Young poets

One of my favorite parts about my job with HALO is working directly with the kids we support. Unfortunately, I get so busy with what it takes to provide support for the kids that I often don't get as much one on one time with them as I would like.

I did, however, get the chance earlier this week to spend some time with kids supported through our local HALO Center. HALO partners with other organizations in the area to provide services for at-risk youth, including homeless youth through reStart, a shelter located just a few blocks away from my apartment.

On Monday, I hosted a project about poetry at reStart. Using old, damaged books, the kids utilized the words on the pages to create their own poetry. They were also able to create a painting or drawing about their poem. They were pretty creative and came up with some beautiful poems. Some of them were even inspired to write poems from scratch.

Some sample poems from the project:
"I come with strength of my youth. spirits too bold, eyes of adventure.
Reputation to do no wrong, lament nothing.
Only fill up a place, which may be empty. Strength I have."

"Played the piano
a precious object, and for love, warm, filled with the presence of laughing
In pale tides morning and night littered in heaven."

My involvement with The HALO Foundation began nearly 4 years ago. At the time, I was unaware to the depths that my involvement and passion for HALO would grow. I feel very fortunate to have experienced all aspects of HALO: working closely with our dedicated volunteers, our supporters and donors, and the children that are supported by HALO. I recently was able to make the journey to India, Kenya and Uganda to meet our HALO supported youth in these communities.

I realize that it is rare to be involved in so many aspects of an organization or company. To have the opportunity to see first-hand the impact that our supporters and volunteers are having on these highly-deserving youth is remarkable. On a daily basis, I work with volunteers who dedicate time out of their very busy lives, with the goal of improving lives of children across the world and in our own communities. Our volunteers allow us to make the most of the funding that comes to HALO.

After visiting a majority of our HALO supported homes, the impact I witnessed was staggering. It's difficult to imagine these kids at one time living on the street- with no consistent shelter, care or food. School was at one point a distant and impractical goal. To know that because of our volunteers and supporters, these same children now have the opportunities they deserve to have.

With each volunteer, each donor, each person sharing HALO's mission, it is one step closer to giving more kids the opportunities they deserve. In the past 4 years I have been involved with HALO, it has been astounding the growth that we have experienced and continue to experience. I feel very proud to work for an organization that I believe in so strongly."

The stars are bright in the Kenyan sky

The last several days have been spent visiting our 2 HALO supported orphanages in Kenya. I was able to meet up with Rebecca, Josh and Tracie. So happy to see them all. After spending one night in Nairobi- we traveled to Naibor and Timau. There are about 23 boys living in the Timau Home (our first stop.) They were so sweet and very shy at first, but eventually our visit there turned into a dance party and a baseball game. The boys there consider each other brothers. It's very much like a family and there is a lot of care and love between everyone in the home.

Later in the week, we traveled to Naibor, where around 34 beautiful HALO supported boys and girls live. The night we were in Naibor, I looked up at the sky and saw the brightest stars I have ever seen. Before getting ready for bed, I took turns spinning some of the younger kids around while looking up at the stars. It was so wonderful to get to know several of the kids whose faces I've gotten to know over the last few years. Our time there was short but sweet.

Leaving India

In the last two days, I was able to visit some nearby villages where several of the kids at Ashirvad are from. I wanted to find out more about their lives prior to becoming supported by HALO. The first woman I met is actually the mother of twin boys who live at Ashirvad. The boys are 13 years old and have been living at Ashirvad for seven years.

Some of the kids have been orphaned by the death of one or both parents, some of the kids have been orphaned by a parent who has abandoned them. And some of the kids still have living parents who are unable to provide for them. This is the case with the twin boys. Their mother was very friendly to me, even inviting me into her home- a small little hut with a palm-leaf roof. I had to crawl down on my knees to get inside the hut and once inside, she offered me a sprite. Several more people from the village came over, and eventually there were around 10 people packed into her small home. They had a conversation in Telegu, exchanged some live chickens and drank sprite.

It's amazing how attached I've become to the kids here in only 2 short weeks. I am so excited about my upcoming trip to Kenya, but the closer I get to leaving India, the more I find myself wishing I had more time. I find it difficult to express my experiences here through words, usually just summarizing my days in a few short paragraphs that never seem to suffice in expressing the depths of my experiences and relationships that have been formed. I am leaving India barely scratching the surface of a very intricate culture that I would love to explore and learn more about. But my time here is limited and it is time to move on to the next adventure in Kenya. I am so grateful for the time I've spent here and for everyone who has welcomed me with open arms.

Across the Universe

I started a tradition in Nicaragua of bringing along my ukulele to our HALO supported orphanages. It's the perfect size to travel with and the perfect size for little hands to learn to play on. I let every child paint something on the ukulele, and it's slowly become covered by brightly colored little drawings.

Bay of Bengal

Saturday was one of the best days. Not just of my days here in India, but ever.
We got to go to the beach! I’m not sure who was more excited- me or the kids. It’s only about 20 minutes from the orphanage, but the kids only get to go once every few months. Imagine 75 kids all going to the beach at once, it was total chaos and so much fun! We played all day- in the water, made stuff out of sand, ate lunch, played songs, looked for seashells. A few of the boys went fishing and caught their dinner.

Some days are better spent observing the world with your own eyes, rather than through the lens of a camera. So after taking just a few photos, I ditched my camera in my backpack to go play. Everyone was so exhausted at the end of the day but I wish we could go back again.

