Flower
I saw her picture for the first time two weeks ago, and what I saw broke my heart. She is an orphan whose mother died in January when she was only 16 months old. After the funeral, the aunt took the child to our local social services to ask for help. Noticing that the child was frail, they referred her to an inpatient nutrition center right here in our city. Since our infants in distress program collaborates closely with both social services and the nutrition center, Rebeca heard about this child and went to visit. That's when she took the picture that she showed me.
"Her name in Fleur," Rebeca said, which means Flower in French. She was sitting in the photo all alone, expressionless, like a sack of skin and bones, her eyes bulging from her emaciated face. To say this baby girl was "frail" was an understatement. The nutrition center helps monitor these babies and teaches their caregivers how to feed them according to their needs, but they do not provide around-the-clock care. That's the caregiver's job, but Fleur's aunt would rather be in town getting something to eat and drink, so she left the baby there with a young girl, probably a cousin, who was no more than six years old.
The situation got even more complicated when Fleur was discharged from the nutrition center two weeks ago. She was still in a very critical state medically, but the main problem was that no one in the family wanted to take her home, especially not the aunt, who had quickly become tired of caring for her.
In general, the dagara people are excellent at taking care of their own. We have around fifty orphans in our infants in distress program who prove this. When their mothers died, an aunt, grandmother, or other woman in the family took in the baby to raise him or her. This is the cultural norm, and it's a beautiful demonstration of the importance of family and the value of taking care of children, even orphans.
By every once in a while, we get a case like this when apparently no one wants the child, and it breaks our hearts.
That's when Rebeca steps up. She considers taking care of orphans and infants in distress her calling from God, and she will never refuse a child. That's why she is one of only two registered foster families in our entire area. She has taken in 13 orphans since she started doing this in 2007, and she has never received a single dime that social services promised her. As a single mother of two twins, she has five other children in addition to her own currently living with her. Fleur became the sixth.
Over the past couple of weeks, I have met with Rebeca, social services, and our team countless times and for many hours trying to find another foster family with which to place Fleur. It's not because Rebeca is incapable (not at all!) but rather because she needs relief. She has been called to love orphans, but she can't do it all. It's time to open doors so that others can experience the call and joy that Rebeca feels.
Honestly, all the hours in meetings and trying to navigate the system is frustrating and tiring. There is dishonesty, laziness, and corruption all hidden within the system, but there are also people with good hearts and good intentions but little resources. Tying to find a solution takes a lot of problem solving, outside-the-box thinking, patience, and prayer. Instead of getting discouraged, I tried asking the question, why are things happening this way? And what does God want me to see and learn from this experience?
What I found is that this case has opened our eyes to see how desperately we need foster families. It is our desire and dream to see the church rise up to the call to take care of orphans. If we found two host families in each of our sixty village churches, an orphan would never be homeless ever again. Now that we see the need, we have heard the call and can no longer remain silent, inactive, or unaware.
This is also the next step towards our Infant Rescue Center that will be built very soon. It is not an orphanage; the last thing we want to do is give people an excuse to not do what they are already doing so well by taking orphans into their extended families. What we want to do is use the center to empower families to take care of orphans. Logically, and faithfully, this is the next best step in preparation for such a center: build up a community of foster families.
Because of Fleur, our team is devoted to seek out and raise up foster families within the church who will care for orphans. Because of her, we have a face and a story that touches our hearts and shows the need. Because of her, we gained momentum and are now propelled forward to do something about it.
All the tears and frustrations are worth it just for that.
Emily and I spent a lot of time with little Fleur today as she hung out in the office with us while we worked with Rebeca. The first time she saw me, she screamed in fear (I have a tendency to do that to small children...just by the color of my skin), but today she left me hold her and snuggle her and sing to her. The first time I saw her picture, she was wasting away, but today she was gobbling down Plumpy Nut (a ready-to-eat therapeutic food that is loaded in calories and nutrition and resembles peanut butter). Two weeks ago, she could only sit and barely hold her head up, but today she was pushing up on her legs like she will be ready to stand on her own very soon. In her first picture, she was expressionless; now she both giggles when she is happy and cries when she needs something. Before she was alone, today she was surrounded in love. And it made all the difference in the world.
For Fleur and the many other abandoned children out there, we are honored to advocate for you. We are working on your behalf, trying to be a voice for you when you are voiceless. But there is One whose eye is never off of you and whose ears hear your every cry and prayer. The Bible promises that he watches over you and that he sets you in families, and we believe that to be true with all our hearts. Because he loves you, so do we. Because he fights for you, so do we.
