Sweet Lu*

I picked up something in Mexico - not from the food or the water (gloria a Dios!).
My voice is quite froggy and apparently quite comical, according to the few I've ventured out to see today. I'm coughing up some nasty stuff and I've been in bed most of the day.

I think I got sick from little Lu*, a 6-year old girl who clung to my side during my 2 visits to the orphanage. Now that I think about it, one of her tiny nostrils did seem to be clogged with dried "mocos." :)
I think I was in mid-conversation with someone when she grabbed my hand the first time. She pulled me outside and then lifted her arms to the sky so I'd pick her up. She was tiny for her age, yet quite heavy for me to carry.

She kept asking me if I was leaving and wanted to know when I'd be back. It was easier to leave the first day because I knew I'd see her again in a couple days.

Upon my second arrival to the Orphanage, I asked a couple of girls "Saben donde esta Lu*?"
They responded: "Ella esta jugando con Barbies en su cuarto."
Of course. She's playing Barbies in her room.

Sure enough, she was sitting on top of her bed with a container full of Barbies. She had been crying and seemed a little hesitant to open up. Not long after, she clung to my side again. I bounced her on my knee, she flipped upsidedown, I carried her all over the grounds, she got her face-painted, etc.

She sang a sweet song to me with lyrics that kept repeating "te quiero" over and over again, which is Spanish for "I love you." I'd sneak her a grin and she'd wrap her arms around my neck and give me a big kiss on my cheek.

I pulled her close and kissed her back.
She held my face in her little hands and rubbed her nose against mine. She giggled and snuggled closer.

Before I left, I asked her if she knew Jesus.
With confidence, she replied "Yes! Jesus is in my heart!"

I miss you, sweet Lu*.