Meet Kenneth.
This 1 year-old bundle of snuggles is a living miracle and testimony to God’s sovereignty. I have the amazing honor of cuddling, feeding, kissing, loving, and praying for this little man during our stay in India.
Kenneth was brought to Sarah’s Covenant Home (SCH) about 3 months ago. He was found in a state of septic shock and was near death at the state orphanage. SCH took him out of the orphanage and to the hospital, where against all odds, his fragile little body was able to regain health and strength.
Although he is now free of infection, Kenneth still has numerous challenges that he struggles with daily: he has spastic cerebral palsy, epilepsy, a feeding tube, he is blind, and possibly deaf as well. But I refuse to see this as a hopeless situation; on the contrary, this baby has already overcome so many obstacles that the doctors thought he wouldn’t survive.
As orphans, the society here would have seen these children as members of the lowest caste system; and since they have special needs, they would actually be the lowest of the low. However, Sarah’s Covenant Home provides a healthy and loving environment for special needs orphans like Kenneth. The sickest children are taken out of the state orphanage and are given the best medical care. They are surrounded by constant nurturing care, and when they are healthy enough, they live in a family setting with an SCH foster mother and other children.
Although Kenneth is immobile and not as expressive as a healthy baby, there are tiny victories in our relationship. All of his muscles are often tense due to the cerebral palsy, but he instantly relaxes when he is held close. The live-in nurse taught me how to feed him through his feeding tube, so we cuddle as I take care of his most basic needs. He has the longest eyelashes I’ve ever seen on a baby and the absolute softest cheeks, and something even more beautiful has happened this week: he began giggling. Whether I am walking around with him, or sitting with him in my lap, he will randomly give off a sweet and quiet giggle that might otherwise be unnoticed.
Although my heart sometimes hurts for Kenneth’s situation, for the difficulties he will have in life down the road, there is also so much to hope for. In a matter of months, he has already gained strength and recovered from a near-death experience. I know that when I leave SCH at the end of the month, he will still receive constant medical monitoring by the nurses. He will be showered in hugs and kisses by caretakers who love the Lord, and he will grow up to live an abundant and wonderful life. I can only pray that I will meet Kenneth again someday, with a fully restored body, in heaven. Oh, how I look forward to that day!
Guandanalu (Praise the Lord) for the life of this little baby boy.
