Ten children.

Yet, here I was trying to mentally prepare myself to work with them for 2-3 hours a day for a whole week.

Almost everything I had heard prior to heading to the care center had made me worry and fear how I could interact with the kids and what it would be like. 

Now I was walking through the gates of the care center, heading to the front of the building…heart pounding, stomach in my throat. 

Why was I so afraid?

I’m not sure, but I was nearly terrified. 

I turned the corner of the building and found myself looking at ten children with disabilities ranging from physical deformities to mental handicaps and many with both.

 

How was I going to care for these kids?

What could I do? I have no training, no preparation, no knowledge of their diseases or special needs.

I was unfit to care for any of them.

 

After a briefing with background information on some of the children, the care center, and their purpose as an organization, we went back outside where the kids were seated.

 

I was motioned to come and help bring the kids inside; I came to the nearest child, a girl who looked to be about 8 or 9 years old, she was confined to a wheel chair, her body was contorted and her eyes looked distant. I helped to push her inside and then assisted a blind boy with walking to a seat indoors. 

 

I looked around the room and considered what I was seeing, most of the children sat on various seats rocking back and forth or staring blindly in the distance, some muttered to themselves or walked back and forth with great intensity. 

I began to realize that I had come into this place with the idea that these children were something to be scared of, they were different and therefore I thought I couldn’t care or interact with them properly. But I was so wrong. 

 

Throughout the first day I began to put names to faces, disabilities to names and personalities to faces. 

Each child was so different from the other, each beautiful and unique in their own way.

 

I began to see them not only as a child with a titled disability, but as a precious child of the King.

 

I also learned more about where they had come from. The short but not at all sweet version is that the majority of kids in this particular care center came from a larger facility called Mogilino that was shut down in 2009 after BBC filmed a documentary on the care and practices taking place there. Nearly every child in the care of this facility had suffered from awful malnutrition and care; some would simply shut down because of the lack of interaction they experienced. 

 

The film raised a high awareness of what was taking place within the Bulgarian facilities and care centers and the kids were slowly placed in smaller, newer facilities throughout Bulgaria.

 

Check out the documentary here if you want to know more (some of the kids we worked with are in the film): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQZ-ERQczj8

 

Throughout the week I met each of the kids in the care center: 

Dessi, a blind girl who is 23 years old (yet looks to be around 16), and mute but has the sweetest disposition and attitude, she recognized me by voice and my facial features.

Ivan, a highly autistic boy who is 12 years old, was probably the most interactive, he would hold our arms and walk us through the center showing us his favorite things.

Pepe, the oldest of the “children” is 24 (in looks he seems to be about 15), he had many disabilities (muscle atrophy, scoliosis, and mentally handicapped), he was the least social but was very loving with the other workers.

Roomie, 19 years old (in looks, about 13), is blind, and mentally handicapped, she had violent outbursts and would frequently hurt herself, she spent most of her time rocking back and forth on the couch and listening to T. Swift.

Krassie, around 21 years old, (but was the smallest in size of all the kids in the care center) suffers from scoliosis, muscle atrophy, and a mental deficiency and is the girl I described in the beginning who is confined to a wheelchair.

Sammy, a blind boy who is 22 years old and suffers from seizures, also had muscle atrophy and would rock back and forth throughout the entire day. He was very strong for his size though and would tightly hold your hand while sitting with him.

Christy, 14 years old and has severe muscle atrophy as well as a mental handicap of sorts. She shys away from physical touch but loved for us to clap our hands with her. 

Tashko, 17 years old but can be held on our arms like a 6 year old, has cerebral palsy, his body is also contorted due to scoliosis and he has extremely limited motor control, he is content to hold our hand.

Toto, around 19 years old is quite the ladies man, he liked to hold as many of our hands as possible at one time. He suffers from a mental deficiency as well as muscle atrophy. He has quite the deep voice that he likes sharing with us through odd mumbles here and there.

And lastly, the boy I fell in love with, little Delcho.

I wish I could have taken a photo of this little boy, (sadly government restricts visitors from doing so, the photos I will share were from the organizations social media).

Delcho is the youngest of the children there, 11 years old. He is blind and deaf in one ear, he also suffers from muscle atrophy. I would sit with this boy for hours upon hours over the week we spent there. He loved when we would sing or play music as he could lean against my chest and feel the vibration from our words. He would smile in absolute and utter joy at the littlest things, and that gave me so much peace. 

 

I had opportunities to spoon feed, sing to, dance with and hold these beautiful children. I will never forget these amazing, heart warming moments.

 

Jesus was with us in that care center, not only because we came to that place and He lives within us, but because some of them so plainly carry the peace and joy that only He can give.

Despite their horrible past and painful present, some of them know the Creator.

For those that didn’t already know Him, we prayed throughout the week that we would be His hands and feet, and that when the children looked at us, they would see Him.

 

Above: Toto and Krassie

Above: Several of the children in this photo are still in the care center

Above: Dessi

 

It was an incredible week and I am so thankful for the experience. 

Please pray for these not so little kids. Pray for God’s divine will in their lives. 

 

Thank you for following my journey.