My Little Girl Has a Dream....

      It all started last December...
   As we drove up a dust covered road in Baja towards Hogar para Los Ninos Ravenna wiggled in her seat. Doug and I deabted about our destination, should we even go in? They were not expecting us. Who were we, some strange American family trying to follow where God was leading us, going to an address, to some sort of orphanage that a friend had emailed us about. Surely they would think we were crazy if we tried to explain. As the debate went in circles and my stomach flipped and flopped, we reached the entrance. From the back seat we kept hearing, "Let me out! Let me out!" and out Ravenna jumped as soon as the car stopped. I am not sure if we would have left the car if not to chase after our eager little girl. I followed her to the office figuring that she had to go to the bathroom or had seen a playground or something....but what she did, what she did all on her own was this:
    She reached her little hands up to the counter that was just above her sweet dark head and pulled with all her might. As her sparkling bright eyes peeked up over the counter she cheerily chimed, "Jesus told us to come and serve the kids!"
     From that moment on, the place has taken ahold of our hearts...and none more deeply than little Miss Ravenna. For most of this year she has thought of time as before and until we get to go back to the orphanage. We will be serving there for the week before Christmas this year, mainly because God used Ravenna to get us out of the car and talking with those who worked there. Many conversations with Ravenna have gone like this, "Mama, when will it be my birthday?", "In March honey...", " and then Mama we will go back to the orphanage right?". Or, "It is Fall now Mama....not long until we get to go back to the orphanage!"
    As these conversations have developed, a dream has appeared. Ravenna has wanted to do something to brighten the lives of these kids that she met so briefly. For months when I have asked her how she would like to help her answer has been, "I want to throw a party for the kids! A paper airplane party!" I have found papaer airplanes tucked under her pillow, stuffed into the pockets of our car, in her school backpack. When she has downtime, she is folding airplanes for these kids.
    Recently she said she wanted to ask me something. She looked at me with her bright brown eyes and said, "Mama, these kids need fun but what about food for them? What about medicine? Who is bringing these things to them?" She wanted to know how she could pay for food and medicine. She has emptied her own piggy bank and would bring the scraps from her lunch if we let her...but instead, we are partnering with her, helping her to get the words out because God is stirring something in her beautiful heart.
    I cannot wait for this adventure! I am beyond humbled that I get to follow my daughter and her compassionate heart as she steps out to do what God has placed in her heart to do!
    Would you take a minute and visit her blog? She has had creative license over all of it and is very, very proud. (If anyone knows how to make a button I would love to do one, I tried but couldn't get it to work).

   Go and take a look and if you would, leave her a comment. I am helping her to read them all!

Paper Planes for Little Peeps