We had a better day with E today, thank goodness. At first she was still a bit grumpy, and cautious of us. Even though I want to scoop her up and love on her, I am so thankful that she has a healthy bond to the caregivers she knows. She has been through so much in her short little life, and I hurt for her that she will have to transition again into our family.
Thankfully it will be the last adjustment she will need to make.
I was able to go into the lunchroom while the kids all ate. I was surprised that E was being fed by her special mother.....she really is treated like a baby still. I sat down and tried feeding her myself and she would have none of it! Ha. She is a sassy little number.
Afterwards, she marched right into the baby home and laid down for a nap. I was in shock that she didn't put up a fuss at all. She is on a tight schedule. It has been hard to visit during the times we are scheduled because E is so tired. Her special mother said she will nap a few hours a day.
Luckily, the nurse had E go outside with us instead of napping. Nate was able to cuddle her. He turned music on his phone and E loved that! She wore my sunglasses while bopping her head to the music. It was precious. She was laughing and giggling so hard. Talk about the cutest moment.
After our visit, we made arrangements to purchase a goat and take it to one of the other orphanages (Enat). I wanted to visit a special little boy there that has been waiting for a family far too long. His name is S.
The goat was purchased for about $75 and hog-tied to the top of our van. Wow. What a funny experience. I still feel sorry for that poor goat.
Nate and I arrived to Enat and the goat was able to join two others in the courtyard. They will be eaten after Ethiopian Easter.
The Enat orphanage was overwhelming for me. I know that it is not anywhere near as bad as some places can be (one orphanages in Addis has 600 children), but it was nothing like Hannah's Hope.
The first baby room we went into had 8 babies. I picked one up around 3 months old, and noticed he had soaked through his clothes. I walked around with him, he made eye contact and smiled a lot.
We went to the next baby room with 7 infants laying two to a crib. None of them made a sound. A couple were being syringe fed with a g-tube. The nanny's there were very sweet, but they had too many children to care for.
We then made our way to visit S. He is a 4 year old boy with cerebral palsy. It was very, very difficult. S was in a small room by himself. He was laying in a crib. Not a single toy was in the room. There was 1 single photograph of him on the wall above his crib.
His nanny picked him up and he started to cry when he saw us in the doorway. S was obviously scared. She moved him to a large Bumbo-type chair (the only other item in the room). I started to talk to him and he stopped crying. I gave him my sunglasses and he started to giggle and smile. Nate began showing him pictures on his phone. There was a photo of me, and S smiled and looked directly at me. Then he saw a photo of Nate and smiled and looked directly at him. I was able to tickle S, hug and kiss on him. He was laughing and interacting with us. He spoke a few words to his nanny while we were there.
We stepped out of the doorway and that is when we couldn't hold our composure anymore. It was the most gut-wrenching moment of my life.
The hardest part is that a family and access to health care would take S so far. He appeared smart, and less affected by the CP than I anticipated. Sitting in a crib alone all day is not what he deserves.
We spent time with the director and the staff had a coffee ceremony for us in appreciation. The director was an amazing woman. She spoke honestly of how S needs a family and a chance. She asked us to find one for him. It was a promise I wanted to give her so dearly.
It was time to go visit E again. I cried the entire way back to Hannah's Hope for little S.
When we arrived E was wearing the outfit I brought her, she let me sit with her and we did the music/sunglasses routine again. Nate picked up the big kids all at once and bounced them around. They kept laughing and laughing. It was a really fun visit.
I don't think I will ever be able to get S off of my mind. I'm not sure what to do to help, but I feel compelled to do something. Possibly collect donations? Bring people over to fix up the orphanage? Paint his room? Bring toys?
Most of all I want find him the gift of a family.
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