First the downs…After our wonderful Thanksgiving dinner here, we had a relaxing weekend in San Diego as a family. Then we also bought a pair of VANS shoes as promised, and brought them back for Jose. He thanked us several times… and the next day, ran away. WHAT? Was he holding out for a new pair of shoes so he could run faster? No, not really, we know that wasn’t it. But it hit us hard. Other kids have run away since we have been here. A “low run-away rate” is an unofficial indicator of how healthy an orphanage is here in Mexico, so it is very common. I am not sure if TCM’s rate is high or low, to be honest, but it doesn’t really matter. When you invest in a kid and then he decides to go, it is always disappointing. Jose did come back briefly, and is now back with Children’s Services, where he will be placed somewhere else. Perhaps he will try to come back here someday. A fact of life here, but it was hard.
I have profiled two kids on the TCM blog since I started writing for it. One of them was Jose. The other was Claudio, an older boy who is an excellent student finishing high school. So this morning, Claudio left also. In his case, he wants to learn to live on his own, and no amount of convincing would keep him here. He is a good kid and will probably do ok, but again, I was sad to see him go. (Also, I apparently need to quit highlighting kids on the TCM blog so they quit leaving!)
But, now for the UPS! (the highlights, not the delivery service! )
I have mentioned before that we are closer to some kids than others. At times I still feel guilty that we single out kids for attention, but realistically, we can’t invest deeply in each kid, so we are trying to invest in the ones we can. Gabe started a book club with Josiah and Leo this week to spend time encouraging them to ‘do hard things’.
We also spend a lot of time with Estefania. Her dream is to be a chef and have her own restaurant someday… so this week, she created a menu and shopping list, which we bought, and then she made a special Italian dinner for all the kids and staff at Rosarito. (Around 60 people) She did a great job. It was fun to help her!
And today a church from California came down and did their annual Christmas party. The kids sang and danced… always fun to see that. And I really enjoyed watching the kids open their gifts. it makes me happy to see them happy!
Finally, Gabe took this picture the other day, and it might be my favorite picture ever. Yes, it is of me, so that is sort of self-promoting… but it reminds me that sometimes, we can just hug and giggle with a kid, and in the moment, that is enough.
