggest curiosity of all was the toilet in the bathroom! 

We then left them to get acquainted with their new mom, Ilda, and their new sister, Nina, Ilda’s daughter.

Since Friday, I have returned to the home every day to check in on them. Every day, I see children who are happy happy happy. When I arrive, they come bounding out of the house like little puppies. They hug me and take whatever is in my arms to carry in for me. They pull out a chair for me to sit on. Their faces are shining and their eyes are bright. And to be totally honest, the one I see the most change in is Vicente- the one who sat with his back to me that first meeting. The one referred to by his neighbors as “this boy”. The one whose eyes were filled with fear and anger. Now, he smiles continuously and is so affectionate.

We were blessed to be able to get the two boys enrolled in school immediately. Helio has continued on in grade 4 and Vicente has started in grade 3 because he stopped going to school when his mother died. The day before they started, we did our back-to-school shopping to outfit them with a uniform, shoes, book bag, and materials. There are no words in the English language sufficient enough to express the awe and pride in their faces as they tried on their new school uniforms. 

It was then that we discovered they had only the very worn clothing that was on their back, and they did not even own a pair of underwear. So we stopped by another store to get them some clothing. They started school the next day. As they were walked to their new school, both boys were beaming as they said that they would get the highest grades of all!

We are still in the process of getting Virgina enrolled. She is in high school, and it is not as easy to find space. We just got the good news yesterday that she was accepted at Escola Maria Ana Mogas- a private Catholic school that we have a great relationship because of the teacher training programs we have conducted there for the past three years. Virginia is beyond ready to start and asks us every day if she can go study yet. We will take her next week to get outfitted for her uniform and then she can begin!

As I try to close this story, I really don’t even know what to say. Maybe I don’t need to say anything at all. Maybe as you have read my feeble attempt to share the story of these three children, you have gone on the emotional journey I have been on. This whole experience has taught me yet again that our plans are not always God’s plans and that His ways are higher than our ways. I am ashamed to admit that I was not interested in taking these children into our Sunshine family because they were not what I had envisioned. They were not cute, pudgy little toddlers, as of yet unspoiled by the ugliness and harshness of life in Mozambique. God had another plan for us and our Sunshine family. He brought me a teenager, an almost teenager, and a boy. These children have been set free and are now filled with hope by the security, stability, and opportunity they have before them. They have embraced their new life with exuberance and gratitude. I am filled with awe of God’s goodness. I am thankful that I did go “have a look”. I now look forward to seeing these children realize their God-given potentials. Virginia wants to be a police officer. Vicente wants to be a doctor. Helio wants to be a teacher. And me…I am deeply, deeply humbled to be a part of helping them make their dreams come true.