Montego Bay-Saturday

Saturday morning we went to an orphanage called Blossom Gardens. There were mostly children under ten that we played with. Either their parents were dead or the government had taken them away from bad home situations. The Chino Hills team had brought toys to give them, which they were very excited about. We played outside with the older kids - they had two fun playsets and some swings, as well as some large open areas. It wasn't a bad facility, but it one could tell that it could get crowded. There are thirty-five people who work there, but only four are on staff at a time for about forty children. They said that it got up to eighty kids sometimes. The government funds it, but they still have to beg for diapers and some food. At the time we left, we had to put the kids down and walk away, which got them crying, and some of our team and interns were crying too a little bit. It was fun to play, but sad to leave and know that that is their life, and they probably don't get nearly enough attention as they would with a normal family.

After lunch we went to a neighborhood with a big open field that was mainly sandy with a little grass sprinkled here and there. We went there to play soccer (football) in the afternoon, and we were going to come back later at night for a real show. The neighborhood was obviously very poor, and many of the kids had torn clothes and broken shoes, or no shoes at all. The Chino Hills team had brought soccer balls to give them, as well as jerseys and socks. One boy got a pair of socks and put it on, and I watched to see if he was going to put shoes on too, but he apparently didn't have any, and those socks were going to become the only protection for his feet. We played soccer with the older boys and men, and some of us painted some of the girls' fingernails, which is a good time to talk to them. We invited all of them back to the night show, but the girl whose fingernails I painted lime green, Tina, didn't come after all.

The night show was in the same field, and many of the same people came. They love the puppets. One girl stood by me the whole show; her name was Melissa. We chatted during the show and I discovered that she was seventeen and had accepted Christ just earlier this year on her birthday, April 4th. She attended an Apostolic Church. After the show, she brought over her little sister, Brittany, to me and told me to try to persuade her to become a Christian, which she did! At first when I was asking her questions about what it meant to be a Christian, she kept turning to her sister for the answers, but I caught her eye and told her that this was something she would have to answer for herself. After that she listened very closely as I went through the Ten Commandments to reveal her sinfulness, and how Jesus took the punishment for them on Himself. I explained that God wanted her to be forgiven, but it has to be her decision and commitment to ask and be a part of that relationship. So she and I prayed together and she became a Christian.

After the show, Leisha and I went for a swim with some of the other team members. It felt so nice to cool off and relax; it was my first swim since getting here. Usually when I have free time I try to catch up on my sleep or blog. Here we always wear our bugspray and sunscreen. It is very hot, but I think I prefer the heat to the way Amy and Kellie like to keep the air conditioner at 24 degrees Celsuis at night.