One of my favorite things about being here in India is seeing so many happy children all the time. They love to wave to us on the streets, smile at us on the buses, and laugh with us when we play together. And truth be told, I absolutely melt when I see kids walking in their perfectly matching school uniforms and larger-than-their-body backpacks. Although I want to believe that all the kids I meet live carefree lives, I know that’s not the case for many of them.
We have a great partner that our team is working with called the MV Foundation. They are dedicated to taking children out of illegal child labor jobs and getting them into school. Because the children have to test into government schools, MV set up “bridge camps” where kids who are behind in grade levels can catch up to the levels where they should be.
For one of our Friday service projects, we visited one of these bridge camps and taught the boys different sports games. They absolutely loved it! These children have all different stories for why they are in the camps, including their parents were killed or commit suicide, or just can’t support them anymore. It was eye opening to be among kids who have experienced so much at such young ages, but I’m glad we could spend even a small amount of time with them to be their friends.
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| They were SO excited to play cricket. I'm still confused on the rules, but I like it! |
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| I know I shouldn't pick favorites, but these two boys were so cute. |
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| MV provided lunch for us: rice with ladyfingers (a common vegetable) and a broth. I learned that many people here eat just with their right hand, and the boys were laughing at how silly we all looked. |
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