Sometimes we hear from sponsors who, after seeing their sponsored child’s picture, are concerned that their sponsored child isn’t really poor. The child’s clothes or school uniforms look clean and pressed, their hair neatly coifed. They don’t look dirty or hungry.        
That’s probably because it was picture day.

Don’t you remember picture day? I do. I remember fretting for weeks about what to wear and struggling to fall asleep with sponge rollers in my damp hair. The morning of picture day was so stressful – my hair never quite worked, and I always feared that my outfit looked silly. For whatever reason, the photographer always called me “pumpkin seed” which made an already awkward situation worse. And several weeks later, when the pictures were passed out in class, I always cringed, struggling to hide what I knew was a bad photo. I think I took retakes every year.

Everyone has a Picture Day story.

Imagine that you are a child who enrolls at a Mission of Mercy project. Your teacher tells you to look your very best the next day, because you will have your picture taken. You have no idea what this means.

But your mother does. She rushes around making sure your clothes are clean, pressed, and mended. Your school uniform is in the best shape, so you wear that.Or perhaps a cousin or neighbor has a nice dress. The hem is torn and there is a stain near the collar, but it is the prettiest dress you’ve ever seen.

You get to take a bath. This really is a special occasion! And then your mom takes great care to make sure your hair is neat – in braids with ribbons, or parted cleanly.

You go to the project and see a line of your friends all waiting for their photo. You’ve never had a picture taken before. Ever. You are nervous. The person points a small box at you and you hear it click. Then it’s done. Your mom arrives and makes you take off your best clothes so as not to get them dirty on the way home. 

When we receive the pictures of newly registered children from our projects, it’s always fun to wonder what the child was thinking as that picture was being taken. Sometimes their clothes are ill-fitting. Sometimes we see the same dress or tie over and over again. Some children look frightened. Still others show their attitude, cocking a hip or giving a wry smile.

But one thing remains the same: these children are poor, and they are being offered a chance at a better future. And what a nice hairstyle or clean clothes shows is a parent who cares, who wants a child to look his or her best for this special day. And there is nothing wrong with that.

To see more Mission of Mercy children in classic Picture Day mode, click here.