Her name translates to “Doll”, and it fits her well. We started sponsoring Remya when she was 6 years old for our daughter Julia, because they were the same age and we wanted Julia to have a sponsored child. Julia actually asked to sponsor Remya when she heard a Compassion presentation at our church. How could we say no. After today, I believe this was a divine selection and God intended these two girls to have a relationship.
Let me tell you Julia, she is freakishly like you. She is beautiful, smart, funny and outgoing, bold as can be, affectionate to melt your heart, ministry minded (she teaches second grade Sunday School), she does the laundry for her family, her mom is in ministry and did I say she is amazing to be with. She is funny, silly, joyful, sweet and most of all, she loves you Julia. She kept saying it over and over. She would say:
I love You Auntie
I love Julia
I love Grace
I love Isabel
I love Uncle Stephen
Then…. she would giggle.
When I gave her the photo book she knew each of us by name. She even knew the dog and cat.
Here is how the day went:
She showed up with her mom and project worker at the hotel. The second I saw her, she smiled, jumped up and hugged me. I cried like a baby. I felt a little embarrassed by my display of emotion, but I just couldn’t help it after this week.
We decided to call Julia.
As we walked to the science museum across the street, Pushpom (the mother) and Remya held my hands. Remya then told me that my family bought her the beautiful dress she was wearing. She said, “thank you for my pretty dress”, then smiled at me with all the charm in the world. I cried again…..
She proceeded to show me her watch and said we bought it for her. She said thank you. She was very proud.
We had a lot of fun at the museum. Oh my goodness, the kid was like a squirrel in a tree. She wanted every experience. We played with every gadget, and went through every maze, did the planetarium (Everest movie), went to a scary 3-D show. Remya was giddy.
At the museum, the project worker let Pushpom (the mom) call her husband and she giggled as she spoke to him about me. She handed the phone to me and I said hello to Remya’s dad. He was so sweet with broken English and said, thank you thank you thank you.
After the museum, we got in a 3rd world gondola that took us across the park to a bus. She loved every minute of the experience, and was so excited about the gondola ride. That kept my mind off the idea of dying from a 3rd world gondola with my sponsored child.
Oh, she gave me lots of hugs and kisses.
She charmed the group by her beauty and her boldness. She kept saying……”Keely, Keely take photo of us”. I think Keely got about 500 photos.
At lunch we talked some more. She knows some English, and her translator knew some English, so I was able to learn some great things about her. Then she whipped out every letter that was sent to her from Julia (and me), since she was six years old. She had the original letter telling her that we were her sponsors. Kill me hard….. I cried again.
“ Auntie, do you like ice cream?’
“Yes, I love ice cream.”
“Does it taste good?”
Today, Remya had ice cream for the first time.
After our day, we came back to the hotel, I gave her the rest of the gifts, we prayed, and said goodbye. She held on to me until the very end.
I said goodbye and blubbered a little while, pulled it together, ran into the other blubbering bloggers, blubbered some more, then wrote this post and blubbered some more. Ok…my eyes are burning red, swollen, and puffy for our dinner with the Leadership kids tonight. I guess that is just how it is.
I try not to play favorites when it comes to sponsored children but dog gone it, she was just too much. Personality galore. Love and kisses and full of Jesus.
By the way, Keely completely helped me put this post together. She has met 3 of my sponsored children now, so she is feeling like family. She also is an amazing photographer. Thanks for helping me out today and allowing me to feel the day and not worry about pictures.
Speechless with tears rolling down my cheeks. I feel like I was there. I can’t wait for Julia to get home so she can read this. I LOVE YOU.
Amazing post, Patricia! Thanks for being such a HUGE part of this week. Shaun and the other bloggers have let me know how important you have been to the success of this week. THANKS!
Brian
A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I love it that Remya is so much like Julia. When I first pulled up the blog, my first thought was how much they look alike….then, to hear how they are like sisters by their similarities in personalities, etc. It’s a faith builder for me…just seeing how personal and detailed God is…to connect up two little girls completely across the world like that. Thanks for sharing, Patricia!!!
WOW…that’s all I can say…wow!! I can’t wait to see all your pictures and hear all the stories. Thanks for sharing!
Wow, what an awesome experience! Thanks so much for sharing it. It makes me want to visit my sponsored children even more.
Thank you again for the opportunity. It was a fantastic trip. I made it home safely and I am trying to stay awake!
Wow Patricia. That is amazing. And… how fortunate that you had your moments with Remya captured with *such* lovely photos!
Overall, your blog brought back a lot of memories from our trip to India in July and served to remind me that we have so much love to give. Thank you for sharing… I am so happy to know you
That was an AMAZING post… I’d love to meet my compassion kids someday!!
Thanks for sharing your experience. You have all challenged me through your posts & this one was no exception…
I am bawling and I don’t even know you! Amen and praise you, Jesus, for saving these precious kids. . .
You don’t know me. I don’t know you. I’m just one of the many who have been following this trip through the blogs.
I’ve teared up several times this week, reading the stories and looking at the pictures.
But this one … this one made me cry. Thank you so much for going on this trip and blogging for us all and teaching us … so much.
Cried all over again.
Already miss you!
This was such a great, motivating blog! <3 My sister and I are brand new sponsors to a beautiful little girl in India named Anjali, and I would love nothing more than for us to be her sponsors until she is a joyful young woman like Remya. Thank you for sharing!
