Thursday was the day that I had planned to visit Yiseth and Nelson. Here is some background on these two children. I have been sponsoring Yiseth since she was 5 years old. and after visiting the family two years ago, I decided to sponsor Nelson also. Nelson had not been enrolled in the program, so it took about six weeks for everything to be processed. Both children are good letter writers and seem to be happy and thriving.
The CI van pulled up promptly at 10:00 a.m. and I met my translator ( I can't remember her name!) and John , the driver. I knew John from the 2011 trip. First on the schedule was to meet the family at the center but I think that they had forgotten that I asked to see the family's home. Anyway, we stopped at the center and the family was waiting to get back onto the van. The first thing that came to my mind was how tall and beautiful Yiseth had become! She was now 13 years old and I could hardly believe how much she had grown in 2 years!! She came and gave me a kiss and then Nelson and his grandmother entered. Nelson, who is ten years old, looked as handsome as ever and I was so happy to see their grandmother. I remember their grandmother from a video that another sponsor had made on a visit to Colombia and I always wanted to meet her. Their aunt had been on the trip the last time. The grandmother looked just like she had in the video, only she had lost a little weight. The children's grandmother informed me that Nelson was a little carsick from riding on the bus that morning, so we gathered a couple of plastic bags just in case he needed it. Luckily he didn't!!.
After we exchanged greetings, we decided to head back to the house and we needed to pick up little Melanie from school. She is five years old and just started kindergarten. When we pulled to their home, I noticed that the family lived in a pretty decent dwelling out in a rural area which isn't far from Yiseth's school. A large canal was being constructed in the area to keep the homes from flooding. Work was being done on the front of the home which involved renovating the front porch with pretty tiles. It looked really good and the grandmother explained that they had received a grant from the government to make home improvements. I was very happy to hear this and to see this! The children's mother, who does not live with them, works in Venezuela and sends money home to support them. Their grandfather also works during the day.
One we went inside, I noticed that this family is much better off than the other families that I had visited. The rooms were furnished with tables, chairs, sofas and the family also had a bookcase with a TV and small stereo system. They also have 3 bedrooms (which I did not see) and a large backyard where the grandmother has her own business of making batter which is made into fritters that are sold on the streets and in some stores in the area. They also have chickens in the backyard area.
When we sat down, and waited for Melanie, the children opened their gifts. Yiseth really seemed to like a little heart necklace and some cool bracelets and Nelson seemed to really like his new watch. As the children opened the presents, little Melanie came in wearing her school uniform. She looked very cute in it, but her grandmother made her take it off promptly and then she joined in opening her gifts. She seemed to really like a little puppet that I had given her.
Soon it was time to head to the mall for lunch and the other planned activities, so we all hopped into the van and travelled through the streets of Cartagena. The mall was quite a distance from their home, so we passed the time taking photos and videos. Nelson and Yiseth sang their national anthem and talked about how they are doing in school. I found out that Yiseth still wants to be a pediatrician and that she likes math and volleyball. Nelson likes school but he is not into playing sports. He prefers to hunt birds so that he can eat them! I learned that he wants to be a business man so that he can take care of his grandmother and he thinks that is a cool profession.
Once we made it to the mall, we headed for the food court and ordered ham and cheese pizza. Nelson had talked about how he remembered the pizza that we had eaten on the first trip and we wanted the same thing today. During the long wait, we made more videos and had a good time trying to understand each other's language. When the pizza finally arrived, we all chowed down and did not do much talking. The pizza was delicious but poor Nelson could only eat two large slices. We ended up with 2 large pieces left over which the family took home with them.
Next, it was off to the arcades where the children enjoyed themselves playing games to earn tickets. Little Melanie really loved one game in particular and kept wanting to return to it, so we spend a lot of time there. Yiseth and Nelson had a chance to drive the bump cars and that was a lot of fun once they figured out how to drive them! After the children selected their items from the tickets they had earned, we headed off to do some shopping for clothes and groceries. The kids had a good time making their selections and little Melanie had a great time running up and down the aisles of the stores. She is a little handful but her grandmother was very patient with her. I just shook my head :)
After the children made their selections, their grandmother bought a few groceries. During this time, Yiseth wanted to just walk with me while we videotaped ourselves on the camera phone. She also took a few photos and did a great job! Soon our time was coming to an end, so the CI translator had to find a taxi driver who would be willing to take the family out to their home in the rural part of Cartagena. She explained that most drivers are not willing to drive that far so they state higher prices as the fee, so that people will not be willing to pay. But I was able to pay what he wanted (not too much more, just an extra $5 or so in US money). We took a few more photos and exchanged hugs and kisses. I was really happy that I was able to spend time with this family and to see how well they are doing. They are all so sweet and affectionate and really seem to appreciate the benefits that CI provides. They are taking advantage of the opportunities provided and they are making good improvements in their living conditions. I am proud of all of the children and I am thankful to be a part of their lives.
