What a day! Today we went to one of the three state orphanages to spend some time with the kids. This is where the orphans go, as well as children who are abused almost to the point of death. Child abuse is not cared about as much in this country, so it must be terrible before they are brought here.
For the first five minutes after arriving, one little boy (Diego maybe?) hugged me and wouldn't let go. It was very obvious that he just wanted to be held... so that's exactly what we did.
After this Lisa, Lydia, and I played jacks with some little girls on the stairs. They were so good! It was unreal how fast they could go, and all the tricks they knew.
Finally, I headed up to the baby nursery. What I saw absolutely broke my heart. Rows and rows of cribs with little babies in them... many with two in a crib. They were so starved for attention, that they would grab onto you, just for a touch. The lady suggested we not pick them up, so they wouldn't cry, but I couldn't do that.
The first little boy I saw was Pablo. He was near the back of the room with a little yellow shirt on. He looked to be about one and a half, and such a cutie. As I began toplay with him, however, I noticed he would pause every so often and go into his own world. This is when Jonathan came up behind me and told me Pablo had autism. It made perfect sense, but still made me sad for such a beautiful little boy. We tickled and clapped hands for the longest time... just to see him smile made my heart happy.
The next little boy I loved on looked to be almost two. He had huge brown eyes, and was standing in his crib just taking everything in. When I started talking to him, he looked very curious and thoughtful. But when I picked him up, he clung to me with deep urgency. When he pulled back a little to study my face, I gave him a kiss on the cheek. He got shy, then grinned really big, and finally put his head into me and clung closer.
This touched me so deeply. Before I knew it, silent tears flowed down my cheeks that I couldn't keep from coming down. I continued rocking him until he pulled back again. When he saw my tears, he looked confused and worried. I smiled and talked to him, but he was a smart little guy and sense something just wasn't right. He held me close, and I had Britney wipe my tears quickly while his head was still on my should, so he would see that he fixed me with his hugs. We cuddled and cuddled for long time until he began playing with my sparkly shoes and running around with the other children we had set free from the cribs.
When he left, I took a beautiful baby boy (Maybe 2-3 months old) who was crying into my arms. He seemed hungry, so I got one of the ladies to fix him a bottle. I began to feed him, and sure enough, he was hungry! He watched me the whole time he was drinking. I held him and talked to him just like my mother did for us.
After this, I changed his diaper since the ladies didn't seem to do that very much. As he went off to sleep, I felt content that he was finally comfortable. I rubbed his tummy, and sang softly to him. The prayers filled my heart, which seemed so full it could burst. It was such a blessing.
(By the way, me and this little girl bonded as well. Our hair looks the same in the morning!) ;D
Leaving was difficult for me to do, but it had to be done. I prayed that each child would never feel alone, and that Christ would be their peace, strength, comfort, and guide throughout the years to come. I know they have many hard years in the future, and with Him they will be able to have hope when things get difficult.
In the afternoon, we headed for the market. It reminded me of the San Antonio market so much! The only difference was that at this market, you could barter for a better price. This intimidated me at first, but after a while I got really good at it. I even helped Ben get four dollars off the fourteen they wanted for a purse (for his fiance). It was so fun!
After the market, we drove home to relax until dinner. For some reason though I developed a migraine on the way home. I slept for a few hours, and realized I didn't even feel like eating. Paul came in before they left for dinner and prayed for me. It was really sweet of him, but I still needed to sleep it off. I went to bed right after they left, and didn't wake up until morning. It was a beautiful thing!!
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