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I thought it'd be good to let you know about the orphanage and what I do there.
You can see from the photos that the children are just adorable.
I work at the orphanage 4 days per week and my day goes something like this (obviously no 2 days are the same as we are never sure what to expect when we arrive)...
Up at 0630 and out by 0715. We walk down through the streets, past piss alley (which I've mentioned before!) and head down to Lima Pampa to catch the combi. The journey is half an hour and we arrive at the top of the hill (last stop). From here its a 5 minute walk to the girls orphanage where we start work at 0800.
We are based at the girls orphanage but some of the children from both the boys and girls houses go to kindy and some go to a special school so the ones remaining are all housed in the girls house hence why we have both boys and girls.
When we arrive the younger girls are usually still there and they always greet us with massive hugs and smiles. They again have a mixture of disabilities.
Once they've gone we bring down the big table from the one area and set it up in the "lounge", this is where Jess and I have Sarina, Pilar, Betsy, Juan Pablo, Maraday and Danny. The others remain in the "dining area" and Nancy sits down with them and teaches - not that they are very receptive but some can write their name or form letters etc.
Basically we can do whatever activity we like with the children so we bring things each day and try and stimulate them as much as we can. They love to interact with us and dance or sing (both of which I'm crap at but its not a problem here!). Some are more receptive than others, Juan Pablo will generally do any activity we set him tho he has difficulty writing/painting due to his hand constantly shaking but once held he is able to focus and form letters. Pilar basically joins in when she feels like it, you can try and try but if she's not in the mood then you have no chance! Sarina is the same but with lots of encouragement she will sit and join in and can recognise colours and paint quite well (her favourite colour is Amarillo (yellow) so she generally only uses that colour!). Betsy is more difficult not in a physical way but because she really is in a world of her own; its really sad that sometimes she burts into tears and sobs uncontrollably and no matter how much you hug her and reassure her it doesnt help.
What works really well is that Jess and I seem to have "warmed" to different children. I dont connect as well with Maraday and Danny as she doesnt with Juan-Pablo, Sarina, Betsy and Pilar so we tend to spend our time with our relevant groups which works brilliantly.
At 10.30 we have a break and, weather permitting, we all go outside. The children have either fruit or biscuits which they devour in seconds. This time I find quite difficult because the children just sit on the ground and either dig up the soil or sleep - Juan Pablo has a spot at the top of the garden where he lies on the dirt curled up like a dog, he does this every day. Even when I call him and he comes and sits with me within minutes he wanders back to the same spot and lies down again. Jess and I have bought some balls and outside games which got them a little more active but their attention span is virtually nil so it doesnt last for long - some activity is better than none tho so we persevere. As time has gone on the children have become more interactive and do come and sit with us which is great, Juan Carlos is one who has definitely improved during breaks - rather then come at me and try and scratch me he comes to me, backs himself up so that he's sitting on my lap then takes my arms and wraps them around him so that he gets a big cuddle - I cant tell you just how rewarding it is when he does that.
Its then back inside and we continue with another activity.
At 12.45 we have to take the boys up to the boys house where we help with lunch. I've mentioned before Danny and the "bread trail" we have to do each day. Things have improved as we now have a pushchair, the only problem being that its not the most robust of things and the wheels are already damaged due to the rough ground/potholes by the boys house plus Danny is 7 so far too heavy for it.
Once at the boys house we help set out the benches/tables for lunch. First to come back are the little ones from the kindy, they really are just the most adorable kids you could imagine; some of them come up to you and say "hola", give you and kiss or a hug and run off. Some obviously are unable to talk but you still get a smile when you bend down and say hi to them.
My favourite (yes I have a favourite!) is Gustavo (5 years old). I cant help but fall in love with this little chap. From the very first day he saw me he attached himself to me, holding onto the back pocket of my jeans as I wandered around bringing in plates of food for them. He has the most gorgeous smile too. At lunchtime he is supposed to sit on the main benches but he decided on the first day that he wanted to sit next to me. I have to feed the very young ones hence I'm on the small table. Gustavo was told off because he was adamant he was gonna sit next to me; following lots of tears I went and fetched another tiny table, put it next to the one I was at and thats where he sits each day and eats; bless him.
After feeding the little ones and cleaning/sweeping up afterwards our day there ends (c. 2.30pm-3.00pm). Its then wander back to the corner, catch the combi and head back to the house in San Blas.
I absolutely love working at the orphanage, dont get me wrong, its not all plain sailing. Some days are REALLY hard both physically and emotionally. There are days when the children refuse to do ANYTHING; they may poo or wet themselves and we have to physically carry/drag them to the toilet etc. I've also had numerous days when I've been pinched, scratched or had my hair pulled and believe me, with some of them being 17-18 years old and bigger than me that can really hurt. But on the flip side, to arrive in the morning, walk through the gate and have them run out shouting my name and clambering over each other to give me a kiss and a hug is the MOST AMAZING FEELING EVER - those days far outweigh the bad ones.
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