Experiences: Pag-Amoma

Sandra Roelof from the Netherlands spent 3 months in the Philippines at the start of 2010. She writes of her time at Pag-Amoma below:

All my life I had a dream. That dream came true in December 2009. I went to the Philippines for 3 months. I lived with Lisa and the kids from December 2009 until february 2010 and it has changed my life forever.

The evening I arrived the children welcomed me singing a beautiful song "Our life is in Your hands". The tears gathered in my eyes, here was my dream becoming reality; being and working with the children of this world who are less fortunate than we are in the western world.

Every day I woke up with the voices of the little kids walking around and preparing to go to school. Some of the children became close to me from the moment we first met and others took their time, but ended up being as close to me as my own kids. I spent a lot of time playing, reading, caring for and making fun with the children, because I lived with them in the orphanage, so I was there almost every moment of the day.

 I also started swimminglessons in a resort near the orphanage.  I bought all the kids their own brand new swimsuit and some professional materials to use during the lessons. We went swimming every week, they loved it (me too ;-) and some of them became very good swimmers!

I also used the daily moments to educate the children, for example taking them with me to the supermarket to do some shopping and, for example, letting them pay for it themselves. And of course buying a big ice cream afterwards!

We went to Malagos, a big eagle park with a birdshow, playing ground and swimming pool. The children could play around all day, and I loved seeing them enjoying themselves so much. On the way back they fell asleep in the tricycle.

One day I organised a big party together with the orphanage Field of Dreams (5 kms down the road from Pag-Amoma) so the children of both orphanages could meet, play and dance all evening. There are some very good dancers among them! And all of them know how to sing and dance. That's because Lisa teaches them every day. They sound like the voices of little angels. 

The thing that impressed me the most is the strength, love and happiness of those children. Despite them having almost nothing -  they have to live without their parents and life was not always gentle to them, they smile every day, are able to love, to be kind and polite, almost never cry, and keep on going in this crazy life. I wish I could have taken them all home with me!
 
Sandra, The Netherlands