Not actually a party, but it was definitely full of joy! Looking at the photo, you might be wondering why we are saying it is her "1st birthday party". Poojitha (the girl) is one of 11 tribal children in one family, her Dad having 2 wives. The wife who is Poojitha's mother bore 9 of the children, the other wife 2. Poojitha's mother is still having babies, the latest only several months old. They live in 2 separate huts, all of them poor, and no one knows the correct birth dates of any of the children, although some of them may have birth certificates from the hospital (those who were born in a hospital). For many of the village children, this is very typical, the parents not knowing their birthdays. And celebrating a birthday is not even heard of or thought of in many of the villages. Thus, this was Poojitha's 1st birthday party, celebrated on December 29th, although no one knows her correct birthday.
The "party" consisted of singing songs to JESUS, sharing the Word with about 30 who were gathered on Sister Mary's rooftop, some of them her tutoring students, others coming only to celebrate with little Poojitha. After that, we prayed for Poojitha, then had the cake cutting. These 3 boys, Sankar, Vamsi and Ayappa are the only boys among the 11 children. Poojitha is a great blessing to us, the only one in her family who regularly comes to prayers in the nearby church, and to the Sunday School. She has a tender heart for the Lord. Praise the Lord!
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