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Best Friends
by Miss Sol Balbero (Administrator)

We have two girls, Jenny and Linda (not their true names). Jenny is now nineteen years old while Linda just turned twenty. They both stayed at the Kanlungan residential centre for several years. Jenny is now a full time volunteer at kanlungan. The two girls suffered physical, emotional, and mental pain because of the abuse of their own fathers. Amazingly, with God's grace and power, they were able to recover from their traumatic experiences. Both of their fathers were sentenced to death.

Jenny and Linda are exceptional in character, and have grown remarkably in their spiritual life. They have become role models for all the children at the Kanlungan centre. Interestingly, Jenny and Linda are best friends.

In March, Jenny thought of visiting her father in jail to tell him that she has forgiven him. Linda decided to go with her so that she could visit her father too. The two girls prayed hard before the day of the visit. On April 16, they went to the National Penitentiary in Muntinlupa together with our social worker, Joy.

When Jenny saw her father, he cried a lot and was very happy because he said that God had answered his prayers. He asked forgiveness from Jenny. Tearfully, Jenny told him that she had already forgiven him even before she went to see him. She learned that her father came back to Christ because of the church workers who visit him in jail. His heart had changed. According to him, he had been praying for Jenny to visit him before he dies, so that he could ask for her forgiveness.

Linda also met with her father, and like Jenny's father, he had also come to know the Lord. He asked forgiveness from Linda. Surprisingly, the two girls learned that their fathers were also "best friends". It was beyond their wildest dreams that the two girls would visit them together. According to Joy, our social worker, they were all crying and laughing during the reunion.

The story of Jenny and Linda is just one of the miracles that are happening in the lives of our children in Kanlungan.

I have been a volunteer in Kanlungan sa Erma a for a week now. At first, I was a little hesitant to volunteer because I thought that some of the children are violent and impulsive because of the maltreatment that they experienced from their homes or in the streets. But I was proven wrong. Once I entered the door, they all welcomed me with excited glances and warm smiles. Only in a matter of hours, I naturally felt genuine care for them. My apathy languished.

The children in there weren't violent at all. In fact they were gentle and persevering. I witnessed their enthusiasm in the skills trainning program. Kuya Mirlo, the person in-charge of crafts-making told me that when children are engaged into some activity and someone tells them that they are good at it, they feel appreciated. In short they feel a sense of purpose. The chances of them being hostile again slims down as well. I found out that the program also helps Kanlungan to maintain its other programs and extends to aid more of our unfortunate brothers and sisters.

Everytime I walk out the door, I see a smile on every child's face. It just warms my heart to see them happy.