This is apparently my third and long over-due post on my time in Ukraine. I have been back in the US for almost 2 months now and after most overseas trips my thoughts would have turned (permanently) to other things...and yet the experience still holds my attention. This time (as in the previous 2 Ukraine posts) I am going to facilitate my point through the story of one of the children I met.
This is Natasha. I'm guessing she is somewhere in the 13-14 age range and she lives in Kiev at the group home that I spoke about previously. As I mentioned, the Children's Center in Kiev is not an orphanage. It is a Christian group home for children whose parents are incapable - either for financial or lifestyle reasons - of caring for them. The top photo is a picture of a picture from a bulletin board at the home. Many of the children that we met have "before and after" pictures on this board. One side shows them in their previous environment while the other was frequently a shot of them at the Center's school, bettering themselves. The "before" shots are heart-wrenching, showing filthy, cut up children - barely recognizable, even if you know at whom you're looking - living in boiler rooms, sewer pipes, and abandoned buildings. They snarl at the camera like starving dogs as they scrounge just to survive.
The picture quality makes it difficult to see Natasha's eyes and the deadness that they hold. The closer one examines the first picture, the more amazing the second becomes. Lil' Natasha (as I think of her, to differentiate her from our team member and the adult Ukrainian helper of the same name) was one of my favorites - though I think I've said that about all the kids. She LOVED my buddy Paul and was with him at nearly every opportunity.
My main reason for this post was to give example of the work being done in Ukraine of which I cannot wait to be a part. The difference between the cold Natasha, so young and yet already beaten down by the pain of life, and the sweet smile of Natasha today is so drastic that I cannot help but be drawn to making that kind of a difference in the lives of children half a world away.
I know that I am a little hit or miss on my blogging schedule but please stick with me for the next few months of preparation. Upon arrival, I plan to be intentional about keeping you updated on progress in my new hometown.
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Well done my friend, well done. I really liked your post. I think this should encourage all of us who stay behind to think about the same differences we can make in people's lives here at home and in our state/country while you're away. I really like The Gathering's sign as you leave the church that says "You are now entering the missions field". So true, so true. Anyways, I just had that thought after reading your blog. Cheers buddy.
ReplyDeleteI am frustrated that I haven't seen the world around me as a mission field. It is an indictment of my spiritual maturity that I haven't seen Colorado Springs through the same eyes as I see Kerch.
ReplyDeleteI totally understand. I agree with you and feel the same way about myself. I think that's why I like their sign so much - it's an eye opener everytime.
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