My particular street has six restaurants (noodles, dumplings, traditional dishes, and soup), two veggie shops, a fruit shop, a couple hair dressers, three convenience stores, and a ma jiang (like poker) parlor. Right around the corner is a dairy shop where I get eggs and milk and yogurt, and a massage place--feet only or whole body. The gate guard at my apartment complex and I have a special, uh... bond? We almost never speak, but every time I walk in or out, he is sure to nod and smile in my direction. A few times I have been looking down, and he shouted "Ay!" to get my attention so we could nod and smile at each other. The lady who owns a convenience store across the street knows that I always get coke zero, and that I like it cold. Of course, my favorite place to frequent is the little ice cream stand, a couple neighborhoods over. Chocolate ice cream, hard packed, in a waffle cone, for less than a dollar. That's a no brainer.
Speaking of kids, the rest of today's post is dedicated to a couple spectacular little ladies: How do you describe a little one that is so completely precious beyond words? Let's start with her name... The name Rena is Hebrew for joy. I gave her this name because of the joy I see in her, the joy she brings me, and the joy that I wish for her life. Rena is about 5 years old, which is younger than most of the other kids in the orph. She is shy with strangers, but quick to engage in activities with people she knows. She loves to color (she's great at staying in the lines!), blow bubbles, play with balloons, and look at books. But above all, Rena loves to sing. She will grab a coloring book and a handful of crayons and go sit in a corner by herself, singing away the entire time. There she will stay, in her own little world, for hours on end if she could. Rena has no apparent special needs, but does seem to have a consistent lack of Vitamin E, resulting in some skin discoloration and patchy hair. Her short haircut is almost boy-like, but she is always in a little dress. Rena's life would be so different if she had a family of her own... A mom to give her constant hugs and kisses and tuck her in at night, siblings to color with and play dress up, a dad to sit her on his lap and tell her she is beautiful and precious. I can't help but imagine it every time I take her into my lap. I caught Rena on video singing to herself. See if you can resist this cute voice... Ella is one of the children that has been at this orph ever since my first visit in December 2010. Back then, she was the girl who didn't smile at all... until you tickled her or threw her into the air. The she would bust into the biggest grin and giggle I've ever heard from a girl so small! To be honest, not much has changed for little Ella. Of course, she is bigger now, and has more mobility, walking and moving around. In fact, she is also much stronger, painfully apparent when she pulls at my hair or digs her fingers into my arm. But the truth is, her social and emotional development since 3.5 years ago is next to nothing. She is still slow to smile, quick to walk up to any and every stranger to be held (no apparent attachment to any one person in her life), and overall lives life in a daze. Ella has Down Syndrome, and no language skills at all. The most intuitive thing I've seen her do is to copy me when I blew on her wet "hand"paint once. Her deepest desire of every moment is simply to be held. Without fail, if you walked into the orphanage right now, Ella would walk straight up to you, put her arms up and wait for you to pick her up. There is one little ray of sunshine in Ella's life worth mentioning: Shaylee. Shaylee is another kiddo in the orph, who I have yet to introduce you to. She is about 10, and she has assumed a big sister role to Ella. If I am passing out food, Shaylee makes sure Ella gets one. If I am doing facepaint, Shaylee makes sure Ella gets one (despite the fact that Ella could care less about facepaint). I am thankful for Shaylee's role in her life. Nevertheless, it does not negate the fact that Ella needs a family. Little precious Ella, we hope to find you one soon... (Many of the pictures in this post are compliments of my dear friend Liz Blinn...
thanks for being much more on top of photographing life than I am!)
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Okay, I have run into a problem that I have never had before. It's HARD. I'm not quite sure what to do about it...I have TOO MANY STORIES. In all reality, it is a wonderful problem to have, and I am not complaining. I simply do not know where to start. I want to introduce you to all the kiddos, one by one, and yet that gives no space for the activities we do together, or the funny things they do, or the progress some of the more severely disabled kids make week after week. If I could only transport you all through time and space so you could fully experience this with me. If only. For now, blogging will have to suffice. Today I'll give you a few snapshots of the last couple weeks, then introduce you to two new kiddos. BOOKS! This week I bought some books to bring along with me. I go to Trustmart (like Walmart) every week to restock my orph supplies. Markers and coloring books and toys are constantly disappearing into the orph abyss, so it is a constant battle to keep my backpack stocked with goodies. Last week I saw a bunch of baby books on sale. These are potentially one of my favorite Trustmart finds so far... each page has one word and one picture on it (like apple, ball, car, etc) with not only Chinese characters, but also pinyin (that's Chinese spelled out) and English! Like this: "羊角, yang jiao, banana" The little victory in this is that despite my lacking Chinese and even worse Chinese reading skills, I can still read these books to the kids. So yesterday when I was in the baby room holding little three-month-old Anthony, I broke out the "Fruit" book for four-year-old Josiah, who was sitting next to me on a bucket for potty training purposes. He LOVED it. I cannot even count the number of times we read that book about fruit, saying the Chinese over and over, him copying me, and quizzing each other on what each fruit's name was. I've never had so much fun talking about fruit. Even some of the elementary age kids liked the book when I pulled it out with them later; mostly they just think it's funny when I get the names wrong. NEW FRIENDS! Last Saturday I brought two families with me who are visiting Chengdu for the month. They were amazingly kind and