What an amazing day....

Mal and Sean after getting 4 sponsors today!
-They are so passionate-

I started my day as usual, I woke up and went for a run. Sean and Mel had the early shift so I decided to wake up a little later than usual today. While running, I was thinking of the amazing days we have had at the booth. I was also reflecting on how we were working and how we can improve to get even more sponsors!

Around 11:45, I received a text from Sean with the great news that they had signed the first sponsor of the day. 20 minutes later a second text came in with a number "2," the second sponsor of the day had just signed. Then I stopped receiving messages. I was already happy with two! I showed up to the mall 5 minutes before my shift and asked Sean and Mel about the day so far. "We've had a great morning, we are at four!" they said. I was really proud of them, they have worked really hard.

It was up to John and myself to take over for Sean and Mel and keep up the amazing job they did in the morning. We both agreed that we were going to get at least 5 sponsors, and we did! We signed 5 sponsors in the afternoon, making a total of 9 children whose lives will never be the same. Their future is looking brighter now.

Wyatt holding the picture folder of Divine,
his sponsored child

There is always a special sponsor that makes me glad I have this job. Today, that sponsor was Wyatt
Brown, an incredible young man that made a decision to change the life of Devine, a little boy from Rwanda. I talked to Wyatt for maybe 5 minutes and, after listening, he asked: "How long does it take to sign up?" "Three minutes at the most" I said. "Lets do it man," he replied. He looked at some of the children and Divine caught his eye. "This feels awesome, it really makes you feel good!" Wyatt said with a HUGE smile in his face. Wyatt reminded me today that one of the biggest blessings we have is the ability to help others. That helping should not be something that feels like a burden and that when you help another from the bottom of your heart it will change you instantly. Helping will put a smile on your face and, yes, it will make you feel great!

Later in the shift John said something very interesting. "This feels like climbing a mountain, getting to the top and feeling excited; the difference is that at the booth that feeling is constant!" Then, right in that moment it clicked to me. Our success comes from the people I have on my team. It is not the mall traffic, the weather, luck, and most of all, is not about me. It is about the passion these three guys have in their hearts. A passion that keeps them from being discouraged whenever they get a "no,"  and it is this passion that keeps them going as if today was the last day of the campaign. I am extremely proud of Mel, Sean and John.

The Lantern Project
-Javier Cuellar-