visit to a children's home

Yesterday we had the opportunity to meet Brad from Partners here in Chiang Mai. He was kind enough to pick us up from where we are staying and drive us to their office on the other side of the city. During our conversation on the ride over, he mentioned that a team of people were heading out that afternoon to visit a children's home north of Chiang Mai. They were going to spend time there, and would put on a Christmas dinner and program for the kids. He asked if we wanted to ride along and we jumped at the chance.

With the group were two sweet women from Partners, and a team of 5 from New Zealand. We made our introductions as the bus wove in and out of traffic through the city and up toward the mountains. We stopped at an outdoor market about an hour outside of town to finish purchasing food for the meal. The children who live at this home come from families of IDPs from Burma. As people with no country to call their own, their families, for various reasons, are unable to care for them and ensure that they receive education. At the children's home, however, they have a place to sleep, food to eat, and are enrolled in school--this keeps them (at least for a time) from being used as child labor or worse. The two adults who oversee their care were incredibly kind and patient with them.

colorful food choices all around

fruits and vegetables of every kind-- we even got to sample a few

large pots of soups, curries and noodle dishes were everywhere--they smelled delicious!

the children's food/hygiene area

unloading the 'school bus'

laundry/bathing area

the kids LOVED chase games

group tooth brushing after dinner before the special Christmas program

Josh and I helped prepare dinner once we arrived (no fish paste!) while we waited for the children to come back from school. When they did, they all unloaded from the back of a pickup truck and dashed off to change out of their uniforms so we could play games. The kids were bubbly, energetic and active--just like all kids, except that several of them had deep scars evident on their arms and legs.

Despite having so little (thin bamboo open walls, rudimentary plumbing and electricity and only two 'parent' figures at the home for 28 children), the children were happy and we had a wonderful evening with them. They enjoyed singing, hearing the Christmas story, and playing with Josh the Jungle Gym.  We were so impressed with how polite and well-cared for they all were, even with the excitement of foreign guests and special events. I wish I could have captured this evening more completely to show some of our American children how much they take for granted with such ungratefulness.

the view from the home

The long quiet ride back to the city gave us time to think about all we are blessed with. I am so thankful that there are organizations and individuals so willing to dedicate themselves to helping the 'least of these'. Because of them, the lives of these 26 children are forever changed.