August and September Updates

August and September Recap

August and September were activity packed months for the children of Hope for Tomorrow Children’s Home.  It started just a few days after we took the older children to the movies in July.  Since we didn’t want to leave the little ones out, together with our volunteer Kristina we organized a trip to Islaventura, a gigantic play place that we have taken the children to in the past (see pictures of our trip to Islaventura here).   The preschoolers had a blast climbing and running around the three story high jungle gym, especially Carlos who feels at home since there are so many places for him to grab ahold of.  This was also a great environment for us to interact with Rosa and Diego since they had just came to our home a few weeks back.  Both of them had constant smiles on their faces and it was evident that they had never experienced something like this before in their lives.  After we returned, the older children were a bit jealous, but we graciously reminded them that they went to the movies just a few days before.  “Oh, yeah, you’re right,” they replied as they recalled the trip.  While it’s fun to do activities with all the children together, it’s also good for us to be able to split the children up and do age appropriate activities with the different groups as well.

The following week, our second oldest Edwin, turned 10 years old.  To make the event unforgettable Kristina lovingly paid for a clown to come to the party.  It was something we had never done with the children and we knew it would be a hit.  However, when the clown came to the home dressed up with his painted face, red nose, and big shoes, Edwin ran away screaming!  He hid behind Blanca, noticeably shook up, as Clown Peace rolled his suitcase of props into the living room.  Diana and I both looked at each other wondering if we had made a huge mistake.  If Edwin didn’t like the clown then the entire party would have been a disaster.  But the clown, very professionally began his show and little by little, Edwin warmed up to him.  It was obvious that this wasn’t the first time the birthday child had been scared of a clown.  Within a matter of minutes, Edwin was volunteering to be the clown’s assistant and spent the show helping him perform “magic” tricks.  Edwin felt like the king of the afternoon, exactly what we wanted!  All of the children (and adults!!) had a blast and it was wonderful to hear, weeks after the party was over, the children still singing the songs they had learned with the clown (see pictures of the party here and watch videos of Edwin’s party here).

Independence Day Parades and Activities

A few weeks later we were in the month of September and all kinds of crazy took place.  September is usually a busy month because Guatemala celebrates its independence on the 15th and most schools have some sort of patriotic activity with their students, be it a parade or presentation.  The school the older children attend has a first class marching band and the entire school participates in some way.  The first graders, where Lidia is, dress up as different representations of cultural aspects of Guatemala.  This year, Lidia was the Guatemalan flag!  The second graders on march normally behind the band, but the students with the highest grades become flag bearers and have the special honor of carrying the different flags in front of the other grades.  This year, we are proud to share that Amelia had that honor, as she had the highest grades among her second grade peers.  It was an incredible feeling to watch Amelia, wearing white gloves, walk with her head high as she carried the flag and led her class in the parade (see pictures of Amelia, Lidia and the parade here).

During all these festivities, Miguel and his fifth grade class were back at the school getting ready for the typical market to begin.  All of the older classes split up in groups with some cooking and selling food and others, like Miguel, putting up decorations.  Everything from the parade to the market afterwards is a wonderful time for the children to not only have fun but also to learn about their country.

Continuing with the independence festivities, the following week our own preschool organized a market day as well.  The morning began with the preschoolers doing some dances common among the indigenous populations.  All the children get dressed up in cultural outfits and they even painted little mustaches on the boys!  After the dances, the children helped make and serve Guatemalan food like “tostadas” (hard corn tortillas with guacamole and cheese in top), “chuchitos” (potato based ball filled with chicken), and “atol de elote” (a thick corn drink that is hot and sweet).  Last year, when we did the market there were only 3 children that participated in the dance.  This year, with the addition of the new children, there were seven!  Oh, how we have grown (see pictures of our Hope Preschool Market Day here).

The special school activities came to an end with Edwin’s school and their presentations.  Like last year, Edwin participated in a cultural dance, but this year he was paired with a girl!  It was adorable to see Edwin and his partner dancing away.  By far they were the cutest couple (see pictures of Edwin here and watch him dance here)!

To the Park

As the month of September was coming to an end we did one final activity with the children, taking advantage of the fact the children were out of school due to the presidential election.  We always like to take the children on new adventures so this time we went to a huge park outside the city (see pictures of our trip to the park here) on the way to Antigua.  Unfortunately when we arrived it began to drizzle and we were sure it was going to ruin the morning.  Thankfully, within a few minutes it let up, the clouds parted, and the sun began to shine.  While we have gone to parks before in the past, this was by far the biggest and the children really let loose.  They were running around enjoying the freedoms on the great outdoors.  Lidia, bless her heart, fell down about a half dozen times, since the ground was a bit slick from the recent rain.  And being the rather sensitive person she is, she probably spent half of the time crying on Diana’s shoulder!

About half way through the morning we got a group basketball game together and it was fun playing as a family, passing the ball back and forth and helping each other score.  A little later, we played some hide and seek and during one round, Diana laid 2 year old Daniel on a tree trunk that was slanted at almost a 90 degree angle.  It was hilarious because he fit perfectly on the trunk and laid there as still as he could as he waited for someone to find him.  When someone did find him he would just giggle and grin.

Goodbye Daniel

September came to an end with a bittersweet moment as we took Daniel to his court hearing. After spending the past three months with us, it was now a judge’s decision on whether or not Daniel would stay with us or if he would go home with his family.  During Daniel’s time with us his family visited every moment they could and they were heartbroken when they had to leave.  The only peace they had was knowing Daniel was in a wonderful children’s home and was receiving great care.  By the time the court appearance came, it was evident that Daniel needed to be with his family.  Thankfully, after a short, but nerve-racking hearing, the judge ruled in favor of the family and Daniel could finally go home.   Tears of joy streamed from his mothers eyes as she embraced her son.  She repeatedly thanked us for everything we did for Daniel and all we could say is that it was a privilege for us to play such a crucial role in the life of this family.

The experience with Daniel has truly encouraged us and has given us a new perspective on our ministry.  We have come to see that we are not only called to restore the lives of orphan children, but also the lives of entire families.  To children that have been orphaned and abandoned, we have become their family.  One by one, with the direction and power of God, we are restoring their lives and giving them the opportunity to become the men and women God has called them to be.  But for other children like Daniel, that are only with us a short time, it is evident that they have been placed with us so we can help restore their broken families.  We have the opportunity to not only minister to the child but also the mother, father, aunts and uncles.  Many times the mistreatment that a child receives at home is because the parents themselves are hurt and burdened and we have the privilege to speak truth to their lives and watch as the Lord repairs the brokenness.  What an incredible honor and calling.