I am planning my next trip to Mongolia.

I can’t wait, I will leave mid-March for three and a half weeks. Sara, who visits the kids once a month, announced my return. The kids were delighted. Whenever I get Sara’s reports I almost get jealous – she gets to hang out with them regularly, while I can’t.

It is time to go! Looks like the kids need some help. Baaskaa is dying to become independent, he wants to leave the farm and find a job. He isn’t quite sure which job though. This is a huge decision and so far his decisions have been driven by necessity and survival. For the last two years he trained to be as excavator driver. To find a job in his field, he has to apply with at of the mining companies – copper and other metals, minerals or coal. He isn’t sure about this, he’d have to start at a very low level entry position, but he had his share of dull, dirty and dangerous jobs in the past already. If it were up to me, I much rather see him doing a less dangerous job, closer to the city. But I will support him, no matter what he'll decide. I downloaded application forms from various mining companies and sent them to Sara, so they can practice filling them out. Apparently Baaskaa also expressed interest in starting his own herding and dairy business. He came up with a business model, including a budget and a time frame! But cows are expensive. One way or the other, he will have to generate some start-up money. I will help as much as I can, but with good cows starting at $800 these days, it will take some time.

Nasa is also ready to move on. She surprised Sara – and me – by expressing her wish to go to school. I think my last visit had a big impact on her. She learned how to sew felt slippers, which taught her that she can accomplish something. She is a very sensitive girl, who gets nervous when challenged and she easily shuts down when she believes she’s criticized. I don’t think she ever had a person in her life, who cared or encouraged her to excel. Her wish to learn and to attend school is a HUGE step. Now we have to find a school that will accept a fifteen year old, illiterate girl and protect her from being put down by her classmates. Kids can be brutal. We need to create a situation where she feel safe and supported; I don’t think we have multiple shots here.

This trip will be jam-packed, finding a job, finding a school, figuring out where they will live, how to support and supervise them. When I look at the to-do-list, I get dizzy, but we have come so far, there is no stopping here! Besides, I actually have fun doing these things. It will be so rewarding to see Nasa enter a classroom with a backpack filled with books and to see Baaskaa off to his first proper job, where he has rights and is getting paid according to rules and regulations!