TANYA KONYAROVA
Director of the Literacy Program

Children abandoned in the slum:

"Father left to collect firewood..."

For six years, Mission Possible has been feeding the children of the Bulgarian slums, and taught them, as well as grown-ups, to read. The residents of the slums - the Romany and the Turkish muslims - live in abject squalor.

Teaching offers a unique opportunity to also spread the gospel. The teaching material is based on the Gospel f Luke, and children and grown-ups become familiar with the stories of Jesus while reading it.They learn to pray, to take care of personal hygiene, to write job applications, etc.

Maria Does Not Know Her Age
Maria, like other children at the slums in Fakulteto, Sofia, waits every day for hours before the meal in front of the church.

She wears the only clothes she owns: a dirty sweater, too large for her, torn trousers, and shoes belonging to someone else. She cannot tell me how old she is. How would she have been able to keep track of the six or seven years without birthday parties?

Maria's father died a few years ago. Mother begs in the city with the little brother. They return late at night. Maria spends her days alone. There is no electricity or running water in the sheet-metal shack called home. A wood-burning stove heats the room, with a bed as the only furniture.

Soup Kitchen as a Shelter

"Father went to collect firewood. I don't know when he'll return." Valja smiles - but there is the pain in the eyes of a six-year-old, because the father has been gone for months.

Valja eats at the kitchen with her two sisters and the little brother. Mother is looking for work - in vain. The children spend every day alone. Our kitchen is the only place where they receive support.

When I ask what Valja and her sisters dream of, they answer in unison: a doll! Could a doll take away the sadness from the eyes of the children, even for a moment...

"You are in my heart"

I smile at Raya, and she comes to me and gives me a squeeze. She has a tremendous need to be close to me. Every once in a while, she tugs at my hand so that our eyes would meet and she could smile at me. As she leaves the kitchen, she hugs me, points at he heart, and says: "You are here!"

Every human being has a need to feel loved. Even though these children live in abject misery, it is love and attention what they try to get from us again and again.

Translated by Jari Vesterinen, Jamtrex Language Services

Photo on the left:
Children seek Tanya's attention and her company.
Raya is next to her, with Valja and Maria in front.
Photo on the right: Valya, Maria and Valya's brother