Day 5

In the morning, I worked in the arts and crafts classroom, where they teach life skills to the girls that attend the class. We did a lot of coloring and sweeping, and even though it was hot, I really enjoyed working with these girls and getting to know them better, because they are all so unique.

This afternoon, Tyra, Sammie, Max, Sarah, three of our translators, and I went on two more home visits. We first visited the home of a sweet fourteen-year-old girl named Milagro and checked up on her, giving her family diapers and a bag of food. Walking into her house, I knew that she was not well taken care of, but I had no idea how bad her situation really was. Milagro has cerebral palsy, and her mother has done the minimal amount of physical therapy that could possibly be done, so her tendons were tight, she had no muscle tone, and her arms and legs had been stuck growing in the same position for so long that they were contorted and she could barely move. She was so skinny and dirty -it was obvious that her mother hadn't been taking care of her- that she must've been miserable, but the enormous smile that spread across her face when we hugged and kissed her was unforgettable. She was so excited to have people be loving and kind to her for the first time in so long, and it was such an honor to be able to be a source of that love. Her mother, knowing that we would be reporting our findings to Lisa Marie and trying to help Milagro, put on some music and started singing to her child, putting on a show for the rest of us, when in reality that was probably the first time her mother had even talked to her in days. However, despite how we feel about her mother, we are all intent on bringing Milagro to our party at the school tomorrow, where she will be socializing with all of the kids there and receiving love and affection from all of us.

The second house we visited was home to Julisa, who was twenty-three and also had cerebral palsy. When we got to where she lived, her mother pulled her out of a tiny room on the side of the house. We found out that she is rarely taken out of this room. She hasn't bathed in a while (though her mother said she has, it was evident that this was not the case), she has seizures almost every day, and she hasn't pooped in fifteen days. The only toy that she plays with is a pink trash bag. After talking to her mother more and taking pictures with Julisa, we said our goodbyes and gave Julisa a hug. She was very enthusiastic about the hugging, and when Max came up to her, she held on to him as long and as well as she could. However, this will not be the last time that we see her, because she also might come to Escuela Especial for our party tomorrow! I look forward to seeing her then!

Seeing these girls today was such an incredible experience. They were both so sweet, and I wanted to take them back home with me. But seeing how they lived and what their families were like brought tears to my eyes. I don't understand how someone could treat their human child with such blatant disregard. Our translator, Zack, said to Milagro's mother today, "Do you believe in God? This is an angel sent to you from Heaven. You have to take care of her for the rest of your life." Zack hit the nail on the head- every child, every human life is so precious, especially Milagro's and Julisa's. The fact that their families don't understand that and put so little effort into caring for them makes me incredibly angry. I feel better, though, knowing that I will see them tomorrow and I'll be able to give them a million hugs, a million kisses, and all the love that they deserve.

Tonight, we are preparing 130 bags for every family who sends their child to Escuela Especial. I can't wait to see the kids' faces when we give them to them! We are going to have an amazing goodbye party tomorrow, where we'll celebrate everything that the kids have taught us and what we have taught them. It's going to be an exciting day!