Snowflakes in Oaxaca

This Sunday I taught the kids at church how to make snowflakes. I started by explaining what snow was - as I've come across several children down here who aren't very familiar with the concept. After an explanation of how every snowflake is different, as God has made each one of us different and special, everyone dashed over to the table to see if they could make their own.

Kids kept holding up their creations and I would ooh and ahh over them, and they would go on to make another. I'm not sure how well they captured my 'God made them special' point, but they sure did love making those snowflakes :). As we finished up, Carlos told me with a smile that his mom is in the United States where it snows, and that he was going to send his snowflakes to her.

It often takes me by surprise, seeing the effects of immigration from this side of the border. Strangers eager to use their English and tell me of where they have been, a father asking about life in the U.S. because he sees it as his last resource to support his family, or even a child who's mother has gone to provide for her kids, all the while leaving a hole in her child's life. So many people searching for something more. I wonder if those snowflakes will get to Carlos' mother, and what they will mean to her...

Carlos with his snowflakes.
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If you're interested in immigration, or even just want to read a good book, I recommend reading Enrique's Journey, by Sonia Nazario. It tells the true story of "a boy's dangerous odyssey to reunite with his mother." It deals with very difficult realities of the journey so many kids and adults take to reach the glow of a new life the U.S. seems to promise. Very good read.