9.24.13
– Day 3 “Be Patient with each Person”
We
didn’t get our quiet time/small group time in this morning. Gabo took us out
for breakfast at/to Rico’s Café. O. M. G. the coffee amazing!!! I got a frozen
coffee beverage and it was fantastic!! But I ordered what Rachel ordered to eat
and thought it wouldn’t be too spicy, boy was I wrong. Gabo got the same thing,
but when he look up and saw my face, he asked me if I was okay? At first I said
yeah, and that I didn’t think it would be this spicy (at least not for breakfast)
and that I could get it down I just needed more time to eat it. He laughed and
said that I could order something else, just to have them box what was on my
plate so he could take it to his wife. So I got something safe, and not hardly
Mexican… French toast. Ha!! Also, this place had wi-fi, so I got on the i-net
to check my mail and to get on face book to send Jason a message that I miss
him and to post two pictures of the gang I was with at breakfast with Gabo.
After
breakfast, Gabo took us to see and pray over the future site for B2B here in
Mazatlan. It is a 6 acre plot for/to have a campus to house mission teams,
interns, families working full time with the mission group, to have trainings
and/or conferences, etc. This property is ½ a mile from the beach and is right
next to a golf course. For the property and ALL the construction they are
looking at it costing $5 million for everything!! I’ve seen the specs and the
drawings for it (Adam is a architect – graduated from Miami University), and
it’s pretty amazing!!!! When we got there we prayed over the land in a “pop
corn” prayer, and we prayed for Gabo and Adam for strength and endurance, not
just for them alone but for their families as well. We thanked God in advance
for all the work he’s allowed us to do in his Holy name.
This is the projected idea of what it will look like after construction:
This
is HUGE!!! I’d love to be
apart of this movement!! In whatever manner God allows me to be!!! But as for
now, we are on our way to Rancho de los Niños, to work with and to assess the
kids who have special needs.
Side
note: … You never realize your hungry (even when you don’t feel it) until you
actually start eating!!!
Our
Trip to Rancho de los Niños
Oh
my goodness!!! Words cannot even begin to describe the heaviness on my heart!!
So MANY different needs and so much that could be done as intervention, but is
not!! Now, I am not saying that things at this home are not being done/for the
kids out of neglect of any kind but out of (1) lack of knowledge for each
individual disability, and (2) not having the funds to maintain and up date
basics and/or purchase new, (3) lack of hands to help care for the children.
The caretakers are always taking care of the children’s basic needs; preparing
food, bathing, feeding (those who can’t feed themselves), changing, cleaning
the house, etc. On top of all that they are taking the kids to/from schools and
physical therapy.
I
don’t know where to even start to describe all the needs here. There’s a total
of 23 kids in the home, aging from 2 years old to 19 years old. All the kids
have vastly different needs. Ricky is 18 years old, blind, nonverbal, he could
be partially deaf, and he is able to walk and feed himself. However – he doesn’t attend school, and the
caretakers are unable to attend to him on one on one daily basis. He LOVES (and
I’m sure the emphasis isn’t enough in text) his temples, neck, legs, knees, and
feet to be massaged…. Deeply.
(This is all the children in the home MINUS 3, Cynthia, Xochil, and I think their younger brother/sister)
Julian
has an identical twin, Juan, and has C.P. When Chad walk talking about how the
big pillow (that Julian was sitting/laying on) was suppose to be used… fluffed
up so the C.P. kids could sit up and look around not just lay on their backs
all day. I mentioned to Chad to fluff it up, and suggested he put Julian in my
lap so he could fluff it. So Chad did just that! Julian go this HUGE smile on
his face when Chad set him in my lap and he seemed to be happy to be sitting
up, able to look around, and apart of our conversation.
Today
has been totally overwhelming, but totally not in a bad way.
I
painted many faces today – some were 100% finished, and some not really even
close to it (do to attention span and a lot of other various things going on at
the same time). But all in all the kids LOVED it!!! Their smiles were so
totally priceless!!!
Oh
– I learned that there are three sets of twins that are housed at Rancho de los
Niños, as well as a lot of sets of siblings. One of which is 14 years old who
is not really under the classification of needing special assistance because
she is a very intelligent young lady. She does however, have a lot of emotional
baggage that would allow her to fall under the umbrella of needing more
assistance in that area. Everyone else there is at a lower functioning level
(do to the inability to receive the medical assistance, or education to help
them further in their lives). As well, she is just board, she doesn’t have any
other person to relate too in the house. I painted an angle on her face and SHE
LOVED IT!!! But I could see the disappointment in her face and body language
when I finished painting her face. My heart just broke for her. When we left
for the night she hugged us as if her life depended on us whether we stayed.
In
tonight’s debriefing, Chad asked us for a picture of today. I said the time
with Julian and the fluffing of the big pillow. That boy was so happy, and I
couldn’t get over his joy!!!
Then
he asked us about the moment or the thing that changed for us in our life from
this point on. I said never assuming or “lumping” each child and their need
into the same category. I’m not claiming to know everything so I need to stop
thinking that I do. I’m still in school to learn about these things.
In
order for Rancho to “get up to ‘par’” with everything and really help this group
of amazing, great, awesome, wonderful, and sweet kids what they need, we need
to get two more full time staffers in this home. It would cost $20s at day for
this or have various mission groups down here for 50 weeks out of the 52 months
in the year.
Either
way – God please help us in this situation. You know the desires of our hearts
and the hearts of the staff and children in this home, and you see a real need.
Please pave a way of hope for this
group of children and adults.
