Monday, April 7, 2014
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
The predicament.....
Boston College Law Assistant Professor Paulo Barrozo calls the predicament of unparented children – orphaned, institutionalized, abandoned to the streets or otherwise without the care of a loving parent – “the greatest unrecognized humanitarian crisis of our time.” http://www.bc.edu/content/bc/publications/chronicle/FeaturesNewsTopstories/2014/news/barrozo-advocates-for-unparented-children.html
This quote has been stuck in my mind ever since I read it last week. Dave and I still have hearts that beat hard for orphans. It seems that recently, we have heard about children that need homes and parents who want to care for them and things that stand in the way.....paperwork, stubborn hearts, lack of paperwork, a signature, more tests or requirements suddenly put in the way of a process and a bunch of other items and situations that keep children sitting in orphanages, stuck in situations where they are not thriving, and not being loved and cared for. It breaks my heart and makes my spirit get angry and frustrated.
When we were "in process" of adopting, someone remarked that adoptive parents get addicted to adoption because they often do it again and they "must get addicted to the thrill". Well, it's not a thrill, trust me. It is a painstaking, heart wrenching process that you've got to be a little bit crazy (yep, we're not in denial about that) to get through to the other side of. Two years ago this month, we took our first trip to meet Martha and see many, many other children in Ethiopia. It changed both of us in ways we didn't see coming. If you call that addiction - so be it. But, we are still haunted by what we saw - the conditions, the lack of stimulation/means for proper growth and development and the lack of real, deep relationships with parents. We wish there was more we could do to help.
And, yes, we are still haunted by that certain little boy who got under our skin and into our hearts. Another adoptive parent recently visited that orphanage and sent us pictures of that visit. It made our hearts skip a beat. But, the word on this little boy was the same......."not adoptable". His orphanage is struggling and may close soon due to lack of funds. The children have minimal supervision. Food and funding is minimal. And, this, this is what is best for these children????? Most likely they will soon be sent to a Government orphanage and stay there until they are too old and then be sent out on their own.....with no family, minimal schooling and not nearly enough "life" preparation. This keeps me awake at night.
So, will you join us in praying for and remembering the "predicament of unparented children – orphaned, institutionalized, abandoned to the streets or otherwise without the care of a loving parent " We don't have any other means right now except to plead before the Father to protect and change situations for the lives of these children. Please join us in pleading on behalf of these children. Thank You~
This quote has been stuck in my mind ever since I read it last week. Dave and I still have hearts that beat hard for orphans. It seems that recently, we have heard about children that need homes and parents who want to care for them and things that stand in the way.....paperwork, stubborn hearts, lack of paperwork, a signature, more tests or requirements suddenly put in the way of a process and a bunch of other items and situations that keep children sitting in orphanages, stuck in situations where they are not thriving, and not being loved and cared for. It breaks my heart and makes my spirit get angry and frustrated.
When we were "in process" of adopting, someone remarked that adoptive parents get addicted to adoption because they often do it again and they "must get addicted to the thrill". Well, it's not a thrill, trust me. It is a painstaking, heart wrenching process that you've got to be a little bit crazy (yep, we're not in denial about that) to get through to the other side of. Two years ago this month, we took our first trip to meet Martha and see many, many other children in Ethiopia. It changed both of us in ways we didn't see coming. If you call that addiction - so be it. But, we are still haunted by what we saw - the conditions, the lack of stimulation/means for proper growth and development and the lack of real, deep relationships with parents. We wish there was more we could do to help.
And, yes, we are still haunted by that certain little boy who got under our skin and into our hearts. Another adoptive parent recently visited that orphanage and sent us pictures of that visit. It made our hearts skip a beat. But, the word on this little boy was the same......."not adoptable". His orphanage is struggling and may close soon due to lack of funds. The children have minimal supervision. Food and funding is minimal. And, this, this is what is best for these children????? Most likely they will soon be sent to a Government orphanage and stay there until they are too old and then be sent out on their own.....with no family, minimal schooling and not nearly enough "life" preparation. This keeps me awake at night.
So, will you join us in praying for and remembering the "predicament of unparented children – orphaned, institutionalized, abandoned to the streets or otherwise without the care of a loving parent " We don't have any other means right now except to plead before the Father to protect and change situations for the lives of these children. Please join us in pleading on behalf of these children. Thank You~
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