Visiting Micael - Compassion International

This morning I got back from La Paz - an 8 hour bus ride away - where I visited Micael.  The first time I saw Micael was through a photo at a concert last February.  Compassion International had made the call to raise your hand and sponsor a child.  At that time, I wasn't sure whether or not I should go to Bolivia or Greece or just stay in the States and continue to work.  After hearing more about Compassion the previous Sunday from Wes Stafford, I reasoned that perhaps I could help kids using my financial assets instead.  I raised my hands and a volunteer handed me Micael from La Paz, Bolivia.  Bolivia!!!  It was at that moment, that I had decided that I would go.

10 months later and here I am with one week left in Bolivia.  Yesterday I finally got to meet Micael face to face.  Micael is 7 years old and lives with his grandparents and 4 siblings.  His mom has been in Argentina for the past year but has recently become very ill and is unable to return home.  I was greeted by a member of the compassion staff , Micael, his grandma, and younger brother and sister.  At first, Micael was shy but our trip to the zoo quickly showed his active and bubbly side as he and his brother ran from animal to animal.  It was their first time to the zoo and the animals they seemed to like the most were the birds and monkeys.

After the zoo we headed over to a restaurant and ate A LOT with some bonus ice-cream at the end.  His grandma liked the ice cream presentation so much she asked for a photo with it, it was HUGE and designed all pretty.  Time was flying by so we took a 40 minute taxi ride up to his town to see the compassion center.

I didn't know what to expect, all I knew about Micael's living situation was described briefly through Compassion.   We arrived to a place full of kids running around and others sitting in classrooms.  The staff was so friendly and for the first time in a long time I felt like a foreigner as the kids stared at me.  They were willing to present me to any classroom so we visited Micael's classroom and the room with the oldest girls (18).  One of the girls stood up and explained to me the impact that having a sponsor in her life has had and described the joy that each kid has when they receive a letter or small stickers from their sponsor   About 400 kids attend the center on a weekly basis where they learn about God's word and receive a nutritional lunch.

The town where Micael lives is way up high in the mountains, where the clouds rest at eye level.  It is cold and paved with dirt roads and humble homes.  Micale's house consists of one room with a couch in the middle and small beds around the corners.  8 people live in that one room.

After visiting Micael and seeing the impact that the center has on the lives of so many kids, I walked away greatly encouraged and in awe.  It is crazy to think about the different pieces of the puzzle - Compassion International (the organization), the translators in the letter writing process, the tutors at the center, the sponsors and the child, and a bunch of people in between that I didn't mention.  Above all else it is amazing to see the many different ways that God's love is demonstrated through organizations such as Compassion International.  I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to meet Micael and see the impact that small donations and letter writing can have.  

Micael and I above his city

He wanted to carry around my bad "no heavy, it's light!"  Not true.

His grandma and younger sister with ice cream!

Grandma and younger sister

turned out blurry, but Micael and some of his classmates with their christmas baskets for good attendance

Micael's younger brother, he is crazy and full of energy

Micael running up the stairs to the roof of the center building

 

Micael really takes care of his younger brother and sister

The Compassion center

Below is La Paz

HIs family and I in their house

Micael wanted to show me a frog he found

Before the visit Micael was the boy in the photo that I send letters and money to - now I see Micael as a beautiful boy surrounded by love through various people and a God who will continue to grow and love him through the good times and bad.  I want to encourage you to consider sponsoring a child, it has been one of the biggest blessings to see how something so small can have such a big impact.  If you are already sponsoring and you have the means to visit that child someday, I say do it!  It is a once in a lifetime.

One week left, here we go.