What about our kids?

We can be in our car for up to 3 hours on the days when we go to the Drop in Centre. That means making our sandwiches and getting our lunch ready and travelling over an hour to the Centre and then back for dinner. There is an office where the kids can have some time out from the street kids, to write, read, draw or eat.

But Agnew kids don't sit for long, so here are some of the kinds of things they love to get involved in.

Tabitha and Oscar love to wait on tables when it comes to meal times. Here is the service hatch from the kitchen and on the right in the photo is the Drop in Centre cook, Rosa, who has a lot of work to do preparing 2 meals for up to 25 people at a time. When the street kids have had their first serving, if they are still hungry, they can line up for more food. Zara loves to help in this way. It may mean filling up plates, or giving more tortillas, or pouring more juice/coffee/other Mexican hot drinks.

Eating is very important in the Drop in Centre of course, and it must always happen after a time to pray and thank God for the food, remembering other street kids who may be in trouble, without food, in prison or in hospital. It's also a time for the usual games of making sure that everyone gets their fair share.

Another thing that is very important in the Drop in Centre is play/game time. 'Uno' is a great game which produces lots of laughter when someone has to pick up cards, and here you can see Tabitha remembering her numbers and colours in Spanish. We'll need to buy new packs of these cards for the Drop in Centre soon, as they have been so well used that you can hardly shuffle them anymore.

Another terrific game that they love to play was made by a team from America who came down. Starting with 6 pool balls each, you set them up as you like at your end, then take turns to throw the 'white' down the channel to try to knock your opponent's pool balls into their trough before they can get rid of  all of yours. If it is a draw, you then start with 5 etc. etc. until there is a winner. It's a great game for some kids who's motor skills have been impaired by solvent abuse.

There can be a lot of banter during these games which of course goes over Tabitha, Oscar and Zara's heads, but the street kids who use the centre love to include our kids, and try their own English words out, and with Mum and Dad in sight, they feel involved, useful and safe in the Drop in Centre.

We are so proud of these 3. Even for Carol and I it can be daunting when you are in another culture very different from your own, so please keep Tabitha, Oscar and Zara in your prayers too. From the travel, to the food, to the language, this is quite the experience for them, and not an easy one.

Thanks again for following our escapades, and more at the weekend. God bless you.