This month's post is a continuation of last month's blog. You can go to https://hopestationblog.weebly.com/stephanies-blog/life-for-children-with-down-syndrome-part-1?fbclid=IwAR0t4e8Jj_yvRINtInxpBRXAjc_77ugpW8LvoA4CKr3pLVP4LkHrUgTi5IY to read Alexander and Hope's stories! Max’s story is very inspiring! The other four children with Down Syndrome do not attend school. The orphanage did not plan on sending Max either. However, he was one determined little guy. He begged and begged for them to allow him to attend school with the rest of the kids that go every day. He would not let the subject go! Today, Max attends school. He is learning to read and write. He is full of energy and an excitement for life. He is a very engaging young man, and has shown immense determination to live life to the fullest! I look forward to seeing the man that he will become. In a world, where people with Down Syndrome are often looked down upon, Max will prove them all wrong! Moses is not much younger than Max. They may even be the same age. We do not know Moses’ history and how he came to be in the orphanage. But the burns on the entire left side of his body tell us that he does not have a happy story. He is a little guy bursting with energy and wanting nothing more than to run and play. He loves any activity that involves his whole body. He also has a terrific arm and great aim! He would probably do very well in baseball or football. Unfortunately, Moses spends most of his days inside one small room with several other children. He is hardly ever given the chance to go outside and has no constructive ways to get out his energy. This has led to him pulling on or hitting other children, and using his great aiming skills to throw items from around the room into the toilet. This behavior has led him to be banished to the window sill. When Hope Station visits, if it is sunny, we are able to take him outside. When it’s raining, we try to find a big motion activity to do indoors. Currently, we are working on stacking blocks and learning how to throw a ball to a person instead of the toilet! The smile on his face is huge! He is also primarily non-verbal, but when he is having a wonderful time, we can hear his excited sweet voice. The youngest girl in the group is Ella. Similar to Moses, she is primarily non-verbal. She loves to be held! She also enjoys playing with string, dolls, and paper. She desires one-on-one interaction from any adult in the room. Unfortunately, she has not been given any form of early intervention. She picks up behaviors quickly, by copying other children’s movements. But these behaviors are not always great ones to be mimicking. She has been left to a world of her own. Hope Station is helping her learn how to do more activities that will help her develop and grow. She has enjoyed mimicking the behaviors of an adult giving her one-on-one attention. We are hoping that as she engages more with us, she will be able to engage with the world around her. The negative views and opinions towards children and adults with Down Syndrome have played a huge role in causing these five children to be in the orphanage. There is a widely-held opinion that people with Down Syndrome are a burden to society and are not able to contribute. This is simply not true, and places a human life’s worth on their productivity instead of the wonderfully created individuals we all are! If Alexander and Hope can help the nannies at the orphanage provide care for the other children, what else could they learn to do? If they had been allowed to attend school and been given the skills to read and write, how different would their lives be? Would they have more options for a future of their choosing? With early intervention, Moses and Ella may have been given more of the ability to effectively communicate their wants and needs. What types of lives could they have lived? How much farther could Max’s determined personality push him in life if he had a champion helping him fight the fight all the way along the journey?
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Stephanie (Rommen) Li"Every child needs to be loved in gigantic quantities and with unbelievable quality." Archives
December 2018
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