Their skinny legs are covered in dust. Their skin is dry, their lips chapped and their eyes glistening. Their smiles are crooked; their toys are made of discards, their clothes ragged, and their love…unconditional.
For a number of untold reasons God has made me into a Pied Piper for kids. Each time I walked into the CCEH compound in Delmas, they would run to greet me, clutching my hands, each one of them scrambling to touch some part of me. I would struggle to walk with kids on each limb and still more swatting at each other to hold my hand. Each time I sat outside, a little crowd would form, little girls playing with my hair, touching my nose ring, whispering about my tattoo and my weird looks and hugging onto my neck and chest. It was the best part of the summer actually.
I had written a blog-post – before my unfortunate computer crash – on the differences between children in Haiti and children in the States. Children who have practically nothing, and the ones who have so much. The different games they play, the difference in the way they look, the different ways they show love and appreciation, the differences in their prayers. And I posed the question of which child do we feel pity for? The one who is parented by Toys R Us and Disney Channel, or the one who is loved and his only toy is a bucket cover and attached stick?
I was privileged enough to participate in the kids summer camp, my last day in Haiti. I looked on as they played simple games, laughed, sang, fought and had a BLAST with only candy a roll of string and glasses of water for materials. They raced each other to get lollipops, had a dance-off, sang, played a VICIOUS game of musical chairs and all danced with each other. Nothing could compare to this.
I find myself…dreaming about one child in particular: Amos. Abandoned by his mother, he is a tiny scrumbling of a little boy (yes – scrumbling is my own word). When I first met him in 2010 he was tiny, short and a little chubby. This summer he had stretched out a little, was skinny and had a fever for much of the time I was there. Amos is quiet, a fireball with his friends and fellow orphans but shy and loving in my arms. There’s something about him that makes me want to bundle him up and take him with me. I just want to HUG HIM AND NEVER LET GO!
Amos is a good example of the children that CCEH – Centre Chretien de l’Enfant Haitien serves. He has been abandoned. He is loving. He sings or rather, shouts his praise at the top of his lungs during church services. He goes to school at the center. He seems to only have two t-shirts to wear. He is a precious, loving child of God who makes my brows furrow with holding back tears, even as I write this. And he will likely live at the orphanage till he is old enough to strike out on his own.
What his life will become after the orphanage, without the help of supporters and sponsors to maybe send him to school – I don’t know. It breaks my heart to think that this world is so FULL of opportunity for the chosen few – but others have to scrape and struggle for every bit of good that comes to them. It breaks my heart to wonder what will become of these little scrumblings – what kinds of lives will they lead – will they fulfill every bit of God’s glorious plan for them? Or will poverty and unfulfilled dreams be all they have to look forward to? I refuse to believe that their dreams are any different to the dreams of a child in California. Little girls all around the world want to be princesses and little boys all around the world dream of firetrucks, cars and superheros. Only difference is…some girls and boys have the chance to fulfill their dreams.
Some things…a lot of things…are not fair.
For more info on how to make a contribution to the CCEH orphanage in Haiti please contact CCEHcampaigns@gmail.com. We desperately need help to continue providing for these loving and SO special kids.
