Lori and I are blogging on our own tonight...We had to be separated because we were laughing too much...actually it´s because she went to the computer room first! These are some of the older boys tonight and happy to have their picture taken.
Kids taking laundry down from the door to the Laundry room...
Today was a powerful day both physically and emotionally. I had the the movie "Holes" in my head for the better part of the day since I moved dirt from 1 pile into another just a short distance and then gravel maybe the same distance in a different direction. I just shoveled and ate dirt. Tiring, but very fulfilling.
Trying to figure out what to do with these huge boulders was quite a challenge...
¿How were we going to sift THIS through the screens for the cement?
Lori had the tougher job today moving dirt from part of El Hogar across "Campus" over to the other going up a big hill. She was working those legs for "Reach the Beach" hills. Plus since she can´t go running here, so hoofing dirt up a hill in a wheel barrel was the the next best option. Check out the smile. I told her to think of the Cosmos we´ll have at home when we get back to Stow.
There is NOTHING like a frozen Banana con chocolate during breaktime!
Tonight was a whole other story. Claudia, the Directór did a presentation tonight of El Hogar´s history, a movie of a home visit and stories of some of the kids which of course brought me to a blubbering mess. The hardest part of course was surpressing that during the presentation. Her passion for these kids is so obvious. Some of the stories of where these kids came from are absolutely overwhelming. The little boy laughing in our blog from yesterday, Wilmer, was living on the street with his alcoholic father for 3 years. His mother was no where to be found. His father though in his 50´s looked like he was in his 70´s. Wilmer watched over him every day and finally a relative brought him here. His father came to see him months later and promised to straighten up and Claudia allowed him to take Wilmer for a day in December. Wilmer disappeared with him for 3 days. Claudia had to go find him..... Wilmer doesn´t want to see his father again. Now look at his laugh in that picture from yesterday..... So many stories like this or worseHe even helped us shoveling today for a couple of hours. After Claudia talked with us tonight, we went to meet the new kids that came here within the year and I could have passed out, honestly from being so overwhelmed. Imagine walking in a room and unexpectedly 30 kids all came up to each of us to hug us individually. Most of them barely reaching my waist in height. Remember the scene in Spy Kids when all the kid robots are ordered to attack the bad guy at the end and they running up to him with their hands up yelling? Well these kids didn´t yell or attack ' they just ran all at once with open arms for hugs. These kids don´t cry and here I was with tears POURING down my face hugging these beautiful little kids. I will remember that moment as vividly as I remember the first time I held Michael in Colorado. An overwhelming feeling in your heart that you can´t explain or imagine could be any stronger. How blessed, lucky and humbled I feel to be surrounded by children who have endured more in their young lives than most adults I know will ever go through. I still can´t get over that some are so small for their ages. So much malnutrition before they go here. One only hopes they catch up as they get older. But their smiles......and the love and trust they feel here...just look at these pictures....
We hope you can feel what we are feeling. We are so happy to be able to share all of this with you... Thank you for taking the time to be with us on this...and it´s only Tuesday....
Samuel in the yellow ...what a cutie! check out the flipped up collar...
Francisco I played with paper airplanes.
This is Wilmer....when he was playing dominos with me yesterday.
This is Lindsey. No one knows how old she is. Her mother says 6 but she looks 4.... An absolute love.... She LOVED playing the game LRC (Left, Right, Center) a game I brought down with me. Thanks Barbara Rawding for introducing that game to me at our department outing....
Remember to go to mathworkselhogar.blogspot.com also!
Buenos Noches!
Love to all
Diane
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