Just short distance walk from our residence. We ventured out to the unknown and what seemed to be the daunting task of caring for these children. Fortunately, the first angel we encountered was the aid of a young lady who was adopted from this orphanage in China as a baby to the US, who has returned to serve the place that nurtured her to a new life. Her previous experiences with these children was invaluable guidance for the untrained and often "deer in the headlights" trainees who entered the facility last night.
When we got settled in and passed the torch from the previous shift teammates. We began to systematically wake those babies who were premature or under nurished and who required feedings every 2 to 3 hours. Some by feeding tube. Witnessing these sleepy eyed babies was to have your heart vessel refiled. Sometimes crying at first, but eventually calming down to a smile and a coo with satisfaction and contentment from the feeding. After emerging from their sleepy states to realize that they were being nutured in so many ways, you could instantly begin to see a beautiful look in their eyes. A connection that is only the gift of a child. Innocence? Unconditional Love? All of that? We are not sure but it is just a gift.
"Changing diapers", I proclaimed, "was like riding a bike". Changing colostomy bags? Hmmmm, that was a vehicle we had not riden before. But like most things in life, our minds are typically our worst enemies. Once we were shown and prepared, it became a much less intimidating ride. As we went through the shift, being exposed to different children as the night passed along, the morning quickly came upon us. And as the sun rose amongst the sky, so too did all the children ready for their morning feedings, changes and baths. As sleepy cries turned into smiles our morning was opened to these vast angels among us. All with different needs and personalities, you couldn't help but smile as they filled the room with their emotions. And, regardless of what the culture, as we let two of the toddlers out of our sight for just a moment, mischief followed suit...
As we prepared to pass our shift to the next set of teammates and we changed from our scrubs to our street clothes to prepare for our daytime sleep session. We were all touched by the kisses being blown to us by the two boy toddlers it was as if we were long fast friends. Tired yet satisfied, we left the orphange immediately anticipating our return tomorrow to see our new friends, the angels among us.
Until tomorrow...
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