This past summer I had the pleasure of getting to know some kids who haven't been as fortunate as I have to grow up in a house with two loving parents, food on the table at every meal, and all my needs provided for. These kids opened my heart up in whole new ways and I can't even begin to tell you all the ways they've changed me. I had the opportunity to work with, on average, 30 underprivileged kids from the ages of 3-14 years old for 9-weeks, oh what fun it was! I'll also say though, that it was incredibly challenging and probably one of my hardest summers yet. As a result of it though I feel that I have grown more as a person from those 9-weeks than I have in any of my other summers. Let me tell you about some of "my kids."
Isaac: 4 years old and full of spunk and attitude like you would not believe. This little guy has been through the fire and back and you honestly couldn't tell from all the life and excitement that is in him. You never know what's going to come out of his mouth or what he's gonna do but you can always expect to see a smile on his face and get a laugh out of him. My favorite quote: "I ain't gonna BE a girlfriend and I ain't gonna HAVE a girlfriend!"
Hannah: This girl melted my heart. When she and her siblings first started coming to our program she wouldn't leave her brothers side and would barely say a word. As the weeks progressed, slowly she would play a game or do a craft and eventually it got to where she would leave her brothers sight if she was with me, but only with me. By the end of the summer she was off playing on her own only to check in with big brother every once in awhile. Her shyness resonated so well with me because I was just like that as a child. Shy as all get out (and if you ask certain people they might even tell you that I was still like that up until a few years ago, but that's another story for another time). The big thing about Hannah and her siblings that really hit my heart was how it felt like they had been forced to grow up quickly and were already losing the days of just being a kid. Hannahs big brother wasn't older than 10 and yet he was in charge.
Anita: Sweet as could be, she was a clinger, haha. It took her awhile (a couple of weeks) to warm up to anyone new but once she did she loved to be loved and held. By the end of the summer Anita was practically permanently attached to my hip because I held her so much. She has the prettiest smile between the dirt smudges on her face and was always showing it.
The thing about these kids that melted my heart was their desire for attention and love. The way that our program was set up volunteers were constantly coming in and out and the kids were regularly getting to know new faces and names, I was the only one that was there daily. As a result of this, by the end of the summer I knew most of the kids well and they knew that they could come to me with problems, when they wanted to play, or if they just wanted a little more attention and a safe person to go to. I loved my job in many ways but also hated it because I knew that at the end of those 9-weeks "my kids" would go back home and not have a place to go in the afternoons to be loved and kept safe. They melted my heart and it's because of them that I now have a huge passion and desire to find more kids such as them and make sure they know they are valuable and loved and are still kids thus should be allowed to have a childhood.
Here's a picture of just a few of them showing off their artwork. :-)
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