We have now been at El Shaddai Children’s Home in Swaziland
for two weeks, and we are here for two more starting tomorrow. The three teams
here have fallen into a steady morning ministry routine of playing with kids at
the baby house, helping with the preschool, and doing construction, and in the
afternoons we hang out with the kids and tutor them at math or science, or we
have the option of going back to the baby house or construction. For me, I
spend as much time as possible at the baby house, mostly to hang out with my
favorite kid, Kevin.
for two weeks, and we are here for two more starting tomorrow. The three teams
here have fallen into a steady morning ministry routine of playing with kids at
the baby house, helping with the preschool, and doing construction, and in the
afternoons we hang out with the kids and tutor them at math or science, or we
have the option of going back to the baby house or construction. For me, I
spend as much time as possible at the baby house, mostly to hang out with my
favorite kid, Kevin.
Kevin is about three or four years old, but you can’t really
ever be sure exactly how old the kids are with birth records not widely
available. He was born with disfigured legs that force him to walk with an
awkward posture, which I can best describe as how you would walk if you were
squatting because of a rash on the inside of your legs. His legs don’t fully
extend when he walks, and while this is something that could have been easily
fixed with the proper corrective surgery, Kevin does not have that option here
in Swaziland. I don’t know his background or why he is at the children’s home,
but all I know is that this kid is one of the most endearing three year olds
I’ve ever met. He is always smiling, always talking your head off (usually in
Swati, but with some English mixed in as well) and is a nonstop ball of energy,
either dancing, running around, or swinging on the swings – at least until it
comes time to go to church and he immediately passes out in your lap. I
typically hate falling in love with the cutest little kid in the orphanage,
because I feel like everyone always goes for that kid. But Kevin really
suckered me in, and I can’t help but eagerly anticipate his high pitched voice
squeaking “Steven!” and his tiny legs sprinting towards me as soon as I walk
into the fenced area around the baby house. I chose Kevin in large part because
he chose me too. I’ve even heard he asks
for me when I’m not there! (For the
record, Kevin loves everyone, and I ‘m sure I’m not the only name he knows, but
this is my blog, right?)
ever be sure exactly how old the kids are with birth records not widely
available. He was born with disfigured legs that force him to walk with an
awkward posture, which I can best describe as how you would walk if you were
squatting because of a rash on the inside of your legs. His legs don’t fully
extend when he walks, and while this is something that could have been easily
fixed with the proper corrective surgery, Kevin does not have that option here
in Swaziland. I don’t know his background or why he is at the children’s home,
but all I know is that this kid is one of the most endearing three year olds
I’ve ever met. He is always smiling, always talking your head off (usually in
Swati, but with some English mixed in as well) and is a nonstop ball of energy,
either dancing, running around, or swinging on the swings – at least until it
comes time to go to church and he immediately passes out in your lap. I
typically hate falling in love with the cutest little kid in the orphanage,
because I feel like everyone always goes for that kid. But Kevin really
suckered me in, and I can’t help but eagerly anticipate his high pitched voice
squeaking “Steven!” and his tiny legs sprinting towards me as soon as I walk
into the fenced area around the baby house. I chose Kevin in large part because
he chose me too. I’ve even heard he asks
for me when I’m not there! (For the
record, Kevin loves everyone, and I ‘m sure I’m not the only name he knows, but
this is my blog, right?)
It’s crazy how we look forward to coming to a children’s
home and have the hope that we will be able to make some kids happy and feel
loved, the love that they might not ever receive, but we fail to neglect the
feeling you get when a kid shows you love. I’ll admit, it makes me feel special.
It also makes me excited to be a dad sometime down the road. I know it sounds
cliché, but I can’t wait to love a kid that is my own. I want so badly what is
best for Kevin, for him to have a family, for him to continue to make everyone
he meets feel as special as I feel, and how much I wish I could take him to a
doctor in America and have him receive corrective surgery for his legs. And this is how I feel about a kid I just met
two weeks ago.
home and have the hope that we will be able to make some kids happy and feel
loved, the love that they might not ever receive, but we fail to neglect the
feeling you get when a kid shows you love. I’ll admit, it makes me feel special.
It also makes me excited to be a dad sometime down the road. I know it sounds
cliché, but I can’t wait to love a kid that is my own. I want so badly what is
best for Kevin, for him to have a family, for him to continue to make everyone
he meets feel as special as I feel, and how much I wish I could take him to a
doctor in America and have him receive corrective surgery for his legs. And this is how I feel about a kid I just met
two weeks ago.
When I first got here, I definitely had the “Kadesh
Hangover” – referring to how much I missed our last ministry site at the boys
home in Mozambique. I didn’t want to open myself up to loving anymore kids, I
just wanted to be back hanging out with Frankie, and Blondie, and Franciso, and
all the other boys at Kadesh. I’m amazed at how quickly God changed my heart
here and opened the door for me to love more kids here at
El Shaddai. God’s love is not limited, it is not conditional, and it is not a
commodity that we can only give so much of.Eventhough I know I can’t duplicate
my experience from last month, God introduced me to Kevin and showed me that
I’ve got plenty of love left to share with a few more kids!
Hangover” – referring to how much I missed our last ministry site at the boys
home in Mozambique. I didn’t want to open myself up to loving anymore kids, I
just wanted to be back hanging out with Frankie, and Blondie, and Franciso, and
all the other boys at Kadesh. I’m amazed at how quickly God changed my heart
here and opened the door for me to love more kids here at
El Shaddai. God’s love is not limited, it is not conditional, and it is not a
commodity that we can only give so much of.Eventhough I know I can’t duplicate
my experience from last month, God introduced me to Kevin and showed me that
I’ve got plenty of love left to share with a few more kids!
