Tough Year

This has been a tough year in that we have lost sponsors and children, more than any other year especially sponsors.  It is always heartbreaking to tell a child that the sponsor has moved on.  I try to brightly tell them that I have a new sponsor for them but their reply is always "why does my sponsor not want me anymore"   I have to have a convincing answer to that, not easy.  With younger children it is easier as they do not understand as much and have not bonded with the sponsor but the older ones it is very upsetting for.  Children are not pawns and we must remember that, they think very highly of their sponsors, sleep with their letters under their pillow and have the sponsors photo on the wall.  

We lose children because life gets too tough for a single mother in the city so she returns to her village or a teenage boy,who has family problems, drops out of school or a child has started school too late and ends up being in a class with 8 year olds when they are 14.  Sadly we sometimes lose a teenage girl because they have been married off.  

The other heartbreak, which happened today,  is a child who does not get a letter and his siblings do.  

Today I visited a home where there were six children from two families, five got letters and photos one did not.  He looked expectantly for his but I did not have one but I did give him a new sweatshirt from our supplies but he did not have that personal letter from his sponsor and the disappointment was all too evident on his face.  I felt terrible.  So next year I have to write fake letters as the situation has to be rectified as it is hard on the child and on me.  Life is tough and children learn that very early here, we are hopefully trying to make it better for them.