today i got an email from india that made me cry. five years ago, i was getting ready to go to bombay. while i was there, i met manju - she was 15 and had been a prostitute for about three years. she was from calcutta, and her family sent her to bombay with a woman they trusted who said she could get manju a job as a maid or waitress. when i met her, she quickly became my strongest little sister. she had this joy that came from inside her, even though she had been bought and sold and abused, and she was funny and smart and amazing, and called me "didi," which means "big sister". she loved to sing and try to teach me to dance bollywood style. after i left, she got into a christian rehab home, and the reports i got were that she couldn't stop talking how amazed she was that jesus loves her. today i got a new update. now, manju is living at the salvation army, and spends her time going into the red light district to counsel prostitutes. she also keeps her eye out for underage prostitutes, and recently managed to rescue a ten and twelve year old. she told my friend who met with her that of course she needs to help rescue young girls, just like my friend's husband rescued her. there is hope in this world. in other news, today i got a case back - a 13 year old girl who is an actual orphan, and who can't seem to stay in one family for any real length of time. anyway, she told her new foster parents that i was "a big fat blond woman who shakes when she walks." you have to love teenagers.