Living Haiti

Kids...

I live in a house with 38 kids. Yep, 38. They all live downstairs in the same amount of space the Gertrude and I are taking upstairs. I'll be honest, I'm not always sure how it works out. The kids range in age from 2 to 18, but most of them are under the age of 10. Some of the children here have dissabilites ranging from not being able to quite walk properly to being wheelchair bound without the use of words or limbs.

Living with one child is interesting, living with two becomes a little crazier, add a third, well you get the point. But, 38 children is a whole new ballgame. This means that from the hours of 5:15am until about 8:00pm there is a constant awareness of the home below me. Children playing, crying, yelling, singing, fighting, praying, laughing...etc. It's all right below me.

I was putting together some paperwork for the orphanage and I was reading through the abandonement papers. Ok, they were in French so my ability to read them entirely was a bit scewed, but they were so sad. I decided I was never allowed to read the papers if I was feeling particularly emotional. These children who bring me so much joy, even in the midst of the sometimes chaos, had been abandoned. Many were found on the streets. Most of the children share the same name, because when they were found, they didn't know their family name and new one had to be registered. Many of the children have no date of birth listed. Some children were abandoned because of their disability. And yet the smiles, the hugs, the joy that comes from them are immeasurable...someone is missing out on having them as their child. And then many of the children have not a problem in the world. They're strong, funny, goofy, naughty, and smart...and someone is missing out on having them as their child. I don't know the reasons that went along with their abonement and I can't begin to judge the parents. I can't imagine that it's ever easy to leave a baby or child, the decision must be beyond torturous for some. I won't begin to judge them. I've never walked in their shoes. It just saddens me, that the smiles, and laughs of these children can never bring joy to their families...

I'm excited that I get to work in a place to make the home for these children more amazing. We've been working on plans for the new land out back. There are a lot of people excited about new dormitories that we are hoping to build, and I won't lie...this feels so significant, giving space to these children to be children...to have room for their clothes, toys, shoes. To have room to run and play and pull all sorts of things that kids pull, within the walls of this safe place. And, to have the ability to help connect some of these children with homes that have a mom and a dad that will give them more than they ever dreamed. I want that for them all.