The Monsons: Bauro, Brazil -Part One

Our friends Sylvio and Norma Guimaraes, mentioned several weeks ago that they wanted help with a service project in Bauro, Brazil. They had recently returned from a visit to one of the Wards in Bauro and they witnessed so much need. One of the young men receiving the Aaronic Priesthood was barefoot and in shorts and a tank top for the blessing. Sylvio asked if we could gather clothing and deliver bags to children in this ward. Fortunately here in Sao Paulo, there is an amazing community at the kids' schools and I sent out messages asking women if they would like to donate clothing and we received such a positive response.

The bishop in the ward, gave us the names of about 10 children that were specifically in need of clothes and shoes and Norma and I sorted the clothes into bags and made name tags for each child. We were able to make a bag for each child except for Dabu, the only Aaronic priesthood holder in the ward. This meant a quick trip to the mall the night before were supposed to travel to Bauro (about 3 hours from Sao Paulo). We got him a pair of church shoes, church pants, two church shirts, one pair of jeans, two t shirts and these boots. Something told me this 12 year old boy would love to have these boots so I purchased them as an extra surprise.

The minute we arrived 10 children ran up to our cars with so much enthusiasm and love. The family had eagerly been awaiting our visit and it was so neat to see my kids introducing themselves in Portuguese to them, and witness the true excitement the children of this family felt to receive clothes and meet foreigners.

We took the bags inside the house to sort through everything and give each child their bag. My first impression is the wave of humility that you feel when observing a home and circumstances so humble. The house is tiny- not even sufficiently big enough to hold enough beds for the 9 members of the family sleeping there. If I had to guess, I would say it was in the high 90's that day and there is no air conditioning or cooling mechanism-the sweltering indoors is not a comfortable way to live. The thought crossed my mind several times that Americans are so spoiled! After living in the Detroit area for two years, I thought I had witnessed poverty that doesn't get much worse, but the places I have seen in Brazil have made Detroiters look like kings. The United States is a country where even the poor live well.

Thais instantly bonded to the girls there. They were fascinated by her speaking English and even started recording her say things like, " Hi, my name is Thais and I am from the United States!" The happiness of this family was infectious and we loved hugging them and getting to know them.

This dress that we gave them was special because it was a dress Thais had received from her cousin, Rylynn. We told Rylynn we wish she could have seen their eyes when they saw the dress. It's neat to think of a dress you loved being worn by a darling girl all they way in Brazil.

Here is the entire group in front of their home! It was such a memorable visit with this family and it made my heart swell to hear my Skyler Boy tell us in the car that he loved visiting with the family, playing with the kids and that it made him feel grateful for the things that we have. I pray that my children never forget these experiences-they can be life changing and soul shaping. I want gratitude to be a huge part of our characters.

Our next visit was pretty humbling. We drove into a community of "houses" that made the first place look large in comparison. Most dwellings were just thrown together with pieces of scrap metal and barely worthy of being called a house. This little girl named Julien, was covered from head to toe in chicken pox. I remember having chicken pox as a child but felt I felt sad that Julien's situation was so much harder. She smiled for us all despite feeling miserable and living in the sweltering heat in a place barely able to hold their one bed. Her mother sat and rubbed an ointment all over her face to try and relieve the itching.

This is Julien's new baby sister. I smiled at her and looked at her deep brown eyes and wondered if she would every be able to leave this situation. What are her chances for education and rising above the circumstances she was born into? It's hard to see. You want to give these children so much more.