Pivotal conversations

 In the meantime, I didn’t know how to proceed with my phone calls to the kids and the relationship I built with them over the last six months. I sent an e-mail to the person in Colombia who arranged for them to participate in the summer hosting program in the States. I explained the situation, saying we would send an appeal soon because we felt they made their decision based on a mistranslation. I asked her if I should still stay in contact with the kids.  

“I’m so sorry to hear about this. Since you plan to appeal the decision, I feel it very important, for the kids’ sake, for you to maintain contact with them. I hope everything turns out well for all of you.” She responded quickly with a positive tone in her message.

I didn’t call them at all over the last two weeks, but the kids still heard from me! The summer chaperone returned to Colombia and delivered my letters to them sometime during those two weeks of silence. My letters expressed how much we loved them, missed them, and prayed for them. I tucked a picture of our kitties in Viviana’s letter, and I sent Juan David a picture of David. I’d never sent them anything before due to the cost. By the time I finally called again, they both seemed ecstatic to hear my voice and thanked me repeatedly for sending them letters.

Wow. My heart melted. I didn’t explain why I hadn’t called for a while, obviously, and I realized through our conversations they didn’t know anything had happened. Viviana kept me on the phone for at least forty minutes, not accepting a single excuse for needing to let her go earlier. I heard live music in the background. I recognized it as a Christian song I learned either in Argentina or in one of the many Spanish churches I’d attended over the years, but I couldn’t place it. “It’s a song about God, like you told me!”

Wow, again. My letter expressed how much God loved her and how much I prayed for her, and now I saw the impression my words made on her heart. The person in the background began praying, and she joined in at certain points in the prayer. I considered this one of the most special phone calls I’d ever made to that little girl. God let me know He held her and took care of her for me.

I called Juan David that evening, too, and he suddenly wanted my e-mail address and gave me his. Apparently his house parent bought a computer, meaning we might have a chance to finally communicate via e-mail, as well.

It took forever for us to exchange e-mail addresses that night. We kept mistaking almost every other letter, but eventually we got them straight. Not only had I not lost contact with the kids yet, but now I might have even more chances to communicate with Juan David. Yes, God still worked. He hadn’t finished our story yet. I could not even imagine how God planned to use our e-mail address exchange that night.