Fifth Trip June, 2010 Day 7

Today we headed out to visit a transition home for young people ages 18-21 who have aged out of the orphanage. We were very excited because we were going to see some of our dear friends who once lived at Ciudadella orphanage in Madrid but have since moved to this new place. We were also going to surprise them by taking them out to lunch and to the mall to buy each one an outfit of clothes. It was wonderful to see each of them. So many precious friends. Names like Yuli, JLo, Susan, Natalia, and on and on. Sweet girls and some boys as well that we have built a relationship with this year. We were very interested to see this transition home because we hope to have our own like it next year. After touring the house and hearing some of the young people share about their lives there we loaded everyone up and went to a pizza place that one of the girls worked at. We had a wonderful feast as 18″ pizza after 18″ pizza kept coming until we were all stuffed and we had 3 whole pizzas left. The young people from the transition home were overjoyed when we boxed up the extra pizza and told them they could take it home to eat later. They rarely get such a treat. We rolled… ahem I mean walked out of the pizza shop and gathered on the street corner taking group photos and visiting while we waited for our bus to pull around. About that time a little street family consisting of a little hunched over mom and a little hunched over dad with big scars on his legs from some sort of injury, and a dirty but cute little boy about 7 I would guess very politely came over and asked if we could help them out with any money so that they could feed their boy. As some were reaching in their pockets for pesos, one of the orphan girls from the transition home walked over with a smile and handed the family the box full of left over pizza and said, “God bless you.” My heart stopped for a minute and I saw the same amazed expression on the faces of the rest of the team as it soaked in what we had just witnessed. The orphan giving her food to the poor family. There is something very poetic, ironic, and tragic in that exchange and also something very spiritual that changed something deep inside my heart right there on that street corner. We have so much here in America that we don’t even know how to give out of sacrifice. It was humbling to say the least. Back at the transition home we said our tearful goodbyes and headed for the airport. Another successful trip into the fields of the fatherless transforming the lives of orphans and team members alike. To God be the glory.