generous to the kiddos. They brought new baby toys for the baby room, like mobiles and toy gyms that attach to the babies' cribs. We had a blast introducing the little ones to new toys that make sound and talk and move when they touch them. The girls of the visiting families enjoyed painting nails with the orph girls and teaching each other floor games in the hallway. The visiting boys were so gracious teaching the orph boys ball games and blowing bubbles and wrestling. To end the day with a splash, we had prepared a big pile of water balloons. The kids loved it. I am thankful for generous people who are willing to come with me to make these kids' day. ------> Now on to the introductions! I'm in love with this little guy. He is just a tiny peanut of a baby who will lock eyes with me any time I'm in his vicinity and stare at me until my heart is officially melted at my feet. Three-month-old Anthony is so aware and observant of his surroundings and soaks it all in without a peep most of the time. I noticed right away upon meeting this little guy that his left arm is shorter than the other and he has the equivalent of about two fingers. This past Tuesday I spent about half an hour holding him, and I found his tickle spot. Right along the edge of his little tiny rib cage, where his skin is so thin and you can see the outlines of his bones, if you drum your fingers gently right there he will inevitably break into giggles and a toothless grin. Eventually I had to put him back in his crib so that he could have a bottle and take a nap (sometimes they let me hold them to feed them and rock them to sleep, but not always). Later that afternoon, I was playing with a baby on the other side of the room, and when I looked up I found Anthony's eyes watching me. I smacked my lips in his direction and his little grin broke across his face once again. If only he knew how much better life could be. Moses. A.K.A. Grabby. He is a one of a kind little guy. The moment I walk into the orph, Moses has his hands reaching up towards me, grabbing anything he can--shirt, hair, backpack, waterbottle.... Per his namesake, he has an affinity for grabbing things and, if he can, chucking them across the room. Just for the fun of it. I would venture a guess that he is one of the main reasons they don't leave toys or supplies out within reach of any of the kiddos. He never has malicious intent; you can tell because each throw is followed by a throaty, gurgly laugh of pure joy. Seriously, I need to get this kid a boomerang or something. One time I think I saw him chuck a bar of soap out the window.
Moses is about 6 years old. He probably has Down syndrome and 50% of his skin is covered in burns. We named him Moses, meaning rescued, because whatever caused him to have such horrible burns must have taken a miracle for him to overcome. I am so thankful he has grown into the curious little boy he is now, that despite his disabilities he is a mover and a shaker. My goal with him has been to find something that will help him stay still and calm for more than 10 seconds. So far there are two things that have been successful: a sensory brush that I use on his skin all over, and a rubber chicken. His ability to make me laugh (a rubber chicken? how can you not laugh at that?) is beyond precious. Last week I wrote a few mini bios on three of the kids I've been working with: Josiah, Max, and Maisy. It was super fun to hear all your responses about them. I agree, they are pretty precious. That being said, I have some unfortunate corrections to make about a couple of the kiddos. Throughout the last month I have been compiling information on each of the kids, including name and age and any special needs. It is a slow process. I do my best to make predictions, then confirm with multiple nannies who work there. Last week I told you that Josiah is 3 years old. He is in fact 4 years old. And Maisy, rather than 6 months old, is 1 year old. I share these facts with you because it really sheds light on the reality of the situation here. Children's growth patterns and potential for development are really limited by the lack of resources and attention they receive. Maisy is definitely on track with a 6 month old's healthy development, but definitely not on track with a one year old's healthy development. At this point she should be standing her own if not walking, and babbling if not saying some words. She is doing neither. She can barely stand on her own holding on to the edge of the crib, let alone take steps in any direction. Her time is limited outside her crib, and the time she does get is usually in a little chair or bouncy seat. No opportunities for her to practice walking. Her vocalizations are limited to laughing and crying; no cooing or babbling, or pointing to things or waving. What does this tell us? These kids are getting what some might call the "bare essentials" of life: water, food, shelter, clothing. But I say the bare essentials are so much more than that. The very word LIFE implies that something is thriving and growing. If we want Maisy to thrive and grow, she needs love and attention and comforting arms and tickling fingers and smiling faces and encouraging words and coaxing hands... So much more than water, food, shelter, and clothing. Every day I go to the orphanage I am reminded, however harshly, why we need Hope Station; or rather, why these kids need Hope Station. OK. Before I end this post, let me quick lighten the mood. This past week I tried something new: the parachute! This parachute was gifted to Hope Station by a wonderful donor before I left for China, and it has been a big hit. In fact, it has been one of the only activities during which they ALL sat still for more than 2 minutes at a time. We played some super simple games, that would be completely boring for most children. But when you have never seen a parachute in your life... That changes things. I called out actions like "Fast!" or "Slow!" or "Up!" while they tried to keep up. After a little while, I let some of the kids take turns giving directions. That was a big deal. Some of the boys are just hams and love the spotlight. So, enjoy the pictures and make sure to check out the video link to get a peek of this parachute adventure! |
A note from Rebekah...If you've ever wondered what it would be like to start a nonprofit from the ground up, to open a home for ORPHANS with special needs in Asia, you've come to the right place. Archives
August 2019
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