Sunday, September 28, 2008

A day at the orphanage

My friend Cristen is a nurse from Illinois. She invited my housemate and I to visit the orphanage, Casa de Shalom, where she will work full-time when she graduates from Christian Spanish Academy. I was so excited yesterday morning to go meet the children. I hadn't been to an orphanage since my first mission trip in 1996.

We took a taxi to a little town 15 minutes away. Cristen showed us the different buildings on the probably 20 acre lot on the side of a mountain - clinic, offices, director's house, cafeteria, recreation room, and children's homes.
Casa de Shalom was started by American missionaries from the Church of God in the 1980's. It is home to 56 boys and girls ranging in ages from 2 to 18. Students attend school on property during the week.

We walked up the hill and entered The Baby Home. When we walked in, it was dark and silent. Then, all of a sudden, ten little children wearing footed flannel pajamas burst through the bedroom door and jumped into our arms. That is a moment I will never forget. They were smiling from ear to ear. As soon as I put down one, another reached up to be held. We hugged and talked for a while. Evelyn loved my sunglasses while the others wanted my hat.




One little boy stuck out immediately. I called him Monkey because he climbed on everything. I was his tree and swing for most of the day.

The children got out a few of their toys and books so we read and practiced the alphabet and numbers.

Then, it was time for breakfast. The children sat quietly at the table waiting for their food. They must have been told to be silent during mealtimes because I didn't hear a peep out of them until the end. After pudding, an orange, and bread with syrup, each child got a cup of hot diluted coffee. That's normal here, but it was so strange. They looked like little adults sipping their daily cup of Starbucks coffee.


When a child finished, he said, "Muchas gracias" (thank you very much), and everyone else said to him, "Buen provecho" (I hope you enjoyed your meal and I hope it is beneficial to you).

I was amazed at the independence of the children. When 2-year-old Tony was finished, he climbed out of his high chair like a contortionist , took his plate to the sink, then pushed his high chair to the wall.

After getting the children ready for the day, we played outside to our hearts' content. I was scared that the kids were going to roll down the mountain, but apparently they are used to their play area. They played on the swingset, slid, threw rocks into a bucket of water, rode little toys, played cops and robbers with pipes and sticks as guns, and played ball. For a while, I was a prisoner in jail who was only given water from time to time. Of course, little Monkey's feet never touched the ground.



After a good lunch of chicken, rice, potatoes, and tortillas, we watched a cartoon. I think it was the movie Barnyard.

Since it was raining, we played indoors the rest of the afternoon.

I enjoyed time with and will remember each child. By the time we left at 5:30, I was completely exhausted! I don't know how the house mothers do it every day.

I am thankful for the opportunity I had to spend time with the children. It was an unforgettable day. It certainly made me even more grateful for my family. I love you and miss you!

7 comments:

PUAS Ministries said...

Great pics and priceless experience. Also, congratulations for passing the B level of Spanish. Will be fun to hear you rattle off sentences or conversations in spanish when you come back. Dave

Alex W Blackmon said...

Thanks for serving. I had tears of joy well-up as this reminds me of how good it is to bless and be blessed by - children.

May you continue to find joy through service.

Alex

Ms. Frost said...

Hola Tina,
Como estas, mi amiga? I have just read all your entries... you are like the Army... you've done more in three weeks than most people will do in a lifetime. You have blessed me by your faith and courage when faced with spiders and baby cockroaches:{ I would love to have visited the orphanage there. I hope your Spanish is going better than mine. I learned to say the following as my excuse: "Estoy aprendiendo Espanol, pero mi Espanol es no bueno."

Dios de bendiga and study hard!
Bridget

Kelley said...

what a lovely story Tina. Children are so amazing and such a joy to everyone. Sounds like you had a wonderful time on your visit there.

jotoethel said...

i love all of your pictures Tina! How happy the kids must have been to spend time with you all. And sad to see you go...so hard.

i'm praying for you. i have bugs in my apartment in Temple, too!!! :( i think they are invading our space.

cindy

Michelle Chamberlain said...

Tina, what a great story and fun pics! Thanks for sharing and keeping us posted on how you are doing!!

Melanie said...

Tina, Thanks for sharing this precious day with us. I was holding back tears the whole time. I Loved reading about the children and seeing the pictures. I am so glad that you are having so many wonderful opportunities in Guat. Brice is starting to pull up on the couch and stairs all the time. He's waving and smiling at himself in the reflection on the fireplace right now. Earlier he was looking at a pic of you & me and I said point to Aunt Tina and he pointed right to your face and then he waved at you. It was sooo precious! We love you so much and are praying for you and miss you. Love, Melanie xo