Rosa & Edison are in School

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/4s f/2.8 at 14.0mm iso800

Olympus E-1, Olympus Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 Digital: 1/40s f/2.8 at 14.0mm iso1600

Above images shot in Manila Philippines earlier this week.

Rosa & Edison in their shelter, watching a TV the Family somehow got for a few pesos, for Rosa's 12th Birthday.
...Tito Willie told me he's hoping the kids will stay in more now that they can watch a bit of TV & not have to play on the dangerous streets.

Willie & Auntie Josie have been telling me that Rosa is in the top percent of her school classmates, in Math & Science and that's just the best news since Rosa stopped sleeping on the streets a year & a half ago.

The deal with the school is that both children either get two meals a day there, OR 1kilo of RICE every Friday.
...Rosa chooses the 2 meals per day, and Edison brings home 1KG of RICE on Fridays (Josie makes 2 rice meals for him to eat during the school day there)

After I bought the Family 220lbs of RICE, I also paid for the kids Jeep fares to their school, at 40 cents per day for both kids, as Auntie Josie has been vending cigarettes & candy outside their shelter all day & night because that's how the Family were sending the kids to school, with cig & candy profits.

When I asked Josie what Rosa needed for her Birthday, she told me Rosa really needed school shoes.
...so after I bought Rosa her first ever Birthday cake (she was so happy to be able to have a real cake on her special day) I took her over to Robinsons Mall and got her a beautiful new pair of black school shoes, with a buckle.

Rosa's so very happy with her new shoes, you should have seen her smile!

Regards from Cebu,
PJAMES