Painting Love....

I've been thinking alot recently about the kids i met when i went to Albania, about 7 years ago. They were truly inspiring and amazing children - they had known so much hardship, yet still had such beautiful, joyful spirits. They were from very poor regions and most of them had to work so hard everyday just to survive. They came to the Summer camp with literally nothing and had never even seen a toothbrush before. I've never seen kids so overwhelmed with excitement and joy as they were when they were simply given a t-shirt. You can see the look of true appreciation in the girl's face below. I know the photos aren't very good quality, they were taken on a real basic film camera and then i scanned them in.

I was thinking again today about the above photo - the kids asked me to paint hearts on their arms, even the boys wanted hearts - but what they didn't realise was that they were the ones who were painting love on my heart. Children do that in a unique way. Recently i had the honour of being in the company of a sweet child, during a week which i was finding particularly difficult (i might even go as far as to say it was a horrific week). Anyway, it was exactly what i needed and i realised again just how much the presence of a child can help you get things in perspective and appreciate simplicity..... 

The other thing i truly loved about those kids was their ability to play for literally hours on end, in the simplest ways. They never got bored or demanded material things. They were used to nothing and working and being beaten, so to have hours to play meant so much to them. It made me actually feel strangely broken for rich kids, who get so bored so easily and require so much stimulation, like playstations and computers. It made me realise that in their poverty, these kids were richer than most wealthy children i knew. And consequently i felt heart-broken for the wealthy kids as well. I'm not really sure why i'm even writing this post, except to say that i have a lot to learn from children - especially poor ones. I must admit that i was so broken for them too though - after the camp they would have to return to harsh environments and a far too grown-up existance and who knows what's become of them now.......