~60 kids. ~25 flea bites. Why am I doing this?

I’ve had it on my heart all year long – to conduct a camp for kids in my village. So last week that happened. Why? I’ve been asked that question by folks that come from same places and it took me by surprise. Don't you see what I see? In the villages there is still no running water, kids walk around barefoot, there are no kids activities - not much to do for them, except play in the dirt or around the house. They also take care of the chicks and ducklings, some work in the fields, hoeing.

Many parents are gone abroad, the kids staying with grandmas and aunts. Many families are drinking heavily. There is a breeze of despair in the air. People are harsh, but they accept life as it is. Few try to change things and that mostly includes a new fence or a home repair. Kids just grow along.

Scouting around the village in search for kids

So, we sang, we danced, we screamed, we played, we talked, we created, we laughed and did many other fun things.  We also explored some things. We explored emotions. Only a handful knew what those are. We talked about how the negative ones get in the way of our life, how fear of people poisons us.

Then we talked about deserving to be loved. Interestingly, none of them was sure they deserve to be loved. Some said they don’t. Asked who loves them, the responses varied. A boy, who never saw his father, just repeated somebody else’s answer “Mom and Dad love me”.  It’s rare that a father or a mother would actually tell a child that he/she loves them. It’s just the way culture is around; feelings like these are not expressed. The fact that they provide food and clothes should be enough for the child to understand that this is love. No time for affection.

I'm a good, obedient, smart and loving girl.

Then, we explored the qualities they have. They had to write 5 positive qualities on their drawn hand. I think they liked this.  Hopefully, this will help them shake away the negative name calling so common among them.

And then, we explored conflicts. They said they don’t like conflicts. One girl came up with the perfect solution: when her friends fight and try to make her take sides, she tells them she doesn’t want to because she cares about both and that they should reconcile. 

Through all this I used therapeutic stories, where a character was going through similar situations and was able to find a solution. We also shared with them God’s love and view of them, encouraging them to believe and apply the golden rule of Matthew 7:12 in their relationships.

Learning to play as a team

In the evening we would show movies. I picked Kung Fu Panda, the Ugly Duck and Rapunzel. I love these stories for the courage and faith they teach. Also, for the example in persevering in spite of any imperfections and the power in knowing your identity. The cultural hall we used has a very bad acoustics for movies, so one that had a lower quality dubbing was hard to understand. For this reason we couldn’t have the discussions I hoped to have after.

At the end, we gave each one a beautifully illustrated Bible for kids. Some wanted to have a dedication written on it. Most of them did not say “Thank you”. Like the kittens I saved from the rocks the other day. I can’t blame them – they don’t have an example to follow, because people are not big on thank you around here. The parents tell them they should say 'thank you', yet they themselves don’t do it. That makes the learning process a bit longer, since children learn best by example.

Kids learned how to make candle holders - now they are enjoying the results.

Regardless, it seems that kids are the most receptive audience for the love of God and the change for a changed life these days. There were about 60 of them every day and only 4 of us – we definitely could have used more help!

We went a week without showers, I got bit badly by flees (my core enemy when I go there), the conditions in which we lived were not very nice. At times we asked ourselves: what am I doing here? Really, what were we doing in that desolate, destitute place, where hope seems dead? 

I guess, there is still some hope in our hearts that the seeds we plant will grow one day to bring beautiful fruit.

p.s.  This whole project has been blessed. We did it entirely on volunteer basis with various friends helping in various ways: equipment for games, supplies for crafts, transportation, half the Bible gifts, prayer support and encouragement. One day the program was entirely conducted by Expressul Copiilor (a one day camp program). Little by little everything fell into places. Thank you, friends, and thank you, God.