Friday photo - my Indian sponsor child

Today I’m joining in with the Friday photo over at Delicious Baby to bring you a picture with a story behind it.

I’ve also picked up on the theme of Blog Action Day which this year was on the theme of poverty. I believe that our individual actions can make a tremendous differerence to families across the world and have a ripple effect in inspiring others to do the same. What goes around, comes around as they say and sometimes the difference it makes can be to you too.

This is how I began sponsoring a child in India. An Indian priest, Father Pratap Reddy, visited my church some years ago and made an appeal for people to sponsor the education of children in his parish. We had been blessed with three children and wanted to spread our happiness around a little. We offered to become sponsors and over the years we received pictures and news of Thirumula Sagar and saw him growing up just as our children were too.

Then a couple of years ago I went to India to visit Fr Pratap in his rural village parish and met my sponsor child for the first time. Thirumula Sagar had travelled with his parents and some other families overnight to meet me from their village near Kurnool. We met in the lobby of our modest hotel where they adorned us with flower garlands and we sat around drinking coca cola.

There was the language barrier but we exchanged smiles, photographs and small gifts. As they were leaving his parents fell to their knees in front of me and touched my feet as a sign of gratitude. I felt so moved to realise that for the small price of a meal out each month, I had made such a difference to them by supporting their boy through his education. Believe me, at that moment, my happiness and satisfaction that I could make a difference far outweighed the help I had given them. It was worth every penny.

As they left for the bus station for another long bus journey home, their smiles said it all. But the biggest smile was mine.

You can see all the other Friday Photos at Delicious Baby here and read Debbie’s round up of what other travel bloggers wrote for Blog Action Day here.

Related posts
An old man’s funeral in India

Back to Home