It was a busy day today that started at 4:45am. Four of the children (all siblings) had a court hearing today and we all had to be ready and out the door by 5:45 the latest. There was so much traffic that we got to the city at 8:30am (it's normally a 45 minute drive or less without traffic). The children were able to see their mom (who just got out of prison), their grandmother and an aunt. It was so special to see their interaction when they saw each other. The mother did mention that she would not be able to provide for her children the way the hogar has provided and will not be asking for them to be returned, but would like to visit them this Sunday. We went to McDonald's to give them a little treat. Lilly seems to do this when any child has a court hearing. We made it back home by 1 after making a little detour.
The rest of the day was filled with a lot of teaching, correcting and disbursing of donated clothe. The teens were encouraged to be a lot more respectful towards the workers and to be cleaner. A few days ago after talking to some of the teens and them wanting a devotional I thought of something to do with them. "Encourage" kept coming to mind.
This evening we read a few scriptures on love (John 13:34-35) and encouragement (Hebrews 3:13). Their names were placed on pieces of paper and they were asked to pick a paper. They made a card for the person they got. They shared something that they liked or appreciated of that person. It was so nice to see them interact and laugh at some of the funny things they were saying. I asked what they thought about what the director said regarding respecting each other. Lidia responded that if one wants to be respected then they should show respect. This girl is super mature for her age.