"Her name in Fleur," Rebeca said, which means Flower in French. She was sitting in the photo all alone, expressionless, like a sack of skin and bones, her eyes bulging from her emaciated face. To say this baby girl was "frail" was an understatement. The nutrition center helps monitor these babies and teaches their caregivers how to feed them according to their needs, but they do not provide around-the-clock care. That's the caregiver's job, but Fleur's aunt would rather be in town getting something to eat and drink, so she left the baby there with a young girl, probably a cousin, who was no more than six years old.
The situation got even more complicated when Fleur was discharged from the nutrition center two weeks ago. She was still in a very critical state medically, but the main problem was that no one in the family wanted to take her home, especially not the aunt, who had quickly become tired of caring for her.
In general, the dagara people are excellent at taking care of their own. We have around fifty orphans in our infants in distress program who prove this. When their mothers died, an aunt, grandmother, or other woman in the family took in the baby to raise him or her. This is the cultural norm, and it's a beautiful demonstration of the importance of family and the value of taking care of children, even orphans.
By every once in a while, we get a case like this when apparently no one wants the child, and it breaks our hearts.
That's when Rebeca steps up. She considers taking care of orphans and infants in distress her calling from God, and she will never refuse a child. That's why she is one of only two registered foster families in our entire area. She has taken in 13 orphans since she started doing this in 2007, and she has never received a single dime that social services promised her. As a single mother of two twins, she has five other children in addition to her own currently living with her. Fleur became the sixth.
Over the past couple of weeks, I have met with Rebeca, social services, and our team countless times and for many hours trying to find another foster family with which to place Fleur. It's not because Rebeca is incapable (not at all!) but rather because she needs relief. She has been called to love orphans, but she can't do it all. It's time to open doors so that others can experience the call and joy that Rebeca feels.
Honestly, all the hours in meetings and trying to navigate the system is frustrating and tiring. There is dishonesty, laziness, and corruption all hidden within the system, but there are also people with good hearts and good intentions but little resources. Tying to find a solution takes a lot of problem solving, outside-the-box thinking, patience, and prayer. Instead of getting discouraged, I tried asking the question, why are things happening this way? And what does God want me to see and learn from this experience?
What I found is that this case has opened our eyes to see how desperately we need foster families. It is our desire and dream to see the church rise up to the call to take care of orphans. If we found two host families in each of our sixty village churches, an orphan would never be homeless ever again. Now that we see the need, we have heard the call and can no longer remain silent, inactive, or unaware.
This is also the next step towards our Infant Rescue Center that will be built very soon. It is not an orphanage; the last thing we want to do is give people an excuse to not do what they are already doing so well by taking orphans into their extended families. What we want to do is use the center to empower families to take care of orphans. Logically, and faithfully, this is the next best step in preparation for such a center: build up a community of foster families.
Because of Fleur, our team is devoted to seek out and raise up foster families within the church who will care for orphans. Because of her, we have a face and a story that touches our hearts and shows the need. Because of her, we gained momentum and are now propelled forward to do something about it.
All the tears and frustrations are worth it just for that.
Emily and I spent a lot of time with little Fleur today as she hung out in the office with us while we worked with Rebeca. The first time she saw me, she screamed in fear (I have a tendency to do that to small children...just by the color of my skin), but today she left me hold her and snuggle her and sing to her. The first time I saw her picture, she was wasting away, but today she was gobbling down Plumpy Nut (a ready-to-eat therapeutic food that is loaded in calories and nutrition and resembles peanut butter). Two weeks ago, she could only sit and barely hold her head up, but today she was pushing up on her legs like she will be ready to stand on her own very soon. In her first picture, she was expressionless; now she both giggles when she is happy and cries when she needs something. Before she was alone, today she was surrounded in love. And it made all the difference in the world.
For Fleur and the many other abandoned children out there, we are honored to advocate for you. We are working on your behalf, trying to be a voice for you when you are voiceless. But there is One whose eye is never off of you and whose ears hear your every cry and prayer. The Bible promises that he watches over you and that he sets you in families, and we believe that to be true with all our hearts. Because he loves you, so do we. Because he fights for you, so do we.
Fleur is pictured left with a widowed woman in the church who is willing too take care of her. We are already praising God for this answered prayer and waiting for official placement approval.
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