Dia de Visitas

Last Sunday was my first “Dia de Visitas” here at the home. Once every 3 months we have a day where visitors are free to come and roam about – whether they are padrinos (Godparents) from Guatemala or elsewhere, family members or friends. For those kids who have visitor’s (and know it) the weeks leading up to visitor’s day are full of anticipation. For those kids who don’t have family or aren’t expecting them to visit, the days and weeks prior can suck. A lot.

On the day of, it is the volunteer’s job (and other various jobs like teachers) to make sure the kids who don’t receive visitors are entertained…aka we watch movies all day (…3 Men and a Baby, 13 Going on 30, and She’s the Man – QUALITY choices!) All of the kids from each of the 3 different houses (girls, boys, and bebes) are put together in 3 separate rooms to await their visitors. As their guests arrive, kids’ names are called and they race up the stairs while the rest of the kids hang out and watch movies. Fortunately, a lot of our kids DO receive visitors (out of a house of around 80 girls, there were only around 20 left), however, it doesn’t make it any easier to watch the kids who know no one is coming for them. Overall visitor’s day seems like a big mix of emotions and is emotionally draining, but it’s nice to know at least as volunteers we can be there to spend some time with the kids and be their visitors for the day.