Day 4 (Part II) - Making an Impact

Monday, April 13

When I started this day I had no idea I would make an immediate impact on a child’s life. To do so with 2 children in one encounter was emotionally overwhelming and truly fulfilling.

When my participation in the siblings program was mentioned during our meeting with the staff there was a brief discussion of which children needed me the most. They selected between 2 sets of siblings. One consisting of 5 siblings that are in PPA due to having both parents in prison and the other of 2 brothers with a schizophrenic mother and a father no one has heard from. Apparently the 2 boys, ages 2 and 4, didn’t want any interaction with one another. Every time an attempt was made they’d refuse and act out. They decided the 2 brothers would benefit the most from my participation. I met them after my group lunch.

After lunch, we returned to the orphanage and were given an opportunity to select games, books or any other activity we’d think fit for our project. Since the siblings I had been assigned were so young, I figured bubbles and a book would be the best choice. I must state, Mili and I developed such an appreciation for bubbles after I was done.

Mili escorted me to pick up 2 year old Eduardo at the toddlers section. At first when he was brought to us he was ok until his care taker told him I would be taking him to his brother. He immediately began to resist us. I pulled out the bubbles and he started following me all the way to his brothers section. Once his brother was brought out I was still playing with the bubbles. He had no interest in joining us until his classmates were all giggling around me popping each bubble that floated in the air.

When I took the boys to the playground they remained separate. I began telling them my name and that I had 2 brothers whom I love dearly. Luis, the 4 year old spoke about all of his siblings and that he loves them all including his 2 year old brother Eduardo whom he knows has no love for him. When I asked Eduardo if he loved his brother Luis he yelled ¨NO!¨. I began playing games with them in hopes of having them collaborate with one another. I began chasing them and climbing the ladders to the slide in which Luis kept assisting Eduardo since he´s too small to climb fast. Once they got thirsty I served them water on the bottle cap which made Luis ensure his brother would get a turn and Eduardo began reciprocating. Before you knew it, they were actually acting like siblings. While I was helping them read a book one of the nuns passed by and asked if I was their mother. When I responded that I was a volunteer with GV she told me I had accomplished something truly amazing which made her want to cry. There had been numerous failed attempts in getting the boys to interact with one another. Seeing them together so peacefully and happy was overjoying for her. When the time arrived for me to return them to their groups they hugged each other and said they were looking forward to my picking them up the next day.

As for my other volunteer partners: Laura discovered a biter working at the hospital, Dan and Jozi spent the afternoon refuting love affair comments between the two made by the boys they were expected to teach English and Lisa with her daughter Libby spent the afternoon chasing toddlers who kept running away at a blink of an eye. At the end of the day, we all left looking forward to many other days of opportunities to make an impact. We had no clue what would be in store for us during the proceeding days.

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