Amazing how words and pictures can break my heart into pieces. Oh, I hope to one day meet the girls we sponsor!
J.
Thank you so much for your sweet comments. I am so glad that you followed along!
Blessings,
Patricia
Lorina,
You blessed the socks off me! I am so happy you are sponsoring these children. I know that God will bless you through Anjali. Thank you Thank you Thank you!
Patricia
Jesica,
Thank you for following along our journey. It has meant so much to us to have all the support as well as the opportunity to tell the stories. Comments like yours makes me happy to know that this trip was not in vein.
In Him,
Patricia
You don’t know me, but I feel a tiny bit like I know you. I’ve been following this trip via Melissa and the Living Proof blog. Every day I’ve cried a bit. I sponsor a World Vision child in Lesotho, Africa. I doubt that I’ll ever make it there to see her, but believe me, if I ever get the opportunity, I’ll jump on it! Thanks for sharing. Thanks for the amazing pictures. My heart is very touched today.
What a beautiful story…you inspire me.
Thank you so much for this post….I am sitting here with tears streaming down my face. I found your blog through the Living Proof blog. The pictures and stories from all of you help us feel like we were a part. We will continue praying for the children of India. I’m going to go write out a check for the child I sponsor through World Help right now. Thanks again!
wow. speechless. tearful. and totally moved to action. i am going to talk with my husband tonight about giving up something of comfort so that we can sponsor children. we have so much and yet always think we need more. how humbling your experience (and those of the other bloggers) has been to me. what an incredible opportunity to show Jesus to them (the Compassion children and families) as well as to my own kids. thank you. from the bottom of my heart, thank you.
Followed the link from Melissa’s blog here and SO glad I did. I’m awash in tears (like every other mother reading) and so blessed by your words and Keely’s beautiful pictures. I was inspired to sponsor a child last week while following the Compassion bloggers and I’m so thrilled to hear about the difference Jesus (and $32 a month) can make in the lives of these beautiful children! God bless you!
Emily,
Thanks for following along. BTW, Melissa from LPM is the real deal. She is amazing so I am glad you were able to connect with the trip. Keep that sponsorship and know you are making a difference.
Blessings,
Patricia
Janet,
Thanks for following along and praying for these kids!
Patricia
gin,
I am thankful that you have been stirred to do something. It means a lot to me that others have been moved by our journey so thank you for following along.
Patricia
Leslie,
Woohoo, thanks for sponsoring a child!!!!! I am blessed today to hear this.
Patricia
Tears. So beautiful.
Praying that God would show us how to cut back so we can sponser…
Blessings,
stephanie
Dear Patricia,
Thank you. I am an advocate (fairly new) in Alabama. I am heading to Guatemala next month on the advocates tour. I will get to meet my sponsored child while there. I must say that as I read your post, I was dreaming of meeting “Velveth” and what God would allow that to look like. I also dreamed of my own life as I realized that your daughter was the one who has actually been writing to Remya. My 14 year old daughter just picked up one of my child packets the other day and demanded that “Joyce” from Uganda belongs to her! As a matter of fact, she is babysitting down the street right now, making money to pay for her first month’s sponsorship.
I have so many emotions running through my heart and my head after keeping up all of the team’s posts this week…still trying to process them as I can imagine you are…times a million! However, I felt like I needed to write and let you know how much I, as an advocate with Compassion, appreciate your posts. I have used these posts several times over the past week to share Compassion with people! It is a new tool in the arsenal that is proving to be quiet effective. Thank you doesn’t seem like enough.
I pray that God continues to bless you and your family and all that you do in His name.
Sincerely,
Debbi
Hi Debbie,
I am so happy for you that you get to go to Guatemala. I love Guatemala, it was one of my favovite trips I have been on!! I bet you are getting very excited and I will pray your trip is powerful. You will have so many stories. Thank you for being an Advocate too. It is so important to Compassion to have people like you give of their time and talents to speak on behalf of those who can’t speak for themselves. You have encouraged me greatly. If Brad or Joanne are on your trip, please say hello for me. I was just with them in Africa not to long ago. Again, enjoy your trip!!!!
Blessings,
Patricia
Blessings,
Patricia
HI OCEAN MOMMY (Stephenie),
I will pray for you as well. Ok and myself on this matter. Even with the trip I don’t have the answers figured out. How to cut, what to cut and whats ok. 15 years with Compassion I still wrestle with these questions.
Blessings right back to ya,
Patricia
just catching up on some posts, and reading to heather as she sits and knits and cries. Thanks for sharing your experience so eloquently, and for giving up the time with your fam to make the trip happen!
She is a beautiful, gorgeous child. Thanks for sharing your experience. We sponser a child in India as well, and I worry about her often. It’s a blessing to see how Compassion is changing their lives!
I now need to meet my little Nester from Tanzania. I’m a mess. Thank you!
Sarah,
I hope you can meet Nester too. Its worth saving for let me tell you!!!
Patricia
Hello! .. I am happy to read this testimony! Thank you to share your heart with one of our child!!!
What a beautiful post, it made me cry, stirring a deep longing in my heart. I want to sponsor more children. I recently read Wess Stafford’s new book, Just a Minute,(www.justaminute.com) which inspired me to learn more about Compassion, and to think about what I could do to make a difference for children–especially little girls. Your blog is beautiful, it reflects the beauty of Jesus in so many ways.