The love of a mother is the most meaningful sentiment a child can remember. According to the following story, whatever happens between a child and his/her mother is a fundamental link for the child's future life. Jenny, an independent youth from SOS Children's Village Mallasa, talks about it.

"How does it feel to have been the daughter of an SOS mother?" Paloma asked, an "SOS co-worker" from SOS Children's Villages Bolivia.

"For me, it was a wonderful experience," answers Jenny. "... as I was a very small girl, just three, I adapted to my new family quite quickly. Actually, my mother was great, quite adorable, so my adaptation was fine."

"How did you meet your SOS mother and how did you get along with her?" Paloma asked.

"My mother wasn't there when I got to the village. So, the first people I met at the house were my new siblings, different children... different ages. They were very friendly, but I was afraid of them anyway, so I started to cry. [...] When she arrived, she took me in her arms and I stopped crying. It was like I had the feeling that that woman was going to protect me and become someone special in my life."

"She used to call me amorcito [little love] and only a few times she would call me by my name. All my siblings called her "Mom", so did I. After all, I never met my biological mother and, for me, she is the only mother in my life."

"What can you say about the time you were a teenager?"

"Just the same," she replied. "With the difference that the demands to give me advise increased significantly. Probably I did not behave as well as when I was a child, so she followed my steps more strictly. Even so, the link between us remained the same. Now that she retired, we are in touch very often and we visit each other on all special occasions and, of course, when we need each other's support."

"What is the nicest memory you have of you mother?" Paloma kept on asking.

"There are many, but an anecdotic one occurred when I was doing my initial level at school," Jenny began to relate the story.

"I was chosen to dance at a cultural activity, so someone had to make my dress and that one, of course, was my mother. [...] She spent really long hours doing it, but you know what! She just couldn't calculate my size. First, she made it to big: later, too small. From her face, I noticed she wanted to quit, but I know she struggled to finish it just to keep me content. Things like these were the greatest proof of her love towards me. She did not need to say 'I love you'. I could feel it, and, frankly speaking, I still do."

"When did you require her support even more?

"In times of trouble, of course," Jenny replied with confidence. "I think I committed too many mistakes when I was an adolescent and if I had been my mother, I would have punished my son or daughter. But, she didn't. Many times, I really gave her all the reasons to beat me, but she didn't. [...] I could feel her strength in the few words she used to utter to advice me, and in her sight. Oh! God! A glance into my eyes was enough to make me feel like a rat."

"Many years have passed, but I feel that nothing has changed. I am an adult myself now, but sometimes, when I feel depressed, I think of her and it is like she is hugging me, giving me the comfort of protection. I just tried out her love when I was a child and teenager and I am grateful to God for giving me the second chance to count on a good mother."