I have found them...

I have found the most beautiful people on earth. For the past week, I have been helping out at a home for trafficked girls in Kolkata. They, ladies and gentlemen, are hands down the most beautiful people I have ever met. I wish you could meet them, too.

The girls are learning English, so I've been creating teaching aids and working with the girls on their vocabulary and grammar (helpful that they need to work on their English, because English is of course the only way that I can communicate with them). I made a game of Memory, and have played it almost non-stop for the past 2 days. Definitely a confidence builder - beating young, Bengali-speaking girls in games involving basic English vocabulary.

Right now, I'm sitting next to one of my most frequent visitors. She's a tall, thin, 11-year-old girl with big brown eyes, a winning smile, and an adorable little voice. We're in the middle of making a friendship bracelet together (who knew that all those skills I learned at camp throughout the years would be SO relevant to my life now). She was also my assistant in the creation of Memory (I drew the pictures and wrote the words, she cut them out; I "laminated" the cards with packing tape, she trimmed the edges), too. We're quite the team.

What I can't get over is how incredibly affectionate and joyful these girls are. When I think about the pain they have experienced in their lives, I am in awe of how resilient they are, and saddened by how much they have lost at the hands of others. My friend Sara's response to my brief description of the girls was as profoundly true as any response could be: "Lord Jesus, come quickly!" Experiences like this make me so very thankful for the people who have devoted their lives to bringing justice in the lives of these girls, and even more eager for the complete justice that will come when He returns. As I sit here laughing and playing, I long for a world where these beautiful girls would never face fear and hurt and would always feel the love and the joy that they are experiencing now.