Honestly... How can we express in a few words all we know about the condition of where our child lives? How can others possibly understand the urgency our hearts feel to get to our child?
Why Ethiopia? Because the Bible states that we are to care for orphans and widows in their distress, but it is more than that... does it make sense that
we FEEL her distress? Well... we do. Call it Mothers instinct if you want, but this almost crazy longing to get to our child almost paralyzes me sometimes.
Once Tim and I realized what is REALLY happening in this world we had no other response than to act.
If you have been following our Blog you read about the conditions in the KVI orphanage (one our agencies babies come from) here is an update for you from(http://www.wagest.blogspot.com/)
she writes:
Lately we have had parents who are visiting their children in Ethiopia reporting back about the conditions of the orphanages there. We all knew they weren't the most clean places. Happy places. Places where children are well fed and loved. We knew that. But to hear first-hand descriptions of where my daughter, may, at this moment be sleeping --- it brought me to tears several weeks ago - and it brings me to tears again today.
From another AWAA parent's blog:"Tuesday was another one of those highly emotional days. Wow. We started off early in the morning to visit two orphanages. The first one was right down the street from our guest house, and when we got there, we realized that these were the kids we hear singing every morning!! Boy did this place grab a hold of us. We walked in to dozens of older children all sitting in a line outside. Then we went to the toddler room. As soon as I picked up the first child, I discovered that they weren’t wearing diapers and just about every one of them was wet. Their beds were soaked. Some didn’t even have mattresses because they were laying out in the sun to dry. One little boy was so scared when we came that he ran to a corner and faced the wall to be avoided. Then we visited the infant room where we saw a similar situation. No diapers, wet mattresses, 3 to 4 babies to a crib. It was heart breaking. One of the families brought diapers to donate, so the ladies immediately started putting diapers on the kids, covering mattresses with plastic and sheets, and holding each of those babies. I don’t tell you about these conditions to speak badly of the orphanage. The truth is, it’s all they have. I picked up the first baby I saw in the room, and she clung to me for dear life, crying if I tried to put her down. When I could calm her down to put on a diaper, her entire bottom was blistered. We stood crowded in that tiny room as long as our guide would allow us to stay. There were moments when I thought about all the germs, infections, and rashes I was touching, but we all decided it was more important for these children to be visited and loved than for us to get dirty. B and I also spent some time outside with the older kids and they would beg us to sit next to them in their line. When we did, they’d weave their arms through ours and hang on tight to ensure we wouldn’t get up. Some would cry if you didn’t sit by them, some would search our pockets, and one even snatched our camera. An older girl walked down the line with an old rag wiping the tears and snot from their faces all on the same spot. Needless to say, our group gave bins and bins of donations to this particular orphanage. To those who donated from home, THANK YOU! Pictures weren’t allowed, but I just wish you could see with your own eyes how needed this stuff was. You cared for the least of these on Tuesday through your generosity." And this orphanage is, thankfully, being helped by those visiting parents. Who bought those mattresses. Who bought the plastic sheeting to wrap them. Who bought the diapers to put on those babies. And yet - the need is still so great.
Dear Cooper friends:
We are beginning to collect donations of baby items that we WILL take with us when we go to Ethiopia. We will go 2 times, if you want to donate items (or cash to purchase items) for this orphanage we would be eternally grateful. As we adoptive parents travel we are taking supplies with us that can not be found or purchased by the orphanages.
Items needed are:
Diapers (#1- item needed)
diaper cream(#2- item needed)
plastic crib mattress covers
wet wipes
blankets
Baby Tylenol
crib fitted sheets
Baby onesies
Baby socks
Teething toys
Toys in general
Your prayers
Love you,
"Orphans are easier to ignore before you know their names. They are easier to ignore before you see their faces. It is easier to pretend they're not real before you hold them in your arms. But once you do, everything changes. So when you and I hear staggering numbers and statistics about the poor and needy around us and around the world, we have a choice. We can switch the channels on our mega-TVs and continue our comfortable, untroubled, ordinary, churchgoing lives as if the global poor don't exist. We can let these numbers remain cold, distant, and almost imaginary. Or we can open our eyes and our lives to the realities that surround us and begin considering the faces that are represented by these numbers." David Platt
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