Real Life.

Well, I have been spending my days at a wonderful program call Youthlinc where I have been an intern. They are the ones sending me to Thailand in just a few short weeks :). Anyway! With my time there I have been working with a pretty fah-reaking amazing girl named Elham Nazzal...aka Ellie. She introduced me to the best thing in the whole world, her program "Real Life" which is to help refugee children. Not only do they teach them the every day skills necessary to be introduced into our society, but she also helps the children have a good time by learning things they have never done...like swimming! Today I got to help take all of these beautiful children swimming. My only regret is that I didn't meet them sooner because I fell in love with them today just in time to leave for the mission. They are from countries all over...Somalia, KENYA :), THAILAND :), Cambodia, India...all over. Not exactly sure what a refugee is? Definition HERE.

Anyway, Ellie was telling me how cute it was because a lot of the little girls didn't have swimsuits and it was so funny trying to help the figure out how to even put one on! They didn't realize where the straps went and where each leg went. It took a lot of coaxing too for them coming out of the dressing room to even go swimming in a swim suit. (They left their little bras and underwear on! So funny)

While we swam and played they told me of how hard life was in the refugee camps from where they came from and how wonderful America is."America is so easy!" they said....and it's true in a lot of ways. Broke my heart to think of all they have had to see and  deal with at such a young age. From traveling the world you realize most of the world really lives like that....having to deal with so much terror at such a young age. I am glad they are here now and enjoying themselves, free from those terrible camps.

This is a great program to get involved in. The Catholic Community Services does a lot with refugees if you would like to get involved and find ways of volunteering to help these amazing people transfer into our culture and way of life a little easier.

Here are some cute pictures of the day.
HOWEVER, I have to apologize, they are kind of grainy because I couldn't find the right setting, and well, I am not the most attractive wet...so bare with me here.

The cute Thai/Burmese girls I played with most of the time:

This picture says it all about the boys....hahah they learned how to splash really quick!

They also learned that splashing girls=girls screaming.

The cute group!

I want to munch on their cute faces!

My BFFs:

Love these kind of programs.

Props to Ellie.

More later.