All semester Allison and I have walked these three little girls to the care point that is close to the school where we are teaching.  The girls meet us in the market in the mornings and we walk them to and from school, because they have to cross a main road.  The girls are no more than four years old.  Their names are Phephile, Ncomkhosi, and Lafulani.  On Friday I brought some candy hearts to my students as a treat because they were taking my English test.  I had received a package from my parents on Thursday (2 months after it was sent) and decided to give some of it away.  When we started walking the little girls home, they were in such a good mood that I wanted to give them some sweets left over from the school.  I knelt down to get some out of my bookbag and then placed one in each of their hands. You would have thought I had given them money!  The girls took the candy in their hands and then wrapped their arms around my neck and said, "Ngiyabonga Thembi!"  Ngiyabonga means "Thank you" and Thembi is my Siswati name.  It was so sweet and so innocent and it made me realize how so little to these girls means so much.  It reminded me of the joy of giving instead of receiving.  It reminded me of the faith and life that God calls us to...one that is pure and simple.  A life of gratitude towards God for all that He has done.  The Father delights in seeing joy in His children when they embrace Him and His creation with outstretched arms and we cry, "Thank You God!"  I am praying for God to allow me to slow down and to see Him in the little things, like the simple joy of a child receiving candy.  Sean McConnell has a song that says, "Every morning sunrise says I'm madly in love with you."  God has created a majestic world with beauty to discover everyday if we are willing to stop and look around.  He is in everything and in everyone if we allow ourselves to see the world through His eyes.  I would have never imagined to learn this from three little girls in Swaziland on a Friday afternoon!

The three little girls closest to me are the ones that we walk to and from the care point.