Jesus loves the little children

I would like to share with you some little things I have noticed about the children here in Ecuador. Their faces are still on my mind, and writing about them makes them feel even closer to me now.

Today when I was on the bus, I was sitting but it was more crowded than usual. Every seat was filled, and there were lines of people holding on to the chairs and safety bars. I actually kind of ate some lady hair cuz she was in my face. The bus was hot and it stank. About 10 minutes before arriving at our stop, a lady came on with her toddler strapped to her back with two white sheets. He wore a little woolen cap, three shirts and a navy sweater. His sandals were loosely fastened with Velcro that was peeling up in a curl. His little toe nails were packed with grime, but his eyes were shiny and bright black like smooth stones. Adorable. He was a little fussy...not quite walking, but wanting to explore, so, she let him go. He sat on the floor of the bus and played with a square of greasy sandwich paper. People were standing all around him...almost on top of him. Several passengers starting leaving the bus, they squeezed past the lines of people, past the baby...almost stepping on him as the bus jolted and stopped and started.

I watched him until por fin his mom picked him up of the floor, and I got up and left.

Last week, I saw this crippled girl lying in the bus. She had a huge backpack and a school uniform on. I was like, who would leave her on this awful bus?! So after a few stops, I saw that the man who collects the money took up her huge backpack, and cradled her in his arms. And gently, he lifted her out of the bus and laid her on the metal bench outside. He did this so tenderly. i was very moved. Then, he just went about his business collecting the 25 cents from the passengers.

I also, saw this little baby-- a toddler running around in the dark on the side of this street. The baby had those footie pajamas on. It almost broke my heart. The little thing was just toddling around on the side of these horrible concrete buildings amid all the trash and dirt. It was completely dark cuz there were no street lights. The only way I saw the little on was by the headlights of the passing cars. The footie pajamas were very dirty and pilly. I almost cried. As I passed, the baby picked up some piece of trash.