I can't get these beautiful young people out of my mind..

...and I don't want to! Look at them! I mean, really try to see them- they are so incredible. These beautiful children are our young friends in Lalibela. I miss them. I miss them every day. I yearn for the fulfillment of their dreams; for food on their tables, for daily schooling, for work for their parents, for their health, for warm beds and fresh water. What I know is that each and every one of these things for which I yearn are a daily struggle for each of them, a possibility but not a certainty. What more can I do? How can I help? The tiny one is 8 but is the size of a 4 year old. He brings lunch for his working father every day - a 3K walk in each direction.The big boys told me, "he is a very good boy - he works very hard, but he doesn't have enough to eat and he is so small." The young girl's father has died this past month and he was the sole family provider. She tells me in an e-mail, "He was a strong father and always wanted better for us." The brothers were sent to an orphanage when their mother didn't have enough to feed them, and are now out on their own with only shoes to shine. It is their room which is shown here (they are the 2 leaning on each other): I have sent them a small stipend to sustain their lives - oh but it isn't enough for them for more than 6 months- they don't have a bed - the blankets they have now are the 2 travel blankets we had in our backpacks. I blogged earlier about Richard (far left), who is in Addis, the beneficiary of our sponsorship for schooling. They struggle to survive. Richard can't continue his studies unless we continue our sponsorship (and it isn't a small sum). What more can I do? And finally, see these 2 mothers with their children. My heart aches. Some days I just can't enjoy the bounty of my life because of the injustice of what I have seen. What more can I do? If you are going to Lalibela, if you are going to Addis, if you have a thought about what more I can do, please share it with me. Really. How do I make a difference?