Bring me my Bow of burning gold; bring me my Arrows of Desire ~~ William Blake

Thursday, May 12, 2011

Why it's so important

Perhaps you might ask--why is this so important? Why the urgency? Valentin is being looked after; he has his needs met. He has shelter, food, clothes. He's okay--isn't he?

Well, yes. He's okay. But an orphanage isn't home. Caregivers, though they are kind and mean well--they aren't a mom, or a dad.

And in the orphanage, nothing belongs to him. Valentin has nothing of his very own. Clothes, toys--everything is shared with the other children in his group.

But there's more. You see, in most Eastern European countries, children don't stay in the orphanage indefinitely. At some point after they reach the age of four--sometimes immediately, sometimes later--disabled children like Valentin are transferred to an institution. A mental institution.

Again, at the institutions, the caregivers do what they can with what they have. But there's so much they don't have. No playrooms of toys, no picture books. No playground. Because Valentin has cerebral palsy, he will probably be bedridden. He won't get therapy to help him learn to use his muscles as well as he can. He won't get to fingerpaint, or work with clay, or sing in a children's choir, or pick cherry tomatoes from the family garden.

He will be bored and lonely. Day after day.

Valentin just turned five, so he could be transferred soon. It all depends on the situation where he is--how many children are at the orphanage, and the director's decision, and maybe other factors too.

So will you pray for him? He should have so much more. Like any child. He should have someone who loves him for himself, who looks into his eyes and sees him as a treasure.

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