For His Children

Yesterday we had a nice break from working on our septic tank design report by spending the day at an orphanage. The medical interns were all scheduled to spend the day there. We had the privilege to join them. For His Children (www.forhischildren-ecuador.org) is a privately run, Christian orphanage. They have a special ministry to special needs children - 35% of the children are special needs.

I spent the morning at Casa Fey, the house for older children. There were several special needs children. They received individualized attention and physical therepy while we entertained 3 of the other kids. The three kids I played with, Jessica, Carla, and Kyle, are 6-7 years old. While we watched a movie, they climbed into my lap. The girls loved to play with my blonde hair. The kids collected leaves, dried flowers, seed pods, and acorns and made beautiful nature collages. After that, we ran around outside and I pushed the kids on the swings. Although the kids seemed to have a lot of fun playing with us, I wonder if that is how everyday is for them. I guess these kids are approaching school age, but when they aren't in school, I wonder if they ever go beyond the walls surrounding Casa Fey. I certainly hope so! They are so full of life and are ready to love. I hope families come in soon and recognize how precious these children are and what a great addition they would be to any family.

Adoption in Ecuador is not nearly as popular in the United States. The upper class do not adopt. Even if they did, there is still a noticable division between classes in Ecuador. Upper class families would not adopt lower class children. Unfortunately, children are usually abandoned or brought to orphanages because their families cannot afford to care them - ophans are most definitly not from an upper class background. I haven't been able to find information to back this up, but I was told that if children (especially special needs children) aren't adopted by the age 13-14, they are admitted to a mental institution where they do not receive necessary care. They are kept like criminals. I certainly hope that this is not true, but my heart breaks for children who aren't adopted none the less.

After a nice two hour break for lunch and a siesta, I helped out with the babies. These kids are adorable! And there are so many of them! When we arrived, several children were just waking up from their naps. As we heard crying, we got kids up. The ones who could sit or lay on their own and be content were put on the floor in the main room. I spent most of the evening holding the little babies. Thankfully I had two very happy ones, who didn't fuss excessively. At dinner time, things became chaotic. There didn't seem to be enough people for all the babies. Maggie (a medical intern) and I were each holding/feeding babies. But we were also surrounded by 13 other children playing on the floor. It was pure chaos. The baby I was holding wouldn't take its formula. Then one little boy pulled at a plug and chewed on the wire. While I tried to free the chord from his mouth, the 2 month old that I was holding started crying. Then an adorable little trouble maker climbed right on top of a little girl who immediately started wailing.....the story goes on and on. Depite the craziness of it, I loved being with the children. It was wonderful to see a little baby smiling up at you when minutes before it had been screaming.

I've always liked the idea of adoption. Seeing these beautiful children further softened my heart to the idea. But don't worry Mom, I have a long way to go before I am ready to spend more than 3 hours with a baby!