Stories from Honduras - Part 2

(Part 1 can be found here: http://cyndidee.blogspot.com)

In Part 1 I mentioned a game we played with some kids. I forgot I have it on video! Here it is...

I want to tell you about Bayron. When I was balloon twisting Bayron came up to the table and watched me make a dog and then a sword. He told me (through the translator helping me) that he knew how to make a sword. So I blew up a balloon and handed it to him and he made a sword.

Bayron with the balloon dog I showed him how to make.

I asked him if he wanted me to show him and another boy how to make balloon dogs. So I handed both of them balloons and walked them through making balloon dogs. And then they gave the dogs they made to the children standing around watching.

The boy in the middle is the other one who made a balloon dog.

Then Bayron told me he knew how to make a different type of dog. I asked him where he learned how to make his dog and he said he watched a man on TV. He did a great job making his dog, even down to measuring all the parts of the dog so it would come out even. I heard someone say "he's going to be a clown when he grows up." I corrected her and said "no, he's going to be an engineer."

Bayron helped me make more swords and balloon dogs. He always waited for me to blow up a balloon and hand it to him. He also helped the children decide what balloons they wanted. I was really impressed by Bayron. By how quickly he picked up ballooning, how he calculated the parts of the dog so they'd come out even, and how polite and helpful he was.

When I saw him later, I found a translator to help me to tell him something. I wanted to tell him that I was going to try to find his sponsor and tell him what a great kid he is. And tell him about how much he helped me and how smart he is. And then I told Bayron that his sponsor would be so proud of him. He gave me a hug and thanked me. He was definitely excited.

Bayron with some friends. He's giving me a peace sign. :)
(Click on the picture to see it larger.)

Only 1% of sponsors visit their children. My girl, Ana, is one of the special few who get to meet their sponsor. Bayron may never meet his sponsor, but Bayron got to meet me. For all those children who don't get to meet their sponsors, I want to be a surrogate sponsor. I wish I could contact all the sponsors of the kids I met and tell them how amazing their kids are. And I hope every child I met knows how amazing we think they are.

One of the things I told Ana before we had to say goodbye was that I love her, I care about her, and she's important to me. And that I believe in her and that I want her to dream big. I wanted to tell her so much more, but in that moment, that's what was in my mind. I hope my words sink in, I hope she believes them. I hope they have an impact on her life. I hope other sponsors can tell their sponsor children the same thing, whether in person or through a letter.

When I left HO-329 I wasn't sure I would ever see Bayron again. He touched my life and I won't soon forget him. I'm going to try to write to him, but it's a little more difficult since he's not my sponsor child. However, something amazing happened after I got back home from my trip. Jason has decided to sponsor a boy in Honduras. He's chosen a boy in the same project as Bayron. Which means that when we go to visit our sponsor kids next summer, I will hopefully see Bayron again. And this time I'm bringing balloons and a pump for him.

Here's the video of Bayron and his balloon dog. (If you've made balloon dogs, you'll notice his is different.)