Count your Blessings

When you're worried, and you can't sleep, just count your blessings instead of sheep, and you'll fall asleep counting your blessings.  -Bing Cosby

I have been learning a lot about blessings lately... I have really learned to appreciate things like washing machines, dishwashers, ovens, electricity, long hot showers, water...
 

Especially water.

If you have ever been in a power outage or bad storm where you have lost water and heat and electricity for a while, you know that it sucks not having water. You can deal with the power outages, and loss of heat- those can easily be remedied with blankets and flashlights. Water is pretty important though.

Today they shut our water off to do some maintenance at 9am. It's now after 9pm and it's still off. Let me tell you, spending the whole day not being able to wash your hands is pretty uncomfortable. It makes me appreciate hand sanitizer and the fact that I live in a time where it's expected of people to shower daily. 
 

Not having water  makes me think of when we used to live in Arequipa... I was about eleven and I hated wearing my shoes.  If it wasn't absolutely necessary, chances are I wasn't wearing them. My feet used to get so dirty   my dad started calling me Black Foot.  Once he made me wash off my feet before company came over. Tonight my feet are charcoal black and I can't wait to wash off the grim of the day.

It was easier being a child-when things didn't matter. You didn't care if your hair got wet in a rain storm because you were having too much fun jumping in the puddles. When you just wiped your mouth on your sleeve and went about your day.  It's easier not caring what you do, how you look, or what people with think of you. Although I still like rainstorms and particularly dancing in them. 

I really am so thankful for water, and electricity.  I am grateful I live in this generation. I don't think I express my gratitude enough-  I don't think we realize that these things are not guaranteed. We expect so much when we don't work for it or even appreciate it.  I mean, how many times a day do you sit and think "I am so grateful to have a dishwasher." I mean, we have all grumbled over loading the dishwasher. And why? It makes our lives easier, it gives us more free time- yet we don't see that. We just see how much work we have to do. 

I am so blessed and am so grateful for these seemingly small blessings we have. What's the saying- you don't appreciate it until you don't have it- that is definitely true... I don't think I had ever given a thought to water, or electricity before. I just expected it. I never realized how important the small things were.  I will leave you will a quote I read today that made me really think about myself:

God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say "thank you?" -William A. Ward

 

Be Happy

I would like to introduce a few of the kids. This is Alejandro-Victor and his brother Eduardo. There story is a bit sad. They have been severely abused and were left at the Orphanage in the middle of the night two weeks ago. It breaks my heart because they knew they were abandoned. What amazes me the most is that while they have been though such hard times they are still smiling. They are two of the happiest boys I have ever met. I think we can all learn a lesson from these brothers, even when we get dragged through the mud and the muck of life we can get back up and be happy. Happy is a choice not a destination.

Alejandro-Victor is nine and Eduardo is twelve.

Eduardo and the pit bull we have nicknamed Pig.

 

 

 

These two showed me around this Friday and I had a lot of fun getting to know them more. Their smiles are contagious, every time they smiled I couldn't help but smile with them too.

 If these boys, with their hardships can still find a way to be happy- you can too. You may argue that their situation is different from yours and maybe it is- but does it really matter? Anne Frank wrote, "We all live with the objective to be happy, our lives are all different yet the same."  This smart young girl knew something most of us are still figuring out.. You may not be in the best situation, you may be having a bad day, but there is always something to be happy about- even if it's as simple as taking your lunch break or talking with your best friend. It could be a phone call from a family member or eating a snickers bar. Happy is a choice- not a destination. You cannot find happy on a map, but you can choose to be happy. Make the choice- Be happy, and smile because your smile is beautiful. (:

Last Saturday

March 20, 2014

  

Weekends are spent having fun, relaxing, hanging out with friends, and sometimes rolling in the dirt. In my case last  weekend had all  of these elements.

Saturday, March 15th we got a van, squished inside and drove up to Westfalia Orphanage. Ten of us went on Saturday to play with the kids. Nicole brought sidewalk chalk and some outside games for the kids to play and we all divided and made stations. The kids loved it- and so did we! 

The chalk got everywhere, and I mean everywhere. We came home covered in chalk dust from head to toe. I got some in my hair too. It was fun though, I don't think most of the kids had ever seen sidewalk chalk before. 

Emily and Melissa

Julia getting her hair done.

Eduard with Victor

 

 

Marcus tried his hand at pin the nose on the clown.

 This pretty much sums up how Julia and Emily acted the whole day.

Nicole and Dallas

Nicole being her usual happy self (:

More Julia and Emily.

Dallas dressed as a big blueman. The kids loved it.

More Nicole.

Eduardo and Victor.

Dallas could barely see with the suit and glasses on.

Brothers Eduardo and Victor fighting and loving being carried around.

Emily and Melissa.

Kids drawing with chalk.

Seeing Jael and Anderson sack racing was the cutest thing ever.

Everyone loves sunglasses!

Marcus, who came with us for the first time.

The garbage bags used for the sack races soon became outfits.

Right on Target!

Drawing Lions.

Melissa drawing.

 

It was a pretty great Saturday. I still have a bunch of pictures that I couldn't fit in the post! 



 

*Please Note this was written before it's publishing date.

Cute Kids

On our Wednesday trip to Westfalia, Nicole and I got to spend the day with the Kindergarteners (ages 2-6) and they are adorable.  I couldn't resist taking pictures of these sweethearts!