Letters from my Other Children

For more than 25 years i have been sponsoring children thru the organization called Christian Children's Fund. It started out with one little girl named Prameela in India, and has come all the way to the present day, where i currently sponsor four children. Km Neeta and Nirupam live in India, Nisansala is from Sri Lanka, and my newest child, and the youngest of them all, Imelda lives in Mexico. With one exception, i have always sponsored little girls mostly from third world countries. (My little boy, Louis Buck Elk, is a Native American from South Dakota, and i imagine he has grown into a wonderful young man by now. ) I have always been drawn to India, and have always felt sad about the mindset of some people in very poor countries and how they view girl children. I have read and have been told-"A son is a blessing to the family and a girl is a burden." So this is my attempt to try to lend a helping hand and make a bit of a difference in those little girl's lives. Anyway, after spending the day with my daughters and granddaughter, I came home to 2 new letters from India. I thought you might like to see what these sponsorship letters are like. First you get a letter, hand written by the child or a spokesperson for that child in their own language. Sometimes it is a parent(if they can write) and sometimes it is a field worker or a sibling writing in behalf of the child. Then you get the translated letter to read. Sometimes the child will include a drawing as a little gift. I love it when i get a drawing!

Here is my favorite drawing of all from Nisansala in Sri Lanka

The first letter i read today was Km Neeta's letter. Here is the original letter handwritten in her language:
and here is the translation: (I had to retype this as i could not get it to scan big enough to read..It is typed exactly as it is written.)

Dear Ms. Robinson,

Greetings,

I am quite fine here with my family members and pray to God for your happy and peaceful life. I am very glad to receive your nice 1 card/note and stickers. My Family members and i hearty convey you thanks for your nice card/note and stickers. I liked your nice card and stickers very much. It is not talk about Valentine Day in my village.

The Summer has set in here. Some times it does fall rain, with fast wind here and temperature becomes very below. Farmers are reaping and thrashing their crops. It is not sown any seeds during the summer. Several people of my village go to do work of wage in stone mine and digging community pool.

I go to school every day. Now my school runs 7 AM to 12 PM during these days. My annual examination will convene in May.

My family members and i once again convey you thanks and wish for your happy, healthy and peaceful life. Your sponsored child, Km Neeta

This is Km Neeta and her Parents in front of their home. As i receive more photos and letters i will share them with you in hopes that maybe someday, someone else's heart will open up to a child who needs a little help, somewhere else in the world.