Nanning Girls, Singing in the Rain.....

 Each year since 2005, one of our highlights has been to meet with our Nanning Girls-

 always in the sunshine, 

always in the People's Park

                                                  This year was clearly going to be different!

 Thanks to the ever helpful Majestic Doormen, we eventually found a taxi to take us to our new venue

                       We were going to meet in the Nanning church where our friends worship!

                                                    ( No, it wasn't raining INSIDE:-)

 It was lovely as we entered to see the banner made by our friends in Dunfermline 

hanging on the door of the children's room,

 symbolising our world, connected by the Cross to bring Hope to China's Children

          I don't think the pink balloons were there "just for us" :-)- there had been a recent wedding.

                                                                            WoW!!!!
                                                             Our girls have grown up!!!!

 This year, we were meeting with our older girls, many who have been with us since 2005, many now left school, working, or at university, but still keen to come back to share with us. As well as the fun this time we hoped to have more time to chat to the girls, and more importantly LISTEN to them. These girls have all moved on in life, made their own choices, supporting themselves in different ways. They had so much to say and share with each other, always encouraging the younger ones who were still on their journey thro school

Echo, 

Matthew's beautiful wife showing off her "cool wellies"

                                      and the water that had gathered in them on the way!!!!!!

Matthew- looking not quite as cool in THE HAT!!!!!!

LOVED this photo of one of our girls 

showing us the value of the letters and photos exchanged over the many years with her sponsors.

She has copied each one in a book to treasure!

THIS is what we are all about!!!!

Sharing letters with an old friend :-)

 As some new girls had come along, and as Lady A was meeting them all for the first time, we spent some time designing our own name cards- but they were for more than just names. Each card had to symbolise "something" about our lives, our hopes and our dreams. We were able to move around and chat to each girl about their lives, and ours - very special

                                                     

                                                 

                     After we had chatted together, we shared a kinda grown up Circle time
- a sign of how focussed we all were in sharing together, is that we do not have a single photo or video clip of this time. Each girl wrote a question they wanted to ask and we popped it in THE HAT- pulled them out and chatted together about the meaning of life, how to cope and have Hope for the future.
                                                     I do wish I had taken notes :-)

                                  But the overwhelming memory is of Togetherness and Hope!

                                                The girls loved to see photos from home!

                                  We had great fun singing together - not always tuneful, but fun!

                                                       This was poignant and beautiful,

                   in contrast to to the McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken & Pizza Hut song

 we sang just before our food came :-)

 For the first time ever, it was not practical to go to KFC, 

so BIG THANK YOU to Echo and Xiao Ju 

who ventured out in the crazy rain and brought KFC and Pizza Hut to us!

                                                                     It was good!

                                   But would not have been complete without the Birthday cake!

                     And of course to end our day, a good old rendition of Auld Lang Syne, until we meet again !