Full Moon.

Today is a Hindu holiday in which during the full moon, Hindus have a ritual of swimming in the ocean. We got to visit a nearby temple today, where we passed carloads of people- some hanging off the sides of cars or crammed into the backs of trucks to get to the beach. Because of the holiday, there were also several wedding ceremonies going on at the temple. As soon as we passed one, there was another right next to it.

People were worshiping in different ways all around the temple. In one small part, they were worshiping cows that were adorned with bright colors. In another, many of the people had just shaved their heads to offer their hair as a sacrifice. Even the little babies had shaved heads. There was also a big beautiful tree that people were praying around, adorned with flowers, string, and candles. Once a year in the same town, they even have a Hindu snake festival, where a visit to a snake pit is made to give offerings of various things, like milk and eggs.

On our way back, we passed by a smaller Hindu temple. It was so bright and colorful, I wanted to stop and see it closer. No one was visiting this temple, and the people nearby were kind enough to let me come in to see. Everyone in India has been extremely friendly to me. During our drive to the orphanage, we pass through a tiny little village where there are always people sitting and walking close by the road. It is rare that a car is driving through, so every time we drive by, they notice me and peek in through the windows. This happens on a daily basis, and I wasn't sure if they liked a western girl coming through their village everyday. I found out they didn't mind at all, because a few nights ago, when I was at the orphanage, one of the kids came up to me with flowers. It was a gift from the people in the village. They wanted to give me the flowers to put in my hair.

75 Valentines

This Valentine's Day was filled with lots of love.

Before I left for India, our HALO Center co-director, Chelsea, and I did a project with kids in Kansas City as part of our HALO art exchange. The kids painted what love means to them, while also writing about love and their lives in Kansas City. I took the artwork with me to India, where I gave all the paintings and poems to the kids here at Ashirvad. Today we did the same project here in India, and I will bring it back to share with the kids in Kansas City. They were so excited to know that they were getting a piece of artwork that came from the other side of the world.

Some of the poems written by the kids in Kansas City:

"Love is within the heart
Through pain and struggles,
Some days you can't feel love
but love comes from many places
even from a piece of paper from a person in America."
- Jacorey Leek

"I am 14 years old and LOVE all people. Love to me is a bunch of feeling mixed all together. Love is a feeling everyone needs and wants."
-Markisha Webb

"My name is Tenesha. I live in Kansas City. And my picture means peace, love and care. Love comes from the heart."
-Jemesha Webb

"Love is shared and connects hearts from one person to another. It has no color, no boundaries, no taste or smell. But has such a powerful feeling that can be experienced by many miles and miles away, or as close as the person standing next to you!!"
-Colleen Innis. (Caretaker from Front Porch Alliance.)

A very warm welcome to India.

I arrived in India yesterday, after nearly 48 hours of travel from Kansas City, to Atlanta, Dubai, Hyderabad India, Vishakhaptanam India, and another 2 hour drive to Tuni, India- my final destination. It was well worth the wait because I received the warmest welcome I could imagine. The last two days have been well spent, visiting Ashirvad Orphanage and getting to know the kids, teacher, caretakers, and our orphanage director's family. Taking in India for the first time requires both open mind and heart, which I feel like I have both of right now. I am so grateful for the chance to be here and for all the new experiences I'm having. I feel a bit like a child, taking everything in for the first time. All day today was spent at Ashirvad, where the kids had a holiday from school. All kids in India go to school 6 days a week, with only Sunday off. They were especially excited and there was so much energy at Ashirvad there was no time to think about jet lag. At the end of the night, some of the girls made handmade Henna, from ground leaves at the orphanage. I included some photos of them while decorating each others hands. So beautiful. Hopefully tomorrow I will have some more time to write. Right now, I am exhausted and it is bedtime here in Tuni.
Much love.

Why Travel?

I am leaving for a trip to India, Kenya and Uganda in the beginning of February through March. I am so excited about this trip because I have been looking forward to it for years. Since working for HALO, it has been a dream of mine to meet all the children we support. I have been fortunate enough to meet some of the kids that have been supported by HALO in Nicaragua. And if my experience in India, Kenya and Uganda is half as powerful as my experience in Nicaragua, I will be coming back with my heart completely open. I am so looking forward to meeting the kiddos and some of the people I have been working with from afar for the last 3 1/2 years. Not to mention explore 3 countries that have always seemed so intriguing to me.

I found this beautiful excerpt from "A Year in the World" by Frances Mayes that eloquently explains why I love to travel. I couldn't have said it better myself, so I thought I would share it with you:

"Travel pushes my boundaries. When you travel, you become invisible, if you want. I do want. I like to be the observer. What makes people who they are? Could I feel at home here? No one expects you to have the stack of papers back by Tuesday, or to check messages, or to fertilize the geraniums. When traveling, you have the delectable possibility of not understanding a word of what is said to you. Language becomes simply a musical background for watching bicycles zoom alongside a canal, calling for nothing from you. Travel releases spontaneity. You become a godlike creature full of choice, free to visit the stately pleasure domes, making love in the morning, sketch a bell tower. You open, as in childhood, and- for a time- receive the world. There's the visceral aspect, too- the huntress who is free. Free to go, free to return home bringing memories to lay on the hearth."