I think I just had my first parental moment.

You know the scene in any coming-of-age movie when a teenage girl is about to go to her first dance and she appears at the top of the stairs and her parent (usually a widowed father) stands there with tears in his eyes and a huge lump in his throat, totally entranced by his daughter’s newly uncovered beauty?

That’s how I feel – entranced by a new level of beauty.

While I was working in our child database I stumbled across a new picture of my sponsored girl – one I haven’t received in the mail yet – and I’m not exaggerating when I tell you my heart skipped a beat. Apparently sometime between three months ago and now, she grew up.

She’s so beautiful it brings tears to my eyes.

You see, I started sponsoring Karina when she was 6 years old. She was this sparkling, dimpled-faced little sweetheart who was so bursting with joy that she had to bite her lip to keep it contained.

Over the next seven years, I received several more photos, each one a slightly older version of the same adorable little girl.

A couple years ago I finally traveled to Honduras and met her. Our relationship went very quickly from theoretical to unforgettable. But even though she was now a teenager, Karina was still my sweet little girl.

Then I saw the new photo. And I realized I no longer sponsor a child ^[3].