Smiling Faces

My heart was captured yesterday. We were in a small town outside of Chisinau, poor, and its people were not to accustomed to outsiders. We made several stops to see some of Ivan’s clients, and as we were walking back to the car from one of the client’s home, there she was. A girl about 10 years old, her giggling grew louder as we approached. I suppose she spied us when we got out of the car and waited for our return. She climbed the fence that separated us to get a better view. I am glad she did. Her brown eyes sparkled with excitement, and her grin was wide. I walked along the fence for awhile, waving at her. She would jump down, then climb the fence again to get closer. Even in the car, Dan and I continued to wave and smile at her. I do not know if we were the first Westerners she has seen, and I do not know why she was so excited. I had nothing to give her except a friendly smile and a wave. But that seemed to be enough for her.